Religious Liberty and Catholics
Not all Catholics have the privilege to live in a country that puts freedom of religion first in its Bill of Rights. But in recent years religious freedom has been under attack at both the state and national level. One Justice Department decision characterized the definition of marriage to be a legal union of one man and one woman to be an act of bigotry. Catholic Charities has been forced to stop finding adoptive homes for foster children because they would not place children with same-sex partners. And of course there is the HHS mandate for even Catholic organizations to provide contraception, sterilization, and abortion-inducing drugs to their employees. [There has been more recently some success in obtaining court decisions to allow greater freedom for employers.]
The brochure explains that religious liberty is not just a Catholic problem; many other religious leaders of different faiths have spoken out in defense of religious liberty. Many accommodations have been made over time to accommodate various religious groups, including refusal to say the Pledge of Allegiance, and refusal to serve in the military. The government even provides chaplains to the military to allow soldiers access to religious services. No one should be forced by the government to violate the teachings of their church in order to comply with the law.
Update:
The Conscience Protection Act of 2016 was overwhelmingly approved by the House of Representatives last July, but was never considered by the Senate. An identical bill has been introduced again this year. Please use this link at humanlifeaction.org to contact your representatives to support this bill. The USCCB (see usccb.org/issues-and-action/religious-liberty/conscience-protection) has two related Fact Sheets: The Need for the Conscience Protection Act and Cases Showing the Need for the Conscience Protection Act.
Click on these links for online versions of the brochure in 8.5 X 11 format:
English This brochure, from Our Sunday Visitor, is not available in Spanish.