The Coming Haboob

12-04-2022Pastor's LetterFr. John Bonavitacola

Dear Friends,

The dust from the overturning of Roe v Wade has yet to settle. As we saw in this past election, where abortion was on the ballot in some states, or in other cases, states have passed different laws, some outright bans, some with restriction and many are in litigation over abortion restrictions.

Now that abortion is a state level issue, our Prolife strategies are changing from state to state.

Another dust storm that got kick up is the issue of Same-Sex Marriage. In his concurrence with the majority that overturned Roe, Justice Thomas mentioned that other Supreme Court rulings were based on the same flawed jurisprudence as Roe. Same-Sex Marriage being one of them. No state is pursuing or threatening litigation to overturn the Obergefell decision; but even if it came to that, I am sure within five minutes all states would pass laws in favor of same-sex marriage. Most people, including most Christians can live with it for a variety of reasons I won’t get into here.

But recently the Senate, has introduced the “Respect for Marriage Act”, in an attempt to codify the Obergefell decision, just in case. The problem with the Act is that it does not provide sufficient protections for religious liberty for those who hold to a natural view of marriage (one man-one woman). Kristen Waggoner, the head of Alliance Defending Freedom summed it up this way:

The so-called Respect for Marriage Act is a misnamed bill that expands not only what marriage means, but also who can be sued for disagreeing with the new meaning of marriage. While proponents of the bill claim that it simply codifies the 2015 Obergefell decision, in reality it is an intentional attack on the religious freedom of millions of Americans with sincerely held beliefs about marriage. The Respect for Marriage Act threatens religious freedom and the institution of marriage in multiple ways: It further embeds a false definition of marriage in the American legal fabric. It opens the door to federal recognition of polygamous relationships. It jeopardizes the tax-exempt status of nonprofits that exercise their belief that marriage is the union of one man and one woman. It endangers faith-based social-service organizations by threatening litigation and liability risk if they follow their views on marriage when working with the government.

The truth is the Respect for Marriage Act does nothing to change the status of same-sex marriage or the benefits afforded to same-sex couples following Obergefell. It does much, however, to endanger religious freedom. (Emphasis mine)

In recent years, the Court has issued very strong opinions in respect to Religious Liberty but that has not stopped the lawsuits from coming. Many of our Catholic Foster Care and Adoption services shut down because of varying state or municipal laws for refusing to consider same-sex couples for foster care or adoption. That did nothing to help the overwhelmed Child Protective Service and only greatly reduced the numbers of families available to provide foster care or adoption.

Then there are the lawsuits about employment, for example a Catholic School or other religious based institution being forced to hire people who reject the Gospel. Or in some cases those who hold a traditional view of marriage are excluded from employment or suffer other biases. Ironically most of these lawsuits are not coming from same-sex individuals or organizations, they seem to be mostly OK with finding a way to compromise. Most of the litigation comes from our Justice Department, who insist that those who don’t subscribe to the new definition of marriage face criminal or civil penalties.

This latest “Respect for Marriage Act” provides flimsy protections for religious liberty and furthers hostility towards Americans who hold a natural view of marriage. It is just another tool for the government and other progressive advocates to bludgeon faith-based organizations and individuals into submission.

The US Bishops opposed this new legislation until fixes are made to it to ensure adequate religious liberty protections. If that happens then maybe, we can live and let live.

Love, Fr. John B.

PS You can call your US Senators and insist they amend the “Respect for Marriage Act” to also include respect for those who hold a different view of marriage.