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Posted by Matt Yonke (March 22, 2014 at 10:58 am)
We’re now in the final days running up to the Hobby Lobby and Conestoga Wood cases coming before the Supreme Court.
Please join me in praying this special “Novena to Reverse the HHS Mandate,” now on day 6. If you’ve missed the previous 5 days of this 9-day prayer sequence, go ahead an join in now—remember the workers in the vinyard!
Scroll down for the previous days’ prayers, or find them listed here.
Novena to Reverse HHS Mandate: Day 6
Father, You unite the human family
through the blood of Your Son Jesus Christ
and the gift of the Holy Spirit.
At this time of need,
when Your Church and all Your people
are called to stand firm against injustices
inflicted on us from our government,
we ask You to strengthen us in the bond of unity.
Strengthen the unity of Your Church,
that none of Your faithful may be on the sidelines,
but that everyone may be active in this battle.
Give Church leaders the grace to discern
the many varieties of the working of Your Spirit
that they may fan into flame the gifts that the Spirit
bestows freely on Your people.
And give us the wisdom to know
that no group has a monopoly on the defense of life and freedom.
May we work in an ecumenical and inter-religious spirit
and welcome the efforts of all people of good will
who believe in freedom of religion and conscience.
We pray through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Posted in Court Battles, Novena, Rally Locations | Comments Off on Day 6: Interfaith Novena to Stop the HHS Mandate
Posted by Matt Yonke (March 21, 2014 at 10:49 am)
Five days to go before the Supreme Court hears the Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby and Conestoga Wood v. Sebelius cases. Your prayers are needed now more than ever!
Let’s all join together today in praying Day 5 of the Novena to Reverse the HHS Mandate.
Novena to Reverse HHS Mandate: Day 5
Lord God,
You are Light, and in You there is no darkness.
You sent Your Son Jesus Christ
as the Light of the World,
and You sent Your Holy Spirit
to enlighten the hearts and minds of all.
Lord, we pray today
that we may always experience
the light of Your truth,
informing our conscience
of what is right and what is wrong.
We pray that this light
will reach all of our fellow citizens,
that they may recognize the dangers of evil
which are often hidden along their path.
Open the eyes and minds of all
to the threats that currently exist
to our religious freedom,
to the health and well-being of women,
and to the good of our nation.
Give us the grace not only to recognize evil,
but also to reject it with the unwavering strength
that comes from you.
We pray through Christ our Lord. Amen.
Posted in Court Battles, Novena, Prayer Resources | Comments Off on Day 5: Interfaith Novena to Stop the HHS Mandate
Posted by Matt Yonke (March 20, 2014 at 10:47 am)
Today, let’s remember to lift our nation up in prayer that the Supreme Court would uphold the principles of religious freedom that have made it so great.
Let’s join in prayer today with day 4 of the Novena to Reverse the HHS Mandate. [Continue reading …]
Posted in Court Battles, Novena, Prayer Resources | Comments Off on Day 4: Interfaith Novena to Stop the HHS Mandate
Posted by Matt Yonke (March 19, 2014 at 10:44 am)
The Green family, owners of Hobby Lobby, and the Hahn family, owners of Conestoga Wood Specialties, are standing for all of us as they defend religious freedom by challenging the HHS Mandate in court. And now we must stand up with them as their cases are brought before the Supreme Court.
It’s one week till the Supreme Court hears their cases, so let’s keep fighting together by spreading the truth about the Mandate in the world, and by bringing it before the Lord on our knees.
Here’s day 3 of the Novea: [Continue reading …]
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Posted by Matt Yonke (March 18, 2014 at 10:00 am)
Prayer is the foundation of all our efforts to fight President Obama’s HHS Mandate, which forces all employer health plans to provide free contraception, sterilization and abortion-inducing drugs, without regard to objections of conscience.
And so I invite all to join in praying a “Novena to Reverse the HHS Mandate” in the days leading up to the Supreme Court hearing the Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby and Conestoga Wood v. Sebelius cases on March 25. Here are the prayers for Day 2 of the Novena: [Continue reading …]
Posted in Court Battles, Prayer Resources | Comments Off on Day 2: Interfaith Novena to Stop the HHS Mandate
Posted by Matt Yonke (March 17, 2014 at 2:59 pm)
With the Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby and Conestoga Wood v. Sebelius cases coming before the Supreme Court on March 25, the Stand Up for Religious Freedom coalition is calling on people of faith to join in a Novena to Stop the HHS Mandate in the nine days leading up to that date, which begins today.
We fight for justice in government with many weapons. We use Rallies like we’ll hold on March 25, we use our power to vote, we use our voices and pens so our representatives in government know our concerns. But we must never forget that the strongest weapon we have is prayer.
Temporal rulers will come and go, but God is the great king over all, so recourse to Him is where our confidence must ultimately lay. It is well within His power to stop the Obama Administration’s pernicious HHS Mandate.
A novena is a nine day prayer sequence [Continue reading …]
Posted in Court Battles, Prayer Resources | Comments Off on Novena to Stop the HHS Mandate Starts TODAY
Posted by Matt Yonke (March 14, 2014 at 4:53 pm)
On March 25, the US Supreme Court will hear oral arguments in the historic Sebelius v. Hobby Lobby and Conestoga Wood v. Sebelius cases which challenge the Obama Administration’s HHS Mandate, and the Stand Up Rally Coalition will be there.
These two cases could overturn Obama’s HHS Mandate—the very victory we’ve been seeking since 2012!
The Green family, owners of Hobby Lobby, and the Hahn family, owners of Conestoga Wood Specialties, are standing for all of us as they defend religious freedom by challenging the HHS Mandate in court. And now we must stand up with them as their cases are brought before the Supreme Court.
Here are 3 ways you can help:
1. Join us at the Supreme Court on March 25.
Join us for a prayer vigil and rally at the Supreme Court (Map) from 9:30 to 12:00 p.m. on March 25. Look for the huge “Stand Up for Religious Freedom” banner. We will provide signs, or you can make your own to welcome the Greens and the Hahns as they enter the Supreme Court. [Continue reading …]
Posted by Matt Yonke (January 2, 2014 at 4:44 pm)
Over the Christmas holidays, several new breakthroughs emerged in the legal challenges against President Obama’s HHS Mandate.
First, and most notably, on New Year’s Eve Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor granted a preliminary injunction against the Mandate to the Little Sisters of the Poor, a group of Catholic nuns who minister to the elderly. The sisters had appealed a lower court’s decision denying them injunctive relief, so it was a great boon to see Justice Sotomayor reverse that ruling.
Next, Stand Up Coalition members Priests for Life were also granted injunctive relief in their suit against the Mandate, along with other similar groups that are obviously religious, but whose main mission is not providing religious services, like Thomas Aquinas College, a Catholic liberal arts college in California. [Continue reading …]
Posted by Matt Yonke (December 17, 2013 at 12:37 pm)
A group of New York Catholic institutions have scored a huge victory against the Obamacare contraception mandate yesterday.
The ruling from federal district judge Brian Cogan granted permanent relief from the HHS Mandate to Cardinal Spellman High School, Monsignor Farrell High School, Catholic Health Care System and its affiliates, and Catholic Health Services of Long Island on the grounds that it would compel them to perform acts undeniably at odds with fundamental tenets of their religious beliefs.
This, of course, has been the argument of religious institutions and religious business owners since the Mandate was first announced in 2012. Judges have now granted injunctions to both private businesses and religious institutions, and no judge has yet sided with the Obama Administration.
This is extremely good news for all 89 cases still being litigated against the Mandate. The Stand Up Rally coalition will continue to report on these cases as they develop, so stay tuned!
Posted by Matt Yonke (December 6, 2013 at 10:34 am)
The US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has issued a call for prayer and fasting for religious freedom on the Fridays of Advent this year.
From the USCCB website:
The U.S. Bishops are encouraging the faithful to pray and fast for the renewal of a culture of life and marriage and for protection of religious liberty. In particular, Catholics are invited to make a pledge to fast and abstain from meat on Fridays.
The site features specific intentions for each Friday which you can receive via e-mail or text message. Sign up for the intentions via text message by texting “FAST” to 99000 or via e-mail here. At that page you can also make a pledge to join this effort of prayer and fasting.
Here is today’s intention: [Continue reading …]
Tags: fasting, prayer, usccb
Posted in Prayer Resources | Comments Off on US Bishops Call for Fasting and Prayer for Religious Freedom on Fridays in Advent
