Posted by Matt Yonke (December 7, 2012 at 2:44 pm)
U.S. District Judge Brian Cogan (right) has ruled that the Archdiocese of New York may move forward with its case against the Obama Administration over the HHS Mandate.
The administration had argued that, because they had granted a year long “safe harbor” period to religious institutions before the Mandate would take effect, the Archdiocese and other groups had no standing to sue yet.
But Judge Cogan disagreed, saying:
Fundamentally . . . this Court cannot accept that the present costs incurred by plaintiffs are simply the result of their “desire to prepare for contingencies.” Quite frankly, ignoring the speeding train that is coming towards plaintiffs in the hope that it will stop might well be inconsistent with the fiduciary duties that plaintiffs’ directors or officers owe to their members. As explained above, the practical realities of administering health care coverage for large numbers of employees — which defendants’ recognize — require plaintiffs to incur these costs in advance of the impending effectiveness of the Coverage Mandate. That is a business reality that any responsible board of directors would have to appreciate. [Continue reading …]
Posted by Matt Yonke (November 29, 2012 at 2:38 pm)
In March of 2012, Frank O’Brien and his business, St. Louis based O’Brien Industrial Holdings LLC. (offices pictured left), filed suit against the US Department of Human Services.
O’Brien claimed that the department’s contraceptive mandate under the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare) violated O’Brien’s religious freedom by forcing him to provide contraception, sterilizations and abortion-inducing drugs to his employees through their health plans.
This October, U.S. District Judge Carole Jackson ruled against O’Brien, saying:
This Court rejects the proposition that requiring indirect financial support of a practice, from which plaintiff himself abstains according to his religious principles, constitutes a substantial burden on plaintiff’s religious exercise.
First HHS Mandate Challenge to Reach Federal Appeals Court
O’Brien immediately appealed his case to the US Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit and today, LifeNews.com reports that he was granted a preliminary injunction ruling that O’Brien Industrial Holdings does not have to obey the HHS Mandate while the case is pending. [Continue reading …]
Posted in News and Commentary | Comments Off on A New Victory in the Fight Against the HHS Mandate
Posted by Matt Yonke (November 15, 2012 at 11:01 am)
Note: In the wake of last week’s election we offer this reflection from Joe Scheidler, national director of the Pro-Life Action League, one of the co-sponsors of the nationwide Stand Up Rally effort. This piece was originally posted on the Pro-Life Action League website.
Last week on Election Night my daughter Cathy and her family came over to watch election results with Ann and me. They stayed overnight because we expected it to be a long night of returns coming in. And, of course, we were hoping for a victory for life and liberty.
The next morning, I walked into the bedroom where my little granddaughters had slept. I said to them, “I had a terrible nightmare.”
Posted by Matt Yonke (November 5, 2012 at 12:27 pm)
Here at Stand Up headquarters, we’re excited about a new prayer campaign in these last hours before Election Day.
It’s called “Thy Will Be Done” and it’s a great way to keep our focus in the right place as we vote and await the election results.
The idea is simple: pray the Lord’s Prayer every hour until the votes are counted and the election results are in.
You can join the campaign on Facebook right here and you can spread the word by posting the accompanying graphic on your social media outlets.
Please unite your prayers with those of thousands of other faithful Americans as we enter the final hours of the most important election of our lifetime.
Posted by Matt Yonke (October 27, 2012 at 12:00 pm)
At this time of crisis in our nation, it’s been great to see art addressing the subject of religious freedom, and particularly religious freedom in danger. In particular, the excellent film For Greater Glory which chronicles Mexico’s Christero wars fought over the very same issues we’re facing today.
The film did a great run at the box office, and now For Greater Glory is now available on Blu-ray, DVD and On Demand! You can now experience this amazing film and help spread the word so more people see this important film.
Posted by Matt Yonke (October 19, 2012 at 2:43 pm)
Stand Up Rally co-director Eric Scheidler had an op-ed piece published in the Washington Times today, calling on liberals and moderates to take seriously our concerns over the erosion of religious freedom in our country.
The article was published under the title “Religious freedom attacks threatens every American: HHS mandate is only the beginning.” Here’s an excerpt:
Despite 10 months of controversy — including a public clash between the White House and the U.S. Catholic bishops, countless rallies and protests across the country and the filing of dozens of federal lawsuits — many liberals and independents remain puzzled by the fight over the Health and Human Services (HHS) mandate contained in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, aka Obamacare. They don’t understand how conservatives can insist that the HHS mandate constitutes an unprecedented attack on religious freedom.
The mandate, announced by the Obama administration in January and finalized in February, requires nearly all employers to provide contraceptives and abortion-inducing drugs through their health plans, regardless of any moral objections. This includes religious employers such as Catholic hospitals and universities, despite the fact that paying for such “services” contradicts settled Catholic doctrine.
Indeed, few Americans, whatever their political persuasion, understand or have much sympathy for the Catholic teaching that it is a sin to use contraception. In fact, it has come as news to many that the Catholic Church still teaches this. Sadly, few bother to ask why — or why it matters so much to the Catholic bishops that they insist they would rather shut down all those universities, charities and not-for-profit hospitals than comply with the HHS mandate.
This is exactly the question all Americans should be asking right now . . .
Posted by Matt Yonke (October 18, 2012 at 9:57 am)
I can’t believe all the great videos that are being produced exposing the HHS Mandate for the pernicious policy that it is.
This video reduces the message to 15 seconds. It really is that simple.
Don’t forget to share this video on Facebook, Twitter and wherever else you can. Hard as it is to believe, there are still good people who care about this country who haven’t heard this message yet. Let’s all work to spread the word between now and election day!
Posted in News and Commentary | Comments Off on Archdiocese of St. Louis Says, “It’s That Simple”
Posted by Matt Yonke (October 17, 2012 at 4:23 pm)
This great new commercial from Let Freedom Ring highlights the specific harms of the HHS Mandate, specifically citing the example of Catholic Charities in Chicago which would face $5,000,000 in fines unless they compromise their beliefs and submit to the Mandate!
Those kinds of crippling fines will shut down Catholic Charities along with many other charitable religious organizations. As the ad asks, is this what we want our government doing? Fining charitable organizations for their religious beliefs?
Posted in News and Commentary | Comments Off on New Ad Shows How the HHS Mandate Would Cripple Catholic Charities
U.S. District Judge Brian Cogan (right) has ruled that the Archdiocese of New York may move forward with its case against the Obama Administration over the HHS Mandate.
In March of 2012, Frank O’Brien and his business, St. Louis based O’Brien Industrial Holdings LLC. (offices pictured left), filed suit against the US Department of Human Services.
Last week on Election Night my daughter Cathy and her family came over to watch election results with Ann and me. They stayed overnight because we expected it to be a long night of returns coming in. And, of course, we were hoping for a victory for life and liberty. 
Stand Up Rally co-director Eric Scheidler had an 
The National Rally for Religious Freedom is TOMORROW!
Only two days until the Nationwide Rally for Religious Freedom and response has been huge!