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 Eric Scheidler (November 30, 2012 at 10:00 am)
Note: Stand Up Rally co-director Eric Scheidler published this article on the Pro-Life Action League website shortly after the 2012 election. Since the pro-life and religious freedom movements are so closely allied, readers of this site may be interested in Eric’s remarks.
Several liberal commentators and even a few conservatives are gleefully reporting exit polls for last week’s election showing 59% of voters say they believe abortion should be legal in “most or all cases,” a sure sign that the pro-life movement is losing and that the advantage on social issues has swung to Democrats.
That’s one way to add up the numbers, recruiting the 30% of voters who say abortion should be legal in most cases to legitimize the more hard-core pro-choice position that there should be legal in all cases, as 29% of voters polled believe.
But here’s another way to do the math: add that 30% who believe abortion should be legal in most (but not all) cases to the 24% who believe it should be illegal in most cases and the 13% who believe it should always be illegal, and you find that 66% of voters believe abortion should be illegal in at least some cases.
2012 Exit Poll on Abortion
Which comes closest to your position? Abortion should be:
Legal in all cases: 29%
Legal in most cases: 30%
Illegal in most cases: 23%
Illegal in all cases: 13%
Source: Fox News
In other words, fully two-thirds of thirds of the electorate holds a position on abortion contrary to that espoused by either President Obama or Planned Parenthood CEO Cecile Richards, who will not name a single case in which abortion should not be a woman’s choice. [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 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.”
“Oh, grandpa, what was it about?”
“I dreamt that Barack Obama was reelected.” [Continue reading ...]
Posted by JenDunnett (November 6, 2012 at 2:53 pm)
100 people of all walks of life and religious affiliation took time out of a beautiful sunny Saturday to attend the Stand Up for Religious Freedom Rally Saturday, October 20 in Stevens Point, WI.
Jennifer Dunnett, Rally Captain and Full-time Volunteer for the Servants of Our Lady of Guadalupe introduced Pastor Matthew Mallek of Good New Fellowship Church to start off the event with opening prayer and a few comments. Pastor Mallek stated:
“Our Nation was founded on religious freedom, when our government threatens that freedom we must stand up, thank you for your participation in today’s rally. Your presence here is significant to defend our religious freedom.”
[Continue reading ...]
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 Eric Scheidler (November 1, 2012 at 12:39 pm)
Today, drawing on the themes of today’s Feast of All Saints, the Roman Catholic bishops of Pennsylvania issued a strong statement on the duty of Catholics to bring the traditions of their faith to bear when they go to the polls next week. In recent weeks, Pennsylvania has emerged as a battleground state in presidential election.
Here’s an excerpt:
Today it is no longer the case, as it was for our country’s Founders, that religion can provide a shared moral framework and vocabulary for a pluralistic democracy. In fact, Americans would do well to realize that many of our country’s leading thinkers in law, higher education, and the social sciences simply no longer believe in the idea of inalienable natural rights guaranteed by a Creator higher than the State—one of the cornerstone principles of the American experiment.
This has serious implications because many of our most urgent political issues—ranging from the economy, immigration, and abortion to global security—raise profoundly moral questions. These questions cannot be resolved without a common understanding of right and wrong. Consider today’s aggressive efforts to redefine the nature of marriage, to exclude parental authority in the choice of the best education for their children, and to force Catholic healthcare and social services to end their ministries unless they violate their religious identities through mandated support of practices contrary to the very sanctity of human life.
Religious liberty itself—”our first, most cherished freedom”—is no longer secure. At first glance, this may seem otherwise because religious freedom is so deeply ingrained in our national history. But democracy has no special immunity to losing its soul by little steps.
Read the whole thing, and then share it with your friends and family in Pennsylvania and other battleground states where heeding the bishops’ call could make a difference on Election Day.
Posted by John Jansen (November 1, 2012 at 11:19 am)
Election Day is only five days away, and there’s plenty of work to be done to make sure that pro-life, pro-religious freedom candidates get elected.
The difference in this election is going to come down to boots on the ground: volunteers who are willing to make phone calls, distribute voter guides, and utilize social media to get out the vote on Election Day.
This upcoming weekend is a great opportunity to get voter guides into the hands of your fellow citizens. Here are several that we recommend:
There’s also this flyer [PDF] available from Citizens for a Pro-Life Society titled “Why Respect for Life Is the Preeminent Political Issue.”
Find a flyer you like, get several hundred copies printed, and pass them out following church services—or simply deliver them door-to-door in your neighborhood. [Continue reading ...]
Posted by Eric Scheidler (October 31, 2012 at 8:00 pm)
Rally Captains all across the country have been reporting in with their attendance numbers, and with 140 cities tallied, the headcount for the October 20 Stand Up Rally has hit 28,077! Stay tuned to this blog post for updated numbers as reports come in.
Here’s the city-by-city tally. If you have numbers for a Rally city not listed here, please let me know in the comments.
[Continue reading ...]
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.
Here’s what you can do to help: [Continue reading ...]
