Posted by John Jansen (January 23, 2013 at 3:12 pm)
This Friday, January 25, hundreds of thousands of pro-lifers will descend on Washington, DC for the 40th annual March for Life.
If you’re one of them, you’re invited to march along with Stand Up Rally co-directors Monica Miller of Citizens for a Pro-Life Society and Eric Scheidler of the Pro-Life Action League—along with a host of other Rally captains from across the country—under a huge “Stand Up for Religious Freedom” banner.
Meet at 1:00 p.m. at the southeast corner of Madison Drive NW and 7th Street NW [map].
See you there!
Posted by John Jansen (January 4, 2013 at 5:04 pm)
Earlier today the Stand Up for Religious Freedom Coalition encouraged everyone to take part in Standing with Hobby Lobby Day tomorrow, January 5.
Hobby Lobby’s owners, David and Barbara Green, filed a federal lawsuit over the HHS Mandate last year, but their request for emergency injunctive relief was denied by federal district Judge Joe Heaton, meaning that the Greens could face $1.3 million in fines per day for their refusal to comply with the Mandate, which went into effect January 1.
A fascinating article appeared in The Public Discourse this week that points out the rather frightening implications of Judge Heaton’s ruling, as well as another ruling by Judge Carol Jackson, who had previously dismissed another challenge to the HHS Mandate brought by St. Louis businessman Frank O’Brien. (Jackson’s ruling was subsequently overturned by the Eighth Circuit federal appeals court, but Heaton’s ruling was upheld by Tenth Circuit.)
The article is provocatively titled “The HHS Mandate and Judicial Theocracy.” In it, Dr. Melissa Moschella draws attention to the core of the argument put forth by Judges Jackson and Heaton and their respective decisions: [Continue reading …]
Posted in News and Commentary | Comments Off on The “Judicial Theocracy” of the HHS Mandate
Posted by Matt Yonke (January 4, 2013 at 10:18 am)
Facebook user Joe Grabowski has declared tomorrow, Saturday, January 5 Standing with Hobby Lobby Day in solidarity with their courageous stand against the HHS Mandate.
Hobby Lobby has been denied an injunction while their lawsuit against the Mandate is being tried and could face $1.3 million in fines per day for their refusal to comply. Standing with Hobby Lobby day encourages everyone who supports that stand to shop at Hobby Lobby tomorrow. Here’s the description from the Facebook event page:
On Saturday, January 5th, all Americans who value freedom of religion and oppose the HHS Mandate’s unfair impositions upon religious individuals and corporate entities are called upon to show their support for Hobby Lobby by shopping either at their local retail Hobby Lobby store or online.
Over 32,000 have already joined the event online. You can join the event on Facebook here and find your closest Hobby Lobby store here.
Courageous businesses like Hobby Lobby need our support. Their lawsuits could be our last chance to undo President Obama’s pernicious HHS Mandate. Stand up for religious freedom and stand with Hobby Lobby tomorrow!
Posted by Matt Yonke (January 3, 2013 at 5:08 pm)
Triune Health Group, a Chicago-based health management company, has become the tenth plaintiff to receive a temporary injunction ruling that they do not need to obey the HHS Mandate while their suit against the government over the controversial policy is pending.
The company, run by devout Catholic couple Chris and Mary Anne Yep (pictured), was rated the best workplace in Chicago for women by Crain’s Chicago Business—an astounding irony given that, in the eyes of President Obama and his cohorts, the Yeps are part of the supposed “war on women” that was such an issue in last November’s elections. [Continue reading …]
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 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.”
“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 in October Rally Report | Comments Off on Stevens Point Rally a Big Success!
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.
