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Posted on 05/31/2011 1:50:55 PM PDT by NYer
ROCKFORD, Illinois, May 30, 2011 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The Catholic Diocese of Rockford, IL announced the closing of their adoption agencies last week, forced out of service due to new legislation that would oblige them to service homosexual couples.
Catholic Charities of Illinois has been in business for more than 100 years, providing adoption and foster-care homes to hundreds of children. Currently, the Diocese handles approximately 350 foster family and adoption cases in 11 counties in northern Illinois with a state budget of $7.5 million and 58 workers who will now no longer have jobs.
The Diocese announced that the agency is being forced to opt out of contracting with the State of Illinois for these services because of the Illinois legislature’s failure to enact an explicit amendment to the new Illinois Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Unions Act. The amendment failed despite the efforts of Catholic Charities directors and the lobbying efforts of the Catholic Conference of Illinois.
The amendment would have allowed Catholic Charities to refer unmarried, cohabitating couples, whether same-sex or opposite sex, to other agencies so as to not violate the teachings of the Catholic faith when the Civil Unions law goes into effect on June 1.
“Catholic Charities and other religious agencies implored the State of Illinois to allow their agencies to refer such couples to other adoption and foster care agencies so as to not violate the moral teachings of their faith,” said Penny Wiegert, diocesan director of communication. “Tragically, that did not happen.”
“Because of this failure and the anticipated legal challenges it will present to our free exercise of religion, the Diocese of Rockford is forced to discontinue all state-funded adoption and foster care operations,” Wiegert said.
Catholic adoptions in Illinois may take a different form in the future and the Diocese will report as the process evolves.
“Legally, albeit emotionally painful, we determined this was the right decision to make for the moral and financial future of the Diocese of Rockford,” said Ellen B. Lynch, general counsel for the Rockford Diocese.
“The law of our land has always guaranteed its people freedom of religion. Denying this exemption to faith-based agencies leads one to believe that our lawmakers prefer laws that guarantee freedom from religion,” Wiegert said. “We simply can not compromise the spirit that motivates us to deliver quality, professional services to families by letting our state define our religious teachings.”
0bama’s EEOC appointee, Chai Feldblum:
When asked about the rights of employers to follow their religious beliefs in hiring people, she replied, “Gays win; Christians lose.”
Godless Marxist idiots.
You see, it’s not about the children after all.
It’s all about the special interest groups.
This was inevitable. As we continue the great slouch toward depravity, this is just the fringe of religious freedoms that can and will be legislated or adjudicated away.
My hope, however, was not that Catholic Charities would shut its doors, but that it would practice a little civil disobedience and simply ignore the guidelines and go about their work until a legal injunction came down... and then shut the doors and lay people off as is necessary.
“My hope, however, was not that Catholic Charities would shut its doors, but that it would practice a little civil disobedience and simply ignore the guidelines and go about their work until a legal injunction came down... and then shut the doors and lay people off as is necessary.”
That’s exactly what I was thinking as well.
so for Feldblum it is all about recreational sex.
is she dating Hilary?
And it is totally unconstitutional....goes against the laws of nature and God’s laws....basis of our legal system.
This is a total toss of the Constitution at all levels....Laws just are arbitrary based on no Universal Truths according to this crazy (non) thinking.
Lies that men having sex with each other constitutes a “right” is sick beyond all logic and a total disregard for the fundamental right of children to have a biological mother and father or a model which is conducive to a balance so children can relate to both male and female. This is sexist and reduces man to instinct and lust.....never ever rational. Children will be taught (and are now) that unnatural acts are natural.....cognitive dissonance to destroy logic and virtue. Pederasty always exists where their is open homosexuality—all history shows this....even in Afghanistan today. It is learned behavior.
How the Marxists have twisted reason to total insanity and just based it on emotionalism and selfish lust. Sick beyond description and nihilism.
Their brainwashing in the media and schools has been thorough....to erase morals and common sense....the Marxist plan. Destroy America from within.
Why don’t homosexuals create their own adoption agencies and if parents want to give their children up then they can?
What ever happened to respect for conscience?
Yes, I wonder why they just rolled over on this one.
and the big losers are orphaned children...how lovely!
Second, they evidently don't have the money to fight it frontally with a test case via =civil disobedience." It may be that the law as set up to cripple them financially by making them liable in civil suits.
That's what broke "Harmony," the couples match-up site. The gays had dozens, maybe a hundreds of dating sites, but they wanted to force Harmony to cater to them. So they threatened bankrupting them with endless suits involving money.
The gay activists don't want toleration. They want to destroy anyone -- any individual, any institution --- that disagrees with them.
On that we agree, but watching Fr. Pfleger thumb his nose at Catholic authority doesn’t make me think that the Catholic Church in Illinois has the guts to fight for what’s right. At least not anymore.
They’ve tolerated evil for too long.
“As we continue the great slouch toward depravity, this is just the fringe of religious freedoms that can and will be legislated or adjudicated away.”
In Illinois, you’re probably right. Within 2 miles of my home here in South Carolina, there’s at least 40 churches, mainly Baptist but with a Catholic church or two also.
You’re just in the wrong state. Religious freedom is alive and well down here, plus the Christians are heavily armed.
Sooner or later the patriots trapped behind enemy lines need to think of family and make the move to ensure their safety.
I, a former yankee, haven’t been run out. I expect you’ll be welcome, too. Come on down.
But, but... the Libertarians told us that “civil unions” would be just fine as long as the “gays” don’t have “marriage!”
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I know what you mean.
I have always believed (instinctively) that any Catholic organization should not take money from the government, no matter what the good intentions. This is how the liberals infiltrate to get to you - take the money and then you basically have to do what they say.
Gee, I thought that what they did in the privacy of their own bedroom had no effect on us whatsoever.
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