HHS Mandate Highlights Widespread Religious Stance

Last Friday, I went to my local Stop the HHS Mandate rally (more on that in a later post).

Many (if not most) of the people that showed up were Catholic. At least for myself, I think we realize that our Catholicism is not a hobby, but the Way (Acts 19:9) established by Christ Himself to lead the world to heaven hand in hand with Christ and other believers. Others do not see it this way.

Fr. Barron's video below explains well how this is. Below that, Archbishop Chaput of Philadelphia (my original hometown Archdiocese) gives his take vis-a-vis President Kennedy in a speech.



***Archbishop Chaput's speech is here***. (It's great!)

I spoke to a neighbor on my block one day about things.

Gerry: So, what legislation have you been following? [His hobby is to follow bills.]
Neighbor: I've been pretty disgusted with National Politics. I've been following state ones [Maryland].
G: Which ones?
N: The dream act. And I'm really glad the same-sex marriage bill passed.
G: Oh. Sorry to hear that. I'm against it. I just took a training at [the local Catholic Church] to have petitions signed to put it to the voters in November.
N: Don't you think religion should stay out of politics?
G: No. Going back through our history, people through churches have gotten much done. Before the revolutionary war, preachers' sermons up and down the country [really colonies] were given that we should separate from England. Martin Luther King, Jr. used religious rhetoric all the time and especially in Churches to get rid of Jim Crow. Did you ever read his Letter from a Birmingham Jail?
N: I see.

I think this view is wide spread, especially in the North East, from my experience. Why is it this way? Perhaps because powerful ignorance buys power?

I wonder.