Monday, March 28, 2016

What is the fate of the Little Sisters of the Poor? Insights this week from a Becket Fund attorney

Little Sisters of the Poor
Last week the Becket Fund represented the Little Sistersof the Poor before the U. S. Supreme Court in the sisters’ effort to block the Obama Administration from forcing them to distribute birth control and abortion inducing drugs to their employees. If the court rules against them, the sisters would face crippling Obamacare fines that would force them out of their work helping the elderly and poor, regardless of faith or nationality.

Becket Fund counsel Stephanie Barclay will join Deacon Mike Manno and Gina Noll Tuesday to give our listeners a debriefing on how the arguments were received by the
Stephanie Barclay
Court. She’ll also discuss what will happen if the Court splits 4-4 on the Little Sisters’ appeal and what an adverse ruling will mean for the Little Sisters and for religious freedom in general.
Join Deacon Mike and Gina for a very topical discussion Tuesday at 9 a.m. on Iowa Catholic Radio, 1150 AM and 88.5 & 94.5 FM and streaming on IowaCatholicRadio.com. The program will be re-broadcast Tuesday at 9 p.m.
Faith On Trial is on the air courtesy of our loyal sponsors:  Attorney Rick McConville, Coppola, McConville, Coppola, Carroll, Hockenberg & Scalise PC 2100 Westown Parkway, West Des Moines, 515-453-1055; Confluence Brewing Company – off the Bike Trail just south of Grey’s Lake, 1235 Thomas Beck Road where there is live entertainment in the tap room every Thursday, and RobdenHartog, Wealth Management Advisor at Northwestern Mutual Life, NW corner of 128th Street and Hickman Rd, 515-210-4472.

Wednesday, March 23, 2016

The Little Sisters of the Poor vs. The Obama Administration


 
A message from our friends at CatholicVote.org:
Today, the Little Sisters of the Poor go to Washington.

They are in the Supreme Court of the United States today pleading for the right to care for the elderly poor across America.

Yes, you read that right.

The Little Sisters must plead their case because the infamous Obamacare HHS mandate requires them to contract with insurance companies to facilitate payment for abortion drugs and other medicines and procedures which violate Church teaching.

Under this terrible mandate, even religious charities like the Little Sisters are required to comply. If they refuse, they will be fined millions of dollars and be forced to shut down -- abandoning the elderly poor they care for every day.

For over 175 years, the Little Sisters of the Poor have heeded Christ’s call to “feed the hungry, clothe the naked, and shelter the homeless.” They serve the poor with dignity, respect, and love.

And now, the Obama Administration is threatening to shut them down.

When they asked for relief from this specific mandate, the Obama administration extended a phony ‘accommodation’. But this so-called accommodation requires them to sign a form, explicitly granting a third party to provide the objectionable drugs and services.

Some accommodation that is!

As it turns out, this so-called accommodation was nothing more than PR stunt. The Little Sisters saw right through it, and refused to sign any forms that compromised their beliefs.

Mother Provincial of the Little Sisters explains how this “opt-out” form still violates their freedom:
"Why would the government need us to provide these services? Everyone knows the government can provide free services to anyone it wishes without our signing a form. It has always been clear to us that rather than being an “opt out,” the form is an opt-in. It gives the government permission to use our plan to deliver services such as ella, the week-after pill. The form even says our signature will legally alter our contract with our insurance provider." 

The real motive is plain: to suffocate any dissent and bend the will of religious people like you and me to the goals of the sexual revolution. Thank God there are people like the Little Sisters with the courage to stand up and defend our first freedom -- the freedom to believe and practice our faith!

With the death of Justice Scalia, the outcome of this case remains uncertain. If the Court splits 4-4, the lower court ruling against the Little Sisters will stand.

I hope you can take a moment and pray for this case, for the Little Sisters, and for the cause of religious liberty in America.

The Little Sisters are holding signs outside the Supreme Court that read: “I’ll have Nun of It.”

Yes, indeed.

Monday, March 21, 2016

Hostility to religion in America: Next FOT

Justin Butterfield
Every year, First Liberty, formerly Liberty Institute, publishes a document, “Undeniable, the Survey of Hostility to Religion in America,” where each instance of religious hostility in the United States is documented. Tuesday we will have one of the authors of that document Justin Butterfield will return to Faith On Trial to discuss the latest instances of that hostility and what is being done to counter them.

Justin, senior counsel for First Liberty, is a graduate of Harvard Law School and practices primarily in the area of religious liberty. He co-authored two scholarly articles: “The Light of Accountability: Why Partisan Elections Are the Best Method of Judicial Selection,” published in The Advocate, and “The Parsonage Exemption Deserves Broad Protection,” published in the Texas Review of Law & Politics.
So join Deacon Mike Manno and Gina Noll as they discuss “Undeniable” and other issues of interest at 9 a.m. Tuesday on Iowa Catholic Radio 1150 AM; 88.5 & 94.5 FM and streaming on IowaCatholicRadio.com. The program will be rebroadcast at 9 p.m.
Faith On Trial is sponsored by our loyal underwriters: Attorney Rick McConville, Coppola, McConville, Coppola, Carroll, Hockenberg & Scalise PC 2100 Westown Parkway, West Des Moines, 515-453-1055; Confluence Brewing Company – off the Bike Trail just south of Grey’s Lake, 1235 Thomas Beck Road where there is live entertainment in the tap room every Thursday, and Rob denHartog, Wealth Management Advisor at Northwestern Mutual Life, NW corner of 128th Street and Hickman Rd, 515-210-4472.

Monday, March 14, 2016

How far should science go when editing human DNA?

We’re going to take a bit of a departure from our normal legal topics Tuesday and discuss the controversial topic of gene-editing technology, CRISPR.

Supporters claim it has the potential to help rid the world of certain diseases by snipping out defective parts of our genes, opponents say there are unknown long-term impacts of this technology and are calling for a moratorium on its use.
Anant Kamath
Joining Deacon Mike Manno and Gina Noll to discuss this will be Anant Kamath, COO of Cellular Engineering Technologies, Iowa City. CET does research on stem cells, tissue engineering and cancer biology. Anant received his undergraduate degree as well as a law degree from the University of Iowa, and a masters degree from Johns Hopkins.
In addition to Arnant, we’ll have our monthly movie visit from our research associate and movie reviewer, Stephanie Crowley, with a review of the movie “Risen,” the story of a Roman tribune who is ordered to investigate the mystery of what happened to Jesus’ body.
So join Deacon Mike and Gina for a lively half-hour at 9 a.m. Tuesday on Iowa Catholic Radio, 1150 AM; 88.5 & 94.5 FM and streaming on IowaCatholicRadio.com. The program will be re-broadcast at 9 p.m.
Faith On Trial is proudly supported by our fine sponsors: Attorney Rick McConville, Coppola, McConville, Coppola, Carroll, Hockenberg & Scalise PC 2100 Westown Parkway, West Des Moines, 515-453-1055; Confluence Brewing Company – off the Bike Trail just south of Grey’s Lake, 1235 Thomas Beck Road where there is live entertainment in the tap room every Thursday, and Rob denHartog, Wealth Management Advisor at Northwestern Mutual Life, NW corner of 128th Street and Hickman Rd, 515-210-4472.

Monday, March 7, 2016

The fight against assisted suicide – this week on FOT

Sen. Johnson
This week we will be discussing the fight against physician assisted suicide not only in Iowa but across the nation. Two guests will discuss this fight with Deacon Mike Manno and Gina Noll. Barbara Lyons of the Coalition Against Assisted Suicide (also see Patients' Rights Action Fund) will join us from Milwaukee and in studio will be State Senator David Johnson.

Join us for a lively discussion Tuesday at 9 a.m. on Iowa Catholic Radio, 1150 AM and 88.5 & 94.5 FM. The program will be rebroadcast at 9 p.m. The program streams on IowaCatholicRadio.com.
Faith On Trial is sponsored by our loyal underwriters: Attorney Rick McConville, Coppola, McConville, Coppola, Carroll, Hockenberg & Scalise PC 2100 Westown Parkway, West Des Moines, 515-453-1055; Confluence Brewing Company – off the Bike Trail just south of Grey’s Lake, 1235 Thomas Beck Road where there is live entertainment in the tap room every Thursday, and Rob denHartog, Wealth Management Advisor at Northwestern Mutual Life, NW corner of 128th Street and Hickman Rd, 515-210-4472.