Fired for observing Passover, Jewish woman asks Supreme Court to hear her case; Becket to SCOTUS: Federal agencies must respect their employees’ right to observe religious holidays

WASHINGTON, D.C. – An Orthodox Jewish woman who was fired from her job at the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority for observing Passover is asking the nation’s highest court to hear her case. Last month, in Abeles v. Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority, Susan Abeles appealed to the Supreme Court to hold her former employer accountable for unjustly firing her from her job of 26 years for observing the first two and last two days of Passover. A ruling from the high court could protect the right of all religious federal employees to live their faith without fear of losing their jobs. Susan Abeles was a statistician at the Metropolitan Washington Airports Authority (MWAA), the government agency that operates both Reagan National and Dulles International Airports, for 26 years. She observed Passover every year without incident until 2013, when she was punished and forced to retire despite following leave protocol. Today, Becket and Jews for Religious Liberty, an association of Jewish lawyers and rabbis, filed a friend-of-the-court brief asking the Supreme Court to hear Ms. Abeles’ case, arguing that the lower court decision “will inhibit Jewish religious exercise within the federal workplace and could easily result in a de facto government hiring ban on Orthodox Jews.” “Talk about chutzpah,” said Eric Rassbach, deputy general counsel at Becket, a non-profit religious liberty law firm. “The Airports Authority says it was okay to fire Ms. Abeles for observing Passover because it hasn’t said anything openly anti-Semitic. If that becomes the rule, then federal agencies will have a license to terminate all of their religious employees, as long as they are careful to hide their tracks. Even Pharaoh honestly admitted that he was discriminating against Jews.” Jewish religious law prohibits work during the first two and last two days of Passover. Millions of Orthodox Jews like Ms. Abeles have observed this important holiday for thousands of years. Despite following the MWAA’s leave policy for decades, Ms. Abeles was accused of not following protocol and forced into retirement in 2013. She sued the MWAA, which claims it is exempt from both the federal Religious Freedom Restoration Act (RFRA) and the Virginia religious freedom laws, giving it free rein to avoid all anti-discrimination laws. In July 2017 Ms. Abeles asked the Supreme Court to hear her case. “The Airports Authority claiming to be above the law adds insult to injury,” said Rassbach. “The Supreme Court should take this case to ensure that people of all faiths can observe their deeply held beliefs in the federal workplace without facing discrimination or being forced out of their jobs.” Ms. Abeles is represented by Nathan Lewin of Lewin & Lewin. Additional Information:                                                 Becket’s Amicus Brief (August 28, 2017) Case Page for Abeles v. Metropolitan Washington Airport Authority (MWAA) (all legal docs, press releases, news, images)   Becket is a non-profit, public-interest law firm dedicated to protecting the free expression of all religious traditions and has a 100% win-rate before the United States Supreme Court. For over 20 years, it has successfully defended clients of all faiths, including Buddhists, Christians, Jews, Hindus, Muslims, Native Americans, Sikhs, and Zoroastrians (read more here).

Emergency national collection to assist people affected by Hurricane Harvey

WASHINGTON—Archbishop José H. Gomez of Los Angeles, vice-president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has called on the bishops to consider taking up a special collection to support victims of Hurricane Harvey and to provide pastoral and rebuilding support to impacted dioceses.

In an August 28 letter, Archbishop Gomez requested that the collection be held during the weekend of September 2-3 or September 9-10.

“Our hearts and prayers go out to the families that have lost loved ones and to all who have lost homes and businesses along with their sense of peace and normalcy,” said Archbishop Gomez. “We also stand with our brother bishops in the region who have the difficult task of providing pastoral care in these most trying times while managing their own losses. Our prayerful and financial support is urgently needed.”

Funds given to the collection will support the humanitarian and recovery efforts of Catholic Charities USA and will provide pastoral and rebuilding support to impacted dioceses through the USCCB. The hurricane has affected southeast Texas, including the Archdiocese of Galveston-Houston, and could also strike Louisiana. As a result, Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, president of USSCB, has asked Archbishop Gomez to coordinate this effort.

“Together with Cardinal DiNardo and the bishops throughout the affected region I express deep gratitude to the first responders and countless volunteers who are assisting the Gulf Coast region in countless ways,” Archbishop Gomez said.

This collection is to be taken on the weekend alternate to the CUA Collection. For more information on how to participate contact your local diocese or visit: https://catholiccharitiesusa.org/

Attorneys argue that right-to-parent trumps property treatment of human embryos in Colorado embryo custody case

          Thomas More Society files brief for pro-life Ob-Gyns supporting mom

(August 28, 2017 – Denver) Thomas More Society attorneys have filed an amicus curiae (“friend of the court”) brief in a controversial Colorado embryo custody case. On behalf of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, the nonprofit public interest law firm submitted documents to the Colorado Supreme Court supporting Mandy Rooks, the mother of six cryopreserved babies. The embryos are those remaining in cryogenic storage after in-vitro fertilization procedures which allowed Ms. Rooks to deliver a son, and later twins, while married to Drake Rooks, the children’s father. Despite the couple’s divorce, Ms. Rooks wants to keep the babies for future implantation. Her now ex-husband has asked to the court to deliver the six embryos to him for destruction. 

Attorney Rita Gitchell, Thomas More Society Special Counsel, spoke to one of the primary issues in the submitted amicus brief. “The appellate court erred in adopting a ‘balance of interest’ approach and treating the preserved human embryos as marital property in the divorce. Current science has established that these embryonic children are the result of procreation and are not property.”  For that reason, any balancing of interests must include the interest in continued life of the living embryonic human beings. 

Gitchell added, “Neither the appellate or lower district court cited any law that permits the court to terminate the life of a human being without a compelling reason. For those who argue that Roe v. Wade permits termination of an unborn child during pregnancy, but that does not apply when a mother desires to give birth to her child. Because Mandy Rooks wants to bring her embryonic children to birth, Roe is inapplicable to this case. Roe does not grant a father the right to terminate his genetic embryonic child to avoid procreation, which has already occurred.”  

Gitchell also criticized existing legal precedents that fail to recognize these human embryos as human beings with identifiable parents. “These children were created intentionally with the participation of both Ms. Rooks and her husband. They deliberately conceived these biological offspring with the intention of bringing them to birth.  Their mother has the right to carry out their intention to bear, raise and protect them, even if their father has decided he no longer wishes to do so,” explained Gitchell. Colorado law supports this position because it allows a father to relinquish legal parenthood under the facts of this case. This does not affect the mother’s parental rights over the embryos.  

Read the amicus curiae submitted to the Colorado Supreme Court in Rooks v. Rooks by Thomas More Society attorneys on behalf of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians and Gynecologists, here.

The Thomas More Society is a national not-for-profit law firm dedicated to restoring respect in law for life, family, and religious liberty. Headquartered in Chicago and Omaha, the Thomas More Society fosters support for these causes by providing high quality pro bono legal services from local trial courts all the way up to the United States Supreme Court. For more information, visit thomasmoresociety.org.

Medical experts aree that Surrogacy is harmful for mothers and children

   Thomas More Society Files United States Supreme Court Brief Detailing Dangers 

(August 28, 2017 – Washington, DC) Gestational surrogacy, when a woman carries a baby in her womb for others, is harmful to mothers and children, according to an amicus curiae (“friend of the court”) brief filed by the Thomas More Society in the United States Supreme Court. The filing was on behalf of five medical ethics advocacy organizations: the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians & Gynecologists, the Charlotte Lozier Institute, the National Catholic Bioethics Center, the National Association of Catholic Nurses – U.S.A, and the Catholic Medical Association. 

The brief, which was filed by the Thomas More Society in the California surrogacy dispute M.C. v. C.M., highlights an array of troubling medical issues brought about through surrogacy. The petitioning organizations describe a voluminous and ever-growing body of medical research showing that surrogacy poses serious medical risks to both surrogate mothers and the children they carry.   

Key concerns addressed in the filing include:

• Surrogate birthmothers endure even greater physical burdens than pregnant women who conceive spontaneously.
• Infants conceived by surrogacy are at higher risk of adverse outcomes and fetal anomalies than infants conceived spontaneously.
• Multiple embryo transfers increase the risks to infants conceived by in-vitro fertilization.
• Children conceived by in-vitro fertilization have higher rates of birth defects, genetic disorders, and other anomalies.
• Severance of the maternal-child bond harms both mother and child.

Thomas More Society Special Counsel Sarah Pitlyk explained that, in addition to the physical health risks for the gestational mother and child, the practice of surrogacy has grave effects on society. “Surrogacy diminishes respect for motherhood and the unique mother-child bond, encourages exploitation of women, and it commodifies pregnancy and children,” she shared, adding that, “Surrogacy also weakens society’s natural abhorrence of eugenic abortion.”   

Pitlyk stated, “Any medical practice that exploits and commodifies vulnerable members of the human family is of concern to our client organizations and their membership. They share the common goal of ensuring that the medical profession promotes human dignity and adheres to its foundational commitment to ‘do no harm.’”    

Read the Amicus Curiae Brief submitted August 25, 2017, to the United States Supreme Court by the Thomas More Society on behalf of the American Association of Pro-Life Obstetricians & Gynecologists, the Charlotte Lozier Institute, the National Catholic Bioethics Center, the National Association of Catholic Nurses – U.S.A., and the Catholic Medical Association here. 

The Thomas More Society is a national not-for-profit law firm dedicated to restoring respect in law for life, family, and religious liberty. Headquartered in Chicago and Omaha, the Thomas More Society fosters support for these causes by providing high quality pro bono legal services from local trial courts all the way up to the United States Supreme Court. For more information, visit http://www.thomasmoresociety.org/.

Next FOT: Aborting babies to eradicate Down syndrome; promoting abortion with sex toys

Dr. Brian Clowes
Human Life International

Tuesday’s program will be all about abortion: Iceland aborting down syndrome babies and how sex toys are being used to finance Planned Parenthood. Our guests are Dr. Brian Clowes the director of education and research at Human Life International. He is a graduate of West Point, a former A-Team leader for the Army Special Forces (“Green Berets”), and Abby Johnson, a former Planned Parenthood director who, after watching in horror as a 13 week baby fought, and ultimately lost, its life at the hand of the abortionist during an ultrasound-guided abortion.

Dr. Clowes will discuss with us the recent effort by Iceland to eradicate Down syndrome by aborting babies.  Since 1995, he has been HLI’s director of research, and is one of the most accomplished and respected intellectuals in the international pro-life movement. Best known as author of the most exhaustive pro-life informational resource volume The Facts of Life, and for his Pro-Life Basic Training Course, Brian is the author of nine books, over 90 scholarly and popular articles, and has traveled to 50 countries on six continents as a pro-life speaker, educator and trainer.

Brian and his wife, Kathleen, have seven children and combined have over 50 years of pro-life experience, ranging from rescues, sidewalk counseling to counseling pregnant women and assisting in litigation against abortionists.

Abby Johnson has always had a fierce determination to help women in need. It was this

Abby Johnson
And Then There Were None

desire that led her to a career with Planned Parenthood, and caused her to flee the organization and become an outspoken advocate for the pro-life movement. During her eight years with Planned Parenthood, Abby quickly rose in the organization’s ranks and became a clinic director. She was increasingly disturbed by what she witnessed.

Today, Abby travels across the globe sharing her story, educating the public on pro-life issues, advocating for the unborn, and reaching out to abortion clinic staff who still work in the industry. She is the founder of And Then There Were None, a ministry designed to assist abortion clinic workers out of the industry. To date, this ministry has helped over 300 workers leave the abortion industry. Abby lives in Texas with her husband and five precious children.

So join Deacon Mike Manno and Pam Briddell Tuesday at 10 a.m. (Central) on Iowa Catholic Radio 1150 AM; 88.5 & 94.5 FM and streaming on IowaCatholicRadio.com. The program will be rebroadcast at 10 p.m. Iowa Catholic Radio also has a free downloadable from the app store so you can hear us anywhere. Prior programs can be found here.

FOT is on the air courtesy of our loyal sponsors:  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 Robert Cota, Farm Bureau Financial Services, 200 West 2nd Ave., Indianola, Iowa 50125, 515-961-4555 or 515-205-5642.

Washington State florist seeks protection of free expression rights from US Supreme Court

Thomas More Society supports shop owner who refused to

celebrate homosexual marriage

(August 25, 2017 – Washington, DC) The invitation to “say it with flowers” has proved problematic for a Washington state florist who is asking the United States Supreme Court to review her case. The Thomas More Society has filed an amicus curiae (“friend of the court”) brief in support of the request for review by Baronnelle Stutzman, floral designer and owner of Arlene’s Flowers in Richland, Washington. Stutzman was sued by a long-time customer when she declined his request to create floral arrangements for the celebration of his marriage to another man. 

As a committed Christian, Stutzman believes that marriage is meant to be between one man and one woman. This presented a problem when she was asked to use her art of custom floral design to participate in and celebrate a marriage ceremony that would violate her sincerely held religious beliefs. Stutzman believes her First Amendment right to freedom of speech protects her against being compelled to create artistic expression for an event that contravenes her religious beliefs.  

The Washington State Supreme Court disagreed and affirmed a ruling punishing the 71-year old Stutzman for running her business according to her faith. In 2015, the trial court found that Stutzman had violated the Washington Law Against Discrimination and the Washington Consumer Protection Act.  Stutzman has been ordered to pay a $1,000 fine, actual damages in an undetermined amount, and attorneys’ fees and costs expected to total hundreds of thousands of dollars. She can also no longer operate her business according to her beliefs without risking further legal sanction. The small-town florist is now seeking justice and validation of her constitutionally protected rights from the highest court in the land, the United States Supreme Court. 

Joan Mannix, Thomas More Society Special Counsel, stated that the United States Supreme Court and the United States Courts of Appeals have consistently recognized that the First Amendment affords expansive protection to all forms of expression, including nonverbal art forms, including painting, music and dance.  

“There is extensive case law to support this and the idea that an artist's self-expression is protected regardless of whether the resulting works clearly express a particularized message,” stated Mannix. “Baronnelle Stutzman’s custom floral arrangements are a nonverbal medium of artistic expression. Her arrangements, especially those for wedding ceremonies, are designed to deliver an expressive message, consistent with the personalities of the couple, approving of and celebrating their marriage, and are therefore entitled to First Amendment protection.”  

Mannix added that one reason it is so important for the United States Supreme Court to accept the case for review is because the Washington Supreme Court adopted a narrow construction of the First Amendment that disregards numerous cases holding that nonverbal art forms constitute pure “speech” within the meaning of the First Amendment, despite the fact that those art forms do not employ actual words.  

Stutzman, explained why she gave her longstanding client referrals to three other florists when asked to create custom floral arrangements for his wedding to another man: “If all he’d asked for were prearranged flowers, I’d gladly have provided them.” “If the celebration were for his partner’s birthday, I’d have been delighted to pour my best into the challenge. But as a Christian, weddings have a particular significance…(he) was asking me to choose between my affection for him and my commitment to Christ...my relationship with Jesus is everything to me.” 

Read the amicus brief filed August 21, 2017, with the United States Supreme Court in Arlene's Flowers, Inc. v. State of Washington, U. S. Supreme Court, Docket No. 17-108, here. 

About the Thomas More Society

The Thomas More Society is a national not-for-profit law firm dedicated to restoring respect in law for life, family, and religious liberty. Headquartered in Chicago and Omaha, the Thomas More Society fosters support for these causes by providing high quality pro bono legal services from local trial courts all the way up to the United States Supreme Court. For more information, visit thomasmoresociety.org.

Thomas More Society Announces Its New Executive Vice President and General Counsel

Andrew Bath Brings to the Thomas More Society Expertise as the Top Legal Officer of a Large, National Nonprofit, as Well as a Long Commitment to Life, Family, and Religious Liberty

 

 



(August 24, 2017 – Chicago/Omaha) Andrew M. Bath has joined the Thomas More Society as Executive Vice President and General Counsel, after serving for many years in the same position with Boys Town, the world-famous organization founded by Fr. Edward J. Flanagan, with facilities across the nation for at-risk youth. 

“We are delighted Andy Bath has agreed to move into a key leadership role at the Thomas More Society,” said Tom Brejcha, Thomas More Society founder, President, and Chief Counsel. “With his experience running the legal department of a large, national nonprofit, as well as his national connections, he will be an enormous asset for the Thomas More Society. This is a great step forward.” 

 

Mr. Brejcha continued, “Andy also has a long commitment to our issues. He has been active in the pro-life movement for over 30 years. In fact, he was the Chairman of the Board of the Wisconsin Right to Life Political Action Committee when he practiced law in Milwaukee. He has long been an active member of the Heritage Foundation in Washington, D.C. Andy has consulted on many nationally significant cases in recent years involving issues of life and religious freedom. And he has a working relationship with many of the top lawyers in the country in these areas.” 

 

“Andy understands the crucial importance of protecting our God-given rights under the law,” said Mr. Brejcha. 

 

Mr. Bath remarked, “I am honored to have joined one of the preeminent guardians of life, family, and religious freedom under the law. It is a privilege to work with these great lawyers and to help protect the inalienable rights of those whose lives and freedoms are

threatened.”  

 

Ann Scheidler, Founding Director and Chairman of the Board at the Thomas More Society, added, “We are excited to have Mr. Bath step into this position. His nationwide prominence will help propel the Thomas More Society even further into the spotlight as we work to defend personal and religious liberties on the national stage.”

 

Mr. Bath has worked as a Special Counsel with the Thomas More Society on particular matters since 2013 and formally assumed his new position earlier this year. 

  

In private practice, Mr. Bath concentrated on civil litigation and corporate law. He earned his Juris Doctor degree at Marquette University Law School in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, after earning a B.A. in Economics and Political Science from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. View Andrew M. Bath’s official biography here.  

 

About the Thomas More Society: The Thomas More Society is a national not-for-profit law firm dedicated to restoring respect in law for life, family, and religious liberty. Headquartered in Chicago and Omaha, the Thomas More Society fosters support for these causes by providing high quality pro bono legal services from local trial courts all the way up to the United States Supreme Court. For more information, visit www.thomasmoresociety.org.

 

 

 

College students losing faith and abortion bubble zones in Chicago: Next FOT

Are college students losing their faith? Will sidewalk counselors be able to help Chicago women facing the choice of abortion? We’ll take up these two issues Tuesday on Faith On Trial.

Jeremy Story
Pres. Campus Renewal

A recent report by Campus Renewal Ministries indicates that up to 70 % of college students leave their faith. Why does that happen and what can be down about it? We’ll discuss this with Jeremy Story, president of Campus Reform Ministries. Jeremy has worked in campus ministries for 21 years and has worked with hundreds of campuses and non-profits, including the National Day of Prayer and the Collegiate Day of Prayer. 

In addition we’ll have back Thomas Olp, senior counsel and co-executive director of the Thomas More Society to discuss his recent filing to a federal appeals court to protect the free speech rights of sidewalk counselors outside of abortion clinics. The City of Chicago has an ordinance prohibiting such counseling within 50 feet of a clinic. The suit is brought on behalf of Veronica Price and several other counselors. 

The city has claimed that the counselors harass women attempting to enter clinics, but Olp

Thomas Olp
Thomas More Society

and his clients dispute that. “Contrary to pro-abortion propaganda, pro life counselors do not intimidate women,” Olp said. “The Chicago bubble zone ordinance deliberately curtails our clients’ first Amendment rights.” 

Join Deacon Mike Manno and Pam Briddell at 10 a.m. (Central) on Iowa Catholic Radio, 1150 AM; 88.5 & 94.5 FM to hear a discussion of these and other issues of interest to people of faith.  FOT can also be heard on our downloadable app and it streams on the stations’ website IowaCatholicRadio.com. It will be re-broadcast at 10 p.m. and earlier programs may be heard at this link.  

Faith On Trial is on the air courtesy of our sponsors and underwriters: 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 Robert Cota, Farm Bureau Financial Services, 200 West 2^nd Ave., Indianola, Iowa 50125, 515-961-4555 or 515-205-5642, and faithful listeners like you.

The story of Dr. Paul Church and his battle for science against political correctness

This morning our first guest, Brian Camenker, executive director of MassResistance, told the story of Boston Dr. Paul Church. Below is the article Brian penned about the controversy. We’re reprinting this with permission of Brian and MassResistance. To save space we’ve deleated the photos, but we have kept the copy of Dr. Church’s exhibit from the CDC.

*****

Dr. Paul Church now expelled from four Boston area hospitals – over comments to colleagues at one hospital about its promotion of unhealthy, high-risk LGBT lifestyle.

                Standing on principle while under pressure to repudiate facts.

The ideological corruption in the medical profession defies belief.

August 7, 2017


GREAT VIDEO: "The great lies and the cost of telling the truth." Dr. Paul Church describes his unbelievable ordeal -- and the dangers the medical community is ignoring. At the MassResistance Luncheon on 4/9/17.

The horrific treatment of Dr. Paul Church has become a nightmare – affecting him, of course, but ultimately all of us as well. Because he told the medical truth and refused to bow to political correctness on this critical public health issue, he has now been banned from four prominent Boston area hospitals and a urology clinic.

This is the frightening state of today’s medical profession.

Dr. Church is a urologist who was on the staff of several major Boston area hospitals and clinics for nearly 30 years. He was on the faculty of Harvard Medical School. He has done research on diagnosing prostate and bladder cancer, and has spoken to educational and civic groups on the subject of high-risk sexual behaviors. 

In 2015, as we reported, Dr. Church was expelled from the staff of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC) where he had worked for 28 years. The reason? His comments to colleagues that homosexuality is medically unhealthy and that a hospital should not be promoting and celebrating that behavior in “gay pride” events and other hospital-sponsored activities.

Subsequently, he was expelled from two more Boston area hospitals, Brigham & Women’s Faulkner, where also had worked for 28 years, and Beth Israel Deaconess-Needham, where had worked for over six years. Both hospitals admitted that they did not expel Dr. Church because of anything he said or did at those hospitals. He had a perfect performance record. They expelled him because of his original comments made at BIDMC.

After being expelled by the three hospitals, Dr. Church needed a hospital for patient referrals. A fourth hospital, St. Elizabeth’s in Boston, made an offer in 2016 to bring Dr. Church onto their staff, but then abruptly cancelled it. He had been approved by hospital officials all the way up the ladder to join St. Elizabeth’s. Contracts had been signed and even business cards had been printed up. But as he was about to start work, he was informed that they had disapproved his credentialing. The administrators cited “other disputes” and his hiring was cancelled. Dr. Church later found out that hospital officials feared repercussions by the LGBT community for his views expressed at BIDMC.

He has also been dismissed from an independent urology clinic. In addition to the four hospitals, Dr. Church was asked to leave the staff of Men’s Health Boston, a urology clinic where he had been in practice for more than 10 years. He was told that the reason was his dispute at BIDMC. They told him, “We don’t agree with what you’re doing,” and that the BIDMC issue would be “bad for business.”

At no time throughout his career had Dr. Church ever been accused of any discrimination in his treatment of patients, nor had there been any complaints at all from patients.

Currently, Dr. Church continues to see some patients at a private office in suburban Boston. But without hospital staff privileges, he can no longer do hospital work or perform needed surgeries himself. His livelihood has been significantly impacted as a result.

The medical profession is out of control

What is going on?

Most people don’t realize how extensively the medical profession is ignoring critical medical and public health risks in favor of outrageous LGBT political correctness, and has even incorporated that ideology into their institutions.

All the major Boston hospitals now participate in the annual “Gay Pride Week” – a public display of sexual and emotional dysfunction. They also heavily promote LGBT events and issues internally.

And now we’re reeling from the transgender phenomenon, especially its terrible abuse of children in schools and by medical and mental health professionals. But the medical profession refuses to deal with this issue honestly.

Dissent regarding LGBT issues is not tolerated, even regarding medical facts. As Dr. Church observes, the medical community doesn’t care about the dangers, and is willing to accept the collateral damage their silence brings.

Information such as that contained in MassResistance’s book documenting the LGBT health hazards is almost completely absent from today’s medical facilities.

Instead, the medical establishment now promotes homosexuality as being natural and healthy. Deviant sexual practices are equated with normal heterosexual behaviors. We’re now being told that it’s only a problem when homosexuals engage in “unprotected sex”.

This unethical approach is good for business.

While throwing their unconditional support behind the LGBT movement, the hospitals also work hard to attract the “LGBT community” as patients. Major hospitals now cater to the wide range of “unusual” health issues resulting from common LGBT sexual practices and lifestyle. At the same, they advertise that they are providing LGBT patients a “safe” environment – safe from any information that might disturb their proclivities.

How it all started: At BIDMC Dr. Church told the truth

It all started at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center (BIDMC).

As we reported in 2015, Dr. Church brought up his concerns internally, to BIDMC hospital officials and staff, not publicly.

He cited irrefutable medical evidence that high-risk sexual practices common to the LGBT community lead to (among other things) a higher incidence of HIV/AIDS, STD's, hepatitis, parasitic infections, anal cancers, and psychiatric disorders. Promoting such behavior, he said, is contrary to the higher mission of the healthcare facility to protect the public welfare and encourage healthy lifestyles.

BIDMC never disputed the truth of Dr. Church’s medical statements. They did not claim that Dr. Church ever discussed this with patients, or treated patients any differently if they were involved in these behaviors.

Instead Dr. Church was told that his admonitions about homosexual behavior constituted “discrimination and harassment,” were “offensive to BIDMC staff,” and could not be tolerated.

In March, 2015, the hospital notified him he was being formally expelled from the staff. The appeal process, which lasted until December 2015, included detailed testimony by Dr. Church and other medical experts supporting him. The expulsion was ultimately upheld by the hospital’s Board of Directors. Members of the hospital’s “LGBT community” (a so-called “protected class” in Massachusetts) claimed they were “offended” by Dr. Church’s remarks about the medical consequences of typical LGBT sexual practices and behaviors.

Brigham & Women’s Faulkner Hospital accuses Dr. Church of using “bad medicine”

In November, 2015, even before BIDMC had completed its appeal process, Dr. Church was notified by Boston’s Brigham & Women’s Faulkner Hospital (BWFH) that his reappointment was not being renewed; he was effectively being terminated.

He was told that his termination is “related to your dispute with Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center” and that his “conduct” there “does not comport with professional standards and ethics.”

Dr. Church requested a hearing to appeal his expulsion, as allowed by the hospital by-laws. The hearing began in June 2016 and was finally adjudicated one year later – in June 2017.

At his hearing, BWFH doctors told Dr. Church that his statements made at BIDMC about the unhealthy nature of homosexuality were “unprofessional” and constitute “bad medicine.”  They said that there is no innate unhealthiness to LGBT behavior, but that “unprotected sex” is the reason for any LGBT-related health problems. They ignored the information from the federal Centers for Disease Control (CDC) which he presented to them to back up his statements.

This is one of the exhibits from the federal CDC website that Dr. Church presented to defend his position. It was ignored.

Dr. Church and his expert witnesses fiercely denied that he indulged in any “unprofessional conduct” or “bad medicine.” These claims against him, he said, are purposefully drawn from an absurd oversimplification and complete misrepresentation of the facts. It’s well documented that LGBT behaviors statistically result in an enormous increase in HIV/AIDS, syphilis, anal cancer, hepatitis, depression, suicide, domestic violence, and many other problems. In particular, as Dr. Church pointed out, it has a lot to do with promiscuity, a wide range of risk-taking behaviors, and the type of sex, i.e., anal intercourse. The “safe sex” message has been around for decades, and yet the latest statistics show no decline in the disease transmission rates (and even increases in certain STDs), especially among the homosexual males in the younger age groups and racial minorities. This cannot be explained away by lack of “education” or availability of condoms.

But unfortunately, all of this was ignored and rejected in both the BIDMC and BWFH hearings.

Aggressive and dishonest tactics used against Dr. Church

Dr. Church’s position makes common sense both from a medical and public health standpoint. He was punished with an unprecedented level of censorship for views held by other medical experts and supported by medical and scientific fact.

Thus, because their case against Dr. Church was so weak, the hospitals used very dishonest and overly aggressive tactics to get him removed.

1. Improper use of “Peer Review” process

Massachusetts, like most states, provides in its statutes (Ch. 111 Sec. 203) the requirement that hospitals have a “medical peer review” process. Its purpose is to respond to reports of conduct by a healthcare provider that indicates “incompetency in his specialty” or “might be inconsistent or harmful to good patient care” – and determine if his privileges should be suspended “in the best interests of patient care.”

The statutes also require (Ch. 111 Sec. 204) that the “proceedings, reports, and records” of the peer review process be strictly confidential – even immune from subpoena by a court!

Many hospitals around the country abuse this process. They dishonestly use the medical peer review process as a way punish or remove doctors for ideological or political reasons that have nothing to do with incompetence or patient care. Since all the proceedings and documentation surrounding the process is by law confidential, the doctor is unable to publicly defend himself.

The use of “sham peer reviews” to punish physicians has been strongly denounced for years by groups such as the American Association of Physicians and Surgeons (AAPS).

Yet this is exactly what happened to Dr. Church at BIDMC, BWFH, and Beth Israel-Needham Hospital. When it came to actually caring for patients, none of the hospitals ever accused him of medical incompetence, or of endangering patients in any way. All of Dr. Church’s comments about homosexuality were within internal hospital communications involving administration and staff, and never with patients.

Yet BIDMC, BWFH, and Beth Israel-Needham Hospital labeled every single memo and document dealing with this process in any way as “Peer Review / Confidential.” This was clearly to protect the hospital’s reputation, not Dr. Church or his patients. He wanted complete transparency and public disclosure of everything.

2. Legal intimidation

Both BIDMC and BWFH held hearings after Dr. Church’s expulsion as part of the peer review “appeal” process.

The hearings were not “legal court cases” but attorneys from both sides were allowed. Dr. Church had one lawyer. The hospitals each brought in whole teams of lawyers from high-priced Boston firms. Both hospitals clearly spent hundreds of thousands of dollars each on legal fees, presented mountains of paperwork, and endless, often trivial, “exhibits” against him, to overwhelm the process. Someday, we’d love to see all that!  That kind of legal intimidation and unlimited budget make it nearly impossible for even a highly respected physician like Dr. Church to come out on top.

3. Kangaroo court

On top of all the above, we were told that both appeal hearings were conducted by a panel of hospital-selected doctors and staff in an absurd, mostly hostile, “kangaroo court” style. They often curtailed the time allotted for Dr. Church and his attorney and extended the time for the hospital people. Dr. Church’s character witnesses were treated with disrespect. Key testimony was simply tossed out or not allowed. In short, we were told, their behavior clearly suggested that the appeal “hearing” was simply an aggravating formality that the hospital by-laws required. They had no intention of looking at the facts in any unbiased manner.

The LGBT blitz through the medical profession continues

If anything, will prove to be a significant precedent for the LGBT agenda in medicine. There were no criminal charges, no patient safety issues, no incompetence, or even proof that Dr. Church was incorrect in what he said. ONLY in opposing their ideology.

As Dr. Church recently said,

This is both an ideological dispute and a medical issue. I have pointed out repeatedly that there are staff and employees at these hospitals who object – based on moral and religious convictions – to the unconditional promotion of LGBT agenda. Additionally, and especially relevant to the mission of a healthcare institution, is the medical evidence that behaviors and lifestyles common to this group are often unhealthy and lead to serious medical consequences. It is hypocritical at best, and a betrayal of the public trust at worst, to ignore or downplay these aspects in the interest of political correctness.

Where is the discrimination here? Not by Dr. Church!

*****

Ed. Note: Dr. Church wrote the introduction to the book The Health Hazards of Homosexually which can be purchased from this site or Amazon.

 

The continuing saga of Dr. Paul Church and more on the fight against euthanasia – next FOT

 

Brian Camenker,
Ex. Director, MassResistance

On Tuesday’s program we’re going to update you on the continuing saga of Dr. Paul Church, the Boston urologist who has now had his staff privileges revoked by several area hospitals because he spoke to his colleagues about the medical dangers inherent in homosexual sexual relations.  

Joining us for that discussion will be one of Dr. Church’s strongest supporters, Brian Camenker, executive director of MassResistance, a pro-family activist organization that educates people to help them confront the attacks on the traditional family, children, religion, and society. Founded in 1995, it is active across the US and worldwide.

Following Brian we’ll be joined by a returning guest, Alex Schadenberg, executive director o

Alex Schadenberg
 Ex. Dir. Euthanasis
Prevention Coalitin

f the EuthanasiaPrevention Coalition on some of the recent events in the fight against euthanasia including a report on the subject by the New Zealand Health Commission recommending that the euthanasia not be adopted.

So join Deacon Mike Manno and Pam Briddell for a discussion of these and other topics of interest Tuesday at 10 a.m. (Central) on Iowa Catholic Radio, 1150 AM; 88.5 & 94.5 FM and streaming on IowaCatholicRadio.com. The program will be re-broadcast at 10 p.m. and podcasts of earlier programs can be found here.

Faith On Trial is on the air courtesy of our loyal sponsors and underwriters:  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 Robert Cota, Farm Bureau Financial Services, 200 West 2nd Ave., Indianola, Iowa 50125, 515-961-4555 or 515-205-5642.