Catholic Hospitals and Abortion; Adoption Agencies and SSM
David French, Why Christians Can’t Compromise on Conscience
Money quote:
It goes something like this: Dear Christians, thank you for feeding,
housing, and caring for the poor, but unless you do it in the manner we
prefer, advancing the worldview we prefer — even to the point of
adopting the personnel policies we demand — we will use all the power of
law and public shame to bring you into compliance. We’ll pass laws that
violate your conscience. We’ll call you bigots or misogynists when you
resist. And all the while, the fact that you actually do serve and
sustain (physically and spiritually) millions of Americans will be lost
and ignored.
This is how activists justify tossing from campus Christian groups
that do an immense of amount of good works simply because they don’t
consent to being led by a lesbian who doesn’t believe in their statement
of faith. This is how legislators pass laws that will reduce
the number of adoption agencies rather than allow Catholic or other
Christian agencies to follow their most basic principles when placing
children in loving homes. This is how organizations such as the ACLU
launch litigation campaigns that could cause hospitals to close,
narrowing the health-care options for poor and marginalized Americans.
And in response to each event, as Christians leave campus or adoption
agencies close their doors, many of these same progressives will be
puzzled. Why close? Why leave? Just change your policies. Can’t you
provide Catholic care and contraception — and blame the state for making you do it?
But this fundamentally misunderstands the nature of serious faith.
