BishopAccountability.org
 
  A Dangerous Precedent (Erin)

By Rod Dreher
Beliefnet
June 12, 2009

http://blog.beliefnet.com/crunchycon/2009/06/a-dangerous-precedent-erin.html

Do you remember this post of Rod's back in March, about how the Connecticut legislature proposed a bill that would remove power from Catholic priests and bishops and mandate that parishes be run by lay people? That bill was defeated, thanks in part due to the outrage and protests by Catholics throughout the state. But now, the State of Connecticut is investigating whether the Diocese of Bridgeport acted as a lobby when it coordinated the actions of concerned Catholics to help them protest against this proposed legislation:

According to the Connecticut Office of State Ethics, the diocese acted as a lobbying organization in March when it rented buses to transport people to a rally in Hartford -- the state capital -- to protest a bill that would have granted more power to parishioners regarding church finances.

Officials also are investigating whether the church acted as a lobbying organization on its Web site when it urged parishioners to contact lawmakers about the bill, which eventually was withdrawn amid public outcry, and about a another bill to legalize same-sex marriage, which was signed into law in April.

Now the ethics office is "evaluating" whether the diocese failed to register as a lobbyist -- an investigation that Bishop William Lori says violates the diocese's First Amendment right to free speech and assembly.

"I don't know what the motive of the Office of State Ethics was or is, but I do know that their actions stem directly from our attempts to defend ourselves in the face of two pieces of legislation that were unfriendly to the day-to-day mission of the church," Lori told FOXNews.com on Thursday.

"We were simply seeking to fulfill our mission, to continue to be ourselves."

This is outrageous. If a Catholic diocese--or any church--is going to be considered a "lobbyist" any time its leaders speak out on issues of concern to the members of their faith communities using the communication resources they already have in place, then the effect will be to shut down the free speech of church leaders. If spreading the Gospel includes such things as speaking out against an attempt to interfere with the Church's internal governance, or protesting against, say, the death penalty, that is not lobbying; it is free speech and freedom of religion.

I hope that citizens of Connecticut from all sorts of religious backgrounds will protest this. Forcing churches to be labeled "lobbyists" for speaking out on issues that matter to people of faith is a dangerous precedent.

  
 
Any original material on these pages is copyright © BishopAccountability.org 2004. Reproduce freely with attribution.