Fortnight for Freedom - Day 8

Busy at work today – like every day – I just heard the Supreme Court’s decision. I’m heartbroken. I need more time to digest it. But on a positive note, it will be a rallying cry: the only way to get rid of obamacare is to get him out of office. This is where our work comes in.

We must become familiar with the issues and come to know the facts. Doing so we will not hesitate from entering discussions on the topics, and that is the key, to talk about the issues with our family friends and acquaintances – we might change some hearts and minds. But we won’t if we shy from the issues because we don’t know the facts. The advancement of evil is largely due to the lack of being informed by good people and disinterest and apathy.

As a Catholic I believe everyone should have access to healthcare. But what is healthcare? It is not providing contraception, especially to career Harvard students who can surely afford to buy their own. Should my taxes pay for her pills? Healthcare is not elective sterilizations – being fertile is not a disease or an illness. And surely healthcare is not killing babies – so much for the health of the baby; and surely, not if it is for boy/girl sex selection. Healthcare is not euthanasia; it is disposing of people deemed to be a burden. Healthcare is not waiting in line, or taking months/years for a needed operation. Healthcare is not having a committee or a government employee deciding you can’t have a medication or an operation because you are too old. Healthcare is not killing babies to harvest stem-cells.

My brothers and sisters, two of my rules I follow in my life is one, not to pass on to the next generations what we, today, are responsible for. The generations to come will have their own problems to deal with. I am responsible for my bills, my children and grandchildren should not be burdened with my bills. Second, I have learned if you want to eat you must work (now where have I heard that?). Again, I have no trouble giving a helping hand when needed; I have seen disabled people, blind people going to work, and I have seen strong, healthy, young people refusing to work and living a life of Riley on the public dole.

Day 8

The direction I’m taking today is becoming more informed with the issues Fortnight for Freedom is addressing. First, I have re-read  the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ document  “Our First, Most Cherished Liberty.”

Here are some excerpts:

It is a sobering thing to contemplate our government enacting an unjust law. An unjust law cannot be obeyed. In the face of an unjust law, an accommodation is not to be sought, especially by resorting to equivocal words and deceptive practices. If we face today the prospect of unjust laws, then Catholics in America, in solidarity with our fellow citizens, must have the courage not to obey them. No American desires this. No Catholic welcomes it. But if it should fall upon us, we must discharge it as a duty of citizenship and an obligation of faith.
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As Catholics, we are obliged to defend the right to religious liberty for ourselves and for others. We are happily joined in this by our fellow Christians and believers of other faiths.
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In insisting that our liberties as Americans be respected, we know as bishops that what our Holy Father said is true. This work belongs to "an engaged, articulate and well-formed Catholic laity endowed with a strong critical sense vis-à-vis the dominant culture."
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To our priests, especially those who have responsibility for parishes, university chaplaincies, and high schools, we ask for a catechesis on religious liberty suited to the souls in your care. As bishops we can provide guidance to assist you, but the courage and zeal for this task cannot be obtained from another—it must be rooted in your own concern for your flock and nourished by the graces you received at your ordination.
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Almighty God, Father of all nations,For freedom you have set us free in Christ Jesus (Gal 5:1).We praise and bless you for the gift of religious liberty,the foundation of human rights, justice, and the common good.Grant to our leaders the wisdom to protect and promote our liberties;By your grace may we have the courage to defend them, for ourselves and for all those who live in this blessed land.We ask this through the intercession of Mary Immaculate, our patroness,and in the name of your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ, in the unity of the Holy Spirit,with whom you live and reign, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.

You can read the entire statement here, or get a .pdf of it.

Now let me see what else I can get into….