Catholics lobby at Capitol

By KATE BLAIN

Assistant Editor

While more than 700 Catholics had come to the State Capitol from all over New York State to lobby their legislators on eight issues of concern, Bishop Howard J. Hubbard did make a statement at the press conference about one issue not on the agenda, but prevalent in the media of late: priests who abuse children.

"I would like to say a few words about a very painful situation facing the Catholic Church at this time," the Bishop said. "The abuse of children is always a horrible tragedy and a grave sin. When the abuser is a priest, the offense is even more shocking and repugnant. The bishops of New York would like to assure victims and their families of our profound regret for their pain. Our children are our greatest treasure. They are the future of the Church. We cannot let them down."

Agenda

With that, Bishop Hubbard turned the conference's focus to the lobbying agenda at hand:

* reforming the Rockefeller-era drug laws that harshly punish offenders whom the Church believes would be better served by treatment;

* advocating for parental rights in education, including school vouchers, scholarships and tax credits, as well as funding for computer hardware, transportation and Academic Intervention Services;

* passing the Unborn Victims of Violence Act to prohibit assault or homicide of an unborn child;

* serving the working poor through advocating Temporary Assistance for Needy Families (TANF) funds for transportation, child care and other aid for families coming off welfare;

* caring for the vulnerable with HIV/AIDS services and better wages for mental health workers;

* helping rural New Yorkers with their specific needs, including transportation and affordable housing;

* recruiting and retaining home health workers; and

* fighting threats against religious employers' freedom, exemplified by legislation awaiting a vote by the State Assembly that would require most Catholic employers to cover contraception in employees' health insurance plans.

Lobby day

The hundreds of forum participants from New York's eight dioceses spent the day lobbying state lawmakers, going to workshops on the issues and attending a special Mass. The Public Policy Forum is sponsored by the New York State Catholic Conference, which advocates for the state's bishops on issues of concern.

The "conscience clause" issue took center stage on the forum's agenda. Under the proposed legislation, only Catholic institutions that employ mostly Catholics -- for instance, parishes and schools -- would be exempt from being forced to cover birth control.

At the press conference, Cardinal Edward Egan of the Archdiocese of New York described the Church as "under siege" by the legislation, which has already been passed by the State Senate.

"It is not possible to separate the works of the Church from the Church itself," the Cardinal stated. "Our Lord commands us to commit the works of mercy, and it is this mission that drives us. We cannot and we will not compromise on issues of faith."

He accused abortion advocates of trying to "put the Catholic Church out of business" using women's health as a pawn, saying that "it exhibits at best an ignorance of the Church and at worst an hostility toward the Church."

'Stunned'

Laura Cassell, Catholic Charities CEO for the Rockville Centre (Long Island) Diocese, continued the attack on the legislation by noting that her office provided 150,000 individuals last year with everything from substance abuse services to legal aid, according to the Church's mission to minister to the troubled and oppressed.

Ms. Cassell said she was "stunned and deeply disappointed" that nine senators from Long Island signed a bill that, in effect, declares Catholic Charities not to be a Catholic organization.

"I am here to tell the Senate loudly and clearly that we are Catholic," she stated.

'Troubled'

Representing Troy-based Seton Health, Pamela Rehak, vice president of planning and community health, said her own institution provides health care at more than 20 sites in the Albany Diocese.

"As Catholic healthcare providers, we believe the dignity of human life is shared by all," she stated. "We were deeply troubled that the bill contained no religious exception [for conscience protection]. We believe this legislation defining religion sets a dangerous precedent."

If that precedent is set by the Assembly passing and the Governor signing the bill, Catholic leaders believe the Church could be mandated to provide employees with assisted reproductive services it finds morally wrong -- including in-vitro fertilization, which destroys human embryos.

Positives

However, Cardinal Egan was quick to note that the legislation contains other, valuable elements the Church does advocate for, including breast-cancer screening for women.

"We need to see that the good elements of this legislation are achieved as soon as possible," he said.

The Cardinal refused to entertain the idea that the legislation might actually be passed by the State Assembly, saying that he would not address the issue and its consequences unless it happened, and "that hypothesis, prayerfully, is never going to see reality."

When asked why the Church wouldn't leave the choice to use contraception up to its employees, Cardinal Egan responded, "We do leave it up to them. Who in the world would know whether they did it or not? The question is whether or not an institution should support and pay for this type of activity."

Unborn victims

Referring to the issue of protection for unborn children, the Cardinal spoke passionately about the need to see the unborn as human beings.

"In a civilized community, no one would allow anyone to kill that [unborn] being," he stated emphatically, adding: "Let's not make religion the issue here -- until you can prove the being within the mother is other than a human being, don't kill it and don't let anyone else kill it."

Under a barrage of questions from the media about recent accusations of sexual abuse by priests, particularly in the Boston Archdiocese, the speakers refused to comment. They explained that the media had already covered the issue, and they didn't want to distract from the Public Policy Forum's agenda for the day.