Made for Love is back with a new look, feel, and episode! Meet our new co-hosts Andrew Buonopane and Kara Eschbach in Episode 59, along with interview guest Fr. Conrad Murphy, host of the Catholic Bytes podcast, who chats with Andrew about the sacramental life and the body. And be sure to check out all episodes on Marriage: Unique for a Reason!
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Help Stop the "Equality Act"! |
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Everyone deserves to be treated with dignity and respect. But the mis-named Equality Act would do the opposite in many ways if enacted. By seeking to insert "sexual orientation" and "gender identity" into civil rights laws, it would discriminate against people of faith and impose gender theory in schools, workplaces, charities, shelters, hospitals, doctors' offices, and more. Its provisions could also be construed to create an abortion mandate. USCCB bishop chairmen wrote a letter to Congress on February 23rd explaining their opposition to this bill. It passed the U.S. House of Representatives on February 25th and goes before the Senate for a vote soon.
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Overlapping with the Year of St. Joseph will be a "year" of reflection on Amoris Laetitia, starting March 19th and ending with the celebration of the 10th World Meeting of Families in Rome on June 26th, 2022. Organized by the Vatican's Dicastery for Laity, Family, and Life, the year will be dedicated to "spreading the Christian message on the family in light of the challenges of our time." Throughout the year, the USCCB will hold several events and share resources, so stay tuned for more!
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Help us learn more about you by answering our quick survey! |
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With which of the following are you familiar?
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Love and Responsibility (1960)
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Theology of the Body (1979-1984)
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More than one of the above
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Other (tell us which one by replying to this email!)
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Legal/Policy Updates
New Administration - President Biden continued to be hard at work advancing the "LGBT" agenda in February. On February 4th, he issued an executive order which, among other things, treats otherwise unrecognized same-sex partners as "spouses" for refugee purposes, and a memo directing U.S. foreign policy to promote "LGBTQ" rights around the world by an array of means. On February 9th, the Administration abandoned, in court, a Dept. of Labor rule regarding the religious freedom of federal contractors; and on the 10th, it did similarly with a Trump-era regulation that helped protect faith-based foster care and adoption agencies. In addition, an Administration spokesman recently announced plans to make gender marker "X," for "nonbinary"-identifying persons, available on federal documents and records. And on February 23rd, the Secretary of Veterans Affairs issued a memo to review policies to ensure "LGBTQ inclusion and equality."
Children's Health and Athletics - As state legislative sessions heat up, at least 17 states have introduced bills to protect women and girls from having to compete against "transgender"-identifying males in school athletics; and at least 11 have bills to protect children from "gender transition" medical interventions. A federal version of the sports bill was reintroduced on February 4th. All face uphill battles for passage.
Foster Care / Adoption - The Child Welfare Provider Protection Act, long a priority of the USCCB to protect faith-based foster care and adoption agencies from governmental discrimination for upholding the right of children to a mother and a father, is expected to be reintroduced in the coming weeks by Senator Tim Scott and Representative Mike Kelly.
Virginia - Meanwhile, the Virginia House of Delegates passed a bill on February 3rd to repeal state protections for faith-based adoption and foster care providers. On February 19th, the legislature passed the first step in amending the state constitution to redefine "marriage" in line with the Obergefell decision (New Jersey and Nebraska are advancing similar measures). The local school board long embroiled in the student restroom case of since-graduated Gavin Grimm, however, appealed once again to the U.S. Supreme Court on February 19th.
New York - Governor Cuomo ordered all insurers to cover "fertility treatments" for same-sex couples (i.e. surrogacy in the case of men) on February 11th.
Florida - A state commission unilaterally decided to redefine state civil rights laws to cover "sexual orientation" and "gender identity" this month.
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