Photo ~ Bishop William Lori

Bishops: Don't Make Catholic Hospitals Perform Abortions [UPDATE]

Connecticut's Catholic bishops—including Bishop William Lori, who announced in March that he is leaving the Roman Catholic Diocese of Bridgeport to become archbishop of the Baltimore Archdiocese—have issued a statement expressing their dismay after all five Democratic candidates said during Sunday's "Face the State" debate that they would support legislation forcing Catholic hospitals to perform abortions.

...They (Connecticut's Catholic bishops) issued a statement expressing their dismay after all five Democratic candidates said during Sunday's "Face the State" debate that they would support legislation forcing Catholic hospitals to perform abortions.

"If it is their [the candidates'] position that our hospitals should be forced by law or regulations to provide abortions in spite of our teaching, it is unfortunate to note their readiness to violate religious liberty"...

Here are some excerpts of the answers:

Susan Bysiewicz: "The federal government has the right to regulate what services are provided, because Catholic institutions, colleges and universities get funding from the federal government, and I believe that those institutions should provide access to reproductive health care."

Matthew Oakes: "If they're gonna take our money—I'm Roman Catholic—then they need to perform the health care issues that women need performed for them."

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