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Sparks fly as House GOP blasts contraception mandate

By LAUREN MARKOE

© 2012 Religion News Service

WASHINGTON — Exhibit A in the fight over President Obama's mandate for religious institutions to provide insurance coverage for contraception: a ham sandwich.

   At a hearing Thursday (Feb. 16) convened by House Republicans to cast opposition to the mandate as a matter of religious liberty, Roman Catholic Bishop William E. Lori invoked the image of a kosher deli forced to sell ham sandwiches.

   "The mandate generates the question whether people who believe -- even if they believe in error -- that pork is not good for you, should be forced by government to serve pork within their very own institutions.

   "In a nation committed to religious liberty and diversity, the answer, of course, is no," said Lori, the bishop of Bridgeport, Conn., and the point man on religious liberty for the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.

   Democrats on the panel objected to the hearing as a male-dominated exercise designed to recast Obama's desire to expand coverage for women's reproductive services as a callous disregard for America's cherished tradition of religious freedom.

   Rep. Elijah Cummings, D-Md., the ranking Democrat on the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform, sought to steer the discussion to women's health, and how contraception has improved their lives.

   "The pill has had a profound impact on their well-being -- far more than any man in this room can ever know," Cummings said.

   Cummings accused Committee Chairman Darrell Issa, R-Calif., of "promoting a conspiracy theory that the federal government is conducting a 'war' against religion. He has stacked the hearing with witnesses who agree with his position."

   In addition to Lori, witnesses included the Rev. Matthew C. Harrison, the president of the Lutheran Church-Missouri Synod; Rabbi Meir Soloveichik of Yeshiva University; and Craig Mitchells, a professor at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

   A second panel included representatives of religiously affiliated colleges and health plans. The Democrats originally contemplated asking the Rev. Barry Lynn, executive director of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, to testify, according to Lynn, but instead asked a female witness -- a decision Lynn said he understood.

   But Issa rejected the Democrat's ultimate choice -- Georgetown University law student Sandra Fluke, who has been outspoken about how the Catholic university denied contraceptive coverage to a fellow student whose doctors prescribed the drugs to treat ovarian cysts.

   In a heated exchange as the hearing began, Issa said the Democrats had presented Fluke to the committee too late and that, unlike Lynn, she was not an appropriate speaker for the topic of religious freedom.

   "She is a student at a well-respected Catholic University. Why in the world is she not qualified?" Rep. Carolyn Maloney, D-N.Y., shot back.

   The Obama administration, which first issued the mandate on Jan. 20, had seemed to underestimate the reaction from the bishops and many conservative Christians. Even those who do not share the bishops' theological opposition to birth control nonetheless object to providing insurance for sterilization and the so-called morning-after pill, which some view as akin to abortion.

   Last Friday (Feb. 10), the administration modified the mandate, saying that insurance companies -- not religious institutions like hospitals and universities -- would be required to offer free contraception coverage to employees.

   Lori and the Republicans' other panelists said the recent accommodation would still force institutions to violate their consciences and subsidize services that contradict their religious beliefs.

   Other groups that were opposed to the original mandate say the administration has met critics more than half way, and the bishops should accept the deal.

   "The bishops have prevailed," said Nicholas P. Cafardi, a law professor at Duquesne University and a supporter of the president. "Basically I think the bishops should be gracious in their victory."

   But the Missouri Synod's Harrison said he would rather go to jail than comply with even the modified mandate. The Obama compromise, he said, still requires religious institutions to pay -- however indirectly -- for services that violate their religious beliefs.

   "I will give up my sons to fight" for these liberties, he said. "I will give up every single thing I have."

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Why do Mormons baptize the dead?

By DANIEL BURKE

© 2012 Religion News Service

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has apologized for a Mormon who baptized the late parents of famed Nazi-hunter Simon Wiesenthal. But despite calls this week from Holocaust survivor Elie Wiesel and others to rethink the controversial rite, the church is unlikely to drop it entirely.

   Latter-day Saints trace posthumous baptism to the Apostle Paul, who wrote in 1 Corinthians 15:29, "Else what shall they do which are baptized for the dead, if the dead not rise at all? Why are they then baptized for the dead?" Mormons believe that Joseph Smith, their faith's founding prophet, restored the apostolic practice after centuries of neglect by mainstream Christians.

   Proxy baptism was also Smith's answer to a classic Christian conundrum: What happens to people who, through no fault of their own, did not join the church during their lifetime? Should they be barred from heaven?

   Mormons believe that vicarious baptisms give the deceased, who exist in the afterlife as conscious spirits, a final chance to join the Mormon fold, and thus gain access to the Celestial Kingdom. To Mormons, only members of the LDS priesthood possess the power to baptize.

   "It doesn't matter if you're a Baptist or a Buddhist," said Kathleen Flake, a Vanderbilt University scholar who has studied the church, "it's about who has the authority to perform the sacrament."

   Flake said Mormons are encouraged to baptize at least four generations of forebears to seal the family together in the afterlife. So the LDS church has built the world's most extensive genealogical library in Salt Lake City with 700 employees and more than 2 billion names.

   Baptisms need bodies, so young Mormon men and women dressed in white robes stand in for the departed souls in temple ceremonies worldwide. Mormons youths consider it an honor to be immersed in baptismal founts while the names of the deceased are recited.

   LDS leaders emphasize that the spirits of the dead must accept the baptism -- it cannot be involuntarily imposed. And Mormons are instructed to only baptize family members, particularly after Jewish genealogists discovered in the 1990s that 380,000 Holocaust survivors had been vicariously baptized. In response, the church imposed safeguards and spent $500,000 removing Jewish names from its baptismal registries.

   But with 13 million Mormons worldwide, the church insists that it cannot control "pranksters or careless persons" who submit Jewish names or famous people such as President Obama's late mother, Stanley Anne Dunham. And the church considers the ritual too essential to forswear.

   "With deepest respect to our Jewish friends, the church cannot abandon fundamental aspects of its religious doctrine and practice," the church writes on its website, "and it should not be asked to do so."

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Under pressure, Obama exempts religious groups from contraception rule

By DAVID GIBSON

© 2012 Religion News Service

Facing growing furor from religious groups, President Obama on Friday (Feb. 10) unveiled an "accommodation" in which health insurance companies, rather than religious institutions, will provide employees with contraception coverage.

The revised approach effectively removes all faith-based organizations -- not just houses of worship but also hospitals and universities -- from covering employees' contraception costs.

"Every woman should be in control of the decisions that affect her own health," Obama said in a midday address at the White House.

"Now, as we move to implement this rule, however, we've been mindful that there's another principle at stake here -- and that's the principle of religious liberty, an inalienable right that is enshrined in our Constitution," Obama said. "As a citizen and as a Christian, I cherish this right."

At issue was a mandate, part of Obama's 2009 health care overhaul, that employers provide free birth control coverage. Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius announced the mandate Jan. 20.

Religious groups, particularly Catholics, fiercely objected, saying the federal government should not force institutions to violate the tenets of their faith. Women's advocates argued that employees should have access to birth control regardless of where they work.

The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, which led the charge against the contraception mandate, said on Friday that it would study the revised rule.

"While there may be an openness to respond to some of our concerns, we reserve judgment on the details until we have them," said Cardinal-designate Timothy Dolan, president of USCCB.

"We hope to work with the administration to guarantee that Americans' consciences and our religious freedom are not harmed by these regulations."

Obama was under fierce pressure to forge a compromise. Conservatives labeled the mandate an abridgment of religious freedom, a rallying cry taken up by GOP presidential candidates, including front-runner Mitt Romney.

Under the new plan, a religiously affiliated institution would not be required to provide contraception coverage. Rather, the institution's insurance company would offer the coverage for free and without raising premiums.

Sister Carol Keehan, head of the Catholic Health Association, an umbrella group for more than 600 Catholic hospitals, said Friday she was "very pleased" with Obama's compromise, which she said "protects the religious liberty and conscience rights of Catholic institutions."

Keehan was a key supporter of the president's health care reform law -- against the wishes of the U.S. Catholic bishops -- but she had voiced strong criticism of the initial contraception regulations.

Keehan was joined by a range of progressive Catholic groups and leaders in praising the new rules. Many of them had been upset with the administration's initial decision on the mandate.

Cecile Richards, president of Planned Parenthood, also welcomed Friday's decision.

"We believe the compliance mechanism does not compromise a woman's ability to access these critical birth control benefits," Richards said.

The furor over the contraception mandate appeared to catch the White House off guard, as it struggled to keep the focus on access to contraception, which is broadly used by American women, even Catholics.

Miami Archbishop Thomas Wenski told CNN he thought Obama is "just kicking the can down the road."

"He's hasn't really addressed our concerns," Wenski said. "I think the only thing to do is...to take back the whole thing."

In recent days, as they sensed the political tide turning in their favor, several USCCB officials have indicated they wanted to go for more than just a broader exemption and wanted the entire contraception mandate eliminated.

That tack may have less appeal in light of the White House's new plan. But that may not stop Catholic conservatives from keeping up the pressure on Obama.

William Donohue, president of the conservative Catholic League, called the new policy a "ploy" and said Catholics "will only be impelled to revolt."

Family Research Council President Tony Perkins likewise called the proposal "paperwork gimmicks."

"This revised HHS mandate does nothing to change the fundamentally anti-religious, anti-conscience and anti-life contraceptive mandate," he said.

On the other side, some abortion rights supporters were also unhappy.

"This administration has shown that it will not stand with women when it comes to supporting access to, and easing the availability of, reproductive healthcare services," said Jon O'Brien, head of Catholics for Choice. "One wonders what has been gained by this 'accommodation.' It certainly isn't the support of Catholics."

Daily RNS News

Christians report lowest growth rate in Israel

By JUDITH SUDILOVSKY

© 2012 Religion News Service

JERUSALEM (RNS/ENInews) — Christians have the lowest growth rate among the Israeli population, according to a recent report from the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics.

According to the Jan. 6 report, the Christian growth rate of 0.9 percent lags behind the Jewish rate of 1.7 percent and the 2.7 percent growth rate among Muslims. Christian Arabs have a growth rate of 1 percent, while the rate among non-Arab Christians is 0.7 percent.

About 154,000 Christians live in Israel, representing about 2 percent of the population, according to the bureau.

The percentage of Christians in Israel has remained relatively stable since the mid-1980s, noted Wadie Abunassar, director of the International Center for Consultations and a consultant for the Jerusalem Center for Jewish-Christian Relations.

About 80 percent of Christians living in Israel are Arabs, with the remainder mainly Christians who immigrated to Israel with Jewish members of their families under the Law of Return, which allows any proven Jewish person to immigrate to Israel.

The estimated birthrate for Christian women is also the lowest among the religious groups. The average number of children expected to be born to a Christian woman is 2.1, compared to a Muslim woman (3.8), a Jewish woman (3.0) and a Druze woman (2.5).

But though their relative numbers in Israeli society are low, Christian

Arab students consistently have the highest success rates on college-entry examinations compared to other sectors of Israeli society.

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Americans intrigued but wary still of Mormon beliefs

By CATHY LYNN GROSSMAN

© 2012 USA Today

When Mormons call themselves "a peculiar people," they mean it in the biblical sense -- set aside by God, chosen.

But many Americans call them peculiar in Webster's way -- strange, odd.

Now Mormons, followers of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, are in the spotlight. One of their own, Mitt Romney, is a leading contender for the Republican presidential nomination.

Suddenly, America's abuzz about "gold plates and magic underwear," says Terryl Givens, a professor of religion at the University of Richmond in Virginia and a Mormon himself.

Mormon ways are little known, yet many Americans are suspicious of them. That could be because:

-- Mormons are unfamiliar to many. There are 6 million, adults and children, accounting for fewer than 2 percent of the U.S. population, and 76 percent live in a handful of Western states.

-- Outspoken evangelical pastors call Mormonism a non-Christian "cult," Mormons disagree, saying they just center their faith on a different understanding of God, Christ, Scripture and salvation than Catholics or Protestants. Christian private schools and home-schooling associations specify that the Bible is the only Scripture, thereby excluding Mormons, who add three more holy books.

-- Unlike Judaism, Mormonism is not a faith commonly studied in comparative religion classes. When Mormons show up in history books, it's generally limited to a saga of persecution (they were driven from the Midwest to Utah in the 19th century) and legal conflicts over polygamy. The church banned polygamy in 1890, but polygamist splinter groups, such as those depicted in "Big Love" and "Sister Wives" often see more media airtime than mainstream Mormons.

Joseph Smith founded the LDS church, according to church teachings, after discovering gold plates buried in upstate New York that he believed contained the words of ancient prophets detailing Jesus' visit to the New World. When translated, it became the text of The Book of Mormon, which Mormons believe is essential to restoring the original church as Christ intended.

According to one of the four books of Mormon scripture, The Pearl of Great Price, Smith later returned the golden plates to an angelic guardian.

Some adult Mormons in good standing with the church wear a simple cotton T-shirt and fitted pants that have been blessed by the church.

"Once someone actually lifted the sleeve of my shirt to peek while asking, 'Do you wear the magic underwear?' Stop! I don't check your underpants!" recalls Erin Gillie, 26, who moved to Washington, D.C., from Alabama recently. She wears the undergarments, she says, "as a reminder of who I am: a child of God who should live by certain standards."

"A lot of people have preconceived ideas about Mormons, and there's not much I can do to change their minds if their pastor is telling them Mormons are evil," she says. "People will ask, 'How many moms do you have?' I've had dates who never called again once they learned I was Mormon. I figure it's their loss."

Mormons cherish their "peculiar" distinctiveness, says Michael Otterson, chief spokesman for the LDS church.

"We value and recognize and respect the values of other religions, but we very much appreciate our own. If you are a Latter-day Saint, a member of the fourth-largest (denomination) in the country, you shouldn't have to go hat in hand for acceptance while acceptance of other minorities -- Jews or Muslims or Presbyterians -- is taken at face value," he says.

Of course, Otterson notes, "You may not even know that the person who cuts your hair or does your taxes is a Mormon because we're totally integrated in the American mainstream already."

If you're not a Mormon you're about as likely to know one as you are to know someone Jewish, and about three times more likely to meet a Mormon than a Buddhist or a Muslim.

A survey of Mormons released recently by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life delineated Mormons traditionalist values -- high on family and education. Most (67 percent) of adult Mormons are married, compared with 52 percent of the nation. College-educated Mormons also have the highest level of commitment to religious orthodoxy: 84 percent say they follow the teachings "wholeheartedly."

Other Christians, not so much.

On Pew Forum's 2010 U.S. Religious Knowledge Survey, which asked 32 questions on the Bible, major religious figures and core beliefs and practices, the average score was 16 correct. Just 19 percent of Protestants knew the basic tenet that salvation is through faith alone, not actions as well. Who scored best? Atheists, Jews and Mormons.

Mormons' strong communities make them a potent organized force, whether for joining in relief programs, campaigning for a moral cause or proselytizing by those ubiquitous young missionaries knocking on doors from Peoria to Peru.

Advocates of same-sex marriage still burn over the millions in donations and savvy campaigning by Mormons backing Proposition 8, which overturned legal gay marriage in California in 2008.

The Los Angeles Gay & Lesbian Center turned its outrage into a moneymaker and rallying point. The center raised $70,000 in contributions. Jim Key, spokesman for the center, says, "For each donation, we sent a postcard to LDS President Thomas Monson saying a gift had been made in his name to invalidate Prop 8."

It's Mormons' religious outreach that worries Warren Cole Smith, an evangelical blogger and associate publisher of World, a Christian news magazine. He fears a Romney presidency would give credence and publicity to a "false faith."

One proof of falsehood, to Smith, is that Mormons believe the Bible didn't close the book on God's revelations. They believe present-day prophets, including the president of the church, can proclaim new teachings from God.

Smith cites two examples: The LDS church banned polygamy in 1890 (perhaps, say historians, prompted by the threats from the U.S. government and by the Mormons' wish to see Utah become a state).

And in 1978, then-LDS president and prophet Spencer Kimball overturned the church's ban on ordaining black men to the priesthood.

Smith's oft-quoted line that makes evangelicals jittery is that Mormons "may believe one thing today, and something else tomorrow."

Still, Smith ruefully admits: "The vast majority of Americans won't care about these theological implications. Indeed, Americans are generally tone-deaf to theological nuances."

(Cathy Lynn Grossman writes for USA Today.)