Four Christian universities in Oklahoma are the latest to file a lawsuit against the Obama administration over the health care mandate that forces employers to provide health insurance coverage for abortion-inducing drugs, sterilization and contraception, regardless of the religious or moral convictions of the employer. Southern Nazarene University, Oklahoma Wesleyan University, Oklahoma Baptist University and Mid-America Christian University filed the lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Oklahoma last Friday. The Christian Post has the full story.
“Christian colleges should remain free to operate according to the beliefs that define them,” the group’s Senior Counsel, Gregory S. Baylor, said. “This mandate leaves religious employers with no real choice: you must either comply and abandon your religious freedom and conscience, or resist and be taxed for your faith. If religious convictions mean nothing in this context, there is no stopping what the government can ultimately do.”
The suit challenging the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) mandate also points out that if the universities “follow their religious convictions and decline to participate in the government’s scheme, they will face, among other injuries, enormous fines that will cripple their operations.”
Crippling their operations would be just fine with the Obama administration. Disregarding religious freedom is nothing new for them and they are not about to change their position. Lawsuits such as this and the one by Hobby Lobby that is currently making its way through the system are the only possibilities left for changing the mandate. The last few days have made it crystal clear that any efforts in Congress to derail the train wreck known as Obamacare are going to fail due to opposition, not just from the Democrats, but a large number of Republicans as well.
But, I am not optimistic about the result of any challenge in court. At least one of the several lawsuits over the mandate will most certainly wind up before the Supreme Court, where I am sure they will uphold the mandate to provide coverage violating religious beliefs as Constitutional. Not because it is, but because the leftists on the Court will rubber stamp any socialistic program and the Chief Justice will likely vote to uphold the law he has already labeled as Constitutional.
The left’s war on religion has intensified in recent years as they try to replace God with their own religion – government. The requirements for employers as set forth in Obamacare are just one more step in that war. What will they do next? It should come as no surprise that this ‘signature piece’ of legislation from the Obama administration contains assaults on religious freedom. After all, Obama himself sat in a ‘church’ for more than twenty years and listened to his own pastor ask God to curse America. Apparently, Obama has made that his mission as well.
I hate to sound so pessimistic, but I am afraid you are right. It appears our government is determined to make sure our religious liberties count for naught. This is a far cry from the America I grew up in.
Ditto that. I also hate sounding pessimistic so much of the time but I don’t believe you can be grounded in reality lately without pessimism.