The recent hard-line decision by the Obama administration regarding mandatory contraception coverage in employer healthcare plans is no different, though it is more direct and open. As Cardinal DiNardo pointed out back in October, the religious exemption clause in this mandate is so narrow that it seems to show a disdain for religion. The secular definition of religion as being a purely "private" thing is being taken to it's logical conclusion: religious institutions are now only those that serve and employee members of their own religion. In other words, if an institution seeks to aid or employ anybody outside their own religion, i.e. step out into the public sphere, their religious beliefs are left behind and they must submit to the ideologies of prevailing thought, even if these ideologies conflict with their "private" beliefs.
In response to the Obama administration's effort to impose the contraceptive mentality on Catholic institutions, the Catholic bishops have responded with vows of a fight. Indeed, it always does the sheep good to see the shepherds go to battle against the wolves. It is encouraging as a lay Catholic to see bishops sticking up for our values, not willing to acquiesce to the attacks of secularism. The next year, during which Catholic institutions are supposed to figure out how to violate their consciences, as Archbishop Dolan put it, I hope and pray the bishops will use every measure available to them to stop this mandate from going into effect. I hope and pray that they will stay strong, and not weary of the long fight ahead.
Unfortunately, though, in the last 50 years we have witnessed many bishops growing weary of this fight. Many became silent on the issues of sexual morality and allowed secularist sexuality to take root in the hearts of so many in our country. A few bishops stood up, and they became beacons of light to faithful Catholics. But many chose popularity with the masses over faithfulness to the Truth. This coming fight, though, represents a new challenge. This fight no longer asks the bishops and the Church to be silent while secularists do their thing; this fight now asks the bishops and the Church to directly take part in the secularist view of sex. It directly asks Catholic charities, hospitals, and schools to fund contraceptives. This directness cannot be met with silence, it requires either an assent or dissent from the bishops.
But the bishops cannot, and must not be alone in this fight. Though the bishops are the leaders, and they must stand up for the truth, they cannot stand on their own. The Church is made up of clergy and laity alike, and now more than ever we the laity must be members of that Church. We must fight against the secularist encroachment on our morals as well. As laity, it is easy for us to complain and moan about the lack of strength amongst the bishops. It is easy for us to sit back and say "This is what should be done," but like the scholars of the law in the bible not lift a finger to bear the burdens ourselves (Lk 11:46).
Our role during these times, though, is different from the bishops. The most important aspect of the laity's role during these times is prayer. We must be praying, we must be fasting, we must be begging God for a vistory. We should ask in trust that He give strength to His bishops, that He guide them in what to say. We should pray that our enemies be forgiven, and we should beseech that they too will come to Jesus. And we should ask this in trust, believing that God will give us good gifts out of His love for us. The biggest obstacle to this prayer, though, is often our own weakness! I for one know that I forget to pray for these situations. I forget to beseech God on behalf of our shepherds, and this forgetfulness is a sign that I do not feel as passionately about the issues as I should. I get worked up for a few minutes, but then move on with my life. For this fight, though, we cannot grow comfortable. We cannot lose our own stamina. It will be long, and it will be tiring, but we must persevere with our prayers. We must continue to pray. We must offer up our little sufferings for our Church and our world: for all those souls who do not yet know Christ. We can't forget to pray.
Prayer is the most essential aspect of what we can do as laity, but there is more for us to do as well. We need to encourage our bishops. We can write them letters, strengthening them when they stand for the truth, letting them know that the sheep are behind them and relying on them. We have to let our elected representatives know what we think. We cannot remain silent. I know I have remained silent for too long. It's so easy to not take the time to write a letter. It's easy to assume that somebody else is going to do it. But what if everybody was writing to their bishops and congressmen? What if we all stood up and shouted, "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord" (Joshua 24:15)? This will, and can have an effect.
Similarly, we must witness to our views to those around us. Social media has made this easier than ever. We can share stories about the issue, write out our thoughts about it and how it would effect us as followers of Christ to have to fund something so evil. It's not only the leaders of our Church and our nation that need to hear from us, it's all our fellow men. We all have people we're friends with on Facebook who don't think the same we do - we need to show them the pain this would cause! We need to show them that we don't actually hate women, but rather we are following God's call to us. We are following His path.
Finally, we need to discern where we will make our own stand. If the battle is lost on a national level, what will constitute a victory on the personal level? When will it be necessary to sacrifice a job or career so that we can remain faithful to the Truth? If we lose this battle, what then? These are questions that we must wrestle with and find answers to. When will I enter the fray? We should always be asking these questions, but especially now. "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord."
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