Written by Don Byrd
A federal judge in Massachusetts has ruled that the Department of Health and Human Services violated the Establishment Clause of the Constitution by allowing the US Conference of Catholic Bishops the right to distribute taxpayer funds based upon religious beliefs. The grants were awarded pursuant to legislation designed to combat human trafficking. The USCCB was insistent on subcontracting the work only to organizations that complied with their religious perspective, a restriction the government allowed, prompting this suit from the ACLU.
In his ruling Judge Stearns rejected the argument that the separation of church and state is an anti-religious doctrine.
To insist that the government respect the separation of church and state is not to discriminate against religion; indeed, it promotes a respect for religion by refusing to single out any creed for official favor at the expense of all others.
Adding in a footnote:
This case is not about government forcing a religious institution to act contrary to its most fundamental beliefs. No one is arguing that the USCCB can be mandated by government to provide abortion or contraceptive services or be discriminated against for its refusal to do so. Rather, this case is about the limits of the government’s ability to delegate to a religious institution the right to use taxpayer money to impose its beliefs on others (who may or may not share them).
If religious organizations are empowered to distribute taxpayer funds on behalf of the government, they should not be able to do so in a way that discriminates along religious lines, or that promotes a particular religious viewpoint. With government funds come government strings. As they should.
