CNS - Catholic News Service | This Week in Origins

This Week in Origins

Editors: Contents of Origins CNS Documentary Service, Vol. 41, No. 35 (Feb. 9, 2011):

-- "To hell with you" is the message the Obama administration sent U.S. Catholics in deciding that most religious organizations won't be able to opt out of a new federal mandate that employers' health insurance plans cover contraceptives and sterilization, says Bishop David A. Zubik of Pittsburgh.

-- The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops releases a list of "frequently asked questions" about the government's contraceptive mandate.

-- Have Americans lost their concern for the poor? "Sometimes we hear language and share attitudes that deride persons living in poverty," observes Bishop George V. Murry of Youngstown, Ohio. Ending poverty requires everyone's involvement, he says.

-- The key to resolving governance concerns between bishops and Catholic health care leaders is "providing occasions and regular structures where respectful, open and honest dialogue can take place," says Bishop Gerald F. Kicanas of Tucson, Ariz.