• Home
  • About
  • Issues
    • Health Care
    • Gay Marriage
    • Immigration
    • Gun Control
    • Abortion
    • Welfare
    • Social Security
    • Spending
    • Taxes
    • Environment
    • Energy
    • Education
  • Economy
  • Energy
  • Environment
  • Health Care
  • Immigration

Little Sisters of the Poor Is About Obama Restricting Religious Freedoms

January 27, 2014 By RepublicanViews.org

The crux of the matter in the case of the Little Sisters of the Poor, a Roman Catholic order of nuns dedicated to serving the elderly poor, versus the federal government’s Affordable Care Act is at once simple, and confounding.

The simple part? President Barack Obama’s administration is wrong to attempt to enforce the HHS Mandate on the nuns and other groups who oppose violating their religious views.

The confusing part? The legal stuff.

Let’s start with the legal stuff.

The nuns, as Catholics, find contraception and abortifacient drugs to be immoral and they object to providing such coverage under their insurance plans as the ACA requires. As an “accommodation,” the government says the nuns can fill out a form certifying their objection and authorizing a third-party to provide and pay for the immoral coverage.

The nuns say authorizing a third-party to offer immoral services makes them complicit. The government presumably disagrees, and that’s why the situation is in the courts with even the Supreme Court getting involved recently to issue an injunction, buying the Little Sisters time while a lower court considers the case.

While legal issues are often complex, there’s one thing that should never be in question in the United States and that is the freedom of religion. Freedom of religion means more than freedom of worship, a term the president once used. It means the right to live your life in accordance with your deeply-held convictions.

Little Sisters of the Poor

Little Sisters of the Poor

Our freedom of religion, guaranteed by the First Amendment of the Constitution, means that a Jewish person should be able to wear a yarmulke in a place that might not otherwise allow head coverings. It means that a follower of Islam should be allowed to stop as needed during the workday to pray towards Mecca. It means if a member of a certain Christian sect wants to handle snakes in their spare time, that’s their business.

But more importantly than what the freedom of religion allows, is what it doesn’t allow.

“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof,” the Constitution reads. 

In the case of the HHS Mandate of the ACA, which seeks to force Catholic nuns & others to provide free contraception, I argue that the President of the United States is violating both tenets of that statement.

The president’s actions, though admittedly not his words, appear to establish secularism as the state religion while relegating public faith to houses of worship. Houses of worship, by the way, are exempt from the mandate without a form.

This sets a precedent wherein a person cannot freely practice their religion because of the secular values being imposed on them.

President Obama claims to be a Christian and it is a claim I don’t doubt. There are many varieties of Christian out there and if he says he is one, I’ll take him at his word. He doesn’t, however, seem interested in preserving religious freedom for his fellow Christians.

Secondly, as Catholics object to contraception and many Protestants and others also object to abortifacient drugs, forcing citizens and businesses that oppose such things to provide them, or to authorize them, clearly prohibits the free practice of their faith.

What we have in the Little Sisters of the Poor versus Obamacare situation is a microcosm of a presidency that has time and time again sought to diminish the role of faith in the public sphere.

Similar Posts:

  • Republican Views on Religion
  • What Will Obamacare Do To Small Businesses?
  • Democratic Views on Religion
  • Libertarian Views on Education
  • What Is The Bill Of Rights? Bill Of Rights Definition
  • Brett Kavanaugh On The Issues
  • Republican Views on Abortion
  • Republican Views on Welfare
  • Who Is Brett Kavanaugh?
  • Democratic Views On Stem Cell Research

Filed Under: President Obama, Religion Tagged With: Little Sisters of the Poor, Obama, Religion

Find The Issue You’re Looking For

Archives

Recent Articles

  • How The Political Parties Got Their Animal Symbols
  • Democratic Views On Spending
  • Democratic Views On The Electoral College
  • What Is The Gold Standard? Gold Standard Definition
  • Libertarian Views On Immigration
  • Libertarian Views On Abortion
  • What Is Trickle Down Economics? Trickle Down Economics Definition
  • Republican Views On The Take a Knee Movement
  • Democratic Views On Cybersecurity
  • Republican Views On Cyber Security
  • Democratic Views On DACA
  • Republican Views On DACA
  • Brett Kavanaugh On The Issues
  • What Is The DREAM Act? DREAM Act Definition
  • Democratic Views On Domestic Surveillance
  • Republican Views On Domestic Surveillance
  • History of Antifa
  • What Is Democratic Socialism? Democratic Socialism Definition
  • What Is The 14th Amendment? 14th Amendment Definition
  • What Is A Democrat? Democrat Definition
  • What Is The Bill Of Rights? Bill Of Rights Definition
  • What Are DACA And DAPA? DACA And DAPA Definition
  • Democratic Views On Birthright Citizenship
  • Republican Views On Birthright Citizenship
  • Who Is Brett Kavanaugh?
  • Why Midterm Elections Are Important
  • Libertarian Views On Global Warming
  • Democratic Views On Foreign Policy
  • Democratic Views On Illegal Immigration
  • History of the Take a Knee Movement
  • Arguments Against Trump’s Tax Bill
  • Democratic Views On Planned Parenthood
  • How Do Political Views Change With Age?
  • Democratic Views On Banking Regulation
  • Can the Media Influence Elections?

Copyright© 2025 Republican Views