Catholic League president Bill Donohue announces today the league’s revamped website, www.catholicleague.org.

Visitors to the new website will notice a fresh, modern look complete with pictures and graphics. We have answered the requests of many who would like to share Catholic League news releases and articles on their Facebook and Twitter pages. We have also set up direct links to the official Twitter, Facebook and YouTube pages of the Catholic League: eliminating the confusion caused by some poser groups. Visitors can also subscribe to an RSS feed allowing them to receive Catholic League information straight to their desktop or portable device. We have also improved the website’s search engine and site navigation. Both of these features are indispensible tools for researchers.

Over the years we have used our website to launch many successful campaigns, thus we recognize the importance of a prominent web presence. Our new website gives us another tool to do what we do best: combating anti-Catholicism

The following letter was sent today in the overnight mail:

October 11, 2011

Mr. Roger Goodell
Commissioner
National Football League
280 Park Avenue, 15th floor
New York, New York 10017

Dear Mr. Goodell:

Last week, I issued a news release on reports that the NFL was weighing a decision to invite Madonna to perform at the 2012 Super Bowl. As you can see from the enclosed statement [the news release from 10/4], if this were to happen, Christians (especially Catholics) would have every reason to complain. It would not only expose a double standard—it would be seen as a slap in their face. And from the response we have garnered, it seems plain that many would be offended.

I implore you to find an entertainer who does not have a record of disrespecting Christian sensibilities. Thank you for your consideration.

Sincerely,

William Donohue, Ph.D.
President

***Contact Brian McCarthy, VP of Corporate Communications: Brian.McCarthy@nfl.com

Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments on the results of a Quinnipiac poll on the suitability of a Mormon for president:

Is the nation ready for a Mormon president? Among Republicans, 68 percent say they are comfortable with the idea; this is slightly higher than the 64 percent of independents who say they are okay with such a choice; however, only 49 percent of Democrats say they are ready for a Mormon president. What gives?

While it is difficult to explain the uneasiness among some independents,  there are plenty of data showing why some Republicans, and most Democrats, don’t want a Mormon in the White House. Among Republicans, there are some evangelicals who have a theological problem with a Mormon being president; they do not regard Mormons as Christians, and that belief is controlling. But theology means relatively little to carping Democrats—most believe in nothing. Ergo, something else is at work.

After examining survey data, Baruch College political scientists Louis Bolce and Gerry De Maio have shown that for the past several decades Democrats have been the most secular segment of the population. Moreover, in 2006, a Pew survey showed that only 26 percent of the public thought the Democrats were “friendly to religion.” What’s at work here is sociology, not theology.

To shine more light on this issue, consider that Bolce and De Maio found that 53 percent of secularists have a negative attitude toward the Catholic Church. Moreover, as virtually everyone knows, secularists are not exactly fond of evangelicals, either. Now put it all together. Catholics, Mormons and evangelicals are joined at the hip in the culture war in their support for the rights of the unborn and the integrity of marriage and the family, traditionally defined. Secular Democrats hate both.

In other words, intolerance marks liberal Democrats more than any other segment of the population, accounting for their rejection of a Mormon as president.

Yesterday, the U.S. Supreme Court heard arguments on a case that involves the “ministerial exception,” a provision that bars the government from making employment decisions regarding a church’s ministers. The position articulated by Leondra R. Kruger, who represented the Obama administration, was the subject of a revealing series of exchanges with the Justices.

After Kruger dodged a pointed question by Chief Justice John Roberts on the specific religious nature of the case—all she would allow was that associational rights were involved—Justice Antonin Scalia pressed her even further: “That’s extraordinary. That’s extraordinary. We are talking here about the Free Exercise Clause and about the Establishment Clause, and you say they have no special application?”

Later, Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan asked Kruger about this same issue. When Kruger indicated that the “ministerial exception” was not grounded in the First Amendment, Kagan, citing Scalia’s concern, said “I too find that amazing, that you think that the Free—neither the Free Exercise Clause nor the Establishment Clause has anything to say about a church’s relationship with its own employees.”

Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments as follows:

Jesus selected only males to be his apostles. Following suit, the Catholic Church selects only males to be its priests. No one has ever questioned this First Amendment right, until now: the Obama administration wants to gut the “ministerial exception” that allows religious institutions to exercise autonomy in its employment decisions.

What happened yesterday is the icing on the cake: after lying to the American people that Obamacare would not threaten the religious prerogatives of the Catholic Church—it now wants to force Catholic healthcare providers to offer sterilization and contraceptive services (abortion will be next)—it says the government should not be barred from policing the hiring policies of any church. Thus has Obama taken the culture war to new extremes.

Catholic League president Bill Donohue comments on the decision by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) to establish a Religious Liberty Committee:

The president of the USCCB, New York Archbishop Timothy Dolan, has announced the establishment of the Ad Hoc Committee for Religious Liberty; Bridgeport Bishop William Lori will chair the committee. Dolan lists six reasons why the new group is
being launched:

• The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) is seeking to force private healthcare providers to carry contraceptive and sterilization services
• HHS wants to force the USCCB’s Migration and Refugee Services to provide “the full range of reproductive services”
• The federal government is seeking to force international relief programs to offer reproductive health services
• The Department of Justice is attacking the Defense of Marriage Act, arguing that support for marriage is a form of bigotry
• The Justice Department is attacking a religious liberty known as the ministerial exception; it insulates religious employers from state encroachment
• New York State recently legalized gay marriage, providing a very narrow religious exemption

With the exception of the last concern, all of the others reflect the policies of the Obama administration. To say that this administration disrespects religious liberty is too kind—it shows nothing but contempt for the “First Freedom.”

Bishop Lori knows first-hand how contemptuous government can be of religious liberty—he fought a prospective state takeover of the administrative affairs of the Catholic Church in Connecticut. Archbishop Dolan is also no novice: he has fought anti-Catholic bigotry for years. The Catholic League has worked with both bishops before, and looks forward to assisting them again.