Catholic Online iReport - Nationwide Protests to Preserve Civil Rights

From Los Angeles to Miami, and everywhere in between, thousands of people in 130 other cities and towns across the country joined together on Friday, March 23rd from 12:00 noon to 1:00 pm to participate in nationwide peaceful protests as part of the Rally for Religious Freedom. In Bel Air, Maryland, one of 4 protest sites in Maryland, the crowd was diverse, and passionate about this Civil Rights issue, as 75 protesters gathered around the Harford County Circuit Court House on Courtland Street to stand up for their Religious Freedom.

You could feel the excitement as the crowd cheered after each impassioned speaker spoke, waving American flags and handmade signs.  "Stop the HHS Mandate" the crowd yelled." "Preserve our First Amendment rights!" One young girl with a sign told me she was concerned her rights were being taken away. Another commented that "Abortion is murder," and she will not pay for it with the HHS mandate!" The mood at the rally was intense, yet light, though the topic weighted. News reports indicate that the Bel Air, Maryland rally was quite prototypical for this event sponsored by the Pro-Life Action League and Citizens for a Pro-Life Society.

The purpose of the event was to protest the "Birth control mandate" that is intrinsically included in the new health care law put forth by President Barak Obama and Kathleen Sebelius with the Department of Health and Human Services(HHS). This mandate will require all employers to provide "birth control coverage" to their employees, regardless of religious affiliation, or conscientious objections, relating to contraception, sterilization, and abortion-The very heart, the center, of this controversial mandate.

Though Catholics are typically the focus of social discussions and news reports relating to the hot button topic of birth control and abortion in particular, abortion is a grave violation of both the 10 Commandments, the Judeo-Christian laws set forth in the Old Testament by Moses, "Though shall not kill." It is also forbidden according to the Catholic Catechism except in specific, dire circumstances.

By most accounts of practicing Christians of every denomination, abortion, in particular, is seen as one of the leading civil rights issue of our time.  Those who are Pro-choice  believe that all forms of birth control practice are to be a woman's choice; those who are Pro-Life  believe passionately that abortion, in particular, should be banned as it is considered a serious or mortal sin.

Many Christians today believe that abortion is a stand-alone issue that should not be considered enmeshed together with all other forms of birth control. It is also seen by some as a sociological risk factor that can affect population demographics in a myriad of ways. When we are able to choose the gender, health and viability, and other factors, some say we are "playing God." Most of all, for traditional Catholic believers, human life is deemed a precious gift from God to those who embrace the "Culture of Life" set forth by Pope John Paul II during his far-reaching papacy.

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Adele M. Gill, RN, BSN, Copyright 2012, Catholic Online. Distributed by NEWS CONSORTIUM.

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