Say Anything Blog

A liberal watchdog group is trying to remove a Catholic church's tax-exempt status for advocating for the denial of communion to pro-abortion supporters.

MLive.com - A watchdog group asked the IRS on Thursday to revoke the tax-exempt status of the Roman Catholic diocese in Colorado Springs over the bishop's threat to withhold communion from those who disagree with the church.

Barry W. Lynn, executive director of Americans United for the Separation of Church and State, said the church should lose its tax-exempt status because it used church resources for political purposes.

Bishop Michael Sheridan wrote in a Catholic newspaper this month that Catholics should not receive communion if they vote for politicians who disagree with the church by backing abortion rights and other topics.

"I believe that Bishop Sheridan, by issuing this document in a church publication in his official capacity as head of a religious organization, may have violated federal tax law and jeopardized the tax-exempt status of the Diocese of Colorado Springs," Lynn said in a letter to the IRS.

Part of belonging to a particular religion is accepting the belief system of that religion. If you're Roman Catholic part of that belief system is the thought that abortion is wrong. Perhaps you're Roman Catholic but happen to think that abortion is ok. You're certainly welcome to your opinion, but the Catholic Church is also welcome to deny you access to their sacraments based on your beliefs.

The Catholic Church is not a public institution. They do not have to extend their services to people they feel are not furthering their belief system. They have the freedom and the right to do so.

So denying communion to people who support abortion is not a political move but a religious move. It would be rather hypocritical of the Church to advocate against abortion then turn around and pretend like pro-abortion members of its congregation aren't committing a major sin (in their eyes) by supporting abortion. While the Catholic Church may be no stranger to hypocrisy, its certainly within their rights to take a stand on this issue.