Let's Just Dump the USCCB

The US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has a long history. Only the first part of it (when it was called the National Catholic Welfare Conference) was positive.

But ever since Bp. Bernardin--a Chicago kinda guy--morphed the NCWC into the USCCB, the organization has degenerated into a cesspool of bureaucrats whose worship of Democrat politics and politicians arguably outweighs their worship of God on Sundays.

First of all, the USCCB has no authority. Each Bishop is solely responsible for teaching, ruling, and sanctifying his Diocese, in communion with the Pope. While USCCB serves as a handy clearinghouse, it is no more than that. So why a marble palace in DC with dozens or hundreds of staffers? Does the word "confusion" come to mind?

How about "Pass the buck"?

Following the spectacular FAIL of USCCB's little sister, Catholic Charities, we have another spectacular fail from USCCB: ObamaCare.

...that body has also loudly, repeatedly, and consistently taken positions on several other matters of public controversy... in a fashion that has likely led many Catholics to think – quite mistakenly – that said positions are binding on Catholics and of equal weight with opposition to abortion. And that in turn has likely helped to generate a false impression that where opposition to abortion and the pursuit of some other political end come into conflict, a Stupak-like “trade off” can be justified.

Which conclusion is wrong, in many ways.

...the health care bill vote, the USCCB urged Congress either to alter the bill to prevent federal funding of abortion or to vote the bill down. (The USCCB also objected to the bill’s failure to extend coverage to illegal immigrants.) But the letter in which this request was made also emphasized that “for decades, the United States Catholic bishops have supported universal health care,” that “the Catholic Church teaches that health care is a basic human right, essential for human life and dignity,” and that it is only “with deep regret” that the bishops must oppose passage of the bill “unless these fundamental flaws are remedied” (emphasis added).

Needless to say, the impression these words leave the reader with – whether the bishops intended this or not – is that, were abortion (and coverage of illegal immigrants) not at issue, the moral teaching of the Catholic Church would require the passage of the health care bill in question, or something like it. In fact the teaching of the Church requires no such thing.

It's useful to examine how the USCCB mangles Catholic teachings to arrive at its erroneous conclusion about "healthcare."

To be sure, in line with statements made by popes John XXIII and John Paul II, the Catechism of the Catholic Church does indeed speak of a “right to medical care” as among those the “political community” has a duty to uphold (2211). But does this entail that universal health care must be funded by and/or administered by the federal government, or indeed by any government? No, it doesn’t. Consider first that the same documents that affirm a “right” to medical care also affirm “rights” to “food, clothing, [and] shelter” (John XXIII, Pacem in Terris 8) and “to private property, to free enterprise, [and] to obtain work and housing” (the Catechism again). But no one claims that the Church teaches that governments have a duty to provide everyone with a government job, or free food, clothing, shelter, or other kinds of property at taxpayer expense, or a guarantee of entrepreneurial opportunities.

Why not? Because the term “right” is simply not used in Catholic moral theology in the crude manner in which modern American liberal politicians like to use it, viz. as expressing a legally enforceable demand on the part of an individual that he be provided with some benefit by government...

So?

The point for present purposes is to emphasize that noting that a magisterial document speaks of a “right” to something by itself does nothing to show that government must provide it. All it shows is that people have a claim of some sort against others – how strong a claim, how that claim is to be respected, whether and to what extent government has a role in ensuring that it is respected, etc. are all further issues requiring careful analysis. This is especially so of something like a “right to medical care,” which, unlike such negative rights as the right of an innocent person not to be killed, involves a positive claim against others that a certain service be provided.

The author lambastes USCCB for its implicit (and explicit) facilitation of the passage of ObamaCare. That is simply an embarrassment to Catholics who think carefully--and will be even more an embarrassment when this misbegotten piece of garbage is repealed.

Meantime, let's simply disband USCCB. Leave standing a small Office of Legal Affairs and a VERY tightly-controlled lobbying group.

As to the rest, let them find jobs in the private sector. See if all those "rights" help them.