More on the U.K. adoptions matter

Cardinal Cormac Murphy-O'Connor writes, "Regulation Must Not Trump Conscience":

The deepest convictions of the Jewish, Christian, Islamic and Sikh faiths are that a child prospers in the care of a father and a mother.

Leaders of these faiths have appealed for space in which this conviction can be respected in the public sector. They have appealed for respect for their religious conscience, so that the contribution of well-established agencies, working for the common good, such as Catholic adoption agencies, can continue. These appeals have been turned down. We are being told that, in this matter of adoption, religious conscience is over-ruled by regulation.

There is no doubt that holding together a wide range of convictions in a society in which public authorities strive to be secular is a difficult task. But being secular does not mean closing down the space in which religious conviction and motivation can shape and contribute to the common good.