"Americans United for Separation" and the Church

Once again, the Rev. Barry Lynn has taken the opportunity to criticize the Catholic Church by taking prominent occasion to highlight Bishop Thomas Tobin’s recent statements in the diocesan newspaper published by his diocese, Providence. Lynn’s organization, Americans for Separation of Church and State, has made a request to the IRS to investigate the diocese as a result of Bishop Tobin’s remarks published in the Catholic journal. [Article HERE] Quoting from the AP article which appears in the major newspaper of Bishop Tobin’s diocese, the Providence Journal:

Americans United for Separation of Church and State, in a news release yesterday, said it took the action because “federal tax law forbids non-profits to use organizational resources to support or oppose candidates for public office.” The Rev. Barry W. Lynn, the group’s executive director, said in the letter that Tobin, “appears to have violated federal tax law by attacking Giuliani.” Tobin made his comments in a piece in the Rhode Island Catholic, questioning Giuliani’s position that abortion is wrong, but that government should not impede a woman’s ability to obtain an abortion. “If the bishop wants to join the political fray, he should do so as an individual without dragging along his tax-exempt diocese,” Lynn said in the news release. “A church is not a political action committee, and it should not act like one.”

I have previously used the analogy of trains headed on a same-track train in a head-on collision to depict contemporary challenges to the proper exercise of religious liberty. Bishop Tobin has acted properly in spite of Rev. Lynn’s commentary and characterization. Since it appears that the trains are once again running toward one another, let us pray for Bishop Tobin, his courage, and his fidelity to his teaching and pastoral office.   RJA sj