Catholic Children's Society goes "secular"

News from Nottingham:

The Bishop of Nottingham Malcolm McMahon says his diocese will cut its ties with an adoption agency because it cannot accept the government’s new laws on homosexual rights.

Bishop Malcolm McMahon said he and the trustees of the Catholic Children’s Society adoption agency felt that they had been forced into the decision by the Sexual Orientation Regulations which bans discrimination against gays in the provision of goods and services.

The law would compel the diocese in certain circumstances to place children in the care of same-sex couples.

“We have been coerced into this, I am not happy about it at all,” Bishop McMahon said. “The regulations have coerced the children’s society into going against the Church’s teaching, and we don’t wish to do that.” . . .

The Nottingham agency was founded in 1948 by the Congregation of the Sisters of St Joseph of Peace. It finds couples and individuals willing to adopt and prepares them to meet the criteria for adoption. The couples are then matched with children put up for adoption by social workers.

The government pushed through laws designed to encourage greater use of adoption in 2002, and as part of the reforms, gay couples were legally allowed to adopt for the first time.

The gay rights laws, introduced under the 2006 Equality Act, later stipulated that adoption agencies that rejected same-sex couples could be breaking the law.

The Catholic agencies have been given until the end of this year to comply with the regulations.
Other Catholic adoption agencies – which together find new families for nearly 250 children a year – are still considering ways of remaining open in spite of the regulations.

Thoughts?  Should legislatures exempt agencies like the Catholic Children's Agency from the reach of laws like the 2006 "Equality Act"?  Should agencies like the CCA submit to such laws?

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