Are These Posts Controversial?

We published these articles in the wake of Supreme Court Justice Antonin Scalia's death. Antonin Scalia was a devout Catholic and a strict constructionist. He was also a staunch defender of religious freedom.  Although no one made comments [in the comments section] several readers weighed in using the contact function to disagree. Here are the articles in the order of their publication. What do you think?

Father Paul Scalia’s Eulogy Shows the Extent to Which Our Religious Liberty is in Jeopardy

Father Paul Scalia, the son of Supreme Court Associate Justice Antonin Scalia, delivered a heartfelt and inspiring eulogy at the funeral Mass for his father at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception on Saturday. In his remarks, Fr. Scalia celebrated his late father’s commitment to family, public service and the Law, as well as his dedication to truth, justice, the intellectually rigorous defense of liberty, personal virtue, and the sanctity of persons at every stage of life. While paying homage to Justice Scalia’s religious devotion, Fr. Scalia noted how: "God blessed [his] Dad with a deep Catholic faith: The conviction that Christ's presence and power continue in the world today through His body, the Church." Fr. Scalia’s tribute is part fond remembrance and part profound catechesis. [It is worth reading in full.]

Later on, Fr. Scalia makes the following observation which I draw to your attention:

God blessed Dad, as is well known, with a love for his country. He knew well what a close-run thing the founding of our nation was. And he saw in that founding, as did the founders themselves, a blessing, a blessing quickly lost when faith is banned from the public square, or when we refuse to bring it there. So he understood that there is no conflict between loving God and loving one's country, between one's faith and one's public service. Dad understood that the deeper he went in his Catholic faith, the better a citizen and public servant he became. God blessed him with the desire to be the country's good servant because he was God's first.

Let us pray for Justice Scalia’s soul, and in thanksgiving for his life, service and example. Given the increasing attacks on Christianity and expressions of Christian faith in the public square by those occupying "the commanding heights of the culture", [i.e. academia, the media, Hollywood, et al.] Justice Scalia’s passing is all the more concerning. Let us pray also that the freedoms he labored so courageously to preserve be protected and endure.

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The Extent to Which Our Religious Liberty is in Jeopardy, Part 2

With Justice Antonin Scalia's passing, a reliable defender of religious liberty has departed from the Supreme Court. The current president, who stands to name his replacement, has been less than amenable to expressions of Catholicism. During the October 2013 government shutdown, Catholic military chaplains who said Mass faced arrest. The White House asked Georgetown University to cover all religious symbols [i.e. the monogram "IHS”–symbolizing the name of Jesus] at a venue where the president spoke. Bishop Robert Barron in his article "No Room for Catholics in Obama Country", examines the Obama administration's push for radical secularization at the expense of religious institutions:

In short, the slow but steady creep toward secularization of Catholic health-care has already been, for some time, a reality. But now the process has been given a massive push by the Obama administration's recent mandate that all health-care agencies and institutions must pay for insurance that covers contraception, sterilization, and certain kinds of abortifacient drugs-all of which are repugnant to Catholic teaching.

Here is what is particularly worrisome: the state seems no longer satisfied with a slow but steady evolution toward secularity; it is aggressively forcing Catholic hospitals off the stage, for it is creating for them an impossible situation. If they cave in and provide insurance for these verboten procedures, they have effectively de-Catholicized themselves; and if they refuse to provide such insurance, they will be met with fines of millions of dollars, which they cannot possibly pay. 

In light of the above examples, the current chief executive will most likely nominate someone who cares little for religious freedom or the rights of believers. Let us pray that the freedoms the late Justice Scalia worked so tirelessly to protect will survive for perpetuity. Saint Thomas More pray for us.