SMYRNA, GA (CBS ATLANTA) -
Archbishop Wilton Gregory of the Atlanta Archdiocese slammed President Barack Obama's healthcare plan Thursday, saying the portion that requires institutions - including Catholic ones - to pay for contraception for their employees is an attack on the First Amendment - the right to religious freedom.
"(The Department of Health and Human Services) has said, 'We don't really care what your moral positions are, you have to violate them and include these benefits in your programs,' which is just unconscionable," said Gregory.
A recent survey by the Public Religion Research Institute shows 58 percent of Catholics think all institutions, even Catholic ones, should provide contraception as part of any healthcare plan.
"Our moral positions are not based on polls and they are not based on if 58 percent believe it," said Gregory. "That may work in the world of politics, that may be a comforting position for someone running for public office... that doesn't work ecclesiastically."
He says under the Obama healthcare plan, Catholic institutions would have until August of 2013 to allow contraception as part of their healthcare plans. Gregory said the Catholic Church does not intend to let the issue get that far.
"We intend to pursue all of the channels that are available, legislative or judicial," he said.
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