Teen employment policyput on hold for study , discussion By Kamille Maher Implementation of a proposed archdiocesan policy regarding the employment of minors in rectory settings has been suspended to provide a period of further study and discussion , states an Aug. 7 letter from Archbishop William Levad a to priests of the Archdiocese. The suspension is in response to "several questions about the scope of the policy, and at the request of several pastors for an opportunity to review its implementation ," the letter notes. While implementation of the policy is suspended , the Archbishop said he plans to meet with deans, the Council of Priests and others to seek consultation on the details and parameters of the policy. The Archbishop expressed "regret " news of the policy came to the priests ' attention throug h press reports. He also "regrets very much" any impression that the policy, which was "under study and in early development ," implied "a lack of trust on my part of my brother priests."
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See text of Archbishop Levada 's letter to priests on employment of minors on page 3. "Had this policy been able to be developed and implemented in a gradual fashion , with your understanding and discussion of it beforehand , I feel such an impression would have been diminished or TEENS, page 3
Religious liberty at issue
Catholic Charities of Sacramentof i l e ssuit againststate By Sharon Abercrombie atholic Charities of Sacramento has filed a lawsuit seeking an Cinjunction against a new state law which requires employers to supply coverage for prescription contraceptive drugs if they provide health benefits to their employees. The California Catholic Conference (CCC), which represents the state 's bishops in legislative matters, is assisting Catholic Charities in the lawsuit which was filed on July 20 in the Sacramento Superior Court. The defendants — the California Department of Managed Health Care and the state Department of Insurance —
were served with a summons and a copy of the complaint on July 21. At issue, explained Rick Mockler, executive director of Catholic Charities of California , is a conscience clause in the legislation which defines Catholic Charities and other reli gious institutions such as schools and hospitals as secular, rather than religious. The conscience clause decrees that because Catholic Charities of Sacramento employ s
non-Catholics, serves a diverse clientele, not all of whom are Catholic, and does not exist strictly to inculcate religious values, it therefore does not qualify as a religious entity. In addition to charging that the new law violates the liberty of conscience guaranteed in the California State Constitution, the Charities ' complaint claims violation of the Establishment and Preference Clause provisions of
Jubilee Year papal honor recipients noted
the California Constitution as well as the Free Exercise , Establishment and Free Speech Clauses of the First Amendment, and the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the U.S. Constitution. Also see "Analysis" on page 19 On July 24 the Court granted an "ex parte " application by Catholic Charities to file an extended brief in support of its motion for a preinjunction. Under liminary California rules of court , "briefs in routine law and motion matters" are limited to 15 pages "unless special permission is granted," noted an Aug. 2 CCC news release. The CCC release also said a 50-page brief was scheduled to be CATHOLICCHARITIES, page 3