Homosexual lobby successfully closes down century old Illinois Catholic Charities

The purpose of Gay Marriage

Putting an end to legal efforts to keep Catholic Charities in the foster care business, the Roman Catholic dioceses of Joliet, Springfield and Belleville have dropped a lawsuit against the state of Illinois, agreeing to transfer thousands of foster care children and staff to other agencies.

The end of the lawsuit brings to a close nearly a century of foster care services provided by Catholic Charities in Illinois.

Since March, state officials have been investigating whether religious agencies that receive public funds to license foster care parents are breaking anti-discrimination laws if they turn away openly gay parents.

After the civil union bill went into effect in June, Catholic Charities told the state that accommodating prospective foster parents in civil unions would violate Catholic Church teaching that defines marriage as between a man and a woman.

Catholic Charities said it would instead refer gay couples elsewhere and only license married couples and single parents living alone.

The agency has pointed to a clause in the Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Unions Act that they believe protects religious institutions that don't recognize civil unions.

But lawyers for the Illinois attorney general said that exemption only shields religious clergy who don't want to officiate at civil unions. The policy of Catholic Charities violates state anti-discrimination laws that demand couples in civil unions be treated the same as married couples, they said.

A transition plan for cases had already begun with a deadline of Nov. 30. But Peter Breen, an attorney for Catholic Charities, said the state had delayed payments for foster care services, which delayed payments to foster care parents working for the social service agency.

“The action of the state forced the end of this case,” Breen said. “Time was our enemy in this unfortunately.”

Chicago Trib

And we are the bigots for proposing marriage amendments.  This is precisely why marriage amendments are necessary.  A private matter between two people... ha, indeed.  Coming to you soon New York. 

Illinios Safe Haven Law expands newborn drop off sites

Gov. Pat Quinn has expanded the number of places where parents can safely give up their newborns in Illinois to include more police stations.

Under the current Illinois Safe Haven Law parents can relinquish unharmed newborns up to 30 days old at hospitals, emergency medical care facilities, police or fire stations. The law Quinn signed Thursday now includes college or university police stations and Illinois State Police district headquarters.

University of Illinois at Chicago police lieutenant Tony Brown suggested the idea.

“We serve a population that is often immature and inexperienced and they make decisions that are often not the best decision and they make them quickly sometimes,” Brown said.

State officials say 64 newborns have been relinquished at safe havens in Illinois since 2001. Statistics show 44 percent of unplanned pregnancies occur between the ages of 18 and 24. That's why college police stations were included in the safe haven list.

The new law takes effect immediately.

WLSAM

Illinios judge .stops. state from dropping Catholic Charities from foster care

Okay, Colbert wasn't the judge, but you get the idea

SPRINGFIELD --- A judge in Springfield today ordered that Catholic Charities can keep serving foster children despite the state’s decision to eliminate their contract.

The order is temporary and a hearing will take place in August on the issue.

Sangamon County Judge John Schmidt issued the ruling after both sides offered lengthy arguments in court this afternoon. Schmidt said that his order freezes the state’s contract with Catholic Charities as it was before the state decided to cut it off earlier this month.

Three Catholic Charities groups sought the injunction to continue serving families and abiding by Catholic principles that prohibit placing children with unmarried cohabiting couples.

"We're not sure what the state is intending to do or how it's intending to do it," said Peter Breen, an attorney with the Thomas More Society representing Catholic Charities. "It's a surprise. But it's also very disturbing. The impact on the [nearly 2,000] children in Catholic Charities care will be catastrophic."

Chicago Tribune

HT Bliss

State of Illinois severs foster-care ties with Catholic Charities

Who else will the State of Illinois look to shut down?

The state of Illinois has declined to renew its foster care and adoption contracts with Catholic Charities across Illinois, possibly ending a historic public and private partnership initiated by the Roman Catholic Church a half century ago and potentially severing the relationship between 2,500 foster children and their caseworkers.

Lawyers for three of the Catholic Charities agencies will seek an injunction from a Sangamon County judge on Tuesday.

In a letter sent last week to Catholic Charities in the dioceses of Peoria, Joliet, Springfield and Belleville, the Department of Children and Family Services told all four agencies that the state could not accept its signed contracts for the 2012 fiscal year because “your agency has made it clear that it does not intend to comply with the Illinois Religious Freedom Protection and Civil Union Act.”

“That law applies to foster care and adoption services,” each letter stated. “Thus, there is no meeting of the minds as to the [Fiscal Year 2012] Foster Care and Adoption Contracts.”

Last month, Catholic Charities in the dioceses of Springfield, Peoria and Joliet sued the Illinois attorney general and DCFS for threatening to enforce new policies that accommodate civil unions. The three agencies asked the court to declare that they are legally justified to preserve their current policy of exclusively granting licenses to married couples and single, non-cohabiting individuals and referring couples in civil unions to other child welfare agencies.

the rest at Chicago Trib