San Francisco Board of Supervisors Denounces The Vatican

Yes, you read that right.  Earlier this week the San Francisco Board of Supervisors issued a resolution denouncing the Vatican and its Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith generally with regard to its teachings about homosexuality, and specifically about it's directive to the Archdiocese of San Francisco (among others) and Catholic Charities not to participate in adoption placements.  (I've included the full text of the resolution at the end of this entry.)  The directive was in response to legislation requiring that adoption services not discriminate against lesbian and gay applicants.

You've already seen my mixed thoughts about such anti-discrimination policies that don't allow exemptions for religious services providers.  I wish I could tell you that my opinion has solidified one way or the other, but it hasn't.  I'm still torn, and suspect I will be for some time.

What's interesting me here is the Supervisors' resolution itself.  The Vatican is a sovereign nation, and it's perfectly legitimate for a nation or one of its political subdivisions to denounce the conduct of a foreign state (which the Supervisors made clear it was doing in the second paragraph -- the first "whereas" clause -- of the resolution).  In that sense, what the Supervisors did was proper.  Where things get sketchy is that it's not just a nation -- it's also the center of a religious body:  is it proper for a government entity to officially denounce the teachings and directives of a particular religion, and the actions of its clergy?

I suspect the latter part of that question is easier to answer, at least in situations where the clergy are putting the health and/or safety of others at risk.  But teachings ... and if there is no actual health/safety risk ... are there Establishment Clause violations here?  The fact that I agree with most of what the Supervisors said doesn't change the fact that, as someone concerned with religious liberty, I might very well have a problem because the Supervisors are not only urging the the head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith -- clearly a religious office -- to withdraw his directive, but they are also explicitly encouraging the Archbishop and Catholic Charities to defy their religious leaders' teachings.

A few might argue that that that there's no meaningful distinction between a resolution condemning a church's purely theological claims/teachings/beliefs and one condemning particular religious practices.  Most, if not all, Religion Clause cases, however, are based on the premise that the state is not required to approve of, or legally permit, all religiously-based practices; polygamy springs to mind as an example.  At a certain point, however, a religious practice may be inextricably linked with a religion's theology.  Thus condeming the practice can be almost indistinguishable from condemning the doctrine.  (Condeming Catholic practices regarding the Holy Eucharist springs to mind as an example; one could argue that distributing the Eucharist, in light of the doctrine of Transubstantiation, promotes cannibalism.)

So -- would a theology-focused resolution be permissible if the government had a good, valid secular basis for its condemnation of the teaching/claim?  Various religious scholars have argued that the line between  the theological and secular is not always clear, and that it's almost always possible to come up with a secular reason to oppose a religious "truth" or practice.

There's a third way in which the resolution could be a violation of the Establishment Clause -- it attacks the Church's ecclesiology, i.e. the idea that all diocese, parishes and adherents should be in communion with the See of Rome.  This is the same issue that arose in Britain when the Tudors, as a matter of state policy, sought to attack the See of Rome's authority.

On the other hand, the actions being addressed are not those of individual Catholics but those of a Catholic social services agency.  It's not about sacraments or liturgy, but the provision of social services.  Does that make a difference to the Constitutionality of the Supervisors' resolution?

My impression is that the Supervisors didn't violate the Establishment Clause both because they're condemning a specific practice (discrimination in the provision of adoption services) not a belief, and because the practice is taking place in the provision of social services (a secular and state-affiliated social service). Eugene Volokh, of The Volokh Conspiracy agrees with me, but apparently the Thomas More Law Center, which the Religion Clause reports filed suit last week challenging the resolution, would disagree.

Putting the legal issues aside, though, is it appropriate for a political body to express hostility towards a specific religious viewpoint, as the Supervisors did in the fourth paragraph of the resolution?  To me it seems ... well, not in good taste, though that's neither a legal or moral opinion.  Perhaps it's a goose/gander thing -- I wouldn't want a political body criticizing my religion so I don't like to hear that sort of criticism of another religion.  I think it's more than that, though --I really don't think the government should take on the role of criticizing -- or endorsing -- anyone's religious beliefs. If they'd kept the focus on Catholic Charities, that might be okay; criticizing the Pope's VP for doctrinal affairs (so to speak) seems too close to criticizing the religion itself.  The fact that it's about gay adoption is irrelevant -- there's always a reason that seems "good" to someone.  Next time the reason might not seem as "acceptable."

RESOLUTION 060356

Resolution urging Cardinal William Levada, in his capacity has head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith at the Vatican, to withdraw his discriminatory and defamatory directive that Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of San Francisco stop placing children in need of adoption with homosexual households.

WHEREAS, It is a insult to all San Franciscans when a foreign country, like the Vatican, meddles with and attempts to negatively influence this great City's existing and established customs and traditions such as the right of same-sex couples to adopt and care for children in need; and

WHEREAS, The statements of Cardinal Levada and the Vatican that "Catholic agencies should not place children for adoption in homosexual households," and "Allowing children to be adopted by persons living in such unions would actually mean doing violence to these children" are absolutely unacceptable to the citizenry of San Francisco; and,

WHEREAS, Such hateful and Discriminatory rhetoric is both insulting and callous, and shows a level of insensitivity and ignorance which has seldom been encountered by this Board of Supervisors; and

WHEREAS, Same sex couples are just as qualified to be parents as are heterosexual couples; and

WHEREAS, Cardinal Levada is a decidedly unqualified representative of his former home city, and of the people of San Francisco and the values they hold dear; and

WHEREAS, The Board of Supervisors urges Archbishop Niederauer and the Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of San Francisco to defy all discriminatory directives of Cardinal Levada; now, therefore, be it Resolved, that the Board of Supervisors urges Cardinal William Levada, in his capacity as head of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith at the Vatican (formerly known as Holy Office of the Inquisition), to withdraw his discriminatory and defamatory directive that Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of San Francisco stop placing children in need of adoption with homosexual households.

Comments

[jamesmorgans]

Hallo!
My name dr. James Morgan.
I do study the anti depressants. And wish to introduce to you the new drug called zoloft.
If you want to feel good, look at these links.

http://zoloft1.blogsome.com/2008/05/02/zoloft-side-effects/
http://zoloft1.blogsome.com/2008/05/01/buy-zoloft-online/

http://zoloft1.blogsome.com/

best wishes.

[wainiafoomb]

i.friedman & son glad-he-ate-her

[boonnette]

jacob v.new yorkgraybill private cemetary.pa increase national dropout ageibm 350c on cover 425c near screen

[Gamiplellusia]

Hi,
You are almost there!
You have taken the first step and grabbed your F'ree SpiderAdd Marketing System.
Now, all you have to do is login and take advantage of all the amazing F'REE Features!
Grab the Username, and Password that was sent to you when you signed up,
and head over here to login and get started:

http://spideradd.ws

The system is f'ree,
You can use it 100% f'ree and still earn multiple streams of income!
You have nothing to lose, and everything to gain!

Give it a shot,
http://spideradd.ws

[JellyDreamas]

Huh... good site...
Where seek-url on your site.
Can you help me?

P.S. Anybody know about XRumer 5.0 software? Need an url to it...

[Illideone]

ac milan h hombres tipos de aves

[LolipoplessQueen]

hi

I'm a new here, and wish you can advise me.

I'm 19 and very timid and I'm still a virgin. My new boyfriend is a real macho, and I'm afraid that he will be expecting something more from our first dating. :)

So could I created a poll so that people could advise me what should I do - - http://www.thinklike.co.uk/index.php?action=compar&comp_id=4

please please please help me make my choice!

Thank you!

PS: My profile is - www.thinklike.co.uk/forum/index.php?action=userinfo&user=57

[goriljoforbidden]

bro

Look, i found this site: - http://bigsteroid.com
Do you like it?

regards

[Viebrameree]

Hello!

I am Adam.
I am great friend of Jack.
He found me with work!
Click here for best work!
WWW.G9FINANCE.BIZ

Thanks for reading!
Bye-bye

[Fuckingutoo]

fucking4utoo.com vs planetsuzy.org Best Porn Forum

I am wondering is it posible to beat site like Planetsuzy in traffic and members with mine
porn forum http://fucking4utoo.com

Started with promotion few days ago and i am getting arround 1000 visits a day now. We have
some nice categories there about porn and warez stuff. Yes we have some links to newest games,
movies,ebooks,softwares at http://fucking4utoo.com

Take a look for yourself and lets make one more porn site to be like big boys :)

[Marc]

hey there,

this page is super intersting.

i Bookmarked this posting!

I hope to read a lot from you in the days!

[Extremal2]

The Winter Dew Tour might just be one of the coolest new extreme sports tours around yes, but it takes a lot more than that to get us off our backends from playing Madden to make the trip up I-70.
The monumental music line-up got us a little closer to putting down the controller, but we still needed a little something more, we figured you did too.
That’s why we have put together the 356 reasons to make the trip for the Dew Tour (guaranteed to be read in under 60 seconds or your money back). Ready? Go!

[ronsons]

MESSAGE

[ronsons]

MESSAGE

[sergeyromenez]

MESSAGE

[offerszto]

temecula california occupational medicine http://clomidrx.pbworks.com/w/page/Clomid-tablets#098 - clomid tablets to purchase online herbal medicine schools in washington state
nuclear medicine at sante fe college http://clomidrx.pbworks.com/w/page/Clomid-to-buy#617 - clomid to buy online menopause samoa native medicine
lsu veterinary medicine http://clomidrx.pbworks.com/w/page/Clomid-to-get-pregnant#879 - using clomid to get got pregnant cramping statistics of pharmacy revenue
laser in the field of medicine http://clomidrx.pbworks.com/w/page/Clomid-treatment#008 - clomid treatment c generic imiquimod canandian pharmacy
illinois school of pharmacy http://clomidrx.pbworks.com/w/page/Clomid-uk#148 - buying uk buy clomid online thifty white pharmacy
pharmacy assisted living http://clomidrx.pbworks.com/w/page/Clomid-use#482 - ovulation calculator for clomid users internal medicine doctors wichita falls
livewell family medicine http://clomidrx.pbworks.com/w/page/Clomid-vs-femara#458 - clomid vs femara many medications chemo pharmacy tech
pharmacy locum agencies leicester http://clomidrx.pbworks.com/w/page/Clomid-vs-injectables#069 - clomid vs injectables icsi good samaritan pharmacy oh
eastern africa health and medicine http://clomidrx.pbworks.com/w/page/Clomid-vs-nolvadex#695 - clomid vs nolvadex hormone prescription medicines for depression
hammer pharmacy in iowa http://clomidrx.pbworks.com/w/page/Clomid-when-do-you-ovulate#418 - when iui when do you ovulate clomid best medicine nighttime postnasal drip
rockford school medicine procrit reimbursement and inpatient pharmacy
montana pharmacy association good mesquito medicine
dermatology in chinese medicine u p internal medicine marquette
changes in pharmacy compounding pharmacy new york city
school of pharmacy uk independence blue cross pharmacy tech jobs
medicines for bed wetting redelius drugstore rockford il
what time to take t3 medicine oriental medicine school hawaii
confidence plus pharmacy nuclear medicine scanning
physician emergency medicine salary comanche indian medicine man
medicine cabinet recessed registrar of medicine residency opportunities arab

[offerssln]

wall's medicine pill identifier http://provigil.pbworks.com/w/page/34209528/Is-Provigil-addictive#408 - is provigil addictive drug type 2 diabetes medicine
dr bharat jain westmoreland sleep medicine http://provigil.pbworks.com/w/page/34209543/Is-Provigil-an-amphetamine#792 - link methods in studying medicine
chinese medicine and fibroids http://provigil.pbworks.com/w/page/34209552/Is-Provigil-a-stimulant#184 - is provigil a stimulant drug orthomolecular psychiatry medicine nsw
sources of methyl paraben in pharmacy http://provigil.pbworks.com/w/page/34209565/Is-Provigil-safe#373 - link natural care medicine
medicine for hunting dogs paws http://provigil.pbworks.com/w/page/34209568/Lamictal-Provigil#033 - lamictal provigil mg pharmacy schhols in florida
conference washington obstetric medicine 2008 http://provigil.pbworks.com/w/page/34209573/Lexapro-and-Provigil#244 - lexapro and provigil bundle cimo pharmacy llc
halitosis medicine http://provigil.pbworks.com/w/page/34209580/Lexapro-Provigil#257 - lexapro provigil side effects good orthopaedic surgery and sports medicine
practice pharmacy law exam http://provigil.pbworks.com/w/page/34209593/Long-term-effects-of-Provigil#574 - long term side effects of provigil modafinil free medicine michigan
medicine shoppe florence ma http://provigil.pbworks.com/w/page/34209595/Long-term-side-effects-of-Provigil#624 - long term side effects of provigil some british medicine song
medicine enzyte http://provigil.pbworks.com/w/page/34209609/Long-term-use-of-Provigil#651 - long term use of provigil cope headache medicine
charter internal medicine columbia fish 10700 harding pharmacy
hackley sports medicine evidence based medicine htn meds
alternative medicine jobs fresno energy medicine study group woodwinds
stoneridge interanl medicine natural medicine vs hospitals
medicines for glaucoma chinese pharmacy nashville
florida board fo medicine alternative medicine jobs mobile
college kansas medicine state university veterinary le havre pharmacy
pharmacy benefits chinese approch to medicine
alternative medicine for migraine purdue university pharmacy faculty
super 1 pharmacy ellensburg wa question tests vet medicine

[KVAustin]

http://mikardia.com/porno_pictures/blowjob-sex-6.jpg

My story is puertorican free porn mpg4 porn movie free mega porn ru full length video rss porn school teacher porn video download free nancy ajram porn www.desi porn movies.com japan street fashion also mpg4 porn s mp4 porn downloads free rusian mature porno german granny porn free nylon hidden cam porn nylon
And also first porn teen tube anaglyphen porn very teen porn adolescent daddy does daughter porn porno foot file pussy porno esx videos porno bangladesh family porn .3gp pakistani porn sex tube also american incest porn lesbian porn videos black girls watch free online incest porn porn hub mom son malay porn picture free 3d lactating porn movies porn pump pussy rapidshare free psp porn sites japanese porn you tube
No one find free streaming porn traci lords full length lesbian porn free porn big clit free underteen porn grandma and grandson porn retro porn tube vintange blond anal seks also 9 yo porn torrent animated sex porn stream virgin porn porn shamila
I get porno shemale copilation sex porn movie free teen group facial cum also free black women porno videos the mask porn bravo porn review ghetto fuck tube porn videi sexy simpson porno
And finnaly anna biella porn ipod touch porn girl from ukraine porno video pics lesbian oral porn clips also spymywifes porn sex tennies porn video porn lezbi manqiq porno sex suzana 1990s pornstars free porn tube 4

[Alurolueply]

After avoiding the wave of protests sweeping the Middle East for months, Oman has entered its third day of continuous economic demonstrations. Local media is reporting that demonstrators have set fire to a supermarket, cars, a police station, houses, and the governor’s residence amid protests http://123144.csmonitor.com - calling for economic hswhfjweidjwejdjan21123h12 calling for economic improvements and government reform .

[dooldmelinda]

for viagra plus muse with confident viagra viagra viagra clone and check coupon code available

[enriskers]

rcUeenutirsh gap printable coupons rAftbpppedtf

[Hurs84]

Gry strategicznegenerals, strategie, turowe, gry strategiczne, online, stare gry, komputerowe, wojenne, taktyczne, rts, biblioteka gier, download, strategie multiplayer, poradniki, recenzje, gildia, generalów Gry strategiczne

Bramy metalowegenerals, strategie, turowe, gry strategiczne, online, stare gry, komputerowe, wojenne, taktyczne, rts, biblioteka gier, download, strategie multiplayer, poradniki, recenzje, gildia, generalów Bramy metalowe

Ogrzewanie podlogowegenerals, strategie, turowe, gry strategiczne, online, stare gry, komputerowe, wojenne, taktyczne, rts, biblioteka gier, download, strategie multiplayer, poradniki, recenzje, gildia, generalów Ogrzewanie podlogowe

Ubezpieczenia Szczecingenerals, strategie, turowe, gry strategiczne, online, stare gry, komputerowe, wojenne, taktyczne, rts, biblioteka gier, download, strategie multiplayer, poradniki, recenzje, gildia, generalów Ubezpieczenia Szczecin

Lesznogenerals, strategie, turowe, gry strategiczne, online, stare gry, komputerowe, wojenne, taktyczne, rts, biblioteka gier, download, strategie multiplayer, poradniki, recenzje, gildia, generalów Leszno

Oczyszczalnie sciekówgenerals, strategie, turowe, gry strategiczne, online, stare gry, komputerowe, wojenne, taktyczne, rts, biblioteka gier, download, strategie multiplayer, poradniki, recenzje, gildia, generalów Oczyszczalnie scieków

Mieszkania szczecingenerals, strategie, turowe, gry strategiczne, online, stare gry, komputerowe, wojenne, taktyczne, rts, biblioteka gier, download, strategie multiplayer, poradniki, recenzje, gildia, generalów Mieszkania szczecin

Jelly Watchgenerals, strategie, turowe, gry strategiczne, online, stare gry, komputerowe, wojenne, taktyczne, rts, biblioteka gier, download, strategie multiplayer, poradniki, recenzje, gildia, generalów Jelly Watch

Plotygenerals, strategie, turowe, gry strategiczne, online, stare gry, komputerowe, wojenne, taktyczne, rts, biblioteka gier, download, strategie multiplayer, poradniki, recenzje, gildia, generalów Ploty

Hotel w Poznaniugenerals, strategie, turowe, gry strategiczne, online, stare gry, komputerowe, wojenne, taktyczne, rts, biblioteka gier, download, strategie multiplayer, poradniki, recenzje, gildia, generalów Hotel w Poznaniu

Uprawnienia elektrycznegenerals, strategie, turowe, gry strategiczne, online, stare gry, komputerowe, wojenne, taktyczne, rts, biblioteka gier, download, strategie multiplayer, poradniki, recenzje, gildia, generalów Uprawnienia elektryczne

Komunikacja marketingowagenerals, strategie, turowe, gry strategiczne, online, stare gry, komputerowe, wojenne, taktyczne, rts, biblioteka gier, download, strategie multiplayer, poradniki, recenzje, gildia, generalów Komunikacja marketingowa

Dawca szpikugenerals, strategie, turowe, gry strategiczne, online, stare gry, komputerowe, wojenne, taktyczne, rts, biblioteka gier, download, strategie multiplayer, poradniki, recenzje, gildia, generalów Dawca szpiku

Silownia wroclawgenerals, strategie, turowe, gry strategiczne, online, stare gry, komputerowe, wojenne, taktyczne, rts, biblioteka gier, download, strategie multiplayer, poradniki, recenzje, gildia, generalów Silownia wroclaw

Odziez roboczagenerals, strategie, turowe, gry strategiczne, online, stare gry, komputerowe, wojenne, taktyczne, rts, biblioteka gier, download, strategie multiplayer, poradniki, recenzje, gildia, generalów Odziez robocza

Kasy fiskalne Opolegenerals, strategie, turowe, gry strategiczne, online, stare gry, komputerowe, wojenne, taktyczne, rts, biblioteka gier, download, strategie multiplayer, poradniki, recenzje, gildia, generalów Kasy fiskalne Opole

[Dovetefepouts]

Anybody know of any (if possible free) amr converting software for Mac to convert from AMR format to friendlier format.

I can playback the particular amr file using quicktime or even realplayer, but cannot save/export that to any format. It's a voice saving made on the Nokia mobile phone.

Thanks beforehand for any kind of suggestions!.

[Lartunreawn]

http://dellsarea.accountsupport.com/parkway/download.png
If youre looking in rooms of forbidden keygen crack codes, such as split, apophthegm, serial numbers, registration codes, utter generators youre exposing to the risk of having your computer infected with viruses.
The famous download links scheme to the publisher spot, and we dont relinquish the bat keygen or links from rapidshare, yousendit, megaupload and comparable websites.
If you are a software publisher and you be in compulsion a program complementary to betterment toolbox looking with a judgement crush cracks keygen, set aside our hide my ip 94fbr tractability servant to dilate on it to our software library.
A cenotaph belittling computer scribbling PC is a stone mysterious computer equipped with a touchscreen as a top-notch input line of work smudge and designed to be operated and owned within leisurely reach an office 2007 product keygen.
The in kinswoman to was made voice as a concept presented sooner than microsoft office 2007 keygen vista in 2011.

[Nuattense]

Top site dedicated to bonus casino code free hampton you can find here:
bonus casino code free hour in one play slot