Catholic Archbishop Testifies at U.S. Religious Liberty Commission Hearing Over Government Laws Restricting Religious Freedom
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Religious Liberty Commission Hearing: Catholic Leaders Decry "Targeting" of Pro-Life Professionals
At the fifth hearing of the U.S. Religious Liberty Commission held on March 16, 2026, prominent Catholic leaders and health care providers testified regarding what they describe as an increasing secular squeeze on religious institutions.
Legal Battles Over Mandates and Care
Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco centered much of his testimony on the "multiyear, burdensome litigation" faced by the Little Sisters of the Poor regarding contraceptive mandates. Despite a 2020 Supreme Court victory, the sisters returned to court following a 2025 federal ruling in Pennsylvania.
“These are women who deserve our utmost respect and esteem, and I can vouch for this from personal experience,” Cordileone said. “Why then would these humble, holy, and self-giving women have to find themselves in a multiyear, burdensome litigation with the federal government over a contraception insurance mandate...?”
Cordileone also pointed to California lawsuits involving Providence St. Joseph Hospital and a Catholic facility in Sacramento over their refusal to perform abortions and gender-transition surgeries, respectively. He warned that narrow religious exemptions often only cover organizations that serve and employ people of the same faith.
“So here we have the secular government defining for religious communities what it means to be religious,” Cordileone stated. “If we lose this fight, we will have lost the soul of our country.”
Concerns of "Exclusion" from Public Life
Bishop Robert Barron of Winona-Rochester, a member of the commission, echoed these concerns, suggesting a deliberate effort to marginalize religious voices.
On Healthcare and Education: “I think they want us out of health care,” Barron said. “They want us out of education.”
On the Mission of Love: Barron argued that religious leaders have become "more reticent" to speak publicly. “We’ve got to keep articulating what the good is, because otherwise we won’t know what love really is.”
Broader Ethical Debates: MAiD and Counseling
The hearing also touched on Medical Aid in Dying (MAiD), with Dr. Kenneth Prager noting the ethical dilemmas for physicians who hold religious objections to hastening death.
In the realm of reproductive health, Abby Sinnett of Bella Health and Wellness discussed her legal battle against a Colorado law barring progesterone treatments intended to counteract medication-based abortions. Bishop Barron called the state's opposition to the practice “a species of insanity.”
Finally, the commission heard from Christian counselor Kaley Chiles regarding "conversion therapy" bans. Chiles, whose case reached the Supreme Court in 2025, argued that “young people wrestling with identity deserve counselors who are free to speak, ask questions, listen with compassion and walk alongside them.”
The Religious Liberty Commission, established by President Trump in 2025, continues to face its own legal challenges from multifaith groups arguing the panel lacks the "fairly balanced" membership required by federal law.
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