Walter Reed National Medical Center terminated its Catholic pastoral care contract โ on the eve of Holy Week.
The dismissal was accompanied by a โcease and desist orderโ to Holy Name College Seminary, whose Franciscan priests and brothers provided religious services to service members and veterans at Walter Reed for decades.
Archbishop for the Military Services Timothy P. Broglio called the decision โincomprehensible.โ In an official statement, the Catholic Archdiocese for the Military Services condemned the decision as infringing on the First Amendment's Free Exercise Clause.
The Franciscans'ย contract has gone to a secular firm, which critics argue will not provide the same level of care.
President Biden, a practicing Catholic, hasn't commented.
National Security Council spokesman John Kirby declined to respond to a reporter's question at the White House Monday afternoon.
Fox News has more on the controversy and Archbishop Broglio's reaction:
โThis is a classic case where the adage โIf it is not broken, do not fix it' applies.ย I fear that giving a contract to the lowest bidder overlooked the fact that the bidder cannot provide the necessary service,โ he said. โI earnestly hope that this disdain for the sick will be remedied at once and their First Amendment rights will be respected.โ
While the Archdiocese acknowledged that the chaplain's office said Catholic care is being provided during Holy Week, it said that without Catholic priests, service members and veterans are being denied their right to practice their religion. Certain central Catholic practices โ such as the celebration of the Mass and the administration of Confession โ can only be carried out by an ordained Catholic priest.
In a statement on Saturday, Walter Reed said the center is a โwelcoming andย healing environment that honors and supports a full range ofย religious, spiritual, and cultural needs.โ
โTomorrow, Catholic Easter Services willย be providedย to those who wish to attend. Services willย include a celebration of Mass and the administration of Confession by an ordained Catholic Priest,โ the statement said. โFor many years, a Catholic ordained priest has been on staff atย WRNMMC providing religious sacraments to service members, veterans and their loved ones. There has also been aย pastoral care contract in place to supplement those services provided.โ
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7 Comments
A practicing what?
the only thing he practices is stopping unborn babies heart beats!!!
load austin should stop reversing nutritional intake protocols and thereby actually join the human race. Humans can’t digest food crammed up the wrong hole or anything else that moron stuffs up there for that matter! frilly milly should just auto-euthanize!
satanization of walter reed
The people the servicemen need to step up and demand this guy and anyone else involved be removed immediately banned from ever working in government state federal and sure not in the military for life, they are supposed to being protecting our rights not taking them away, this administration from top to bottom need prosecuted for Treason
Bad for morale alone
Reinstate
More trash from liberal trash.