Cardinal O’Malley is on record as saying “I have the responsibility to insure that Caritas Christi Health Care adheres to the Ethical and Religious Directives established by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops and that in every aspect of the hospital system the teachings of the Church are protected and maintained”.
The key clauses in that USCCB directive would be:
#69. If a Catholic health care organization is considering entering into an arrangement with another organization that may be involved in activities judged morally wrong by the Church, participation in such activities, must be limited to what is in accord with the moral principles governing cooperation.
#70. Catholic health care organizations are not permitted to engage in immediate material cooperation in actions that are intrinsically immoral, such as abortion, euthanasia, assisted suicide, and direct sterilization.
#71. The possibility of scandal must be considered when applying the principles governing cooperation.45 Cooperation, which in all other respects is morally licit, may need to be refused because of the scandal that might be caused. Scandal can sometimes be avoided by an appropriate explanation of what is in fact being done at the health care facility under Catholic auspices. The diocesan bishop has final responsibility for assessing and addressing issues of scandal, considering not only the circumstances in his local diocese but also the regional and national implications of his decision.
We note in clause 70 that health care organizations are not permitted to engage in immediate material cooperation in actions that are intrinsically immoral. Would the partnership then entail “immediate material cooperation”? If the “evil” is limited to referral or indirect referral of patients to morally objectionable health services, then that would more likely be “mediate material cooperation” of a remote nature, which is not necessarily illicit by definition. It must be made clear that Caritas would not stand to profit from morally objectionable services done by other parties, and must not be made to participate or formally cooperate in these services in any way. While assessing the possibility of scandal we note in clause 71 that
“The diocesan bishop has final responsibility for assessing and addressing issues of scandal” (in this case, Cardinal O’Malley). Furthermore, when the possible effect of scandal is evaluated, it might be assessed against the double-effect principle or proportionate reasons, as it takes into consideration the 47 million poor and uninsured people in the country, part of which are targeted to benefit from the partnership.
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-WillyJ
randomthoughtsmusings.blogspot.com/
Nothing… it does sadden me but I can’t do anything about it. I am powerless. I will not judge those who abort there own babies. But I will not encourage it either.