Please help with conflict about helping with an immoral place

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imdevoted43

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I am hoping that you can settle a dispute my husband and I are having. He thinks it is ok to volunteer for an organization called New Hampshire Center for non profits. This is an organization that provides guidance, support, training, information, insurance related help etc. to non profits in the state of New Hampshire. They serve all non profits including some good organizations like The Heart assoc. etc., but they also serve some other organizations like abortion clinics and politcal activists groups for Gay marriage rights etc. I feel it is wrong to help them since they help some organizations that are against our religion.The capacity under which he helps them is at the top of their organization so he can’t separate himself from the immoral organizations and the help he gives them goes to helping all the members, not just the good ones. His view is, since they help good organizations it is ok to volunteer there. Can you tell us what is right here?
 
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imdevoted43:
I am hoping that you can settle a dispute my husband and I are having. He thinks it is ok to volunteer for an organization called New Hampshire Center for non profits. This is an organization that provides guidance, support, training, information, insurance related help etc. to non profits in the state of New Hampshire. They serve all non profits including some good organizations like The Heart assoc. etc., but they also serve some other organizations like abortion clinics and politcal activists groups for Gay marriage rights etc. I feel it is wrong to help them since they help some organizations that are against our religion.The capacity under which he helps them is at the top of their organization so he can’t separate himself from the immoral organizations and the help he gives them goes to helping all the members, not just the good ones. His view is, since they help good organizations it is ok to volunteer there. Can you tell us what is right here?
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It is a matter of prudence that probably your husband needs to sort out. I’m not sure there is just one right answer. If Christians withheld themselves from everything that has components contrary to the faith, we’d have to live like the Amish. Secondly, how can we expect organizaitons to reflect and or protect our interest if we are never involved?
 
I guess I have to disagree. I think where we are providing service to an organization which provides abortions and an organization which is trying to get gay marriage legalized then we need to stay away totally unless we can be certain that our work and skills wont benefit their cause. Since he doesn’t have this luxury to pick and choose which places benefit from his work then I believe he should abstain totally. I think it would be different if he could say I will only provide service to morally upright organizations. Anyway I have struggled with distress over this issue for quite some time and prayed endlessly about it. I feel strongly it is wrong.
 
What kind of service does this organization provide? Funding? Information? Legislative contacts? Volunteers for different activities? I think that this is important to know. I work at a university library. Obviously, we serve everyone no matter their position on abortion. If a planned parenthood provider comes to to the library looking for information on abortion (such as statistics, etc.) I can’t turn them away. But, at the same time, I am acting, along with the state, as a neutral party that merely provides the public with a repository of information. We don’t make judgments about how people use the info. That’s their business.

So, is the organization like that? Or is it an organization that helps to raise funds for specific groups? I think that is where there will be a crucial difference.
 
Dread,

They provide leadership and leadership training, resources on how to excel and be strong, they are advocates for all non profits, they provide insurance programs and knowledge to help the members grow. They do help them get information on funds available. I suppose they would help with anything they can and point them to help where they can’t personally help.

I agree we have no right to judge an individual with what they are doing, but this is a little different. This group is actually providing a foundation of training, support and information as well as other services to organizations some of whom their business is to provide abortions and are activists for abortions as well as another member whose sole function is advocating gay marriage in the state.

As I said he cannot decide to help only the good members because he is helping at the top.
 
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imdevoted43:
Dread,

They provide leadership and leadership training, resources on how to excel and be strong, they are advocates for all non profits, they provide insurance programs and knowledge to help the members grow. They do help them get information on funds available. I suppose they would help with anything they can and point them to help where they can’t personally help.

I agree we have no right to judge an individual with what they are doing, but this is a little different. This group is actually providing a foundation of training, support and information as well as other services to organizations some of whom their business is to provide abortions and are activists for abortions as well as another member whose sole function is advocating gay marriage in the state.

As I said he cannot decide to help only the good members because he is helping at the top.
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I agree with you. It would it problemmatic to support this group. Let me give you another example that would possibly get me in trouble, but which I would have to do nonetheless:

Suppose that Planned Parenthood called us up and wanted a special library instruction session on resources for abortion providers. I would personally deline to do it (especially if it involved going to the Planned Parenthood). In my case, it would likely not be a problem because one of my colleagues would do it. It would be frowned upon by my profession but I doubt I’d get fired over it. So, its not that I’m in a situation where I am immune from having to make such difficult ethical decisions. God bless you.
 
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DreadVandal:
I agree with you. It would it problemmatic to support this group. Let me give you another example that would possibly get me in trouble, but which I would have to do nonetheless:

Suppose that Planned Parenthood called us up and wanted a special library instruction session on resources for abortion providers. I would personally deline to do it (especially if it involved going to the Planned Parenthood). In my case, it would likely not be a problem because one of my colleagues would do it. It would be frowned upon by my profession but I doubt I’d get fired over it. So, its not that I’m in a situation where I am immune from having to make such difficult ethical decisions. God bless you.
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Would it be safe to assume that the large predominance of the groups helped are good social service non-profits consistent with Church teaching? I’m just wondering if the Church is served because good people separate themselves if the group helps 100 good organizations and PP is the only one doing something evil.

Your decision to not help PP direct is the only real choice you have. I’m just wondering if the response if PP is a very minor component is proportionate. While always standing up for our beliefs, I’m not sure that withdrawing from any organization that might provide a service to an offensive organization may be disproportionate. Should I not use Fed EX because their trucks pickup and deliver packages to PP?
 
I think that the Fed ex example is quite a bit different. That is like saying we can’t live in the world because there is evil here which obviously is crazy. Or that we can’t associate with a friend who associates with an evil person. Obviously in the Fed ex situation we have no control over where Fed Ex trucks go. I think that is a little different than if you work for a company that helps abortion clinics. I dont see anything wrong with separating ourselves from situations where we are expected to help evil. There are many opportunities in the world to help good organizations. Perhaps if we all joined together in our refusal to help the evil organizations then they would have a much harder time exisiting.
 
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imdevoted43:
I think that the Fed ex example is quite a bit different. That is like saying we can’t live in the world because there is evil here which obviously is crazy. Or that we can’t associate with a friend who associates with an evil person. Obviously in the Fed ex situation we have no control over where Fed Ex trucks go. I think that is a little different than if you work for a company that helps abortion clinics. I dont see anything wrong with separating ourselves from situations where we are expected to help evil. There are many opportunities in the world to help good organizations. Perhaps if we all joined together in our refusal to help the evil organizations then they would have a much harder time exisiting.
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Maybe the Fed Ex isn’t the perfect analogy. You asked in your OP to settle a dispute. I wanted to give you a perspective that if this assistance is a very minor component of the work of this organization and all the other groups are good groups doing good work, there isn’t anything intrinsically evil in helping them (esp. since your hubby’s contribution isn’t direct aid to PP). I have a bias that Catholics working from the inside to improve organizations is better than working from the outside in protest.

However, I see you expected to only hear that your hubby should not be involved. I should have known that in your OP before I offered my thoughts and seen they weren’t welcome.
 
I suppose your view is a bit idealistic. I really don’t think working inside will have any bearing on stopping the abortion clinic or the gay marriage activists since this organization is commited to helping ALL non profits. They are not allowed to judge them or refuse them help based on their actions. The only service he is capable of providing is to help them all. My question was is it wrong to help abortion clinics simply because they are in the minority. I suppose my view is that if you have 400 great organizations and 10 bad ones your still helping the 10 bad ones. I don’t think you can say 400 good balances out 10 bad. The only way I think it can be acceptable is if you can totally avoid helping the bad ones.

I would like to point out that you did say you have a bias here. 😉 I think I made my position clear right from the start.

I do appreciate your (name removed by moderator)ut however.
 
The question that needs to be asked is what is the seperation/distance between what he does and the act of performing or providing an abortion directly to someone. The more the distance between him and where the rubber meets the road the less is his moral responsibility. For example I belong to and exercise at a local YMCA. They provide a room where people can come in and talk to representatives of planned parenthood. I don’t believe I have any or very little moral culpability in this action.
 
Well i would say he is involved far more than simply being in the building. The place where he is volunteering provides the abortion clinic with help as a non profit company. They offer their support training guidance etc to survive as a strong non profit in the state. He is on a couple of commitees at the top of this organization and is working on their business plan and strategy to help them to help other non profits like the abortion clinic. BTW in this state planned parenthood is a seperate thing. His company also services several places that offer planned parenthood as well.
 
Hello imdevoted43,

St. Vincent DePaul is looking for volunteers. The soup kitchen and the Church also could use some volunteers.

Can I ask what the goal is in his volunteering? Is he volunteering to help mankind and love Jesus through helping the least of Jesus brothers?

There is a reason Mother Theresa had a hospital in the streets of Calcutta rather than a desk at New Hampshire Center for non profits.

I would just sit down and discuss goals. If one is giving up ones time and energy to love God through loving one’s fellow man, there seem to me a great number of alternatives which would do far more good and certianly less harm than volunteering in an area that could generate abortions and promote the sin.
 
Steven Merten:
St. Vincent DePaul is looking for volunteers. The soup kitchen and the Church also could use some volunteers.

Can I ask what the goal is in his volunteering? Is he volunteering to help mankind and love Jesus through helping the least of Jesus brothers?

There is a reason Mother Theresa had a hospital in the streets of Calcutta rather than a desk at New Hampshire Center for non profits.

I would just sit down and discuss goals. If one is giving up ones time and energy to love God through loving one’s fellow man, there seem to me a great number of alternatives which would do far more good and certianly less harm than volunteering in an area that could generate abortions and promote the sin.
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I wholeheartedly endorse this answer.

If we are bound to oppose abortion, then why volunteer for an organization that is required to help it?

There are plenty of better places to go if the goal is to serve God.

hurst
 
Thanks for the great answers. I agree 100%. He does do other volunteer jobs like St. Vincent but he feels he needs more. A miracle happened 2 days ago…he send an email to “ask a fransciscan” about what he is doing and the priest told him its wrong!!! Yippeeee. Finally he heard it from someone else besides me. Hopefully he will take it to heart and stop this job!
 
I have an update on this topic. My husband asked a priest about working there and I asked 3 priests and all agreed that he should not work there. So now he says h is just going to cut back on how much he does but says he has made a commitment to them and can’t just quit. Is he commiting a mortal sin now that he knows the truth? And will our family suffer consequences because of this???
 
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