Federal rule insults religious belief

Editorial

The Obama administration slapped people of faith by refusing to revise its health care plan's mandate that health insurance plans must cover contraceptions without charge.

The Catholic Church, which believes artificial birth control is a sin, had sought an exemption, but the administration cavalierly rejected its pleas.

The best it could do was to give nonprofit church-affiliated employers a year to comply.

Kathleen Sebelius, the U.S. secretary of health and human services, said the decision "strikes the appropriate balance between respecting religious freedom and increasing access to important preventive services."

What malarkey.

The administration is seeking to force religious institutions to sanction practices they find immoral. Such heavy-handed government tactics should outrage all Americans, regardless of their religious beliefs.

The move insults Catholics and hurts the employees of church-affiliated operations.

Bishop Robert Lynch of the Diocese of St. Petersburg recently said if the administration did not provide an exemption, the diocese would drop its insurance plan and instead offer its employees money to buy their own coverage.

Workers probably would end up paying far more under that approach.

But the alternative would be for the diocese to financially support something it finds evil. The choice is being forced by a government that apparently cares more about bureaucratic regulations than religious conscience.

The United State Conference of Catholic Bishops did not exaggerate when it called the requirement an "attack on religious liberty."

The administration is signaling that the rules developed by the Department of Health and Human Services take precedent over church doctrine.

It is a supremely arrogant stand by an administration with a boundless faith in government.

Americans should remember a decision that reveals much about the Obama administration's values.