Have you witnessed religious overreach in your community?
Submit a tip to The Overreach Monitor Tipline
In the past year since I started working at Catholics for Choice, I’ve watched our messages, comments, and replies flood with reports of religious overreach.
Some examples:
Bishops using the pulpit as a sphere of political influence — insinuating, or outright declaring, how parishioners should vote.
Weaponizing faith to spread hate and intolerance toward the LGBTQIA+ community.
Shaming the faithful who have sought reproductive healthcare, especially birth control, abortion, and IVF.
Catholic hospitals denying patients lifesaving care simply because it doesn’t align with religious doctrine.
... And the list goes on.
Now, you can submit a tip to The Overreach Monitor Tipline, so Catholics for Choice can analyze, track, and report on religious overreach across the country and around the world.
Because so many people turn to faith for clarity and comfort when all else is unclear, religious leaders hold an enormous amount of power. At Catholics for Choice, we are concerned not only with issues of legality but also with behaviors that reflect a morally bankrupt use of influence.
At a time when the lines between public life and religious doctrine are becoming increasingly blurred in the United States, it’s more important than ever to use your voice and speak out. We must hold our leaders accountable for religious overreach of any kind.
The tipline is for anyone with a story to share about how Catholic leadership — a person or an organization — has overstepped their role spiritually, politically, or socially.
Examples of tips can include, but are not limited to:
A bishop or priest misusing the pulpit to influence elections or endorse political candidates
Denying sacraments and services on the basis of political and personal beliefs
Religious leaders advocating for religious doctrine in public, education, or healthcare policy
The denial of healthcare services at a Catholic hospital — especially in emergency circumstances where reproductive care, such as abortion, can be lifesaving
Any form of pressure or coercion that harms a minority or marginalized group
If you’ve seen or experienced any form of religious overreach — or know somebody who has that is willing to share their story — we invite you to report it to us. Please be sure to include what happened, where it occurred, when it took place, who was involved, and any documentation or additional context.
Here is an example of a note we got from a Catholic in NY last fall, which would be perfect for the Tipline:
I was very disappointed and disheartened to find literature telling people to vote no on Prop One in the back of a Catholic church this weekend in one of the parishes in the Buffalo diocese.
As it is, it does seem like this kind of literature is legal, since it does not mention candidate names and was given free of charge to the churches by the diocese's pro-life ministry.
However, the information being spread is at best a misunderstanding of the proposition, and at worst, complete lies. It breaks my heart that so many parishioners who trust their church and community will follow this advice blindly.
Catholics for Choice will handle all tips with care — we will never share your information without your permission. Sharing your experience will help us report on larger trends of religious overreach and produce roundups and reports looking into these issues with greater detail.
With your testimony, we can investigate religious overreach, hold church leadership accountable, and promote true religious freedom — which includes the freedom to practice your own religious values and be free from the religious infringement of others. Your voice matters, and it could make a difference in reminding other members of this community: You are not alone.
Share your experience with The Overreach Monitor. Visit our Tipline.
 |
|