D.C. archdiocese, other Catholic groups file lawsuit against birth-control mandate

More than a dozen Catholic groups, including Washington, D.C.’s, filed a lawsuit against President Barack Obama’s administration on Monday, causing a standoff between church officials and the White House over a government mandate requiring employers and most religious organizations to provide birth-control coverage. Houses of worship are exempt. Other conservative religious organizations had filed lawsuits this year. Monday’s dozen lawsuits on behalf of 43 separate institutions involved only Catholics and for the first time, included 13 dioceses, which are the seats of bishops.

In a statement from the Archdiocese of Washington, the federal lawsuits accuse the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services of violating the First Amendment and federal law by requiring Catholic organizations to “sacrifice their beliefs in order to be able to continue their mission of serving all people in need.” The suit said, “There is no way out of the dilemma the mandate forces upon us.” The lawsuit is part of a larger communications campaign launched on Monday by the archdiocese called “Preserve Religious Freedom,” which features a special prayer said daily at 3 p.m. to support the effort.