5 (1 votes)
Healthcare Prof:
The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops on Tuesday elected as president Archbishop Timothy Dolan of New York, who said he would continue the bishops’ opposition towards the federal health reform law (PL 111-148) because with the group’s belief that it allows federal funding of abortion services, the New York Times reports (Goodstein, New York Times, 11/17). Dolan won the election 128-111 in a runoff against the more moderate Bishop Gerald Kicanas of Tuscon, Ariz., who has served as vice president for three years (Zoll, AP/Yahoo! News, 11/16). Dolan’s victory was a “surprise” in that it marks the first time the bishops have rejected a sitting vice president, the Times reports.
The election indicates that the bishops want a “reliably orthodox voice” to reaffirm Catholic teachings and “disarm critics” who say the bishops are lacking in moral authority after the Catholic sex abuse scandals, based on the Times. Robert George, a professor of jurisprudence at Princeton University, said Dolan hosted the 2009 meetings that produced the Manhattan Declaration, a manifesto that aims to reignite and unify conservative religious opposition to abortion rights (New York Times, 11/17). The Rev. Thomas Reese, a senior fellow at the Georgetown University Woodstock Theological Center, said the vote is “an indication that bishops are going to continue to be leaders within the culture wars” (Zoll, AP/Yahoo! News, 11/16).
In a press conference after the vote, Dolan said, “My major priority would be to continue with all vigor I can muster what’s already in place” to oppose the well being reform law. Dolan also praised the work of his predecessor, Cardinal Francis George, and indicated that he would not support other Catholic leaders and organizations that break with the bishops’ positions. Earlier this year, several groups representing Catholic hospitals and nuns supported health reform, despite USCCB’s opposition (Goodstein, New York Times, 11/17).
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