South Bend, Ind., May 21, 2012 / 13:45 pm
The University of Notre Dame filed its own lawsuit against the HHS mandate on May 21, with its president warning that the mandate’s religious freedom violations could mean “the end of genuinely religious organizations” if they are allowed to stand.
“We do not seek to impose our religious beliefs on others; we simply ask that the government not impose its values on the university when those values conflict with our religious teachings,” University of Notre Dame President Fr. John Jenkins, C.S.C., said in a May 21 letter.
The lawsuit, filed against leaders of the Obama administration in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Indiana, denies that the government has the right to “force the University of Notre Dame to violate its own conscience by making it provide, pay for, and/or facilitate those services to others, contrary to its sincerely held religious beliefs.”
“This lawsuit is about one of America’s most cherished freedoms: the freedom to practice one’s religion without government interference,” it said.