Wednesday, January 23, 2013

Dear Mr. President: Newsmax publishes OSV president's letter

As President Obama prepared to enter his second term as president of the United States, OSV president and publisher Greg Erlandson penned a letter challenging the president to build a different legacy, addressing the issues of abortion, conscience protection and religious liberty. Originally published in OSV Newsweekly, the letter also appeared on Newsmax here.

From Greg Erlandson:
On Jan. 20, you officially began your second term as president of the United States. You were first elected in 2008 at a time of grave fiscal crisis in this country. That crisis, and its legacy, in many ways defined your presidency in your first term.
We will leave it to history to judge the decisions you made in that first term, but we want to voice our concern that a different legacy may haunt your second term.
We recall that when you were elected, you had promised to bring a divided nation together. In your first inaugural address, you said: "On this day, we gather because we have chosen hope over fear, unity of purpose over conflict and discord." Later that year, you spoke at the University of Notre Dame, addressing some of the issues that divide us, most specifically abortion. You said: "Let’s honor the conscience of those who disagree with abortion, and draft a sensible conscience clause, and make sure that all of our healthcare policies are grounded not only in sound science, but also in clear ethics ..." 
Despite your initial rhetoric, however, we have seen steps taken by your administration that have aroused our concerns about freedom of conscience and religious liberty, and about the desire for "unity of purpose over conflict and discord." There have been numerous decisions by your administration to weigh in on some of the most divisive and conflicted social issues of the day, particularly regarding abortion, religious liberty and freedom of conscience.
Read entire letter on Newsmax.

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