Denver Catholic

BY NISSA LAPOINT The superior of the Little Sisters of the Poor order will comment publically for the first time after a federal court in Denver hears its argument next week against the govern- ment's imposed contraceptive mandate. The order of nuns' provin- cial superior, Mother Loraine Marie Maguire, lsp, will attend the oral argument set for 9 a.m. Dec. 8 in the 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals at the By- ron White courthouse in down- town Den- ver. The hearing is open to the public. The nun, who oversees the order's 28 nursing homes for the el- derly poor across the U.S., is expected to comment imme- diately following the hearing with attorney Mark Rienzi of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. Mother Maguire's comments follow more than a year of court battles the Becket Fund has fought for the Little Sisters who object to the federal Health and Human Services mandate because it conflicts with their religious beliefs. The mandate is a part of the Affordable Care Act that forces employee health plans to provide free coverage of contraceptives including steril- izations and abortion-inducing drugs and devices. The Little Sisters were grant- ed a temporary injunction, which shields them from the mandate, after filing an appeal in February in Denver federal court. "The sisters just want to be able to do what they have been doing and offer gener- ous health benefits that don't include drugs the sisters can't help provide," said attorney Adele Keim of the Becket Fund. The Little Sisters are one of 400 ministries in the class-ac- tion lawsuit against the mandate. The Becket Fund has re- leased comments on behalf of the Little Sisters, including a recent response to government officials' latest adjustment to mandate requirements. In a letter dated Oct. 27, the Little Sisters commented that the mandate "threatens our religious ministry in ways that are unfair, illegal and entirely unnecessary." "For the reasons set forth in our court papers, the govern- ment's efforts to coerce us in this manner are illegal," the letter reads. "They are also en- tirely unnecessary. While we do not share the government's goals of promoting and dis- tributing these products, we are confident that the govern- ment can devise other ways to achieve its goals without tak- ing over our health plans." The letter was signed by Mother Maguire. For more information about the Becket Fund and the Little Sis- ters case, visit www.becketfund. org/hhsinformationcentral. Nissa LaPoint: 303-715-3138; nissa.lapoint@archden.org; www. twitter.com/DCRegisterNissa 6 I LOCAL NEWS DECEMBER 3, 2014 I DENVER CATHOLIC REGISTER Archdiocese of Denver Mortuary 12801 W. 44th Ave. Wheat Ridge, CO 80033 (303) 425-9511 Mt. Olivet Cemetery 12801 W. 44th Ave. Wheat Ridge, CO 80033 (303) 424-7785 St. Simeon Cemetery 22001 E. State Hwy. 30 Aurora, CO 80018 (720) 859-9785 • Professional, personalized service • Respectful • Compassionate Caring for the faithful in Northern Colorado since 1893 in their most personal time of need. THE ARCHDIOCESE OF DENVER CEMETERIES AND MORTUARY An Advent and Christmas Concert As a stewardship parish, there will be no admission fee. You are invited to bring a non-perishable food item to help our neighborhood food banks. Saturday, December 13 1:00PM St. Thomas More Catholic Parish 8035 S. Quebec St. Centennial, CO 80112 Enjoy the music of the Advent and Christmas seasons with nine St. Thomas More choirs! Tidings of Joy! Head of Little Sisters to comment after Denver hearing BY NISSA LAPOINT Local Catholic ministries and organizations hope for a three-peat of generous dona- tions next week through the online philanthropy campaign Colorado Gives Day. For some of these minis- tries, this is at least the third year they have participated in the 24-hour online fundrais- ing day. This year's Colorado Gives Day on Dec. 9 is orga- nized by the online giving site www.coloradogives.org, where donations may be made year- round to nearly 1,500 Colorado nonprofits. Some 88,000 Coloradans do- nated more than $20 million for 1,442 nonprofits last year. Since its inception in 2007 by the Community First Foun- dation, the online fundraising site raised more than $73 mil- lion for area charities. Catholic nonprofits online this year include Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of Denver, Father Woody's Haven of Hope, Bishop Machebeuf High School, Holy Family High School, St. John the Evangelist Parish in Loveland and Seeds of Hope Charitable Trust. Seeds of Hope has received an increasing amount each year to aid students unable to afford Catholic school tuition. Last year it received $32,060 through the site, and $24,905 in 2012 and $19,714 in 2011. "While the event has grown every year, so have our do- nations through this unique opportunity—nearly 40 per- cent just in the last two years," said executive director Natalie Mesko. "Community First Foundation's work on behalf of so many great organizations is a true asset to our com- munity and sets an example for community foundations across the country." She emphasized how non- profits must go through a rig- orous application process be- fore they are eligible for dona- tions through the site. Nonprofits especially ben- efit from no transaction fees on the fundraising day and receive a portion of the $1 mil- lion incentive fund. The incen- tive fund is a pool of money distributed to each nonprofit based on the amount donors give on Colorado Gives Day. Donors may also preschedule their donations. Other area Catholic organi- zations, including the St. Vin- cent de Paul Society, Mount St. Vincent Home, Arrupe Jesuit High School and Escuela de Guadalupe School, will also participate this year. Can Colorado givers make it a three-peat? COLORADO GIVES DAY What: a 24-hour online fund- raising campaign for Colorado nonprofits When: Dec. 9 Visit: www.coloradogives.org PHOTO PROVIDED BY THE BECKET FUND A LITTLE SISTER of the Poor nun spends time with an el- derly woman. The Little Sisters case against the federal HHS mandate will continue next week in a Denver federal court. MOTHER LORAINE MAGUIRE

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