Clergy Writings on Women's Health and Rights

Sunday Dialogue: What Is the Role of Faith in Public Policy? (Letter to the Editor)

By Rabbi Dennis S. Ross
New York Times, 04/14/2012

Every voice should be heard, including voices of faith. But we should not make law out of stricture, nor should we establish policy based on religious perspectives alone. Rather, we should promote policies that protect private belief and practice in a way that does not burden, restrict or impose upon the larger spiritually diverse community.

The Birth Control Lawsuits: Misusing Religious Liberty to Deny Women Their Rights

By Rabbi Dennis S. Ross
RH Reality Check, 11/25/2013

The real religious liberty in this case belongs to the woman who is working for her health care; she is the one who owns it and needs the protection. An outsider’s objection – even a faith-based objection by her employer – should play no role in her ability to pay for her health care. The patient – her health needs, decisions, and religious liberty – must always come first.

Congress, Abortion, and the Separation of Church and State

By Rabbi Dennis S. Ross
RH Reality Check, 09/23/2013

As a rabbi, I feel as strongly as any religious leader about my faith and national policy. But in contrast to the bishops and others, clergy from many different denominations uphold the morality in protecting women as they make decisions about their bodies and their health, in consultation with their doctors and anyone else to whom they decide to speak – loved ones, trusted friends, counselors, or clergy.

Birth Control and “The Myth of the Judeo-Christian Tradition”

By Rabbi Dennis S. Ross and Rev. Tom Davis
RH Reality Check, 03/05/2013

Let’s . . . recognize that no one religious body or leader represents all Jewish belief – or Christian belief, for that matter. Where religions disagree, policymakers must not play umpire and pick their favorite “team.” Instead, they need to respect the boundary of church-state separation, leave it to women to decide about her health care, and ensure her access to the safe and legal preventive medicine she decides she needs.

Using “Religious Liberty” to Hide Religious Overreach

By Rabbi Dennis S. Ross
RH Reality Check, 10/10/2012

You see, the ACA is about insurance coverage; it is not asking anyone to use birth control. And the worker earns the insurance and owns it – the employer’s religion is secondary. Yes, [the] human resources office will carry a tiny responsibility here – processing paper that has the words “birth control” written on it, but that concern is minor compared to the moral standing of the employee who privately decides to rely on prescription birth control for basic preventive health care and family planning.

The Fundamentalist Campaign Against Science and Proper Health Care: Time to “Shut that Whole Thing Down”

By Rabbi Dennis S. Ross
RH Reality Check, 09/13/2012

As a rabbi, I recognize the truth in science, just as my denomination and many other religious groups have long taught us to do. Part of being religious is the call to reconcile faith and the evidence, even when the domains conflict. Nevertheless, many politicians insist that religious automatically trumps science, no matter what. So when it comes to flat earth gone to Congress, it really is time “to shut that whole thing down.”

A Rabbi Responds to Mitch McConnell: Sorry Senator, Health Care IS the Issue!

By Rabbi Dennis S. Ross
RH Reality Check, 07/09/2012

Judaism teaches that the body is on loan from God, as a sacred trust, and a person honors that trust by staying healthy. Anything we can do to help people get to a doctor or nurse enables the fulfillment of a spiritual obligation. What is more, as a pastor to families and households confronted by medical challenges, I can tell you that it’s heartbreaking when someone has to choose between good health and a decent meal, or has to decide between covering the rent or paying for a prescription, birth control or otherwise.

The Divine Right of Senators

By Rev. Tom Davis
Huffington Post, 08/05/2013

As a longtime minister and close student of the history and current status of the abortion issue in America, I can find no instances where these senators have pondered what they would do if they were a woman and legislators ordered them to have medical tests which their doctors said were unnecessary. Have they ever wondered what they would do if they were a woman in the sixth month of a wanted pregnancy only to learn from an ultrasound that their fetus was hopelessly compromised and would not live?

Blessing (Not Cursing) Planned Parenthood

By Rev. Tom Davis
Huffington Post, 08/01/2011

The most effective response . . . is public support, especially by clergy and laypeople who can directly counter the religious attacks on Planned Parenthood with a religious defense of its work. It is not hard to do. Far from being an evil materialistic organization, Planned Parenthood helps the poor, the alienated, and women who have nowhere else to turn to for health care. By all Biblical standards, that’s not something to curse: that’s something to celebrate

Strong Clerical Support for a Woman’s Right to Choose Does Exist

By Rev. Tom Davis
Huffington Post, 03/18/2010

Anti-abortion clergy are getting plenty of attention in the health care debate, while clergy insisting on access to the full range of reproductive medicine receive little notice. The imbalance is remarkable, given the long history of clergy support for the availability of contraception and abortion care.

A Thank-You Note to Birth Control

By Rev. Susan Russell
Huffington Post, 11/11/2014

As a priest, pastor, and faith leader, I’m writing to say thank you, because birth control matters. In my faith tradition, among our core values are “strive for justice and respect the dignity of every human being.” The ability to plan, prevent, and space pregnancies is directly linked to benefits to women, men, children and a just society, including more educational and economic opportunities, healthier babies, more stable families and reduced taxpayer burden.