Charity is key to our Catholic faith. Supreme Court will hear that case

Today, March 31, my diocese will stand before the Supreme Court of the United States to defend our right to continue our decades-long mission of serving the most vulnerable. It’s shocking it had to come to this. Yet, officials in Wisconsin seek to impede our efforts by claiming this charitable ministry is not religious. 

Guided by Catholic social teaching and Christ’s commands, Catholic dioceses across the country provide vital, loving care to those in need. Indeed, as Pope Francis reminds us, “For the church, a preference for the poor is not optional.”   

This core principle of Catholic social teaching calls us to prioritize the disadvantaged in all aspects of our work. In the Diocese of Superior, Wisconsin, we answer Christ’s call to serve with compassion through the work of our Catholic Charities Bureau. For over a century, this ministry has been a source of hope and care for thousands of our elderly, poor and disabled neighbors. 

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Through Catholic Charities, the church can offer life skills classes, vocational training, job placement services, low-income senior housing, supports for adults with special needs, personal care and assistance for independent living. Catholic Charities improves the human condition by treating each person with dignity of one created in God’s image, as if we were caring for Christ Himself.   

Last year, the majority of the Wisconsin Supreme Court — putting blinders on — declared that Catholic Charities is not operated primarily for religious purposes. Fundamentally, the court reached this conclusion because it said our charitable outreach is not a “typical” religious activity.  

This deeply disappointing ruling meant that Catholic Charities was forced to continue paying into the state’s unemployment benefits program. This also means that Catholic Charities cannot join the Wisconsin Catholic Church’s better and more efficient unemployment program. We remain steadfast in our mission, but this decision challenges our ability to live out Christ’s call to serve with faith at the center of all we do.   

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Most of all, the Wisconsin Supreme Court’s decision harms those who rely on our ministries. If not corrected, Catholic Charities will be forced to continue diverting its precious resources to cover the costs associated with participation in the state’s program.  

As stewards of the generous gifts given to us, we always seek to ensure that we can maximize their direct impact instead of being spent on state programs intentionally designed to exclude religious organizations like ours.  

But what most concerns me about this decision is the reasoning behind it. The court suggests that Catholic Charities would be more religious if it hired only Catholics and sought to convert those it serves. This misrepresents our faith and the heart of our mission. 

True Christian charity does not separate the “deserving” from the “undeserving,” nor is it a means of proselytizing. Instead, it flows from love, as St. Augustine teaches, “a virtue which … unites us to God, for by it we love Him.”

The Good Samaritan did not question the wounded man’s faith; he saw the need and responded with mercy. This is the example Catholic Charities has embraced for over a century, and it is the spirit in which we will continue to serve the most vulnerable among us. No matter how others define our work, our devotion to lifting up those in need will remain steadfast and rooted in love.    

With the Support of the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, our diocese brought this case before the U.S. Supreme Court last fall. Today, the justices will consider whether Wisconsin’s cramped view of what constitutes “religion” can withstand scrutiny. We hope and pray that the justices will recognize the sincere faith at the core of our ministry.