To grow Michigan’s stagnant population, policymakers should view proposed solutions through the lens of supporting family life by making it easier to have and raise children in this state, according to a letter from MCC to the Governor’s council tasked with recommending policy goals to grow Michigan’s population.
In a statement, MCC highlighted the legislative and grassroots advocacy against the Reproductive Health Act that prevented several alarming policies from becoming law. However, MCC called attention to the repeal of health and safety standards required of the abortion industry in Michigan, along with many other common-sense limits on abortion in the RHA. The Catholic Conference again urged lawmakers to prioritize policies that help both mothers and their children.
In response to the state Senate passing several bills on a party-line vote tied to the Reproductive Health Act (RHA), MCC issued a statement calling out senators for inoculating abortion businesses from minimal levels of transparency and accountability and repealing laws that protect the health and safety of women.
Michigan Catholic Conference is urging state senators to stop and consider the health and safety of women as well as the voices of Michigan voters if they decide to take up the Reproductive Health Act (RHA), after a Senate committee voted today to move the extreme legislation to the Senate floor.
The Catholic Conference is calling on the consciences of members of the House and Senate to oppose appalling legislation passed by the House Health Policy Committee this morning that overturns widely-supported limitations on abortion and policies that require accountability and transparency over Michigan abortion facilities.
Lansing Update publishes on Fridays when the Michigan Legislature is in session and chronicles legislative activity of interest to Michigan Catholic Conference.
While the Governor this week did sign the Reproductive Health Act bills that were sent to her desk, MCC noted in a press release the advocacy that resulted in a watered-down version of the RHA becoming law. Plus, ahead of Thanksgiving, MCC extends its gratitude for the dedicated Catholic grassroots network. Read more in this week’s Lansing Update.
The first-ever Michigan March for Life brought thousands of pro-lifers to the steps of the state Capitol this week. Plus, the Legislature wrapped up session for 2023, meaning there was a lot of activity on a variety of issues. Catch up on issues ranging from abortion regulations to surrogacy to juvenile justice and more in this week’s Lansing Update.
While the House passed portions of the dangerous Reproductive Health Act on party-line votes in a late night session this week, the scope of the House-approved RHA is a vast departure from what abortion advocates were seeking to remove from state law when it comes to abortion limits. Also, MCC testifies against legalizing surrogacy contracts in legislation that is speeding through the Legislature. Read about that and more in this week’s Lansing Update.
In addition to the dangerous Reproductive Health Act moving through the Legislature, a new threat to the health and safety of women and children in Michigan has suddenly emerged in Lansing. Learn more about this new issue and what MCC’s concerns are about it in this week’s Lansing Update.
MCC this week continued to make the case that the Reproductive Health Act would harm the health and safety of vulnerable women in Michigan and is out of step with the will of Michigan voters. Despite these efforts, a majority of Michigan senators sided with the abortion industry in sending the bills to the House. Also this week, lawmakers took testimony on MCC-supported bills to crack down on church vandalism, and the Governor signed MCC-backed bills to ensure kids are drinking safe water at schools and daycares. Read more in this week’s Lansing Update.
The Word from Lansing is a regular column written by Michigan Catholic Conference (MCC) staff for Catholic news outlets. Through these columns, MCC outlines current advocacy issues of importance to the Conference and discusses the Catholic position and role in the political process. This publication complements the more regular updates provided by Michigan Catholic Conference’s Catholic Advocacy Network.
As a package of dangerous anti-life bills remain stalled in the Legislature, some of our elected officials need the courage to stand firm in their convictions and oppose the Reproductive Health Act (RHA), and faithful Catholic citizens can help them do that by sending elected officials a message to vote no on the RHA.
The clergy abuse crisis inflicted on today’s Catholics has been a tragic chapter for the Church. Yet amidst the tragedy and scandal, there is hope for renewal and healing. To help advance understanding and awareness of a cultural change within the Church, the upcoming edition of Michigan Catholic Conference’s quarterly Focus publication shares how the Church in Michigan works to protect children and prevent abuse through safe environment protocols considered among the strongest in the nation.
The sheer impact of gun violence on human life should demand a response from Catholics, and MCC’s latest edition of Focus explains and clarifies how lay and ordained Catholics can support gun policies in the interest of protecting human life, with the goal to keep guns from people who may cause harm to themselves or others.
In this column, MCC describes the recent trend of lawmakers acting to expand abortion in Michigan after Proposal 3, and urges them to take a different course and find ways to prevent abortion from happening.
Despite the uphill battle it entailed, MCC staff earlier this year deployed essentially every tool in the advocacy toolbox to fight for the rights of schools, charities, and organizations who wish to serve others in the public square according to the teachings of their faith. Read more about our advocacy efforts for putting religious protections in the state civil rights law in The Word from Lansing.
Focus is MCC’s quarterly publication that examines a social or public policy issue through the lens of Catholic social teaching. Focus has a mailing list of 4,200 and typically distributes 50,000–75,000 copies to Catholic institutions across the state.
The latest edition of MCC’s Focus publication shares how the Catholic Church in Michigan works to protect children and prevent abuse. In this edition, meet the dedicated professionals working for the Church who oversee safe environment programs for parishes and schools, as well as the victim assistance coordinators who serve abuse survivors and assist them with the resources they need to heal. Read and watch this edition of Focus to learn how the Church is working to heal from the clergy abuse scandal and about the progress that has been made.
Amidst the ongoing news of mass shootings and gun deaths across the country, the latest edition of Focus explores the issue of gun violence and offers a Catholic response as public policymakers continue to propose and enact gun safety legislation, including here in Michigan. The intention behind this Focus is to demonstrate why gun violence is an issue of public concern, inform Catholics about the Church's stances on gun policies, and to invite Catholics to look at gun violence from the perspective of the Church’s social principles.
This edition of FOCUS presents MCC’s latest edition of its Blueprint for the Common Good, which lays out the policies MCC will advocate for during the 2023–2024 legislative session and is comprised of nine advocacy principles that originate from Catholic social teaching and the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
This fall, Catholics in Michigan are urged to vote no on Proposal 3, a proposed constitutional amendment that would allow unregulated, unlimited abortion in our state. This issue of focus will explain what Proposal 3 would do and why it is dangerous for Michigan. It will empower you to talk with your friends and family about why this amendment must be defeated. This edition will also equip Catholics with the principles rooted in the Church’s rich teachings on social justice that are helpful to making a well-informed vote on the entire general election ballot.
Our latest edition of Focus shows how Catholics in Michigan and beyond are responding to the call to walk with mothers in need and helping them and their children flourish. While there's a misperception that the Catholic Church cares more about unborn babies and not the mothers who carry them, the reality is that the Church has a heart for both the mother and the baby, and that has transformed into action. From the U.S. bishops’ conference down to the parish level, to Catholic Charities, the Knights of Columbus, and more, the Church is continually reaching out to mothers in difficult situations.
The Advocacy Reports are published at the conclusion of each two-year legislative session and summarize MCC’s public policy and communication advocacy work across the nine advocacy principles that guide MCC’s involvement in legislative issues.
Over the course of the 2019–2020 state legislative session, Michigan Catholic Conference (MCC) worked diligently with lawmakers and legislative staff of both political parties to advance the common good. In a February report, MCC details its advocacy work from the past two years and highlights critical legislative achievements for Michiganders, especially those that recognize the dignity of the human person and address the needs of the vulnerable.
