Catholics plan annual lobby day at Capitol

On March 12, more than 700 Catholics from all over New York State will descend on the Capitol to discuss issues of concern with their legislators.

The lobby day is sponsored by the New York State Catholic Conference, which speaks for the state's bishops on public policy matters.

Influence

"It's very important to get as many people as possible," he told The Evangelist. "The days of the Church being able to influence legislation with one or two calls from a bishop are over."

State lawmakers need to know "you have people behind you," he continued, adding that the vote to ignore the rights of Catholic employers shows that legislators aren't necessarily convinced the people in the pews agree with their bishops on such legislation.

The "conscience clause" bill currently awaits a vote by the State Assembly, and "I don't think the [legislators are] convinced our people are behind us," Mr. Poust stated. "We've got to convince them they're wrong about that."

Issues

Mr. Poust is concerned that the number of participants in the forum is down to about 700. More than 1,000 Catholics used to travel to Albany for the event, but dioceses have less funding in their budgets to send people.

"We would like to see greater participation," he said. "Catholics should speak out on public policy issues. We're all citizens; we all have a right to our opinions, and we should express them."

(For information on the Public Policy Forum, contact Albany diocesan Catholic Charities at 453-6650 or the Catholic Conference at 434-6195.)

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