Albany, N.Y., Mar 6, 2019 / 01:45 pm (CNA).- The New York State Catholic Conference, which represents the state’s 28 bishops, issued a fiery statement on Wednesday opposing plans to legalize recreational marijuana in the state.
In a statement released March 6, the bishops said legalization would be disastrous, and accused the state of “encouraging destructive behavior” to raise tax revenue.
Legalizing marijuana for recreational use would be akin to opening a “Pandora’s Box that will have multiple deleterious effects on individuals, families, and all of society,” said the statement.
“Vice is not an appropriate economic development engine for a state that prides itself as a national progressive leader,” said the bishops. “Our state motto is Excelsior (ever upward), but policies that exploit addiction instead lead us ever downward.”
New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo (D) announced in late 2018 that he intended to make the legalization of marijuana for recreational use a legislative priority for the coming year, a departure from his past views on the issue.
Marijuana for medicinal use has been legal in New York since 2014, and the state legislature may consider a bill in the near future. Legalization efforts are opposed by not only the state’s bishops, but also its law enforcement, medical, and educational communities.
The bishops expressed deep concern that efforts to use the drug to raise state income could have dire consequences for society, and particularly for young marijuana users.
“Of particular concern regarding the movement toward legalization is the impact on children,” the statement said.
“Proponents argue that usage will be restricted to age 21 and older but, as we have seen in the alcohol and tobacco industries, producers of harmful products always find a way to market their products to children.”
The bishops said that no increase in revenue would be worth the “increased teenage and childhood usage, harmful effects on developing brains, addiction, natural progression to harder drug use, increased impairment-related transportation accidents and deaths, and other potential public health and safety issues.”
The statement also acknowledged racial disparities among those arrested for marijuana use and possession. These disparities, which show a disproportionate effect on minority communities, have been advanced by legalization supporters as a benefit of decriminalization.
“We take this issue seriously,” the bishops wrote.
“The state can and should take appropriate measures to ensure that skin color or zip code do not result in different outcomes for the same offense, including re-evaluating the justice of current criminal penalties for low-level possession.”
“We must not simply throw up our hands and legalize a harmful substance in order to declare the problem of discrimination solved.”
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Washington D.C., Jan 4, 2021 / 05:21 pm (CNA).- The word “amen” is not a gendered word and the term “a-women” is entirely made up, a professor of theology who specializes in Hebrew told CNA, after a prayer in the U.S. Congress u… […]
President Donald Trump speaks to reporters as he hosts the annual Easter Egg Roll on the South Lawn of the White House on April 21, 2025, in Washington, D.C. / Credit: MANDEL NGAN/AFP via Getty Images
President Donald Trump speaks to reporters in the South Court Auditorium in the Eisenhower Executive Office Building on Aug. 5, 2025, in Washington, D.C. / Credit: Win McNamee/Getty Images
Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Aug 7, 2025 / 06:00 am (CNA).
Some Christian and conservative organizations are expressing optimism that President Donald Trump may rein in “debanking” — a practice in which financial institutions have allegedly cut ties with people or groups for their religious or political beliefs.
The Wall Street Journal reported on Aug. 5 that the White House drafted an executive order that would instruct regulators to investigate financial institutions accused of ending relationships with customers for political reasons.
According to the report, the draft would direct regulators to determine whether the institutions violated the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, antitrust laws, or consumer financial-protection laws and subsequently issue monetary penalties, consent decrees, or take other disciplinary action that would apply.
Jennifer Morse, a Catholic who leads The Ruth Institute, told CNA she is “glad to see the Trump administration addressing the debanking issue.”
The Ruth Institute, which combats the harms of the sexual revolution, states that it was targeted through debanking as early as 2017.
Ruth Institute President Jennifer Roback Morse, pictured here speaking on “The World Over with Raymond Arroyo” on June 13, 2019. Credit: “The World Over with Raymond Arroyo/EWTN News screenshot
“As one of the earliest victims of anti-Christian discrimination within the financial services sector, I am very relieved to see the Trump administration addressing this problem,” Morse said. “This particular sword of Damocles has been hanging over the heads of Christian organizations all over the geographic region formerly known as Christendom. I hope the Trump administration’s leadership on this issue has ripple effects around the world.”
Brownback told CNA that his organization opened an account in April 2022 and was unable to make a deposit in the account just four weeks later.
“They said the account had been closed and they told us it had been [decided] at the corporate level and they told us it was a non-revocable decision and they couldn’t say anything about it,” he said.
Brownback said he was later contacted by more than 10 organizations that reported similar experiences. Many organizations, he said, were “Christian or traditional values organizations” such as “groups that stand for traditional marriage.”
“It seems to be a tactic of the left to try to suffocate — in the marketplace — groups that back viewpoints they don’t agree with,” he added.
Sam Brownback, the former ambassador for international religious freedom who currently leads the National Committee for Religious Freedom. Credit: “The World Over with Raymond Arroyo”/Screenshot
Brownback said federal action is “a necessary way” to address the problem, calling the possible executive action “a fabulous step forward.”
He also suggested there needs to be “a private route” as well with more conservatives joining large corporate boards.
“If you just had one conservative in the boardroom challenging some of these practices, that might [have an effect],” Brownback said.
Brian Knight, who serves as senior counsel for Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) — a group that provides legal representation in defense of religious freedom — said in a statement to CNA that “everyone needs access to basic financial services.”
ADF represented Indigenous Advance Ministries, a Christian nonprofit that reported it was debanked by Bank of America, allegedly for its religious beliefs. The account cancellation forced the ministry to delay paychecks to its partners in Uganda.
“Shutting people out because of their political or religious beliefs? That’s not just wrong — it’s un-American,” he said. “No one should be locked out of the financial system for their views. Period. No American should have to worry that they could lose their bank account or have a payment declined because of their religious or political beliefs.”
Knight noted ADF worked with Tennessee and Idaho to combat debanking in their states and “worked diligently with federally elected officials to secure similar protections nationwide.” He said he appreciates Trump “taking this issue so seriously” and that ADF will analyze any executive order when it is published.
Others who have allegedly faced debanking include parental rights group Moms for Liberty, Christian ministry Timothy Two Project International, Christian preacher Lance Wallnau, evangelist Nick Vujicic, and British Reform UK party leader Nigel Farage.
In an Aug. 5 interview with CNBC, Trump did not confirm whether an executive order was coming but did discuss an instance in which JP Morgan Chase and Bank of America rejected deposits from the Trump organization and called out the trend.
“[Banks] discriminated against many conservatives,” the president said, claiming that he had “hundreds of millions” of dollars in accounts with JP Morgan Chase and was told he had “20 days to get out.”
“I said, ‘I can’t believe it,’” Trump added. “Well, I was never in this situation before. I’ve never had anything like it. And it’s not like, gee, you defaulted on a loan. You know, geez, I could understand that. That’s different. But there’s no default. I mean, there’s nothing but cash.”
Trump said he then reached out to Bank of America, which had “zero interest” in having him deposit the cash.
“I went to another one, another one, another one, another one,” he said. “I ended up going to small banks all over the place. I mean, I was putting $10 million here, $10 million there. Did $5 million, $10 million, $12 million. I have them all over the place, the craziest thing.”
Trump suggested that regulators reviewing the operations of financial institutions that engage in this practice could be a potential solution.
“The group they’re really afraid of is bank regulators,” the president said.
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