Daily links, Fri., Mar. 16: The SSPX, the USCCB, and the ABC

After several years of back and forth--and no small amount of controversy--the Society of St. Piux X (SSPX) and the Vatican seem no closer to reconciliation, according to Catholic News Service (via NCR) [1] and Reuters [2]. No surprise here.

The stateside bishops (USCCB) are doubling down on the contraceptive mandate [3], adding issues touching religious freedom in an attempt to be less partisan. A New York Times blog post recalls an entirely different reaction from Cardinal Richard Cushing [4] to a similar (though hardly identical) issue. The majority of Catholics, however, remain on the sidelines, not agreeing that the contraceptive mandate [5] is a matter of religious freedom. Meanwhile, the United Kingdom is having a religous freedom debate [6] of its own.

While we are in England, Lambeth Palace today announced Anglican Archbishop of Canterbury (ABC) Rowan Williams' resignation from the thankless job [7], effective at the end of the year, to return to academia. Paul Elie has an appreciation at the Atlantic [8].