Mary Hansen Staff Writer @maryfhansen

Right of conscience could be one topic at a rally focusing on religious freedoms that's planned for noon Wednesday in the Capitol rotunda.

It's being organized by the Catholic Diocese of Springfield, and Bishop Thomas John Paprocki is planning to attend.

Some Catholics are concerned about their right of conscience, particularly for physicians and other medical professionals who object to abortions, said Donna Moore, the diocese's director for pro-life activities and special ministries.

"We just want to bring it to people's attention that religious liberties are being attacked and that we need to speak out and make sure our religious liberties are kept intact," Moore said.

On Monday, the U.S. Supreme Court agreed to hear the case of a baker who is challenging a Colorado law that says he was wrong to have turned away a same-sex couple who wanted a cake to celebrate their 2012 wedding.Twenty-two states, including Illinois, include sexual orientation in laws that bar discrimination in public accommodations.

Hillary Byrnes, an attorney with the United State Conference of Catholic Bishops, will speak at Wednesday's "Rock the Rotunda" event, along with Paprocki, who has recently been criticized for a decree he issued this month that denies gays and lesbians in same-sex marriages from receiving communion or a church burial.

Effingham-based musician Michael James Mette will perform.

The rally is part of the nationwide "Fortnight for Freedom" that Paprocki and the local diocese were involved in establishing.

The annual rally has been held in front of the Statehouse, but organizers opted to move it inside this year to protect people from the heat. The rally drew about 100 people last year, according to Moore.

-- Contact Mary Hansen: 788-1528, mary.hansen@sj-r.com, twitter.com/maryfhansen.

Excerpt from:

Rally planned at Capitol to defend religious freedom - The State Journal-Register