The bishops started their three-day session with a presentation on a revised policy for Catholic hospitals. Later, they were expected to discuss the education policy, along with other topics including the Mideast crisis.
The education policy will require a Catholic teacher to get the local bishop to sign off on a mandatum, or official document, recognizing the instructor´s formal commitment «to teach authentic Catholic doctrine and to refrain from putting forth as Catholic teaching anything contrary to´´ official teaching.
The professors are required to receive the mandatum by next June 1, although some have already said they won´t apply. It is uncertain what bishops can or would do in such cases.
The bishops are expected to approve the policy Friday, AP said.
The bishops also are expected to hone their 1994 moral directives for the nation´s 1,140 Catholic hospitals and health care agencies. The proposal before the bishops re-emphasizes that the hospitals must continue to reject sterilization, abortion and euthanasia if they merge with non-Catholic institutions or enter managed-care networks.
