The California Catholic Conference has taken the state government to court over the state’s order that all Catholic institutions pay for voluntary direct abortions.

The abortions that must be covered include abortions for gender selection and for late-term abortions.

“Catholic beliefs about life and human dignity animate and shape our Catholic ministries,” Bishop Robert McElroy, auxiliary bishop of the Archdiocese of San Francisco told the Christian Post.  “It’s why we oppose abortion, but it is also why Catholic schools provide education, Catholic hospitals care for the poor and vulnerable and why Catholic social services provide assistance to people and families in need. It goes to the core of our moral beliefs.”

The group claims that the state’s orders violate federal human rights laws.

“This is a coercive and discriminatory action by the state of California,” McElroy added. “This demand by the state was directly targeted at Catholic institutions like Santa Clara University, Loyola Marymount University, along with other California employers and citizens. It is a flagrant violation of their civil rights and deepest moral convictions, and is government coercion of the worst kind.”