Famous Catholic Groups The National Park Service will hold its annual Memorial Day Mass on Monday after the Biden administration reversed course and granted the go-ahead following legal threats.
Last week, the National Park Service (NPS) denied permission for the Knights of Columbus to hold their annual religious ceremony at Poplar Grove National Cemetery in Petersburg, Virginia, where the group has observed the ritual for the past 60 years. Lawyers for the Knights of Columbus filed a temporary restraining order against the National Park Service, arguing that the Biden administration is violating the First Amendment, and Virginia’s Republican Attorney General Jason Miyares supported the motion.
Just the next day, the National Park Service approved the permit. Knights’ lawyers were pleased with the reversal.
“We are grateful to the National Park Service for allowing us to host the Knights’ ceremony this Memorial Day,” McGuireWoods partner John Moran said in a press release.
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The Biden administration reversed course, giving the Knights of Columbus permission to hold their annual Memorial Day Mass at national park cemeteries.
Miyares filed an amicus brief in their case and praised the overturning of the ruling in a statement.
“Within hours of my application, the Biden Administration reversed course and will now allow the Knights of Columbus to gather at Poplar Grove National Cemetery on Memorial Day. It is shameful that it was denied in the first place,” he wrote to X.
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First Liberty, which supported the Knights in their lawsuit, also thanked Miyares and Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin for their help in winning the case.
“The Knights are excited to be able to practice our religious beliefs and keep this honored tradition alive, and we appreciate the generous support of Governor Youngkin and Attorney General Miyares in this matter,” Senior Counsel Roger Byron said in a press release.
The Knights of Columbus sues the National Park Service for refusing to allow Memorial Day Mass. (Getty Images/Pat Schmidt/NPS)
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This marks the second year in a row that the Catholic fraternal service has been denied permission to hold Memorial Day Masses at the cemetery where it has been doing so for decades.
However, religious services and gatherings are now classified as “demonstrations.” At least since 1986, According to the NPS website, it is prohibited in national cemeteries.
“Special events or demonstrations, whether spontaneous or organized, are prohibited, except for official commemorative events held on Memorial Day, Veterans Day, and other days designated by the Administrator as having special historical and commemorative significance for a particular national cemetery. Burial ceremonies are excluded from this restriction.” The rules say.
Lawyers for the Knights said that until the recent policy change, they had been allowed to hold masses and prayers at the cemetery each Memorial Day for years.
The lawsuit, filed in federal court last week, was dismissed after the National Park Service approved the permit.
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