The Dominican Sisters of Hawthorne, who have operated Rosary Hill Home in New York for nearly 125 years, filed a lawsuit on Apr. 8 against state officials over new gender-identity regulations that they say conflict with their Catholic beliefs.
The case highlights the ongoing debate between religious freedom and anti-discrimination laws, particularly as they pertain to healthcare facilities run by faith-based organizations.
State health authorities sent three letters to the sisters warning them about rules that prohibit restricting rooms and bathrooms based on sex assigned at birth and require the use of preferred pronouns for transgender residents. The letters reference a statute passed by the New York Legislature in 2023 called “The Long-Term Care Facility Residents’ Bill of Rights for LGBTQIA+ New Yorkers and People Living with HIV.”
Mother Marie Edward, OP, superior of the congregation, said: “I think the most important thing is that we are adamant in keeping our Catholic identity. Without that, there’s no purpose for us to do what we’re doing.” She added: “Christ is the center, and the Eucharist sustains us. But Christ is also, as he said, the way, the truth, and the life. And if he’s the truth, then we cannot practice what we do incorporating something that is an untruth.”
According to Cadence Acquaviva from the New York State Department of Health: “While the department does not comment on pending or ongoing litigation, the department is committed to following state law, which provides nursing home residents certain rights protecting against discrimination including, but not limited to, gender identity or expression.”
L. Martin Nussbaum—the sisters’ attorney—said: “This law imposed on the Dominican Hawthorne Sisters is a form of gender ideology virtue signaling… It’s the state requiring these holy nuns to bend the knee to an ideology contrary to their faith.” He further explained that both staff members and Rosary Hill Home itself must renew licenses under these new requirements.
Founded by Rose Hawthorne Lathrop (Mother Mary Alphonsa) in 1900 after her conversion from Unitarianism to Catholicism during the 1890s, Rosary Hill Home has provided free care for terminal cancer patients since opening its doors in June 1901. Pope Francis declared Mother Mary Alphonsa venerable in March 2024—a step toward sainthood.
Sister Stella Mary commented: “This is our strength. If our faith wasn’t there…the environment that permeates this place is very different because of our faith…So I think there is no way we could do what we do day in and day out…without having our faith.”
As legal proceedings begin in U.S. District Court for Southern District of New York at White Plains—with Governor Kathy Hochul among those named as defendants—the outcome may set precedent regarding how religiously affiliated care homes navigate evolving anti-discrimination laws.
