Read a Feb. 24, 2012, Washington Post op-ed column about the Catholic Church and birth control. It’s by historian Elaine Tyler May, author of America + the Pill: A History of Promise, Peril and Liberation.

Read a Feb. 28, 2012, EWTN News/CNA article in which Chicago Cardinal Francis George says the Catholic Church may be forced to halt its work in the public square, such as in hospitals and universities, because of the contraception coverage mandate.

A Guttmacher Institute study found that 98 percent of sexually active Catholic women in the U.S. have used a birth control method not sanctioned by the church. The full report, titled “Countering Conventional Wisdom: New Evidence on Religion and Contraceptive Use,” provides numerous other religion-related statistics, as well.

A poll done in early February 2012 by Rasmussen Reports indicated that despite a slight improvement around that time in Obama’s overall performance ratings by the general public, Catholics remained critical, with 59 percent of likely Catholic voters disapproving of his handling of the job.

As of mid-February 2012, the controversy over birth control hadn’t significantly affected Catholics’ views of Obama, according to Gallup Daily tracking.

Kristin E. Heyer is an associate professor in the religious studies department at Santa Clara University in Santa Clara, Calif. She co-edited Catholics and Politics: The Dynamic Tension Between Faith & Power.

Vincent J. Miller is a professor of Catholic theology at the University of Dayton. Miller is an expert on religion and politics and the Catholic Church’s role in politics and public policy.

Read a Dec. 17, 2011, New York Times story about the impact of Newt Gingrich’s religion on the 2012 campaign.

Brother Charles Hilken is a history professor at St. Mary’s College of California. Papal elections and the history of the papacy are among his areas of expertise.