A top U.S. military hospital ended its contract with a community of Franciscan friars just before Holy Week, putting a secular firm in charge of Catholic pastoral care, according to the Archdiocese of the Military Services.

Walter Reed National Military Medical Center even issued a “cease and desist order” to the Franciscan Catholic priests and brothers, who have provided pastoral care to the war veterans for nearly two decades.

The Franciscans’ contract for Catholic Pastoral Care was terminated at the end of March, and awarded to a secular defense contracting firm.

Archbishop Timothy P. Broglio, the head of the Military archdiocese, blasted the move saying  “It is incomprehensible that essential pastoral care is taken away from the sick and the aged when it was so readily available.  This is a classic case where the adage ‘if it is not broken, do not fix it’ applies.  I fear that giving a contract to the lowest bidder overlooked the fact that the bidder cannot provide the necessary service.  I earnestly hope that this disdain for the sick will be remedied at once and their First Amendment rights will be respected.”