At least it brings attention to Church teaching

The media and politicians who follow a socially liberal, secular progressive agenda have had a heyday lately with Pope Benedict’s simple but direct reminder of what the Church has always taught about upholding the sanctity of life. Those remarks, made on the plane on his way to Brazil, quickly spread in distorted news reports. Clarification swiftly followed, because the media need that sort of work done for them when they willfully get things wrong.

But it has continued to have life in the political news world, so here’s a back to back report of some recent developments.

On May 14, a group of 18 House Democrats issued the following statement stating restricting Communion from pro-abortin politicians “offend[s] the very nature of the Amercan experiment”.

“We are concerned with the Pope’s statement warning Catholic elected officials that they risk excommunication and would not receive communion for their pro-choice views. 

“Advancing respect for life and for the dignity of every human being is, as our church has taught us, our own life’s mission.  As we said in our Statement of Principles, ‘We envision a world in which every child belongs to a loving family and agree with the Catholic Church about the value of human life and the undesirability of abortion – we do not celebrate its practice.  Each of us is committed to reducing the number of unwanted pregnancies and creating an environment with policies that encourage pregnancies to be carried to term.’  That is precisely what some of us are doing with our initiative ‘The Reducing the Need for Abortion and Supporting Parents Act’ – which includes policies that promote alternatives to abortion, such as adoption, improve access to children’s healthcare and child care, as well as encourage paternal and maternal responsibility.  

“The fact is that religious sanction in the political arena directly conflicts with our fundamental beliefs about the role and responsibility of democratic representatives in a pluralistic America – it also clashes with freedoms guaranteed in our Constitution.  Such notions offend the very nature of the American experiment and do a great disservice to the centuries of good work the church has done.”

On May 18, the USCCB Office of Media Relations published a response:

The 18 Democrats who recently criticized Pope Benedict XVI when he answered questions about Mexico’s legalizing abortion both misrepresented the Pope’s remarks and defied freedom of speech and freedom of religion…

The Representatives’ statement misrepresents the Holy Father’s remarks and implies that the Church does not have a right to voice its teaching in the public square.

The Holy See has made clear that neither the Mexican bishops nor the Holy Father have excommunicated any legislator. Rather, the Holy See reiterated longstanding Church teaching that anyone who freely and knowingly commits a serious wrong, that is, a mortal sin, should not approach the Eucharist until going to confession.

“The Catholic Church proclaims that human life is sacred and that the dignity of the human person is the foundation of a moral vision of society.” (United States Catechism for Adults, p. 442) Consequently, every Catholic is obliged to respect human life, from conception until natural death.

To suggest that the Church should not clearly voice its teaching and apply it in a pluralistic society is to attack freedom of speech and freedom of religion. The Catholic Church always will and must speak out against the destruction of innocent unborn children. The right to do so is guaranteed by the Constitution that all legislators are elected to uphold. Speaking and acting against abortion is not a matter of partisan politics. It is a matter of life and death.

The bishops urge all Catholics, especially those who hold positions of public responsibility, to educate themselves about the teaching of the Church, and to seek pastoral advice so that they can make informed decisions with consistency and integrity.

Making informed decisions is the key to this whole thing. It’s getting more and more obvious who is resisting that, and why.