United States bishops have blasted 31 “Catholic” Democrats who have tried to justify their abortion advocacy by appealing to faith.
On the one-year anniversary of the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization ruling by the U.S. Supreme Court, 31 Catholic members of Congress released “a public statement of principles, falsely invoking specific teachings of the Catholic Church to defend their support of a legal right to abortion,” reads a statement issued Wednesday by leaders of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB).
These members of Congress who invoked teachings of the Catholic faith “as justifying abortion or supporting a supposed right to abortion grievously distort the faith,” the bishops stated. “It is wrong and incoherent to claim that the taking of innocent human life at its most vulnerable stage can ever be consistent with the values of supporting the dignity and wellbeing of those in need.”
In their statement, the bishops noted that the Catholic Church has consistently taught that human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception, including through civil law.
“Abortion violates this with respect to preborn children and brings untold suffering to countless women,” they said.
The prelates also took issue with the Democrats’ invocation of “conscience” as a sort of trump card to justify evil decisions.
“Conscience rightly enjoys a special regard both in Church teaching and in the public sphere,” they acknowledged, but “conscience is not a license to commit evil and take innocent lives.”
“Conscience cannot and does not justify the act or support of abortion,” they added. “In fact, conscience must be informed and moral judgment enlightened with the Word of God in faith and prayer, and guided by the authoritative teaching of the Church.”
Moreover, they continued, the status of the preborn as fully human is not only a matter of faith but “is attested to by science and sound reason.”
“We once again implore and pray for Congress to join us in working toward the true common good by prioritizing authentic, uplifting support for the vulnerable and marginalized, including mothers and families in need,” they said.
Wednesday’s statement was signed by USCCB president Archbishop Timothy Broglio; Arlington Bishop Michael Burbidge, chairman of the Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities; and Brownsville Bishop Daniel Flores, chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Doctrine.
For his part, Bill Donohue, the redoubtable president of the Catholic League for Civil and Religious Rights, pulled no punches in his own response, noting that the Catholic Democrats who signed that statement were “lying” when they claimed that their defense of abortion-on-demand “is entirely in keeping with the teachings of the Catholic Church.”
The Catechism of the Catholic Church clearly states: “Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable,” Donohue observed.
On June 24, Bishop Burbidge released a separate statement celebrating the one-year anniversary of Dobbs.
“By the grace of God, the nearly fifty-year reign of national abortion on demand has been put to an end,” he said. “Roe v. Wade — a seemingly insurmountable blight on our nation — is no more!”
Related: Students for Life, Pro-Life Activists Demand Bishops Hold Pro-Abortion Politicians Accountable in D.C.
Matt Perdie / Breitbart News