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Protecting Children,
Born and Unborn
What does the Church say about the
consistent ethic of life?
“As Catholics, we must clearly promote a comprehensive morality that
values the gift of life in all of its wondrous manifestations. Our
Church supports life in all its stages and advocates for the dignity of
each human life. We protect human life from the moment of
conception. We also support the dignity of women, especially those
challenged by an unplanned pregnancy.”
Archbishop Alexander J. Brunett
What does the Church say about abortion?
The Second Vatican Council defines abortion, together with infanticide, as an “unspeakable crime.” But today, in many people’s consciences, the perception of its gravity has become progressively obscured. The acceptance of abortion in the popular mind, in behavior and even in law itself, is a telling sign of an extremely dangerous crisis of the moral sense, which is becoming more and more incapable of distinguishing between good and evil, even when the fundamental right to life is at stake. Given such a grave situation, we need now more than ever to have the courage to look the truth in the eye and to call things by their proper name, without yielding to convenient compromises or to the temptation of self-deception.
Pope John Paul II, Evangelium Vitae, 58
Reflections
We were all conceived and born in littleness and weakness. We depended totally on our parents for food and protection; our greatest need was for their enfolding, protective, and stimulating love. Children cannot live and grow humanly without that love. For a human being, love is as vital as food….
What happens when a child feels unloved, unwanted? There is nothing to compare with the terrible loneliness of a child; fragile and helpless, a lonely child feels fear, anguish, a sense of guilt. And when children are wounded in their hearts, they learn to protect themselves by hiding behind barriers.
Jean Vanier, Becoming Human
If one contends, as we do, that the right of every fetus to be born should be protected by civil law and supported by civil consensus, then our moral, political, and economic responsibilities do not stop at the moment of birth. Those who defend the right to life of the weakest among us must be equally visible in support of the quality of life of the powerless among us: the old and the young, the hungry and the homeless, the undocumented immigrant and the unemployed worker.
Joseph Cardinal Bernardin, “A Consistent Ethic of Life”
Talking Points
These suggested talking points might be used in talking about
abortion in everyday conversations with relatives, friends, coworkers,
or neighbors.
Always a Human Being The fetus in the womb is a
human being, just like a baby eagle in an egg is an eagle. The federal
government protects eagle eggs in the nest, but does not offer the
similar protection to human beings in the womb.
Emotional Trauma Abortion only appears to solve a
perceived problem, an unintended pregnancy. Women who have abortions
often suffer emotional and psychological trauma for years afterward.
Danger to Women The later in a pregnancy an
abortion is performed, the greater the risk for the woman. Abortion is a
significant medical procedure that carries serious risks to the woman
during the procedure and afterward.
Parents of Minors For women younger than 18, they
need parental consent to have their ears pierced or medications
administered at school. However, in the case of abortion, there is no
requirement for parental consent. Given the risks associated with having
an abortion, such a situation does not assure that informed consent is
present.
from Living Faith, published by
the Archdiocese of Seattle, 2007
at St. James Cathedral?
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