Colorado bishops clarify stand on Human Personhood amendment

Denver, Colo., Feb 28, 2008 / 23:40 pm

Colorado’s Catholic bishops have denied a pro-life group’s claim that they have “personally expressed support” for an amendment to the state constitution that would define personhood as beginning at conception.

In a February 26 press release from Colorado for Equal Rights, Keith Mason claimed that the Catholic bishops of Colorado “have personally expressed support” for his organization’s proposed “Personhood Amendment.”

On Thursday, the Colorado Catholic Conference (CCC) suggested in a press release that Colorado for Equal Rights “seriously misrepresents” the views of the Catholic bishops of Colorado.  It said Mason’s statement about episcopal support was “false.”

“No broad-based coalition of Catholic leaders has voiced support for Colorado’s Personhood Amendment,” the press release said.

The bishops, however, are not rejecting the amendment. “We commend the goal of this effort to end abortion.  Individual Catholics may certainly choose to work for its passage,” they said.

The reason the Catholic leaders gave for their choice not to back the amendment was that other pro-lifers had raised “serious questions” about the timing and content of the amendment.

“We encourage any and all efforts to eliminate or reduce attacks on the unborn, but we do not believe that this year’s Colorado Personhood Amendment is the best means to pursue this issue at this time,” the CCC statement concluded.