Church does not approve of therapeutic abortion, reiterates diocesan official in Nicaragua

Managua, Nicaragua, Jul 27, 2009 / 21:07 pm

The Pastoral Vicar of the Archdiocese of Managua, Msgr. Miguel Mantica, said last week that the Catholic Church does not support or approve of abortion, nor does it approve of so-called "therapeutic" abortion.

Msgr. Mantica’s comments came in response to a report by the newspaper La Prensa, which he said manipulated recent comments about the subject by Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi.

In statements to CNA, he said the paper erroneous claimed the Church supports a move to legalize "therapeutic" abortion in Nicaragua, and then cited the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which states that "human life must be absolutely respected and protected from the moment of conception. That is a key point."

Human life "cannot be violated in any way, much less by committing homicide, even if during the pre-natal phase, when the child is still in his mother’s womb," Msgr. Mantica continued. "This is a constant teaching of the Church that goes back to the first centuries when abortion was always condemned unambiguously. This is a point that has always been very clear," he said.

Responding to the newspaper’s insinuation that a recent article in L’Osservatore Romano suggested a change in Church teaching on abortion, Msgr. Mantica said the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith recently stated that the Church "has not changed nor can she change" her teaching on abortion.

While a woman’s choice to undergo an abortion may entail tragic or painful dimensions, he said, "We cannot therefore justify the killing of any person."

He also pointed out that the real reason behind the push for therapeutic abortion is to get abortion on demand legalized.