Vatican: Pope did not intervene in Mexican Supreme Court decision on abortion

Mexico City, Mexico, Sep 30, 2011 / 14:38 pm

Vatican spokesman Father Federico Lombardi has dismissed claims that Pope Benedict XVI intervened in Mexico's recent Supreme Court ruling on abortion.

“According to the statement issued today by the Holy See through its spokesman, Father Federico Lombardi, His Holiness Benedict XVI did not make any phone calls to our country to influence the debate carried out by the justices of the Supreme Court on the issue of the right to life,” a statement from Mexican Bishops’ Conference explained on Sept. 30.
 
Bishop Isidro Guerrero Macias of Mexicali had previously claimed that Benedict XVI intervened in the pro-life victory. “Yesterday we almost lost, but a call from the Pope, I don’t know to who, don’t ask me, changed everything,” the bishop said.

However, statement from the Mexican bishops' conference clarified: “As the Vatican spokesman himself has stated, the opinion of Bishop Isidro Guerrero Macias of Mexicali ‘was unfounded.'”
 
“We know that it is not the practice of the Holy Father, who always respects the internal affairs of nations, to take such action, and in this particular case, he did not intervene in the decision of the Supreme Court justices,” they underscored.
 
Sources at the Mexican bishops’ conference told CNA that the statements of the Mexicali bishop were only “an unfortunate opinion.”
 
“The Supreme Court categorically denies having received a call from Church officials or of any other kind,” the statement said.
 
A ruling being considered by the Supreme Court this week to declare pro-life reforms enacted in Baja California unconstitutional failed to receive the eight votes needed to be adopted.