Catholics for Choice 'woefully' misrepresent Church teaching

Washington D.C., Sep 14, 2016 / 02:01 am

After a dissenting Catholic group recently circulated an ad campaign promoting publicly funded abortions, bishops have fired back by reaffirming the Catholic Church's teaching against abortion and reiterating the value of every human being.

"The recent full-page advertisement in the Star Tribune, paid for by a national group calling themselves 'Catholics for Choice,' woefully misrepresents the noble Catholic social justice tradition," read a Sept. 12 statement from the Minnesota Catholic Conference.

"The ad itself makes no effort to ground its claims in any authoritative source of the Catholic faith, which is rooted in the life and teachings of Jesus Christ and is proclaimed by the Church," the statement continued.

Catholics for Choice is a national, pro-abortion organization based in Washington, D.C. which advocates for Catholics who support abortion. Their recent advertisements have focused on promoting publicly funded abortions and have appeared in several papers across the United States, claiming that abortion is a "Catholic social justice value."

Bishop Steven Lopes, Ordinary of the Personal Ordinariate of The Chair of St. Peter, also reacted to the ad Sept. 12.

"The biggest falsehood in these advertisements is the statement that 'as a Catholic' a person can respect and support a decision to kill an unborn person," Bishop Lopes said.

"The insinuation that Catholic faith can lead a person to sanction something which is always and everywhere a moral evil is fraudulent, deceitful, and simply wrong." 

A statement from the ordinariate added that "as servants of the common good, it is imperative that Catholics work to protect the right to life of every human being, born and unborn. The Catholic Church calls each of Her members to oppose abortion, to support women and families whose circumstances may lead them to seek an abortion, and to defend the most vulnerable and defenseless members of the human family through prayer, education, public witness, and advocacy for life."

The Minnesota bishops also found fault with the Catholics for Choice campaign, saying it is contrary to the foundation of Church teaching.

"The actual teachings of the Catholic faith embrace a consistent ethic of life from conception to natural death, and categorically condemn abortion as an act of violence against the most innocent and defenseless among us."

The bishops also noted that the "ad fails to acknowledge this truth of our faith," while neglecting to offer women and children real support and resources.

"If there is a desire to help a woman in need who is facing an unplanned pregnancy, the solution as a society is to provide her with the resources and support she needs to care for her child – not help her dispose of it."

The bishops also underscored the fact that the Church's teachings against abortion will remain unchanged, and quoted from the Catechism of the Catholic Church, which states that "since the first century, the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion."

They also pointed to the example of Pope Francis, who "has repeatedly condemned such a mentality as part of the throwaway culture that attacks the dignity of the weak and vulnerable because they seem inconvenient and make a claim upon our care and resources."

The Minnesota bishops highlighted some local services, such as Abria Pregnancy Resources, TLC Options for Women, and the Philomena House, which offers support to pregnant women who are looking for help.

"In response to this misleading ad, Minnesota Catholics are encouraged to support one of the many pregnancy resource services in our state, which do incredible work to care for both mothers and children in a manner consistent with true social justice," the bishops said.

"The Minnesota Catholic Conference asks that you help spread the word about this misleading ad campaign and the truth of Catholic teaching by forwarding to your friends, and by sharing the MCC statement on your social media accounts."

Several Texas bishops issued a statement Sept. 12 saying, "It is not clear why Catholics for Choice chose a handful of individuals identifying themselves as Catholics as ambassadors for the false premise that refusal to pay for someone's abortion is an assault on anyone's God-given dignity."

The statement, signed by Cardinal DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, Archbishop Garcia-Siller of San Antonio, Bishop Lopes, and Bishop Farrell, added that "The only assault on dignity in this discussion is the abortion, which ends one life and irrevocably diminishes countless other lives."

The Texas bishops noted that "Despite what is implied by its name, Catholics for Choice is not a member-oriented organization and has no affiliation with the Roman Catholic Church. Instead, it is financed by grants from a few secular organizations pushing a pro-abortion agenda. It seldom ventures beyond Washington to Texas, unless it is to buy expensive, full-page ads when it serves their pro-abortion agenda."

Catholics for Choice does in fact have significant financial backing from wealthy pro-abortion funders. These include millions of dollars in grants from the Susan Thompson Buffett Foundation, itself funded by billionaire Warren Buffett and his family.

Another donor is the grant making giant the Ford Foundation, which is not associated with the car company or the Ford family. The Arcus Foundation, founded by billionaire heir Jon Stryker, has also funded the group.