May 09, 2007
Pope Warns Pro-Choice Politicians: Oppose Abortion Or (Potentially) Face Excommunication
Yes, really. Speaking with the press aboard Pope Force One or whatever his plane is called, Pope Benedict
" ... was asked whether he supported Mexican Church leaders threatening to excommunicate leftist parliamentarians who last month voted to legalize abortion in Mexico City."Yes, this excommunication was not an arbitrary one but is allowed by Canon (church) law which says that the killing of an innocent child is incompatible with receiving communion, which is receiving the body of Christ," he said.
"They (Mexican Church leaders) did nothing new, surprising or arbitrary. They simply announced publicly what is contained in the law of the Church... which expresses our appreciation for life and that human individuality, human personality is present from the first moment (of life)".
Under Church law, someone who knowingly does or backs something which the Church considers a grave sin, such as abortion, inflicts what is known as "automatic excommunication" on themselves.
The Pope said parliamentarians who vote in favor of abortion have "doubts about the value of life and the beauty of life and even a doubt about the future".
1. He was speaking of Mexican politicians
2. He doesn't endorse excommunication for _every_ pro-choice Catholic but does allow that it is... allowed.
3. This story gets tougher and toughter for Rudy Giuliani.
4. So far as we know, previous popes did not advocate excommunication for pro-choice Catholics.
5. Stand by for a wave of "Pope and Politics" stories.
Posted at 11:57 AM
Comments
Are politicians who support the dealth penalty going to be excommunicated as well? Or, will this continue the Church's hyprocrisy on weighing in on political issues where they chide pro-choice politicians but not pro-death penalty?
concerned_staffer | 05.09.07 12:32 PM
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I waiting for Pope to advocate excommunication for politicians supporting death penality. Where is your credibility Mr. Pope?
Pope | 05.09.07 12:46 PM
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There are certain, VERY limited, VERY RARE circumstances, in which the Roman Catholic Church does allow for the death penalty. There are no such exceptions they have for abortion.
Riley, Not O'Reilly | 05.09.07 01:08 PM
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John Paul the Great wrote in "Evangelium vitae" back in 1995:
It is clear that, for these purposes to be achieved, the nature and extent of the punishment must be carefully evaluated and decided upon, and ought not go to the extreme of executing the offender except in cases of absolute necessity: in other words, when it would not be possible otherwise to defend society. Today however, as a result of steady improvements in the organization of the penal system, such cases are very rare, if not practically non-existent.
See "rare" and "practically non-existent" both leave room for those extreme exceptions where it must unfortunately be applied in situations in defense of society.
John Paul the Great then went on to write:
If such great care must be taken to respect every life, even that of criminals and unjust aggressors, the commandment "You shall not kill" has absolute value when it refers to the innocent person. And all the more so in the case of weak and defenceless human beings, who find their ultimate defence against the arrogance and caprice of others only in the absolute binding force of God's commandment.
See, here he uses the term "absolute" when dealing with innocent lives. Why would he have made such a distinction then if there weren't exceptions where the death penalty must unfortunately be applied?
If anyone wants to read the actual text of what the Pope wrote, it can be found on the Vatican's website here: http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_25031995_evangelium-vitae_en.html
Riley, Not O'Reilly | 05.09.07 01:36 PM
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"...the punishment must be carefully evaluated and decided upon, and ought not go to the extreme of executing the offender except in cases of absolute necessity: in other words, when it would not be possible otherwise to defend society."
Riley, when is it impossible to protect society from a killer - even a terrorist - by locking them behind bars? Is solitary confinement at Gitmo not a secure option? I would like to know an example of this rare situation. Certainly, "rare" does not mean the 232 instances in Texas where the current President (who rightfully is not Catholic and therefore does not answer to the Pope) killed people, including - documented - 9 innocent people.
concerned_staffer | 05.09.07 02:08 PM
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Look up the case of Lemuel Smith in New York State. He brutally murdered a couple in the religious store that they ran on Good Friday and was sentenced to life in prison without parole. While there, he brutally murdered a female prison guard. He would be an exception.
Riley, Not O'Reilly | 05.09.07 02:14 PM
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The things that you are pointing out about John Paul's thinking is a fine print and does not mean every Pope thinks same way. The mainstream gop politicians here love the death penalty and do not consider it when its 'absolute necessity'.
BTW, why does not John Paul make such exceptions with abortions in cases of rape, incepst, mother's life is in danger??
Baloney | 05.09.07 02:37 PM
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Benedict XVI was JPII's chief enforcer of Catholic doctrine, so I don't think there is much daylight between the two.
Riley, Not O'Reilly | 05.09.07 03:11 PM
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what about politicians that were for the war in iraq? It's nearly impossible for innocents not to be killed in a war. excommunicate them too! So dumb.
wander | 05.09.07 03:47 PM
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It is a canard that abortions are necessary because of incest and saving maternal lives. Combined, I doubt those causes make up 1% of abortions. Advances in sonography, etc. make it increasingly impossible not to recognize the life in the womb. At least if you support abortion, due it honestly. It is for the woman's convenience and that matters more than the life of a child to you. Out of wedlock children are celebrated in this day and age. Celebrities have them and are role models. It is not the dark 1950s anymore. The reasons for abortions are dead.
bio mom | 05.09.07 03:54 PM
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