Retired Gdansk Archbishop Tadeusz Goclowski has said that “no
bishop may excommunicate someone, only the Pope,” in response to an
earlier threat by Archbishop Henryk Hoser that MPs who vote in favour of
the proposed IVF bill will be thrown out of the Roman Catholic Church.
“An individual may alienate himself from the Church if he doesn’t comply with Church doctrine,” Goclowski told Polska The Times.
Speaking to the daily, the archbishop has said that slogans used by
the media as well as politicians, such as “Church threatens
excommunication” have caused concern.
Even though the archbishop lists various Church teachings and Papal
encyclicals that put forward the stance of the Church towards in-vitro
fertilisation, Archbishop Goclowski stated that Hoser’s words “froze”
him.
“I wouldn’t proclaim such a statement. To ‘be outside the Church
community’ is a literal translation of ‘excommunica’. If an individual
disgards the Church’s teaching in such an important matter, he must make
his own decision [on the matter] according to his conscience,”
Archibishop Goclowski underlines.
Members of Parliament are to debate the ruling party’s proposed IVF bill on Friday.
SIC: TNPL/INT'L