The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' criticism of recent comments by House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) about the Roman Catholic Church's position on abortion "missed the mark on political discourse in the U.S.," Jon O'Brien, president for Catholics for Choice, writes in a San Francisco Chronicle opinion piece (O'Brien, San Francisco Chronicle, 9/15).During an August interview on NBC's "Meet the Press," Pelosi, who is Catholic and supports abortion rights, said that "doctors of the church" have not been able to define when life begins and that "over the history of the church, this is an issue of controversy" (Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 8/27).
According to O'Brien, the U.S. bishops were "erroneous" by "not reflecting the fullness of Catholic teaching on abortion nor what the majority of Catholics nationwide believe," adding that although "members of the Catholic hierarchy have consistently opposed abortion, their reasons for doing so and the teachings they espoused to the faithful have varied."
Although there is room for debate on the church's stance on abortion and opinions among theologians and the laity have differed widely, O'Brien writes that "Catholic theology tells individuals to follow their personal conscience in moral matters -- even if it is in conflict with church teaching."
In addition, Catholic teaching requires "tolerance and respect for other people's decisions," according to O'Brien. Pelosi and the "many other pro-choice Catholic policymakers are following these teachings to the letter when they recognize the proper place for personal religious conviction in the political area," O'Brien writes.
According to O'Brien, although Catholic bishops are attempting to make reproductive rights the "single national issue" that Catholics should vote on, "they cannot impose teachings on an unwilling faithful."
O'Brien writes that only 22% of U.S. Catholics believe that abortion should be completely illegal and that Catholic women in the U.S. have abortions at the same rate as all women nationwide. Furthermore, many Catholics do not support the church's teachings on reproductive health and rights -- including voting for candidates who oppose abortion rights and denying Catholics who support such rights Communion -- O'Brien writes, adding that Catholic voters are not concerned with "so-called values issues" as much as they are with improving the economy, protecting the country from terrorism, resolving the war in Iraq and making health care more affordable.
He concludes that the "bishops would better serve American Catholics by acknowledging their true priorities".
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(Source: WSJ)