A Sell Out on Plan B by Connecticut Bishops?
Both The Curt Jester and American Papist have the details on an Associated Press story indicating that the Connecticut Catholic Conference has reversed its position in opposition to a recent state law in agreeing to allow personnel at Catholic hospitals in Connecticut to administer emergency Plan B contraception to rape victims.
The Hartford Courant is also reporting this story (hat tip: PewSitter.com).
While the facts as reported are quite disturbing, it should be noted that an official statement from the Connecticut bishops has not, as of yet, been made public. So I caution against jumping to conclusions and bashing these bishops until we see something more definitive from them.
I will, however, point out this comment that was left over at The Curt Jester:
As a pharmacist who left retail pharmacy rather than dispense birth control pills, and now after 8 years have returned because I have a conscience clause in place such that I do NOT dispense birth control pills nor plan b because of their abortifacient properties!(emphasis added)
So these bishops now say the reason I put my career on the line is null?
If it is an 'emergency' , it is okay to give high doses of birth control?
Well, at the beginning of every week, we see young women coming in for 'emergency' contraception and it is not rape just the outcome of an immoral and permissive society that makes girls think they should be having sex outside of marriage and then 'just take care of' any little problem that might come up.
For the bishops to cave here is serious. We continue to not be able to trust our shepherds in a general sense and they make a mockery of those who have held fast. I am ashamed of them and most disappointed.
Maybe the conscience clauses will not be available [in the future] because the secular world can point to our bishops and say that they say these activities are okay so who are we peons to refuse?
UPDATE
The Connecticut Bishops have now issued an official statement. Thomas Peters at American Papist quotes the text of the statement and lists out reasons why he finds the statement problematic:
... So [to] summarize, this statement is problematic for the following reasons:The medical facts regarding the abortifacient effects of Plan B are not up for debate. If administered to a woman who is ovulating Plan B may cause an abortion. Plan B itself admits its abortifacient potential on its warning label and website. The Catholic Church teaches (c.f. DV #13) that contraceptives with abortifacient potential fall under the same moral category as abortion because, when acting abortifaciently, they cause the death of a human being. The United States Bishops have similarly ruled-out the use of abortifacient pills like Plan B when the women is ovulating (c.f. Ethical & Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services, # 36). The document claims "To administer Plan B pills without an ovulation test is not an intrinsically evil act", but for the reasons already mentioned, since Plan B can act as an abortifacient in cases where the women has ovulated, it is at least gravely irresponsible to administer chemicals that could very well bring about the death of a human being.
Thus this statement of the CCC appears to contradict both Church teaching and USCCB directives.
[More]
Labels: Bishops, Conscience, Culture of Death, Health Care, Pro-Life, Religious Persecution, What the ****?
posted by Pro Ecclesia 8:51 AM
6 comments
6 Comments:
To be fair, Catholic Moral Theology, has no problem with spermacides and ovulation prevention in the case of the Rape (both are seen as a continuing repelling of the attacker). Catholic hospitals should not be afraid to stand on that ground and take the hard line that Plan B is unacceptable because of its "implantation prevention" characteristic (something openly admitted on the Plan B website....). It seems so simple....
Directive 36 of the USCCB's Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services states that Catholic ER's may dispense EC if a woman has been the victim of a sexual assault and if pregnancy has not yet occured.
The problem is, anonymous, that Plan B, by its producers' own admission, may act as an abortifacient. And the only pregnancy tests the state law allows are those which aren't effective in detecting a pregnancy until the passage of a couple of weeks. In other words, there's no way to determine if pregnancy has not yet occurred.
In such instances, the Church's teachings err on the side of life. Administering an abortifacient like Plan B where conception MAY have occurred is not licit.
That argument is commonly offered by HLI and other groups, groups I will add that I do respect. There is no question, at least in my mind, that the risk of evil consequences does not have to be zero to still allow the act to occur and if the bad consequence occurs it is not necessarily attributable to malice. For example, if someone's children tragically die in an accident, I wouldn't say the driver killed them by allowing their children to be propelled at 65 mph knowing that they could indeed be harmed. Personally, I'm closer to the absolutist position, but when I have time to review the bishop's statement I will try and reconstruct their argument the best I can.
And thank you for following up with a link to the bishop's statement. I was looking furiously last night for it, and I couldn't find it.
Hi Jay,
I also have a post on this. You can find it here http://catholicfire.blogspot.com/2007/09/you-wont-beleve-this.html.
I agree with your position on this and I know of other "Catholic" hospitals who perform abortions as well perform some of the morally and professionally unethical activities mentioned above.
In one diocese, the Bishop has no jurisdiction over the hospitals, which are run by nuns who are not affiliated with the diocese and do exactly whatever they feel like doing. Some Catholic hospitals are no different than secular hospitals except they have crucifixes on the walls. They have openly admitted they are doing this and it is basically public knowledge although no on ever discusses it. Their actions are not in accordance with Catholic teaching, yet they continue to freely distribute contraception (which are abortifacients), including Depo Provera and other dangerous drugs to women. I have personal knowledge of this.
No doctor with an ounce of moral decency would give their patient the MAP not only because it can cause an abortion and kill the child, but it endangers the life of the mother, as well.
Part of my job as a crisis pregnancy counselor is educating women on the MAP and warning them of the dangers to themselves and their unborn child, so they won't be deceived by the lies that PP and the pro-aborts are telling them about this drug.
First of all, there are no long-term studies to show that repeated downing of mega-doses of this drug is safe – no, not one! There are long-term studies that show that repeated downing of small doses of this drug is unsafe for many women.
The MAP is a megadose of synthetic estrogen and progesterone hormones and we all know that megadoses of hormones are very dangerous. Even low to medium doses of estrogen have been linked to breast cancer (which is why the majority of OB/GYN's are no longer prescribing it for their patients.) If lower doses of estrogen have been proven to be harmful to women, just think how much more harmful megadoses are! High doses of estrogen routinely produce cramps, nausea, vomiting. With the megadoses which are in the MAP serious--even life-threatening--side effects can occur, including: blood clots, heart attacks, and strokes.
More and more women in their 20's are developing breast cancer as a result of taking artificial hormones, particularly the birth control pill. I know of women in their teens and twenties who have developed tumors and had strokes as a result of using doctor - prescribed Depo - Provera and these are routinely prescribed by Drs.
When a woman has been raped and becomes pregnant as a result (which is very rare) it is safer for her and the baby to carry that pregnancy to term rather than to take the MAP, which could kill both the mother and the child. Also, in addition to the trauma of the rape, she must face the trauma of abortion - which results in post-traumatic stress / post-abortion syndrome, which includes: nightmares, depression, paranoia, and a whole host of emotional/ psychological symptoms.
Spiritually, it is a mortal sin to destroy human life. It is a mortal sin to take the birth control pill and it is a mortal sin to take the MAP.
Plan B has been a huge major money maker for Barr Pharmaceuticals... but at what cost to women?
A human being is created by God when a sperm meets an egg - at the moment of conception. But here is where semantics step in--the medical profession refers to the newly conceived child as "fertilization".
According to many pro-choice doctors, "pregnancy" is when the baby implants in the womb. That's why Barr Pharmaceuticals can say that the Morning After Pill "has no effect on pregnant women". They don't consider a woman pregnant until the baby implants in the womb...which can sometimes take up to two weeks after fertilization.
The MAP is basically a chemically induced abortion. See the video on my blog, which explains this in detail.
Anyone who thinks they're doing the woman a favor by giving her the MAP after she has been raped needs to remove the blindfold from their eyes and educate themselves about it. They are only deceiving themselves if they view it as a remedy to the situation or as a beneficial or even as a necessary action. And, I am including many in the medical profession as well as some clergy.
How many of them if they were in the woman's shoes would take this lethal drug?
Why has this drug been approved in this country?
For political reasons only.
To read more about this read my post which explains this is in detail:
http://catholicfire.blogspot.com/2006/08/have-they-no-shame.html
God bless you!
I meant to say "to learn more about this" in the last sentence above. I was typng too fast.
Post a Comment
<< Home