More U.S. Bishops Issue Statements on Abortion

More fallout from Speaker Pelosi's foray into patristic theology.

In a letter dated September 2, Francis Cardinal George of Chicago refuted what one blogger has referred to as the "common good fraud" by unequivocally stating the Church's position on abortion in a way that leaves no doubt that the "pro-choice" position is an unacceptable one for Catholics to hold:

In the midst of a lengthy political campaign, matters of public policy that are also moral issues sometimes are misrepresented or are presented in a partial or manipulative fashion. While everyone could be expected to know the Church’s position on the immorality of abortion and the role of law in protecting unborn children, it seems some profess not to know it and others, even in the Church, dispute it. Since this teaching has recently been falsely presented, the following clarification may be helpful.

***
This teaching has consequences for those charged with caring for the common good, those who hold public office. The unborn child, who is alive and is a member of the human family, cannot defend himself or herself. Good law defends the defenseless. Our present laws permit unborn children to be privately killed. Laws that place unborn children outside the protection of law destroy both the children killed and the common good, which is the controlling principle of Catholic social teaching. One cannot favor the legal status quo on abortion and also be working for the common good.

This explains why the abortion issue will not disappear and why it is central to the Church’s teaching on a just social order...

[More]

(emphasis added)

Also, Speaker Pelosi's own Bishop, Archbishop Niederauer of San Francisco, responds to Pelosi's misrepresentation of Catholic teaching and invites her to "converse".


UPDATE
This blog a nice roundup of Church officials who have now issued correctives regarding Speaker Pelosi's comments on Meet the Press.


Previous Pro Ecclesia posts on this subject:
LA Times Columnist Lies to Cover for Pelosi

Obama Camp to Speaker Pelosi: "Shut Up, Already!"

The Follow-Up Question Brokaw Should've Asked

Pelosi: St. Augustine Agrees With Me - That's My Story and I'm Sticking to It [UPDATED]

Archbishop Chaput on Speaker Pelosi: "On the Separation of Sense and State" [UPDATED]

What is the "Pro-Life Position" Regarding Abortion?