Where do I start?
Be informed. This is the key to building confidence to speak on pro-life issues. Understanding abortion and the other life issues will enable you to speak and teach clearly and with compassion.
Be convicted. The lives of human beings are being lost. This has catastrophic consequences for mothers, fathers, families and society. Yes, our world is faced with many complex problems that need attention. Why, then, does the Catholic voice return again and again to abortion and the value of human life? Because we recognize that society stands or falls based on its fundamental conviction about the value of human life. For as long as we do not give to every human being absolute value and protection we undermine every other effort we make on behalf of social justice. Every other effort for justice is essentially undermined. Like a house resting on a crumbling and sinking foundation - the walls will crack and, yes, we must fix the walls… but they'll crack again and again until we fix the foundation. Only a solid foundation will solve the problem. Without this conviction, we will never overcome our resistance to speaking openly about abortion and other life issues.
Priests for Life Canada is here to help. Through this website, we've tried to provide or point you to the best available resources on many of the current life issues.
In this "Facts" section, we offer a brief overview of the major life issues. The goal is not a comprehensive treatment, but rather to help you get up to speed quickly with the essential facts. In the "Resources" section we then offer some more in depth resources on each topic.
Speaking about abortion in the parish - some myths:
Won't it create division in the parish?
There will inevitably be some parishioners who, for various reasons, are vocally opposed to any effort to speak about the life issues. There will be many, many more who are glad that you had the courage to speak out.
What if there are parishioners who have had or been involved in abortions?
Statistically, there are bound to be parishioners in your pews who have had abortions. These are precisely the parishioners who need to hear the truth about abortion and the truth about God's mercy and healing forgiveness. Hiding sin and blindly pretending that it is not happening by never speaking about it is not "pastoral."
Isn't the basic Gospel message all people need?
In a way, that's like saying that all a doctor needs to do is talk about general health. No. We must hear the Good News, but we must also hear how to live it out concretely in this time and place.
We shouldn't bring politics into the Church.
Abortion is not a matter of partisan politics. It is not an issue of the "right" or the "left." Abortion is the destruction of innocent human lives in their earliest, and thus, most defenseless moments. Catholics always have and always must stand up for the oppressed and voiceless. When we speak for the unborn, we are speaking for the poorest and most defenseless of our society.
Catholics may be opposed to abortion, but we can't impose that view on others.
There are many things wrong with this statement. First, Catholic women have abortions at the exact same rate as the rest of the population. That alone means we have lots of work to do. Second, Catholics (and many others) are opposed to abortion because it takes the life of an innocent human being. The logic of this myth, then, would say: "Catholics are personally opposed to abortion because it takes the life of an innocent person, but we believe that everyone should make their own decision about whether they take the life of an innocent person. We can't impose anything that might save the lives of human beings." No. abortion is a basic human dignity issue that applies to all people of all times and of all religions.
Many of the myths and fears that stop priests from speaking out against abortion are ultimately rooted in a lack of confidence and conviction. Getting informed and growing in our conviction that abortion must end will quickly show how empty these myths are.
