STATEMENT BY ARCHBISHOP NELSON PEREZ ON THE RULING AGAINST ROE VS WADE

 

STATEMENT BY ARCHBISHOP NELSON PEREZ ON THE RULING AGAINST ROE VS WADE

I am grateful to the Justices of the Supreme Court of the United States for their willingness to hear Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, and for their opinion, which affirms the deep value inherent to every human life.­

As Catholics, we believe that life is God’s most precious gift and that we share a responsibility to uphold its beauty and sanctity from conception to natural death. In addition to being strong advocates for the unborn, this responsibility extends to caring for the hungry, the poor, the sick, the immigrant, the elderly, the oppressed, and any of our brothers and sisters who are marginalized. In short, to be truly pro-life means to recognize the presence of God in everyone and to care for them accordingly.

The Church’s strong commitment to protecting and preserving human life is a holistic one. The Archdiocese of Philadelphia is one of the largest private providers of social services in the region. Our ministries and programs provide a continuum of care to those in need regardless of their faith tradition.

Our charitable programs provide formula, diapers, education, and comprehensive support services to pregnant women, fathers, new parents, and single parents. We have distributed more than a million meals in the greater Philadelphia region to those struggling with food insecurity. We shelter the homeless, support veterans, those in recovery, and help students with special needs receive the Catholic education they deserve. We have helped desperate families get back on their feet and bring joy to the lives of the aged and lonely.

I have often said that we are a people of hope. It is my personal hope that we can all live and work peacefully, side-by-side, to create a true culture of life in our Nation.

May God bless you.

Most Reverend Nelson J. Pérez, D.D.
Archbishop of Philadelphia

From Father Scott:

I am grateful to Archbishop Pérez for his long-term commitment to promoting the protection of unborn human life in our nation.  He boldly stands for the ancient truth of the Catholic faith that all human life is wanted by God and should have legal rights to defend it.  No one who seriously adheres to the Catholic faith can in any way be in doubt on this issue, which has been consistently taught since the first century and is part of the ordinary magisterium of the Church, which the Second Vatican Council decreed is infallible.  To deny the Church’s teaching that life begins at conception and that no one has the right to intentionally snuff it out is to deny the faith.  It is to claim that the Church is in error on this fundamental issue and thereby contradict what is professed in the Creed which we proclaim at Mass every Sunday: “I believe in One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.” 

Those who dissent on central doctrines of the Church, including its teaching on morality, are in effect saying “I believe…except when it contradicts my opinion.”  This puts them in opposition to Catholic faith, and whether or not they admit or even realize it, it places them in a position where they imply that they have more intelligence, insight, and understanding of divine revelation than Scripture, Tradition, the Saints, and the Magisterium of the Church.  Since they cannot profess the Creed with integrity they are, by definition, not in communion with the Church, and consequently they should not receive Holy Communion, since the very thing which its reception symbolizes does not exist – they do not participate in the oneness of the faith.  Whenever we approach the altar of the Lord, each one of us should consider the warning of St. Paul: “For anyone who eats and drinks without discerning the body, eats and drinks judgment on himself” (1 Cor 11:29).  Greater respect for the Eucharist will lead all of us to greater respect for the inviolability of every innocent human life.