Why US Bishops Place ‘Preeminent Priority’ on Stopping Abortion, by Lauretta Brown

Several bishops explained to the Register why this concern continues to be emphasized in their ‘Faithful Citizenship’ guidance for Catholic voters.

By Lauretta Brown, EWTN News, 11/25/19 

A debate arose during the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ fall general assembly about whether or not the bishops should name the abortion issue as a “preeminent priority” in their short letter on faithful citizenship. Ultimately, the majority of bishops applauded continuing to prioritize the issue, and several of the bishops told the Register why the abortion issue has to remain in the forefront for the Catholic voter.

During a Nov. 12 discussion over whether or not to include a lengthy quote from Pope Francis’ apostolic exhortation Gaudete et Exsultate (Rejoice and Be Glad) in a short letter to supplement the U.S. bishops’ document “Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship,” Bishop Robert McElroy of San Diego took issue with a portion of the letter that called the abortion issue a “preeminent priority.”

Bishop McElroy argued that naming the abortion issue as a “preeminent priority” was at odds with Church teaching and with the quote from Pope Francis’ exhortation, which emphasizes that the lives of the unborn are “equally sacred” with “the lives of the poor, those already born, the destitute, the abandoned and the underprivileged, the vulnerable infirm and elderly exposed to covert euthanasia, the victims of human trafficking, new forms of slavery, and every form of rejection.” ….

Read more here: http://www.ncregister.com/daily-news/why-us-bishops-place-preeminent-priority-on-stopping-abortion