By Martin Bürger, LifeSiteNews, June 24, 2020
Lianne Laurence contributed to this report.
His press secretary walked back those words, saying, ‘Archbishop Gregory’s full statement makes clear that respect must span the seamless garment of life from conception to natural death.’
WASHINGTON, D.C., June 24, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) – Archbishop Wilton D. Gregory of Washington, D.C. made the claim, contrary to Christian teaching, that a person’s “human dignity” begins at birth. He said this to Associated Press in comments linking racial justice to pro-life advocacy.
“Birth is only the first moment of a person’s human dignity, which is never lost throughout the journey of life,” Gregory stated in an email, according to the Associated Press.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches that human life, and thus a person’s human dignity, begins with conception.
“Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception,” the Catechism states. “From the first moment of his existence, a human being must be recognized as having the rights of a person – among which is the inviolable right of every innocent being to life” (CCC 2270).
LifeSiteNews reached out to the Archdiocese of Washington for clarification. Paula Gwynn Grant, the archdiocese’s secretary of communications, said that “Archbishop Gregory’s full statement makes clear that respect must span the seamless garment of life from conception to natural death and underscores that the challenges we are facing now present a blessed moment for men and women across racial and cultural differences to align justly and collaboratively to create a more equitable way of living together.” …
Read more here: https://www.lifesitenews.com/news/dc-archbishop-claims-birth-is-first-moment-of-persons-human-dignity-in-interview-on-racism