Bishop John Yanta of Amarillo, Texas, joins the list of bishops willing to hold pro-abortion Catholic politicians to account for their stance. He says that such a Catholic would be denied Communion if he didn’t repent:
But Bishop John W. Yanta of the Catholic Diocese of Amarillo doesn’t see it that way. He said religion is to be learned inside the church and lived outside of it. In a column in The West Texas Catholic newspaper, he asked readers to inform him if they knew a “pro-choice” Catholic politician in the diocese. If, after pastoral counseling, the person still supported abortion, that politician would be denied Communion.
Yanta said he considered it a moral stand, not a political one.
“The word communion means ‘in union with,”’ he said. “And if they’ve already separated themselves from Jesus and his teachings, then they have no business receiving communion. It’s a travesty. It’s a mockery. It’s a sacrilege. This is a Catholic church stand. It’s a Jesus stand. You can read about it in the Gospel and in I Corinthians.”
