The more I hear from Bishop Robert Vasa of Baker, Oregon, the more I like. In his weekly diocesan newspaper column, Bishop Vasa speaks of the topic of heresy and specifically addresses the “pro-choice” heresy, or what he calls the right-to-murder heresy.
Those who maintain that any and all decisions about the disposition of pre-born human beings are exclusively the right of the mother or the parents, at least implicitly, reject the clear and consistent teaching of the Church. The truth is that God charges each of us with the duty to protect and defend innocent human life. This is clearly stated in the Fifth Commandment: Thou shalt not kill. In our society, this attempt to protect innocent human life is done through legal legislative processes and is accomplished, or fails to be accomplished, by those whom we elect. It would not be proper to imply that anyone who votes for an anti-life politician is denying some truth of divine and Catholic faith. Yet, if that candidate receives the vote precisely because he maintains that he has no duty to protect or defend innocent human life in the womb, then a vote cast for him is a type of declaration that the teaching of the Church, indeed the validity of the Fifth Commandment itself, is rejected.
So we have two situations here. Those who hold that there is a right to abortion are heretics. And those who vote for a pro-abortion politician precisely because he is pro-abortion then that is a heretical act as well. Can’t get much clearer than that. In Oregon, there are plenty of pro-abortion politicians to apply that to.
Speak the truth with strength
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