The new head of the National Abortion Rights Action League (NARAL), one of the most rabidly pro-abortion groups in America, is a Catholic former legislator. In her biography she claims that she “stood up to a public effort to excommunicate her” 15 years ago for her public pro-abortion stance as a politician.
Ah, but the Diocese of Helena, Montana, says no such thing happened. It says that then-Bishop Elden Curtiss called Nancy Keenan for a meeting after she appeared at a pro-abortion rally and said she was “personally opposed, but…” In fact, the diocese says, there were no sanctions imposed on her at all. Okay, is that supposed to be a good thing?
So what is the formal status of the head of the nation’s most vocal pro-abortion group? If she presents herself for Communion to the bishop in either her native Montana or her new home in the Arlington, Virginia, diocese, will she be allowed to receive? How close does material cooperation have to be?
