That said, these stories thrill me because they reflect a cultural shift. It seems to me that too few of our spiritual leaders have taken hard public stances against the evil of abortion - or perhaps it is only that news organizations have not covered those who have taken such stances.
Here, for instance, is Bishop Martino of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Scranton. He had the courage to arrive at a political forum to assert his pastoral authority. This forum was discussing the candidates and their views on abortion, and cited statements from the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) on voting and abortion. As one might suspect, the USCCB statements allowed for voting for pro-abortion candidates providing "other important moral issues involving human life and dignity" override one's concern for the unborn. Bishop Martino was understandably upset that his pastoral letter to the dioscese was ignored in this forum, and that he was not invited. “The USCCB doesn’t speak for me.... The only relevant document ... is my letter,” he said. “There is one teacher in this diocese, and these points are not debatable.” That letter stated unequivocally that a candidate's stance on abortion supercedes all other considerations.
Consider also Bishop Chaput of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Denver, and his courage dealing with this issue while the Democrat Convention was in town. Of course he was not invited to speak at the convention, but he did issue a strong response to Speaker Pelosi's ill-informed attempt to explain Catholic doctrine concerning abortion.
And our own Bishop Hutchens, who, acting as a Good Shepherd, issued a pastoral letter to the churches in his care, outlining in no uncertain terms where the ACC stands on abortion, as well as the consequences one will face if that stand is ignored, or worse, if one were to cause scandal for the Church (think Speaker Pelosi).
This is an important step for the Church as a whole. Groups or individuals who publicly violate the Church's doctrines, or worse, misrepresent those doctrines to the harm of others, should
be counseled, disciplined, and if necessary, removed from communion, for the good of their souls, the protection of the innocent and ignorant, and to maintain the authority of the Church.
