Truth, Freedom, and Abortion

Abortion is not a “Catholic” issue. It is a matter of fundamental human rights. In fact, I believe it is the foundational issue of our time. Because it is so important, the Church has spoken clearly about it and believes it is an essential aspect of the Catholic faith. Unfortunately, however, in the last few months some of our leading Catholic politicians have chosen very public platforms to make misleading statements about it.

One of the misleading arguments is that the question of when life begins is “a matter of faith.” I think that modern biology clearly shows us that human life begins at conception. Embryologists can show us that within just a few weeks the embryo has developed recognizable features, including his or her face, arms, and legs. And the Servant of God John Paul II in his encyclical Evangelium Vitae (No. 60), very accurately quoted from a declaration of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith: “from the time that the ovum is fertilized, a life is begun which is neither that of the father nor the mother; it is rather the life of a new human being with his own growth. It would never be made human if it were not human already. This has always been clear, and ... modern genetic science offers clear confirmation.

Archbishop José H. Gomez, S.T.D.

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