Pope Benedict XVI Says Catholic Politicians 'Especially' Obliged To Defend Church Beliefs On Issues Such As Abortion

Pope Benedict XVI in a 130-page "apostolic exhortation" released on Tuesday wrote that "values" such as opposition to abortion, euthanasia and gay marriage are "non-negotiable," and that Roman Catholic politicians are "especially" obligated to defend the church's beliefs on the issues, the New York Times reports. The exhortation, which is a synopsis of opinion from a 2005 global meeting of bishops at the Vatican, said, "Catholic politicians and legislators, conscious of their grave responsibility before society, must feel particularly bound on the basis of a properly formed conscience to introduce laws inspired by values grounded in human nature" (Fisher, New York Times, 3/14). The pope also wrote that there is an "objective connection" between the stance a Catholic politician takes on abortion or gay marriage and receiving Communion, the Irish Times reports. "Bishops are bound to reaffirm constantly these values as part of their responsibility to the flock entrusted to them," the pope wrote. Cardinal Angelo Scola, when asked if the pope's statement meant that Catholic politicians could be refused Communion, said the document "doesn't say what it doesn't say" (McGreevy, Irish Times, 3/14). The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops in June 2004 at a closed meeting in Colorado voted to approve a statement saying that the decision to deny Communion to Roman Catholic politicians who support abortion rights is up to the local bishop. The statement also says that Catholic politicians should work against legalized abortion "lest they be guilty of cooperating in evil and in sinning against the common good" (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 11/15/06).

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