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| Bishop Speaks | ||
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| January 24, 2008 Edition | ||
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On January 11, 2008, Jon O'Brien, president of the group "Catholics for a Free Choice," addressed a letter to members of the Wisconsin legislature articulating his group's pro-abortion and anti-conscience-protection stand on Wisconsin State Assembly Bill 377 and mentioning Bishops Robert C. Morlino of Madison and Jerome Listecki of La Crosse by name. On January 15, Bishop Morlino sent the following letter to the Wisconsin Legislature in order to clarify, in advance, any confusion which might have ensued from Mr. O'Brien's letter.
Dear Members of the Wisconsin Legislature,
This current letter is to be taken in the context of my earlier letter of December 17th, 2007, and so I will not repeat all of the points articulated in that earlier letter, though they all very much apply at the present moment.
Our Catholic approach to emergency contraception legislation always considers three primary concerns: 1) compassionate concern for women who have suffered the tragedy of rape and upholding their right reasonably to defend themselves, 2) concern that possible pre-born life not be destroyed, and 3) concern that the rights of conscience of individuals and institutions be upheld by conscience protection provisions. The earlier neutrality position of the Wisconsin Catholic Conference, with regard to AB 377, presumed that these three concerns would be adequately addressed in any bill.
Our United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has taught repeatedly that no one can responsibly claim both to be Catholic and pro-choice. In that light, the body of all Catholic bishops in the United States has repeatedly made clear its judgment of the group calling themselves "Catholics for a Free Choice (CFFC)," perhaps most fervently in a letter in the year 2000 from our then National Conference of Catholic Bishop's President, Bishop Joseph A. Fiorenza, which stated that "CFFC is not a Catholic organization, does not speak for the Catholic Church, and in fact promotes positions contrary to the teaching of the Church as articulated by the Holy See and the NCCB (now USCCB). CFFC is, practically speaking, an arm of the abortion lobby in the United States and throughout the world. It is an advocacy group dedicated to supporting abortion. It is funded by a number of powerful and wealthy private foundations, mostly American, to promote abortion as a method of population control." Thus, I reaffirm, "Catholics for a Free Choice" is not, in fact, Catholic because its members don't accept basic Catholic teaching. So, it comes as no surprise that when I teach basic Catholic doctrine, which they don't recognize as such, they call it "political maneuvering" - a claim that is as frivolous as their claim to be Catholic is irresponsible.
In keeping with the irresponsible approaches of this organization, the letter you recently received from CFFC uses the neutrality position of the Wisconsin Catholic Conference (WCC) against two of the objectives which the WCC sought to uphold. This is another example of why I believe that the neutrality position of the WCC has outlived its usefulness and has in fact expired. While I am certain that the WCC sought to protect pre-born life and the rights of conscience, CFFC is clearly pro-abortion and anti-conscience protection - again, it comes as no surprise that they neglect even to mention the conscience protection provided by Wisconsin statute 250.
Irresponsibly claiming to be Catholic, while rejecting the basic Catholic values that are to be embodied in emergency contraception legislation, is yet another source of scandal and confusion for faithful Catholics and all those who claim to be pro-life. Concern about scandal and confusion of this sort have been at the forefront of the reaction of Bishop Listecki and myself from the beginning.
But in the end, when a pro-abortion, anti-conscience-protection organization such as CFFC supports AB 377 with enthusiasm, this provides just another strong reason for Catholics and all pro-life individuals of good will to oppose AB 377. Once again, I urge you to join in that opposition, even more-so in light of the recent communication to you from those who call themselves "Catholics for a Free Choice."
Again, I very much appreciate your attention to this important matter and I continue to have sincere respect for your willingness to carry the burden of your responsibility for the common good. With gratitude and prayers, I remain,
Sincerely yours,
The Most Rev. Robert C. Morlino
Bishop of Madison