Did the Catholic Church once allow abortion?

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I was told today that a few hundred years ago the Catholic Church permitted abortion. When the Church realized that she didn’t know when the soul enters the body, a decision was made that it was best to “err on the side of caution” and therefore outlaw abortion. Is any of this true?
 
I was told this by a professor in my class in ethics. He said he couldn’t remember where he read it. Is there anything I can show him to refute what he said?
 
David123 said:
I was told this by a professor in my class in ethics. He said he couldn’t remember where he read it. Is there anything I can show him to refute what he said?
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He made the assumption let him prove his statement…😃
 
It was in the context of watching the movie The Cider House Rules. If that wasn’t bad enough…
 
Read the Didache (written around 70AD to 100AD) while some of the Apostles were still alive. It was essentially an early Catechism.
earlychristianwritings.com/text/didache-roberts.html
See Chapter 2 for the answer to your question.

Chapter 2. The Second Commandment:** Grave Sin Forbidden.** And the second commandment of the Teaching; You shall not commit murder, you shall not commit adultery, you shall not commit pederasty, you shall not commit fornication, you shall not steal, you shall not practice magic, you shall not practice witchcraft, you shall not murder a child by abortion nor kill that which is born. You shall not covet the things of your neighbor, you shall not swear, you shall not bear false witness, you shall not speak evil, you shall bear no grudge. You shall not be double-minded nor double-tongued, for to be double-tongued is a snare of death. Your speech shall not be false, nor empty, but fulfilled by deed. You shall not be covetous, nor rapacious, nor a hypocrite, nor evil disposed, nor haughty. You shall not take evil counsel against your neighbor. You shall not hate any man; but some you shall reprove, and concerning some you shall pray, and some you shall love more than your own life.
 
David123 said:
I was told today that a few hundred years ago the Catholic Church permitted abortion. When the Church realized that she didn’t know when the soul enters the body, a decision was made that it was best to “err on the side of caution” and therefore outlaw abortion. Is any of this true?
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No. Most people get confused because given the dispute about ensoulment (which technically there is no definitive answer to although we assume it is at conception these days given scientific advancements) abortion before ensoulment would be given a lesser penance than one after ensoulment. It fell under the sin of contraception rather than that of murder–of course both were and are mortal sins so the difference is negligible, but the general practice was to give a more severe penance for murder than for contraception.
 
David123 said:
I was told today that a few hundred years ago the Catholic Church permitted abortion. When the Church realized that she didn’t know when the soul enters the body, a decision was made that it was best to “err on the side of caution” and therefore outlaw abortion. Is any of this true?
Click to expand...
No. Most people get confused because given the dispute about ensoulment (which technically there is no definitive answer to although we assume it is at conception these days given scientific advancements) abortion before ensoulment would be given a less penance than one after ensoulment. It fell under the sin of contraception rather than that of murder–of course both were and are mortal sins so the difference is negligible, but a generally more severe penance would be given for murder than contraception.
 
David123 said:
I was told today that a few hundred years ago the Catholic Church permitted abortion. When the Church realized that she didn’t know when the soul enters the body, a decision was made that it was best to “err on the side of caution” and therefore outlaw abortion. Is any of this true?
Click to expand...
David123 said:
The same professor who made the original comments sent me this article to counter what I told him: liberalslikechrist.org/Catholic/abortion.html

I am a convert and I don’t have a perfect knowledge of Church history. I need help on this one.
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Your Professor is using poor judgment. The article actually fails to cite a single Catholic teaching! As mentioned in the article and earlier in the thread, the understanding of God’s judgment on the death of unborn, and still born is a mystery. However many are comfortable with this issue being in God’s hands. The primary fault in this issue is the teacher has failed to separate the Church’s Teaching known as Catechism, from the teaching of individual Catholics. I have never seen a teaching from the church which openly allows an abortion nor has this teacher provided one.
 
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