Why are so many priests/parishes afraid to be pro-life?

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turtle18

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What is wrong with our priests when they are afraid of “offending” women instead of taking a stand for life? I think it is a sad, disgusting commentary on our Church. They don’t even include prayers against abortion in the petitions anymore.
 
Just because there is not a intention to end abortion does not mean they are not “pro-life” as “life” is more encompassing.
 
turtle18 said:
What is wrong with our priests when they are afraid of “offending” women instead of taking a stand for life? I think it is a sad, disgusting commentary on our Church. They don’t even include prayers against abortion in the petitions anymore.
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Because they are afraid there will be no participants in the laity of the church.

God help us men, none seem to want to particpate.

I don’t blame our women, but us men!:mad:
 
NewUlm1976_2000 said:
Just because there is not a intention to end abortion does not mean they are not “pro-life” as “life” is more encompassing.
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If you devalue human life in the womb, why should it be protected at any other stage, if you won’t protect it when it’s most innocent and most vulnerable?

“Not to oppose error is to approve it; and not to defend truth is to suppress it; and indeed to neglect to confound evil men, when we can do it, is no less a sin than to encourage them.” Pope St. Felix III
 
I think it’s because in this country abortion is such a potitical hot button topic that some priests are afraid to seem too political.
Also, I think that most priests are pro-democrat party and most mainstream democrat candidates are pro-abortion, so they are walking a tightrope with politicians in their dioceses. Now that is just my opinion, but I have been through enough rigamaraw with certain clergy concerning pro-life issues to know that politics and parish policies can go hand in hand.
 
turtle18 said:
What is wrong with our priests when they are afraid of “offending” women instead of taking a stand for life? I think it is a sad, disgusting commentary on our Church. They don’t even include prayers against abortion in the petitions anymore.
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If such a thing were to be raised in a sermon during Mass, there’s a tremendous likelihood that someone in the congregation will object and start a shouting match with the priest. It may have been possible to mention that issue in a time when there was respect for the dignity of the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, but people can’t be expected to behave during Mass anymore.

I understand why a priest would want to avoid the nightmare of parishioner rebellion during Mass.
 
What does that say about our clergy that they are so weak they can’t stand up for what is right and what is wrong? Are they more pleased with pleasing the people than with God? We really need to get better quality priests & religious in our Church.
 
(Sorry, I multiquoted out of order)
marci said:
I
Also, I think that most priests are pro-democrat party and most mainstream democrat candidates are pro-abortion, so they are walking a tightrope with politicians in their dioceses.
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I’m not sure it’s a problem with the priests not wanting to PO the pols, but that’s a very good point about being pro-democrat (and supporting, by default, pro-choice pols)
turtle18 said:
What is wrong with our priests when they are afraid of “offending” women instead of taking a stand for life? I think it is a sad, disgusting commentary on our Church. They don’t even include prayers against abortion in the petitions anymore.
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Don’t paint with too broad a brush, we still do at our parish. 🙂 But overally, my guess it that may be accurate.
turtle18 said:
What does that say about our clergy that they are so weak they can’t stand up for what is right and what is wrong? Are they more pleased with pleasing the people than with God? We really need to get better quality priests & religious in our Church.
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Amen. But where do we get them is a yet unsolved question. We have trouble with vocations for ever mediocre or poor quality priests. 🤷
 
In my parish, once a year at the end of the Sunday Masses, a representative of our local life care center speaks of the work they are accomplishing. A basket of baby bottles is at the back of each Church isle and people are asked to take one home and return it the following week with a donation. Thousands of dollars are contributed every year and babies have been saved. Two years ago an echogram machine was purchased and mothers can see an image of the growing child within them. It has changed minds. Support is offered for sometime after the birth if it is needed.

One of our deacons serves on the board of the center which has representatives from a number of local parishes. None of our priests has ever in recent years preached against abortion, but our people are not so dumb as to not get the point. Hell and brimstone is not the only approach and may in fact be counter productive.

Every year a number of our people attend the March for Life gathering at the nearest state capitol which in our case is in St. Paul, MN. It is announced in our parish bulletin and transportation is provided. I would doubt that any practicing Catholic does not know the teaching of our Church on abortion, whether they all agree and accept that teaching is of course another matter.
 
I think that is an excellent point about most priests being Democrats. I guess it is a case where they let their political views trump the religious views of the Church. If you honestly look at either party, Republican or Democrat, neither one of them are 100% compatible with Catholicism. But mixing up your politics with religion is a good way to serve a false god.
Yes, there are still some very pro-life parishes. But what is wrong with our parishes that they can’t even include stopping abortion in the petitions everyday? Do you know how powerful that would be?
 
At my parish, they say every week in the petitions that we pray for “the respect of all human life, from conception until natural death.”

In Christ,
Rand
 
Do they say the petition at daily Mass, too? If so, why not? And what can’t it be done at ALL parishes, not just yours?
 
Philothea53 said:
If you devalue human life in the womb, why should it be protected at any other stage, if you won’t protect it when it’s most innocent and most vulnerable?
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The Church does not disagree, but the reverse is also true, how can you claim to value fetal life if you are dismissive of it at other stages?

Being ‘anti-abortion’ is not necessarily the same thing as being ‘pro-life’ in the Catholic sense. Look at how we, the laity, are told to view “the right to life”:
"In effect the acknowledgment of the personal dignity of every human being demands the respect, the defence and the promotion of therights of the human person. It is a question of inherent, universal and inviolable rights. No one, no individual, no group, no authority, no State, can change-let alone eliminate-them because such rights find their source in God himself.
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The inviolability of the person which is a reflection of the absolute inviolability of God, fínds its primary and fundamental expression in the inviolability of human life. Above all, the common outcry, which is justly made on behalf of human rights-for example, the right to health, to home, to work, to family, to culture- is false and illusory if the right to life, the most basic and fundamental right and the condition for all other personal rights, is not defended with maximum determination.
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The Church has never yielded in the face of all the violations that the right to life of every human being has received, and continues to receive, both from individuals and from those in authority. The human being is entitled to such rights, in every phase of development, from conception until natural death; and in every condition, whether healthy or sick, whole or handicapped, rich or poor. The Second Vatican Council openly proclaimed: <<All offences against life itself, such as every kind of murder, genocide, abortion, euthanasia and willful suicide; all violations of the integrity of the human person, such as mutilation, physical and mental torture, undue psychological pressures; all offences against human dignity, such as subhuman living conditions, arbitrary imprisonment, deportation, slavery, prostitution, the selling of women and children, degrading working conditions where men are treated as mere tools for profit rather than free and responsible persons; all these and the like are certainly criminal: they poison human society; and they do more harm to those who practice them than those who suffer from the injury. Moreover, they are a supreme dishonour to the Creator>>" - CHRISTIFIDELES LAICI, #38
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vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/apost_exhortations/documents/hf_jp-ii_exh_30121988_christifideles-laici_en.html

I hear the first two paragraphs quoted a lot, with the assumption that “right to life” is a synomym for anti-abortion. But the third paragraph tells us what the phrase means to the Church. “Right to life” includes abortion and euthanasia, but also slavery, torture, and even deportation.

Viewed this way, the original question should probably be reprhased to ‘why aren’t more priests spending more time on one particular aspect of Church teaching?’

The Vatican’s advice on voting is as good an answer as any:
“The Christian faith is an integral unity, and thus it is incoherent to isolate some particular element to the detriment of the whole of Catholic doctrine.” - Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith, THE PARTICIPATION OF CATHOLICS IN PUBLIC LIFE
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Pastors are responsbile for sheparding and nurturing us in Catholic life. In other words, they are supposed to help us develop proper Christian conciences. Such a concience would see that opposing abortion and, say, human trafficing, are both applications of our same teaching, a proper understanding of the Human Person.
 
turtle18 said:
What is wrong with our priests when they are afraid of “offending” women instead of taking a stand for life? I think it is a sad, disgusting commentary on our Church. They don’t even include prayers against abortion in the petitions anymore.
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Really? Our local parish asks everyone to pray literally during every Sunday mass (petitions), regarding abortion. Just because one parish or a few even don’t comment on it, or ask for prayers, doesn’t mean the “Church” should be held accountable for those actions of a few. Why not write your bishop?
 
SoCalRC said:
The Church does not disagree, but the reverse is also true, how can you claim to value fetal life if you are dismissive of it at other stages?

Being ‘anti-abortion’ is not necessarily the same thing as being ‘pro-life’ in the Catholic sense. Look at how we, the laity, are told to view “the right to life”:

vatican.va/holy_father/john_paul_ii/apost_exhortations/documents/hf_jp-ii_exh_30121988_christifideles-laici_en.html

I hear the first two paragraphs quoted a lot, with the assumption that “right to life” is a synomym for anti-abortion. But the third paragraph tells us what the phrase means to the Church. “Right to life” includes abortion and euthanasia, but also slavery, torture, and even deportation.

Viewed this way, the original question should probably be reprhased to ‘why aren’t more priests spending more time on one particular aspect of Church teaching?’

The Vatican’s advice on voting is as good an answer as any:

Pastors are responsbile for sheparding and nurturing us in Catholic life. In other words, they are supposed to help us develop proper Christian conciences. Such a concience would see that opposing abortion and, say, human trafficing, are both applications of our same teaching, a proper understanding of the Human Person.
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I don’t disagree with you except that at this time in our history, in the United States, there is no issue KILLING more innocents than abortion. Abortion causes the deaths of more than one million people every year in this country alone. Until we as individuals and as a nation wake up to this fact, we’ll never be able to take care of the others. How can you fight for euthanasia, death penalty, etc. yet allow the senseless slaughter of babies in the womb, in some cases inches from birth? So many are quite passionate as they oppose these other issues but sadly consider abortion to be the woman’s choice, or a choice to made only between a woman and her abortionist. The babies need us to speak up for them. They can’t speak for themselves.
 
There is more of a sentiment of unity at all costs, including doctrine, morals and children if needed. They need to be willing to cut some people loose and a lot of them do not want to.

It is a false sense of being “Pastoral” that sacrifices the sheep like hired men.
 
I think we should take two or three parts militant, and mix that with the pastoral part. You know, admonishing sin out of love…

Also there is one thing i noticed makes a difference, i’ve since started externalizing my passion for Christ a little more. Priests and pastors are just as guilty as we are of feeling a little…euh…personal about faith matters. I used to be terrified to read my bible on the train…or have my rosary kicking around on my desk at school. I used to go through the side door of the cathedral during the day to pray so no one saw me…lol

Unleash it! Sometimes it seems a little like the church has gone underground…it has to become cool again. It’s not part of the mainstream culture anymore. I remember hearing stories from our pastor about Eucharistic processions where people in the street would stop and bow their head to the Blessed Sacrament…we have to bring this back.

And also, we MUST pray for our priests. It’s a vicious circle!

-revelations
 
Two out of three of the churches that I attend still include abortion in the prayer petitions. One out of those three actually had a homily where abortion was mentioned. I was quite proud of my priest. 👍
 
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