Five of your favorite bishops respond to Planned Parenthood videos
Sean Cardinal O’Malley (Archdiocese of Boston)
“The most recent revelations about Planned Parenthood’s willingness to traffic in fetal tissue from abortions, and to alter abortion methods not for any reason related to women’s health but to obtain more “intact” organs, is the latest demonstration of a callousness toward women and their unborn children that is shocking to many Americans…
a
“We support the legislative proposal to reallocate federal funding, so that women can obtain their health care from providers that do not promote abortion.”
a
+ + +
a
a
Bishop Thomas J. Paprocki (Diocese of Springfield)
“Since the moral decadence of our 21st century western world now rivals the decline and fall of the Roman Empire, it should not surprise us that the nationwide abortion provider Planned Parenthood has been exposed for trafficking and selling the body parts of aborted babies. I say we should not be surprised, but we still should be shocked and appalled at this moral depravity.
“…President Obama in 2013 was the first sitting president to address Planned Parenthood, telling them, “I want you to know that you’ve got a president who’s going to be right there with you fighting every step of the way.” What have we heard about this exposé of Planned Parenthood from the White House, which was illuminated in rainbow colors when the Supreme Court made same-sex “marriage” legal throughout the country? Silence. Deafening silence.
“…For those of us who believe in the sanctity of all human life from conception to natural death, may we never grow apathetic to the plight of unborn babies and may our government officials act decisively to put an end to this gruesome practice.”
a
+ + +
a
Bishop Robert F. Vasa (Diocese of Santa Rosa)
“Each week for three weeks now, we have been exposed to one heinous video after another, each one more shocking than the last. This nurse’s biggest concern in aborting these tiny babies was getting quality body parts because Planned Parenthood was getting compensated.
“While the very thought that we as taxpayers are complicit with Planned Parenthood in the provision of abortion at all is very disturbing to me, these recordings show an even more grizzly side to the abortion industry.
“It is unconscionable that this land of the free and home of the brave not only tolerates but actively supports such perversity. Congress needs to thoroughly investigate these accusations immediately.”
a
+ + +
a
Bishop Thomas J. Tobin (Diocese of Providence)
“If there was any doubt about the evil agenda of Planned Parenthood, that doubt has been dispelled by the recent video showing the sale of body parts of aborted babies. This disgusting and depraved practice should be condemned by everyone with a conscience, everyone committed to the defense of human life and dignity. It is time for political leaders to renounce their association with Planned Parenthood. And once again I call upon the Rhode Island Congressional delegation to end the public funding of Planned Parenthood. Our taxes should not be used to end the life of children and then market their bodies.”
a
+ + +
a
Bishop James D. Conley (Diocese of Lincoln)
“[U]ntil this week, I have never really grasped the degree to which people in the abortion industry are enslaved, corrupted, and abused by the culture of death. In the debate over Planned Parenthood’s legal compliance, and in the quibbling over the methods of the Center for Medical Progress, the people performing abortions should not be forgotten.
“Anyone who can casually discuss tearing children to shreds while having lunch and a good cabernet is a victim of the father of lies. Anyone who thinks that divvying up murdered bodies does “a little bit of extra good” is a captive subject of the dictatorship of relativism. This video reminds me that anyone who traffics in abortion loses a vital and beautiful spark of humanity. Evil coarsens us and deadens us—robs us of the freedom life offers.
“…Planned Parenthood perpetrates evil deeds. And in perpetrating evil deeds, the men and women who work for Planned Parenthood become hardened against human dignity. They lose their ethical sense. They calculate the financial benefit of depravity. Yet these men and women were made for eternal life, and for unity with Jesus Christ. Behind every depravity there is a soul, in danger of being lost forever.
“…Pope Francis reminds us to forsake the ninety-nine, in pursuit of even one lost sheep. Our Lord commands us to pray for those who persecute us. This week’s video put a human face on the power of the culture of death. Let us pray for those who promote and support the abortion industry. Let us pray that they might experience conversion. Let us pray that they might know mercy and freedom. Let us pray that through Jesus Christ, who came to the world as an unborn child, every abortionist might rediscover the dignity, the joy, and the beauty of humanity.”
a
