Spain: abortion, “we cannot remain silent””We cannot remain silent, we must act”. This is the title of the pastoral letter drawn up by the dioceses of the ecclesial province of Saragozza with the dioceses of Jaca, a week since the new law on abortion has come into force. “Remaining silent and not doing anything before this new serious attack on the life of innocent people can turn us into accomplices by omission. For this reason we cannot remain silent. We must stop and ponder the active response that each one of us can give in favour of life. People, families, communities, institutions … everyone”, states the Letter signed by Msgr. Manuel Ureña, archbishop of Saragozza, Msgr. Jesús Sanz, archbishop of Oviedo and apostolic administrator of Huesca and Jaca, Msgr. Alfonso Milián, bishop of Barbastro-Monzón, Msgr. José Manuel Lorca, bishop of Cartagena and apostolic administrator of Teruel and Albarracín, Msgr. Demetrio Fernández, bishop of Córdoba and apostolic administrator of Tarazona. Firstly, according to the prelates, it must be clarified that “the major refusal and rejection of the new law on abortion, in force since past July 5, doesn’t imply that the previous law was acceptable”. In reality, “abortion could be already freely practised in Spain with the alleged justification of a pregnancy carrying health risks to the mother”. The new law on abortion, state the bishops, “presents further reasons for immorality and injustice compared to the previous one”. One of the most serious is to consider abortion as a woman’s right until the fourteenth week of pregnancy, whilst denying the fundamental right to life of the conceived child. Abortion is thus viewed as yet another “reproduction planning” tool and as a contraceptive. Furthermore, “it disregards the responsibility and the mission of the family” by providing for the abortion by 16-year-olds without parental consent”. It imposes medical training on abortion, although it’s not a true medical intervention, as it doesn’t correspond to the purposes of medical practice. It can restrict the right to the freedom of conscience and the ensuing objection by medical staff. It imposes an abortionist educational program. Before all this, the prelates recall, “human life is always precious” and “everyone must be acknowledged as such, for the simple fact of existing”. Thus the new law, conversely from the claims of its proponents, does not defend nor promote the “freedom and dignity of women”, which indeed, are the second victims of abortions. For the bishops, “a liberal, pluralist and open society must promote and cherish the first fundamental right, namely: the right to live”.Portugal: the bishops’ concern Gathered in São Tomé and Príncipe for their 9th meeting, the representatives of the Bishops’ Conferences of Portuguese-speaking Churches examined the main problems linked to poverty and social exclusion in their respective Countries. The bishops attending the meeting denounced “the misappropriation of common property on the part of political and economic oligarchies, which grow unscrupulously rich to the detriment of the poor”. This aspect is linked to “new and sophisticated forms of corruption, which pass over important ethical implications, and determine serious material consequences in the public administration, which should instead focus on the citizens’ protection”. The bishops’ equally called for the “social condemnation of the widespread phenomena of drug trading, human trafficking coupled with deep-rooted disrespect of life”. Among the concrete proposals, the representatives of Portuguese-speaking Churches believe it is a “priority to invest in structural changes, especially through the technical and ethical formation of new administrative managers, with educational programs to help individuals and communities transform their current self-understanding as mere recipients of social policies and public subsidies”. The final declaration clearly calls upon “EU officials to respect their promises of allocating 0.7% of national gains to aid to development”. Furthermore, since a large number of Portuguese-speaking countries will be celebrating their 35th anniversary of independence, the bishops underlined the importance of “a more active and responsible participation by all Catholics, in view of the creation of a more just and fraternal society”. “It is necessary to accurately monitor the national budget policies of local governments with the support of adequately trained experts, in view of their cooperation with international funding organizations, so as to ensure that social development funds are used for the purposes indicated in the financial statement” – the bishops’ document concludes.
