When we read egregious claims by organizations that pervert the teachings of the Catholic faith, we must speak up and teach the truth. But when these organizations claim to actually be Catholic, we must do all we can to help them and others see the inherent errors in their words. Most recently, we saw these lies spread by a group called Catholics for Choice, even though it’s evident that the group is not, in fact, Catholic.
Catholics for Choice claims to be an organization that “works in the United States and around the world to ensure that all people have access to safe and affordable reproductive healthcare.” Its X description explains that it is “a voice for Catholics who believe that Catholic tradition supports one’s right to follow their conscience in matters of sexuality and reproductive health.”
CFC posts frequently on social media, but a recent FB post states the following: “Join us in prayer for all the lives lost to abortion bans whose names we do not know. They should still be with us.”
It’s a terrible tragedy when a mother dies, and she deserves our prayers. But so do the millions of aborted babies, who are willfully omitted from this post. We don’t know their names, either, but they should still be with us as well.
Then we see Catholics for Choice’s X feed, which includes the five-time repeated phrase “Pro-choice Catholics are just as faithful” and “‘I want an abortion’ is a good enough reason to have an abortion.”
If your mind isn’t reeling, it should be, as CFC’s distorted version of the truth is perpetuated by far too many and opposed by far too few.
The depravity and the lack of understanding of those within Catholics for Choice constantly boggles my mind. And, truth be told, it makes me feel both angry and sad. I look around at the people who believe their lies and think about the terrible uphill battle we face when trying to teach the horrors of abortion, why a woman should value her baby, and how there are so many organizations out there who help pregnant moms who feel scared or unprepared.
If we don’t continually refute CFC’s lies, more and more people will believe them.
By the very definition, pro-choice Catholics cannot be Catholic. Nor can they be “just as faithful,” as they are deliberately rejecting an integral part of our faith. And while there is never a good reason to kill a baby in an abortion, it is a lie that “I want one” should suffice as an excuse. This is tantamount to stamping your foot and saying “I can do what I want. God will understand.”
It’s a slippery slope when we start to believe that God should change His mind instead of us changing ours.
Teaching the truth about abortion is incumbent upon all faithful Catholics, and it begins in the home. Though my children learned about abortion way too early in their lives, I turned this knowledge into countless teaching moments about the sanctity of all human beings, no matter their stage of life. This led my seven-year-old son to make a very poignant comment one day, as we were driving and listening to the Catholic Channel. We caught the tail end of a program that discussed abortion, and he spoke up from the back seat and said, “Mommy, you cannot be Catholic and for abortion.”
Exactly! This truth is clear even to a child. After all, abortion is the willful murder of a defenseless and vulnerable baby. It not only goes against the 5th Commandment, but it’s a slap in the face of Christ, who is a co-creator of every single person. And as the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches, “Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable. Direct abortion, that is to say, abortion willed either as an end or a means, is gravely contrary to the moral law.”
The morality of abortion is not—and has never been—up for debate. Yet when organizations like Catholics for Choice claim it’s a matter of conscience, uneducated people often blindly follow.
Many people argue that we ought not draw attention to fake Catholic organizations, but I disagree. We cannot bury our heads in the sand and pretend that these groups don’t exist. That only allows them to continue unchallenged. And if we don’t point out the theological errors in their teachings, people begin to think that these groups must not be so harmful. They fall for the lie that abortion simply comes down to choice or “reproductive freedom” rather than the reality that a baby dies every single time and a family is destroyed.
So we must pray for their conversion of heart and challenge them in love and with the truth. We must speak out and teach that their erroneous beliefs are immoral and not in line with Catholic teaching. And we must help them see the reality that not only are their souls in jeopardy, but they are jeopardizing the souls of those whose malformed consciences lead them to align with this group.
It may not be easy to speak up, but God never promised that following Him would be. We all have a role to play in building a culture that respects and cherishes all human beings. So pray for the courage to speak up for those who cannot speak for themselves. Pray for the right words to say when someone expresses a view that is contrary to Catholic teaching. And never acquiesce to the world’s misguided perspectives; they are not God’s, and they will often lead you away rather than toward eternal life with Him.
This article first appeared in LifeSiteNews at lifesitenews.com/blogs/the-pro-abortion-lies-of-catholics-for-choice-are-threatening-peoples-souls/?utm_source=most_recent&utm_campaign=usa.
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