We will post other comments as we receive them.
From Judy Brown, President of the American life League
Pope Francis loved life. He began this new year with a message urging, “May we learn to care for every child born of a woman, above all by protecting, like Mary, the precious gift of life: life in the womb, the lives of children, the lives of the suffering, the poor, the elderly, the lonely and the dying.”
His commitment to the nurturing aspects of motherhood was a fundamental characteristic of his papacy.
Pope Francis once told an audience that we are called to counter the current “culture of indifference” that afflicts many societies with a “culture of providence.”
This was his consistent theme as he strove to embrace the preborn, the poor, the downtrodden, and those who thought all hope was lost. In his words of hope and affirmation, he reflected the attitude of Saint Francis of Assisi.
From lifenews.com
Pope Francis likened abortion to “hiring a hitman” to kill unborn babies.
“Is it right to hire a hitman to solve a problem? You cannot, it is not right to kill a human being, regardless of how small it is, to solve a problem. It is like hiring a hitman to solve a problem,” the pope said.
In the past, Pope Francis often has condemned abortion, describing aborted babies as victims of a “throwaway culture.”
In March, he conveyed a heartfelt message to participants of a pilgrimage organized by the Italian Movement for Life.
In his address, read by Cardinal Secretary of State Pietro Parolin during a Mass in St. Peter’s Basilica, he said that unborn children are like so many other people who need advocates. The Pope identified the unborn child as the epitome of voiceless individuals, representing all who lack a platform to defend their rights.
“The unborn child represents, in the fullest sense, every man and woman who does not count, who has no voice,” he said. “Taking their side means standing in solidarity with all the discarded of the world.”
Pope Francis called on Christians to foster a “civilization of love,” which frees women “from the pressures that push them not to give birth to their child”.
He said it takes a “gaze of the heart” to recognize unborn children as “one of us.”
Pennsylvania Pro-life Federation via National Right to Life
When Pope Francis first became head of the Church, I did some research on him.
I learned that, as a Cardinal in Argentina, he was quoted as saying, “Defend the unborn against abortion even if they persecute you, calumniate you, set traps for you, take you to court or kill you.”
Strong words from a man who valued the sacredness of life from the moment of conception to the instant of natural death. The late Holy Father was a champion of the marginalized—and no one is more marginalized in our society than the unborn child.
The pontiff also preached a “revolution of tenderness” which the pro-life movement lives out each day. Through its outreach to pregnant women in difficult circumstances, the movement offers mothers the hope and strength they need to carry on amidst trying times.
From Catholicvote.org
CatholicVote Vice President Joshua Mercer stated following the death of the pope: "CatholicVote joins the world in marking the death of Pope Francis, the 266th successor of St. Peter. Pope Francis was the first Jesuit pope, the first from Latin America, and the first to take the name of St. Francis of Assisi."
"Throughout his pontificate, Pope Francis asked Catholics to reflect on the mercy of Christ, called all people to encounter the love of God, especially the poor and marginalized, and urged the Church to embrace its missionary identity," Mercer continued. "We give thanks to God for the gift of the pope, his brother bishops, and our Holy Mother Church. The days following a pope’s death also call for intense prayer and fasting for the future of the Church as the cardinals gather to elect his successor."