From the Irish pro-life publication, Family & Life
‘Abortion Reduction Strategies’ Ignore Half of the Problem, Archbishop Chaput... : 18th Feb 09
During a recent trip to Ireland, Archbishop Charles Chaput of Denver delivered a talk at a conference organized by the John Paul II Society that outlined the “dos and don’ts” for the pro-life movement. Those who claim pro-lifers should avoid the “divisive” issue of ending legalised abortion and focus on providing better support for pregnant mothers are creating a false division, the archbishop insisted.
Following the theme “An American view on how to build a culture of life,” Archbishop Chaput explained that his goal was “to offer some lessons from the American experience that Irish Christians might find useful.” More than three decades after the legalization of abortion in the U.S., Archbishop Chaput diagnosed Americans’ beliefs on abortion as schizophrenic as he gave an overview of the current situation.
“Most believe abortion is wrong. But most also want it legal under some limited circumstances,” he said. The consequences of holding two such divergent views are that the U.S. has “a large and well-funded abortion industry” and that a “very vigorous pro-life movement” has grown up “right alongside the abortion industry,” Chaput observed.
Drawing on a point made in his book “Render Unto Caesar,” (available from Family & Life bookstore: CLICK TO READ MORE.....) he told his Irish audience: “If we really believe that abortion is an intimate act of violence, then we can't aim at anything less than ending abortion. It doesn't matter that some abortions have always occurred, and some will always occur. If we really believe that abortion kills a developing unborn life, then we can never be satisfied with mere ‘reductions’ in the body count.”
“We need to help women facing problem pregnancies with good health care and economic support; and we need to pass laws that will end legal abortion. We need to do both.” “Our real task, and our much longer-term and more important goal, is to carry out what John Paul II called the ‘evangelization of culture’," he explained.
Exhorting pro-lifers to continue fighting for this goal, Archbishop Chaput said, “cultural trends can be changed. And I'll prove it.”
Archbishop Chaput went on to cite a national poll by Harris Interactive that came out in December 2008, which found among other things that “fewer than ten per cent of Americans support legalized abortion on demand as it stands today.” The findings of the poll show that “pro-life efforts have made real progress in improving people's awareness of the sanctity of unborn life,” he asserted. “We need to work to change the culture. And that demands a lifelong commitment to education, Christian formation and, ultimately, conversion.
Only saints really change the world. And there lies our ultimate victory: If we change one heart at a time, while we save one unborn life at a time, the day will come when we won't need to worry about saving babies, because they'll be surrounded by a loving, welcoming culture.”
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