Bill Donohue comments on an op-ed article in today’s New York Times by Fordham theologian Michael Peppard:

Pro-abortion Catholics have long sought to equal the playing field with pro-life Catholics by arguing that there really isn’t much of a difference between their side and the other. It never works. And it doesn’t work for Michael Peppard as well.

Vice presidential candidate Paul Ryan is pro-life, and Vice President Joe Biden is pro-abortion. Biden has never found an abortion he couldn’t justify, and Ryan would ban all abortions save for rape, incest and the life of the mother. In the mind of Peppard, there is no difference between the two: both depart from Catholic doctrine.

Not so fast. Pope John Paul II said it was acceptable for Catholics to vote for a pro-abortion candidate in a race against another pro-abortion candidate, providing that the former is less extreme and efforts are made to persuade him to adopt a pro-life position. In other words, Catholics who exercise the virtue of prudence have no problem voting for a man whose position on abortion would save the lives of over 1 million babies a year. This is especially true when compared to a man who would not save one baby out of the 1.2 million killed every year.

In Professor Peppard’s vision, a driver who goes 56 in a 55 miles an hour speed zone is equally guilty of speeding as the one who goes 106. Technically, that may be true, but in reality, only a fool would equate their culpability.

Kansas Governor Kathleen Sebelius, nominated to be the next secretary of health and human services, vetoed a bill yesterday that would have placed new restrictions on third trimester abortions. Catholic League president Bill Donohue spoke to this issue today:

“The veto by Sebelius was a political kickback to Dr. George Tiller, the infamous abortion doctor who specializes in killing kids just before they are born (and in some cases when they are mostly born). It was also a clear rejection of women’s rights.

“Tiller is a long-time donor and friend of Sebelius, having greased her with so much dough that she can’t even remember how much he has forked up. All along he was buying protection from lawsuits, and yesterday he got what he wanted. Sebelius, like all pro-abortion Catholics, says she wants to reduce abortions, yet what she just did was to shield abortionists like Tiller from publicly stating why it is necessary to kill a kid after the 22nd week of pregnancy. Now he can go about his death trade willy nilly, without any accountability. Moreover, the bill would have allowed a woman to sue if she believed the abortionist lied to her about the need for a late-term abortion. So much for women’s rights.

“Sebelius seems incapable of shame. She waited until the 11th hour yesterday to deliver her body blow: she vetoed the bill at 4:45 p.m. on the 10th and last day before the clock ran out. And President Obama wants to put a person like this in charge of the nation’s healthcare? It just doesn’t get any dirtier than this.”

The Catholic Church’s opposition to abortion, and its endorsement of the pro-marriage resolution in California, Proposition 8, has triggered an avalanche of criticism, much of it vitriolic. Here is a sampling:

· The National Catholic Reporter blasts all the bishops—“Not one among the bishops has had the courage”—to take on pro-life Catholics who have allegedly “distorted” the abortion issue
· Rabbi Brad Hirschfield criticizes Cardinal Egan for being anti-abortion, saying, “We need to stop litmus testing each other over single issues” like abortion. “We”?
· Catholics for Choice says that pro-abortion Catholics “are in good company, and in good conscience” for rejecting the Church’s teaching on this subject
· Rev. Daniel Kanter, a Unitarian, says the Catholic Church “employs a measure of fear” to get Catholics to oppose abortion
· Rev. Jonathan Tran, a Baptist, opines, “If the Church doesn’t tell us what to do with our ballots…and genitalia, who will?” “Us”?
· Professor Frank K. Flinn says the Catholic Church has not always been opposed to abortion, implying that the Catholic Catechism, the bishops and the pope are all wrong
· Rev. Geoffrey Farrow, a gay priest, says the Catholic Church’s opposition to gay marriage represents a “hurtful” theology
· Atheos, a musician, says Proposition 8 “is nothing but Bigotry—good ol’ Christian bigotry”
· Los Angeles Times writer Steve Lopez says that “Speaking up for the dignity of gay people must be a greater sin than being accused of molesting minors”

Catholic League president Bill Donohue responds as follows:

“Even worse are American Atheists, Americans United for Separation of Church and State and the Freedom from Religion Foundation. All accuse the Catholic Church of abusing its power by favoring Proposition 8, yet none says anything about the more than 100 houses of worship and religious organizations which oppose it. Their hypocrisy is appalling.”

Edmond Carmody, Bishop of the Corpus Christi Diocese, has banned both the gubernatorial and lieutenant gubernatorial candidates in the Democratic party from speaking at diocesan churches because of their abortion-rights position.  The candidates, Tony Sanchez and John Sharp, are Catholics who say they are personally opposed to abortion but nonetheless support a woman’s right to terminate her pregnancy.

Since 1999, the Corpus Christi Diocese has had guidelines barring Catholics who support abortion rights from speaking at any Catholic institution and from holding church positions.  Catholic League president William Donohue explained why Bishop Carmody’s decision to implement these strictures is especially important now:

“Many adversaries of the Catholic Church think that now is the time to strike.  They sense a Church on the run, with bishops in retreat.  But Bishop Carmody has already proved them wrong.

“Because some clergymen have failed to live up to the Church’s teachings on sexuality doesn’t mean that the teachings are flawed.  The teachings put a premium on restraint and it was the failure of all priests to internalize this property that led to the scandal.  It wasn’t the message that failed—it was some of the messengers.

“By not backing down to those who say the Church has no business speaking publicly on sexual morality, Bishop Carmody has done the Church a public service.  Moreover, he has shown that pro-abortion Catholics have no more right to sell themselves as Catholics than do pro-racist Catholics.  These are our house rules.  It is also the Catholic contribution to diversity.”