Senator Joseph Biden displays "flawed moral reasoning" on abortion, Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput says, responding to a weekend statement by the vice-presidential candidate.
In the second statement in two weeks responding to comments made by Catholic politicians on the Sunday morning program, Archbishop Charles Chaput and Auxiliary Bishop James Conley of Denver are telling politicians "who describe themselves as Catholic," to begin to "act accordingly, Zenit reports.
Senator Joseph Biden, Senator Barack Obama's running mate on the Democratic presidential ticket, who appeared on the NBC Meet the Press program last Sunday "compounded the problem" with his explanation of when life begins, according to the bishops.
The senator said that although he knows "when [life] begins for me," he claimed it to be fundamentally a "personal and private issue."
Even though as a Catholic he is "prepared to accept the teachings of my Church," the senator said that in a pluralistic society it would be "inappropriate" to "impose that judgment on everyone else."
However, the Denver bishops refuted the claim that the moment when life begins is "a personal and private issue."
"Modern biology knows exactly when human life begins," they explained, "at the moment of conception."
"Religion has nothing to do with it," the prelates continued. "People might argue when human 'personhood' begins, though that leads public policy in very dangerous directions, but no one can any longer claim that the beginning of life is a matter of religious opinion."
The bishops said the senator also "confused the nature of pluralism."
"Real pluralism thrives on healthy, nonviolent disagreement. It requires an environment where people of conviction will struggle respectfully but vigorously to advance their beliefs.
"In his interview, the senator observed that other people with strong religious views disagree with the Catholic approach to abortion. It's certainly true that we need to acknowledge the views of other people and compromise whenever possible ... but not at the expense of a developing child's right to life.
"Abortion is a foundational issue; it is not an issue like housing policy or the price of foreign oil. It always involves the intentional killing of an innocent life, and it is always, grievously wrong."
The bishops of Denver said that if Biden truly accepts the teaching of the Church that life begins at conception, as he affirmed in the interview, "then he is not merely wrong about the science of new life, he also fails to defend the innocent life he already knows is there."
SOURCE
Denver bishops say Biden is wrong too (Zenit, 9/9/08)
Denver Bishops' Response to Senator Biden (Zenit, 9/9/08)
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