The Catholic bishops have thanked Lucinda Creighton (pictured) and other TDs and Senators who broke the party whip to vote against the Government’s abortion bill in the summer.

In a statement issued after their Autumn General Meeting, they expressed their “deep gratitude to everyone who showed their concern in a respectful way when challenging the passage of this legislation”.

In particular. bishops acknowledged “those national public representatives who did so at great political risk to themselves”.

Apart from Ms Creighton, Fine Gael TDs Terence Flanagan, Brian Walsh, Billy Timmins and Peter Mathews and Peadar Toibín of Sinn Fein, as well as Fine Gael Senators Paul Bradford and Fidelma Healy Eames also broke their party whip.

And they reiterated that “to legislate for abortion does not make it morally acceptable, and the direct and intentional ending of the life of an unborn child, at any stage of pregnancy, is always gravely wrong”.

They also welcomed the recent comments made by Pope Francis in his address to the International Federation of Catholic Medical Associations and Catholic gynaecologists on 20 September 2013, when he said “so often we find ourselves in situations where we see that what is valued the least is life. That is why concern for human life in its totality has become in recent years a real priority for the Church’s teaching.”

The bishops also noted that Pope Francis had expressed “support for the work of the medical specialists reminding them that there is no human life more sacred than another.

The statement quoted Pope Francis saying “the credibility of a healthcare system is not measured solely by efficiency, but above all by the attention and love given to the person, whose life is always sacred and inviolable”.

Meanwhile, Peter Mathews has announced that he has resigned from Fine Gael.

Mr Mathews, who lost the party whip after voting against the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill during the summer, said he has delivered a letter of resignation to the office of Taoiseach Enda Kenny, the Irish Times has reported.

“Unfortunately I have been placed in a position by the leadership of the party that has led me to this decision,” he wrote.

Mr Mathews, a first-time TD who made his name as a commentator on the banking crisis, said he would carry on as an independent member of the Dáil. He said looked forward to working with the Reform Alliance, which recognised the mutual advantages of sharing ideas in a “flexible and collegial” fashion.

Mr Mathews said he had been told by the Fine Gael leadership that there is no way back for him. “I don’t sign blank cheques in financial terms and I don’t sign things that I feel there might be difficulty with further down the line unless I pre-clear it,” he told RTÉ Radio. “I would not be signing a blind political loyalty to some areas that might be more important and more core to life and death matters than normal political policy matters. For instance, I said life begins at conception.”

He said he would stay in politics and “put myself forward” in the next general election. He declined to say if he would be running as an Independent or join another political party.