Press release from The Iona Institute
April 20, 2018 – Writing in The Irish Independent today, moral theologian, Dr John Murray, says that ‘For a Catholic to vote to enable an abortion provision would be to act against his or her Catholic faith, as well as against right reason’.
Dr Murray is also Chairman of the Board of The Iona Institute.
He asks: “Can a Catholic vote in favour of abortion? Some Catholics might believe the answer is yes, based on a balance of considerations. In fact, no Catholic with a proper understanding of what their Church teaches should vote in favour of abortion.”
Addressing the issue of conscience, he writes that although the Church does teach “that one should follow one’s conscience, this presupposes that one has an informed conscience, that one has made the effort to honestly find out the truth. For every Catholic this includes knowing the Church’s teaching accurately.” The Church has consistently opposed abortion.
Turning to the issue of Catholic politicians who support abortion, Dr Murray raises the example of the late Mario Cuomo, former Governor of New York, who said that while he was personally against abortion, he would not allow his ‘private’ view to dictate the law.
Dr Murray says abortion is not a private matter as it ends the life of a human being.
He writes: “Because it is not a matter of private opinion, a legislator is just as bound to protect the life of the unborn child as they are to protect the life of every other member of the human family.”
ENDS