Pope Francis has repeated the strong opposition of the Catholic Church to abortion [1] during his visit to Slovakia this week and on the plane back to Rome afterwards. He also reiterated that marriage is between a man and a woman.
During the homily of the closing Mass in Slovakia he celebrated for 60,000 people, Francis said that Christians are called to be “protectors and guardians of life where the culture of death reigns.”
Later, on the plane home to Rome, he said abortion is more than a problem, “abortion is homicide”.
“Abortion…without being ambiguous: whoever has an abortion kills. [2] Take any book on embryology for medical students in medical school. The third week after conception, from the third week, often before the mamma is aware of it, all the organs are already there, even the DNA… Isn’t that a person? It is a human life, period. And this human life must be respected. This principle is so clear, and to those who cannot understand, I would ask two questions: is it right to kill a human life to solve a problem? Scientifically, it is a human life. The second question: is it right to hire a hitman to solve a problem?”
On the topic of marriage, he commented: “Marriage [between a man and a woman] is a sacrament, the Church has no power to change the sacraments as the Lord has instituted them.”