Abortion runs counter to Catholic teachings on life. Pope Francis emphasizes that all of the weak, including the sick, elderly and children are to be given special attention. The unborn are no exception.
Here are five quotes from Pope Francis on abortion:
1. "Human life is sacred and inviolable. Every civil right is based on the recognition of the first, fundamental right, the right to life, which is not subject to any condition, of a qualitative, economic and certainly not of an ideological nature." During an address to the Italian Movement for Life in April 2014.
Vote Now: Do You Support Tougher Regulations on Abortion Clinics?
2. "It is necessary to reaffirm our solid opposition to any direct offense against life, especially when innocent and defenseless, and the unborn child in its mother's womb is the quintessence of innocence. Let us remember the words of Vatican Council II: 'Therefore from the moment of its conception life must be guarded with the greatest care while abortion and infanticide are unspeakable crimes.'"
3. "Unfortunately, what is thrown away is not only food and dispensable objects, but often human beings themselves, who are discarded as 'unnecessary'. For example, it is frightful even to think there are children, victims of abortion, who will never see the light of day; children being used as soldiers, abused and killed in armed conflicts; and children being bought and sold in that terrible form of modern slavery which is human trafficking, which is a crime against humanity." In an address to the diplomatic corps at Vatican City, January 2014.
Urgent: How Do You Feel About Stronger Regulations on Abortion Clinics?
4. "We cannot insist only on issues related to abortion, gay marriage and the use of contraceptive methods. This is not possible. I have not spoken much about these things, and I was reprimanded for that. But when we speak about these issues, we have to talk about them in a context. The teaching of the church, for that matter, is clear and I am a son of the church, but it is not necessary to talk about these issues all the time."
In an interview with America Magazine, September 2013.
5. "Nowadays, on account of the economic system that has taken root in the world, which has at its center the god of money and not the human person, everything is ordered according to this logic, and anything that does not fit within this order is discarded. Children are discarded, when their existence is troublesome or unwanted. The Spanish bishops recently spoke to me about the number of abortions, and I was left speechless ... In some Latin American countries there is hidden euthanasia … because the social authorities will pay only up to a certain point, after which the elderly have to get by as best they can." Addressing the Commission for Latin America, March 2014
Vote Here: Should Abortion Clinics Be Subject to Tougher Regulations?
Related Stories: