European bishops: Women ‘should never feel compelled to abort’

The Catholic Church in Europe has firmly stated that abortion “is gravely contrary to the moral law” and maintained that women “should never feel compelled to abort due to social or economic pressure.”

The strong statement from the Commission of the Bishops’ Conferences of the European Union comes after the European Commission of the European Union rejected the “My Voice, My Choice” initiative, which proposed creating a mechanism to promote abortion financed by European taxpayers.

In a statement, the presidency of this body — which brings together the bishops delegated by the episcopal conferences of the European Union countries — expressed its satisfaction with the decision not to submit this proposal to the EU Parliament and the EU Council.

Church’s consistent teaching on abortion

In the bishops’ view, “this decision clearly recognizes the need to respect the limits of EU competences and to uphold the principle of subsidiarity.”

Abortion laws vary across the European Union from very permissive to more restrictive.

In this context, the European bishops recalled the “constant teaching of the Catholic Church” regarding abortion, emphasizing that scientific research “increasingly confirms that from fertilization a new human being comes into existence, endowed with inherent dignity and deserving of the fundamental protection owed to every human life.”

While supporting this decision, they warned against other initiatives from the European Union that attack pro-life values. Specifically, they expressed their “serious concern” that the EU Commission explicitly states that European funds, initially intended to prevent families from falling into poverty, could be “used to provide cross-border ‘access to legally available, safe, and affordable abortion services.’”

The bishops declared that this measure would deviate from its original purpose and risk “creating political friction rather than strengthening cohesion.”

For the European bishops, this approach does not constitute genuine support for women in vulnerable situations, since what they truly need is “effective social, economic, and health care assistance enabling them to carry their pregnancy to term without suffering negative social or economic consequences for themselves or for their child,” they pointed out.

‘Women must be truly supported’

In their March 4 statement, the bishops emphasized that what Europe truly needs, “if it is to remain faithful to its foundational values of human dignity, solidarity, and equality,” is concrete and sustained support for women in vulnerable situations.

“Women must be genuinely helped to welcome motherhood and should never feel compelled to abort due to social or economic pressure,” the bishops emphasized.

They also urged the development of policies that strengthen the protection of motherhood, support for families, and social inclusion.

Finally, they insisted that issues affecting the intrinsic dignity of the human person, the fundamental right to life, and the protection of the most vulnerable “must never be instrumentalized in political debate or exploited for ideological purposes.”

This story was first published by ACI Prensa, the Spanish-language sister service of EWTN News. It has been translated and adapted by EWTN News English.