Catholics and The Pro Life Movement By Sarah Starck

History of the Pro Life Movement People who are pro-life, are against the idea and act of abortion (also known as pro-choice). Awareness about this issue started in the 1950’s when “Abortion rights advocates first began promoting so- called reform of abortion laws (Karrer, 529).” In the 1960’s, the Catholic Community were becoming involved and active in the pro-life/choice debate. On January 22, 1973 after the Roe V. Wade case, abortion became legal. To this day, republican, conservative, and religious parties stand for this movement. The rise of many groups opposing abortion “…helped to solidify the pro- life cause in American politics (Herring, 125).”

The National Right to Life In 1968, the National Conference of Catholic Bishops (NCCB) formed the NRLC. The NRLC broke off from the NCCB as a separate group. “In December 1971 the NRLC’s board met to discuss future needs and the prospects for developing a national organization. It created a five-member executive committee…(Kerrer, 550)” appointing Juan Ryan as the NRLC president. Currently NRLC holds conventions every year, and keep the public informed through their website and news articles. It is the oldest and largest US pro-life organization currently.

The Catholic Religion The Catholic religion spurs off of Christianity, and “…looked to the bishop of Rome as its symbol of power (Matthews, 300).” The Catholic community believes “God is the highest substance and supreme good. God does only what is right. Humans make free choices, but only within the providence of God. Sin in the world often leads to virtues. Humans can return to God only through the grace he gives them. That grace became available through Christ, who accomplished what humans could not do for themselves (Matthews, p ).”

Catholics and the Pro Life Movement Because the Catholic religion values life and see’s man as God’s own image, it is against their belief system to “destroy” the image of God. Therefore, abortion is out of the question for Catholics, and other religious groups. “Much has been written regarding the Catholic element still dominant in the anti-abortion movement and the opposition’s use of the “Catholic label” as a wedge issue (Kerrer, p. 556).”

Pro-Choice Opposing Pro-Life People who are pro-choice are for abortion, and believe that women can make their own choices during their pregnancy. One issue brought up is “The debate over whether abortion is psychologically damaging, referred to as post-abortion syndrome, [which] remains highly controversial (Herring, p. 189).” Post-abortion syndrome is the after affect from getting an abortion, which many women have found emotionally scarring.

Pro-Choice Opposing Pro-Life Continued Many women (who are pro-choice) say they can justify abortion based on their living situations, and whether their child would be raised in a nurturing environment. There are many other issues within this debate, such as how it will affect the woman physically and emotionally, whether the termination of pregnancies are morally and ethically right/wrong, the reasons why people choose their sides, and so forth.

In Conclusion Catholicism has played a huge part in the Pro- Life Movement, by founding the National Right to Life Committee. Both sides (pro-life/choice) claim to be able to justify their side. Religion is a huge factor in deciding personal ethics and morals, and claiming sides to debates such as the pro-life/choice movement.

Questions Where would our society be if Roe V. Wade never happened? Do you think abortion would be as big of an issue as it is today? Do you think either side (pro-life/choice) can be justified? Why or why not?

Sources Cited Herring, Mark Y. The Pro Life/Choice Debate. Westport, Connecticut. Greenwood Press Matthews, Warren. World Religions. Belmont, California. Wadsworth, Cengage Learning Karrer, Robert N. “The National Right To Life Committee: Its Founding, Its History, and the Emergence of the Pro-Life Movement Prior to Roe V. Wade.” Catholic Historical Review. 97 (2011): National Right to Life. National Right to Life Committee. 3 Dec