U.S. Catholic bishops may decide when they meet in June to toughen their stance on Catholic politicians who publicly support abortion — politicians like President Joe Biden.
During their next annual meeting, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) Committee on Doctrine will be drafting a document that will clarify their position regarding the longstanding question of how to handle Catholic politicians in open defiance of Church teaching on abortion, according to The Associated Press.
Archbishop Joseph Naumann of Kansas City, who is chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Pro-Life Activities, has publicly and repeatedly rebuked Biden for supporting abortion, going so far as to say the president “should stop defining himself as a devout Catholic.”
“Because President Biden is Catholic, it presents a unique problem for us,” Naumann told the AP. “It can create confusion. … How can he say he’s a devout Catholic and he’s doing these things that are contrary to the church’s teaching?”
Naumann said the document, which the committee is preparing at the request of USCCB president Archbishop José Gomez of Los Angeles, will clarify as the official position of the USCCB that any Catholic politician who supports legalized abortion should not take Communion. It must receive a two-thirds majority vote from the bishops to be approved.
Comentários