Women at York who’ve had abortions can now receive forgiveness, if they so choose and if they think forgiveness is even necessary.
Known to many as the Progressive Pope, Pope Francis announced the Catholic church will ease the path toward forgiveness to those who have committed the “sin of abortion.”
Traditionally, the Catholic church views abortion as a grave sin, resulting in a penalty called excommunication of the person.
“Pope Francis has not made a change the Church’s moral opposition to abortion,” says Father Carlos Martins, from Catholic Chaplaincy at York.
[su_quote]“What he has done is extended a hand of mercy to those who have been wounded through their compromise with abortion.”[/su_quote]
Procuring an abortion, or assisting in its procurement in any way, has a particular penalty attached to it in the Catholic church. It’s called excommunication, says Martins.
Some students at York criticized the recent announcement by the Pope and expressed their pro-choice views, often citing the whole case for extending protection of the unborn as a way to also extend the message of their doctrine, and the dogma it so entails.
“It’s presumptuous to assume that a women has committed a sin in the first place,” says Anna Kolacz, fourth-year French studies student.
The Catholic church has been widely criticized for many of its stances, including banning the use of condoms and the practice of abortions in the impoverished nations of Africa.
Natasha DiMarco, fourth-year biochemistry student adds, “The pope doesn’t have to deal with the poverty and inequality that many women face due to unwanted pregnancies out of fear of disobeying the church.”
Others, not entirely dismissing the Catholic church, offer an alternative to tackling the issue of abortion and the consequence of unwanted pregnancies.
“If the church is genuinely aiming to help people recognize the importance of protecting the unborn, then the focus should change,” says Yuliya Tanchak, third-year law and society student and pro-choice Catholic.
[su_quote]“The pope should make an order to include more outreach to improve the livelihood of impoverished women in traditional cultures, including supporting pregnant women rather than shunning them for having a baby outside of the sacrament of marriage.”[/su_quote]
Ashley Lawlor, former president of the pro-life club at York says there are several exceptions to the excommunication law. Anyone who is under the age of 16, who is acting out of grave fear, who is forced, who lacks the use of reason, or who are unaware that abortion is an excommunicable offense, are all exempt from the penalty.
“Usually, outside the year of Jubilee, when someone has an abortion, they automatically put themselves into a state of excommunication and that person cannot go directly to a priest to ask for forgiveness for their sins,” says Lawlor.
An excommunication can be lifted by a bishop and once the excommunication is lifted, the person can receive forgiveness again.
The Jubilee simply cuts out a step. Instead of going to a bishop to first have the excommunication lifted, the woman can simply go straight to her priest, she says.
According to Father Martins, the Archdiocese of Toronto allowed this specific power to be in place for years already.
Tatiana Prisiajny, Features Editor
Featured image courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
