ON ABORTION AND RAPE

ON ABORTION AND RAPE

By: Fr. Fran D. Villegas

Q: Does the Catholic Church oppose abortion in the case of pregnancy due to rape or incest?

A:  The Catholic Church’s position on abortion is clear. In the magisterial document Donum Vitae (The Gift of Life) the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith affirmed that “The human being is to be respected and treated as a person from the moment of conception; and therefore from that same moment his rights as a person must be recognized, among which in the first place is the inviolable right of every innocent human being to life,” (Sec I.1) Direct abortion, or the intentional killing of a human being living in the womb, is always seriously immoral because as persons the right-to-life is the most basic fundamental right we possess. Even in light of this clear teaching, some questions that afflict people of conscience like the one being asked. 

In Romans 12:21 Paul says that we should not be conquered by evil but that we should conquer evil with good. The act of rape is a grave sin and an injustice that claims too many people, most often women and children, as victims.  The Church teaches that victims of rape deserve immediate medical, emotional, and spiritual care. The Ethical and Religious Directives for Catholic Health Care Services (#36) states that Catholic healthcare providers have to provide this care and prevent the contraction of disease or the conception of a child. However, if a child is conceived in a pregnancy caused by rape, then this child is just as innocent and precious as the woman who was victimized and he or she should not be killed because of the actions of the rapist. The Church teaches that through mercy and love, a non-violent solution for both mother and child is far superior to helping a victim of violence (the raped woman) commit violence against her child through abortion.

(NB: The moral principles Formal and Material Cooperations are not included in the discussion