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(LifeSiteNews) — The biggest victory for the pro-life movement in the past 50 years was the overturning of Roe v. Wade last month. Imagine with me for a minute the reaction of Pope St. John Paul II, had he still been with us. He would have rejoiced with tears embracing even from far away Rome all the pro-life warriors in America. His joy would have been exuberant, he would call on all the Church to offer thanksgiving and to redouble their efforts to fight for the protection of those lives of our weakest and most helpless brothers and sisters in their mothers wombs.

But when it did take place only last month there was a stony silence from Pope Francis. But days later we got our answer. When U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, one of the world’s leading proponents of abortion of the killing of innocent children in the womb, arrived in the Vatican she was greeted by Pope Francis and at a Mass in the Pope’s presence was sacrilegiously given Holy Communion.

READ: Pelosi receives Holy Communion at Mass presided over by Pope Francis

The blow to the Church and the pro-life movement was particularly egregious because after a decade of trying to convince her of the error of her ways, Nancy Pelosi’s bishop – San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone finally announced that she was to be denied Holy Communion. Not only did Pope Francis by his welcome and permission for Pelosi to receive Communion symbolically slap down Archbishop Cordileone, but the Pope made sure his message was received with a public rebuke of the San Francisco bishop.

In a Reuters interview just after Pelosi’s visit, Pope Francis was asked about communion for Catholic politicians who support the “right to choose” abortion and Pope Francis attacked Archbishop Cordileone but without naming him. “When a bishop loses his pastoral nature, it causes a political problem,” said Francis.

Only a week later he was asked by a Spanish language TV station about Communion for US President Joe Biden, the most pro-abortion US President in history who, along with other pro-abortion politicians over the decades, is responsible for more innocent deaths than Hitler and Stalin combined. Pope Francis said he would leave such a decision to Biden’s conscience repeating again the castigation of holy priests and bishops who, for the good of the pro-abortion Catholic politician, would follow the direction of Popes John-Paul II and Benedict XVI and forbid such Catholic politicians from Holy Communion.

Remember that under John Paul II in 2004 the bishops of the United States discussed the matter of communion for pro-abortion politicians and at the direction of Pope John Paul, Cardinal Ratzinger – then head of the Congregation for the Doctrine for Faith who was later to become Pope Benedict XVI – wrote to the bishops of the USA, telling them Holy Communion MUST be denied to pro-abortion politicians after they have been warned of their wrongdoing.

So Pope Francis is directly opposed to his predecessors on this question. But this is not nearly the first time Pope Francis has gone counter to Church teaching on life. You may have heard recently of rumors Pope Francis may be releasing an encyclical countering Humanae Vitae. But that should come as no surprise.

Pope Francis himself indicated already in 2014 that he intended a reinterpretation of Humane Vitae. In an interview with the Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera, Pope Francis was specifically asked about “tak[ing] up again the topic of birth control” half a century after the publication of Humanae Vitae. “Your confrere, Cardinal [Carlo Maria] Martini [the late Archbishop of Milan] believed it was now time,” said the interviewer.

READ: Victim accuses Pope Francis of protecting bishop found guilty of sexual misconduct

“It all depends on how the text of ‘Humanae Vitae’ is interpreted,” responded Pope Francis. Typically Pope Francis responds with ambiguity. However his unrehearsed statements especially on papal flights are more candid.

In February 2016, while on the papal plane, the Pope was asked about the dangers of the Zika virus, which has been blamed for a rash of fetal deformity cases in Latin America. “As regards avoiding pregnancy, on this issue, can the Church take into consideration the concept of ‘the lesser of two evils?’” a reporter asked.

Pope Francis responded by insisting that abortion can never be justified, but added: “On the ‘lesser evil,’ avoiding pregnancy, we are speaking in terms of the conflict between the fifth and sixth commandment… avoiding pregnancy is not an absolute evil. In certain cases, as in this one… it was clear.”

The statements from Pope Francis were of great interest to journalists since they seemed to contradict former Church teaching. Journalists, including LifeSiteNews, sought clarification from the Vatican Press office which confirmed the statement. “The contraceptive or condom, in particular cases of emergency or gravity, could be the object of discernment in a serious case of conscience,” Fr. Lombardi told Vatican Radio. “This is what the Pope said.”

Fr. Lombardi added that the pope was speaking of “the possibility of taking recourse to contraception or condoms in cases of emergency or special situations. He is not saying that this possibility is accepted without discernment, indeed, he said clearly that it can be considered in cases of special urgency.”

We recall paragraph 14 of Humanae Vitae where Paul VI condemns contraception. He wrote: “excluded is any action which either before, at the moment of, or after sexual intercourse, is specifically intended to prevent procreation—whether as an end or as a means.”

Some may argue that an encyclical undermining the teaching could never come from Pope Francis. However, Pope Francis has already undermined Church teaching on abortion in an official document. In Pope Francis’ 2018 exhortation Gaudete et exsultate he teaches the opposite of what Popes John Paul II and Benedict XVI taught regarding the pre-eminence of abortion as an issue of moral concern

READ: Pope defends participation in Paris Climate Agreement, says ‘mother earth’ is at ‘breaking point’

Pope Francis wrote speaking of immigration and abortion: “Some Catholics consider it a secondary issue compared to the ‘grave’ bioethical questions.” The Pope added: “That a politician looking for votes might say such a thing is understandable, but not a Christian.” He criticized those who “relativize” these issues, “as if there are other more important matters, or the only thing that counts is one particular ethical issue or cause that they themselves defend.”

So we as pro-lifers are here today to pray for the conversion of Pope Francis, to pray in reparation for the pastors of the Church who are misguiding the flock of Christ on the most fundamental issue of life, the defense of the weakest among us.

We pray today that the great Canadian Martyr’s Jean de Brebeuf, Isaac Jogues, Gabrielle Lalement, Rene Goupil, Jean de lalande, Noel Chabanel, Charles Garnier and Antoine Daniel intercede for us. We pray that as they sacrificed their comfort and even their lives to minister to the indigenous peoples of Canada and America they would assist us in our reparation and prayer for the conversion of Pope Francis and the countless souls that are being misguided by his false teachings.

And just as the blood of the martyrs were the seed of faith in our land centuries ago we pray that our small sacrifices and sufferings in union with the Holy Sacrifice of Calvary may bring Christ’s Truth to our homeland making it once again strong and free.

The John-Henry Westen Show is available by video on the show’s YouTube channel and right here on my LifeSite blog.

Secure a home for canceled priests: LifeFunder
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John-Henry is the co-founder, CEO and editor-in-chief of LifeSiteNews.com. He and his wife Dianne have eight children and they live in the Ottawa Valley in Ontario, Canada.

He has spoken at conferences and retreats, and appeared on radio and television throughout the world. John-Henry founded the Rome Life Forum, an annual strategy meeting for life, faith and family leaders worldwide. He is a board member of the John Paul II Academy for Human Life and the Family. He is a consultant to Canada’s largest pro-life organization Campaign Life Coalition, and serves on the executive of the Ontario branch of the organization. He has run three times for political office in the province of Ontario representing the Family Coalition Party.

John-Henry earned an MA from the University of Toronto in School and Child Clinical Psychology and an Honours BA from York University in Psychology.

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