News
Featured Image
Cardinal Donald Wuerl Claire Chretien / LifeSiteNews

WASHINGTON, D.C., April 22, 2016 (LifeSiteNews) – Cardinal Donald Wuerl, the archbishop of Washington, blasted abortion, euthanasia, and political correctness at a Mass for Life the day after Georgetown University hosted a lecture from the CEO of Planned Parenthood.

“There is a powerful political correctness movement, emphasis, perspective, environment, and force all around us,” Wuerl said during his homily to about 100 students and alumni at Epiphany Church in Georgetown, just blocks from where the CEO of the nation’s largest abortion provider received a standing ovation at the prominent Jesuit university. “It says to set aside such things as the value of human life and substitute the politically correct position that you should be free to choose to kill unborn children.  But the Word of God comes to us to say, ‘do not conform yourself to this age.’”

“The word ‘choice’ is a smokescreen behind which those killing unborn children take refuge.  Every chance you get, blow that smoke away.”

Priests who minister to several college campuses in the Archdiocese of Washington concelebrated the Mass with Wuerl.   

Citing assaults on life such as “murder, war, abortion, suicide, euthanasia,” and “the prospect of medicalized death from those whose profession exists to sustain life,” Wuerl urged the students to defend life no matter the difficulties they will face doing so. 

“At a time when many in society tend to judge a person’s worth on an obscure and subjective ‘quality of life’ scale, we are convinced that human dignity is not based on productivity or usefulness, and dignity is not destroyed during times of hardship or even great suffering,” Wuerl said.  “Life is something we cherish and embrace.”

Wuerl told students to “not be deceived by the politically correct rhetoric that uses words to hide true meaning.  Those that favor killing the unborn child often speak of, ‘the products of conception,’ as opposed to ‘the child in the womb.’  They speak about ‘facilitating the conclusion of the life cycle’ instead of ‘assisting a suicide.’  So it is with that buzzword choice.  When you use the word ‘choice’ you have to complete the sentence.  What are you choosing?”

“The word ‘choice’ is a smokescreen behind which those killing unborn children take refuge.  Every chance you get, blow that smoke away,” Wuerl said.

Image

Wuerl warned students to never be convinced that “killing unborn, innocent children is in any way similar to the great social justice struggles that our nation has faced.” 

Cecile Richards referenced past civil rights struggles in her Wednesday speech to Georgetown and also emphasized the idea that women need contraception to be successful.  

“A Georgetown law student, Sandra Fluke, became a national heroine by standing up for the rights of university students everywhere to get access to birth control, Planned Parenthood mobilized thousands of people to come to Washington and lobby, and students dressed up as giant birth control pill packs and rallied on college campuses,” Richards said.

“Do not let anyone reduce for you the greatness of the American dream to the level of free contraceptives,” Wuerl said.

Wuerl recalled his visit to a missionary maternity hospital in South America some years ago, where he encountered a two-day-old baby whose mother had left him with Catholic religious sisters because she was unable to care for him. 

Wuerl held the child and “it was only when I put this little two day old baby back into its little crib that I realized how strong even an infant’s grip can be,” he said.  “He had latched on to my finger and was holding on tightly.  It was as if he was saying, ‘Please, do not let me go.  Please, do not let me alone.  Please, be there for me.’”

“What you are doing this evening is responding to the call of many, many unborn children,” Wuerl exhorted the students. 

Watch Cardinal Wuerl's homily:

RELATED

Abby Johnson to Georgetown: Pray for Cecile Richards because no one is beyond conversion
Planned Parenthood CEO gets standing ovation after pushing abortion at Georgetown
Congresswoman, experts urge Georgetown students to defend life ahead of Cecile Richards’ talk