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VATICAN CITY, December 15, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) – In a recent letter to some former pupils in Argentina, Pope Francis mentioned that he does “nothing other” than let the world know his thoughts on abortion, despite his confusing public statements on the subject and support for pro-abortion politicians and public figures.

Sent December 1, the letter touched on the subject of abortion, before it was about to be debated in the Argentine Congress. After he wrote the letter, the lower house of the Argentine to legalize abortion through the 14th week of pregnancy, leaving the Senate to approve or reject the measure. 

Remarking on questions posed about the Pope, Francis said, “I am amused when someone says, ‘Why doesn’t the pope let Argentina know about his opinion on abortion?’ Because I do nothing other than let the whole world (including Argentina) know about it now that I am pope.”

The Pope continued by making reference to media portrayals of him, objecting to inaccurate presentations and commenting that “what is known there is not what I say, but what they say that I say.” 

Based on the Pope's text, he presents two objects that annoy him: namely that, Francis says he is always talking about abortion yet people don’t hear it, and, secondly, that he is inaccurately portrayed by the media. 

However, Pope Francis’ track record is confusingly mixed when it comes to abortion. He has previously presented some Catholic teaching regarding the immorality of abortion, albeit not always firmly or extensively. Yet, speaking to LifeSite in 2018, Maria Madise, then-international director for the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children and now director of Voice of the Family, advised caution about such comments: “There has been a consistent pattern of strongly pro-life statements proceeding very troubling betrayals of the faith.”

At the same time, already in the first year of the Pope's pontificate, he gave an interview in which he said abortion was talked about too much in the Church. 

“We cannot insist only on issues related to abortion, gay marriage and the use of contraceptive methods. This is not possible,” he said. “I have not spoken much about these things, and I was reprimanded for that.”

The Pope continued, “The dogmatic and moral teachings of the church are not all equivalent. The church’s pastoral ministry cannot be obsessed with the transmission of a disjointed multitude of doctrines to be imposed insistently.”

In remarks made earlier this year, pro LGBT activist priest Father James Martin, S.J., said the Pope wants people to “move beyond” issues such as abortion. Describing the Pope’s comments, Martin said, “It’s not that it’s not important, but (Francis) said, ‘It’s time to look at other issues.’ He said, ‘It’s like a teacher. Once they’ve covered that part of the course, it’s time to move on.’ Right?”

Then in a 2016 in-flight interview, the Pope attacked large Catholic families, saying “God gives you methods to be responsible … Some think that, excuse me if I use that word, that in order to be good Catholics we have to be like rabbits. No. Responsible parenthood!” 

That same year, the Pope abolished the pro-life declaration that had previously been a requirement for members of the Pontifical Academy for Life and subsequently appointed members to the academy who supported abortion. 

Despite complaining about the media misrepresenting him, the Pope’s own actions seem to present a different stance on abortion than the one he claims to hold in his letter. In 2016, he publicly praised and later privately met the former Italian Minister of Foreign Affairs, a leading abortion activist.

Most publicly, the Pope has sided with the United Nations (UN) and its 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development, which is heavily pro-abortion. He expressed support for the U.N’s Goals, despite them calling for “universal access to sexual and reproductive health care services, including for family planning, information and education, and the integration of reproductive health into national strategies and programs,” which includes contraception and abortion. Pro-life organizations at the U.N. have campaigned against the goals for years.

In fact, the pontiff called for a “special legally constituted authority” in order to implement the “supranational” U.N. Goals. He has repeatedly aligned himself with those goals, particularly in the area of climate change

Days ago, on December 8, Francis joined forces with global capitalists in a venture called “Council for Inclusive Capitalism with the Vatican” in order to promote a new “economic system” of capitalism based on the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals.

Not only this, but shortly after the media pre-emptively called the still-undecided U.S. presidential election in favor of Joe Biden, the Pope called the pro-abortion candidate, “extending blessings and congratulations” to Biden. The Biden-Harris transition website reported that Biden expressed his desire to the Pope “to work together on the basis of a shared belief in the dignity and equality of all humankind on issues such as caring for the marginalized and the poor, addressing the crisis of climate change, and welcoming and integrating immigrants and refugees into our communities.”

Biden has been very open about his support for abortion as well as LGBT ideology. He recently called abortion an “essential health service” that he wishes to enshrine abortion into federal law. Notwithstanding this, according to Biden, Francis has given him Holy Communion.

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