BALTIMORE (LifeSiteNews) — The U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) voted 225-11 on Wednesday to approve an “introductory note” to affirm that opposing abortion must remain the “preeminent priority” of Catholics in American elections.
The Pillar reports that, while the text of the note has not yet been officially released, it reads, “The threat of abortion remains our preeminent priority because it directly attacks our most vulnerable and voiceless brothers and sisters and destroys more than a million lives per year in our country alone.”
Seven bishops present for the USCCB’s Plenary Assembly abstained from voting on the note, which precedes the body’s official guidance on Catholics’ political responsibility, “Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship.”
The document’s current introductory letter, approved in 2019, speaks similarly of abortion: “The threat of abortion remains our preeminent priority because it directly attacks life itself, because it takes place within the sanctuary of the family, and because of the number of lives destroyed.”
The old note goes on to add that “At the same time, we cannot dismiss or ignore other serious threats to human life and dignity such as racism, the environmental crisis, poverty and the death penalty”; it is not yet known if the updated letter retains that language. More comprehensive revisions to the body of “Faithful Citizenship” are slated to be taken up soon after the 2024 elections.
While not significantly changing the previous abortion message, the vote represents a victory over proposed language that would have reduced abortion from “our preeminent priority” to simply “a preeminent priority” (emphasis added).
The affirmation comes amid a turbulent time for the American pro-life cause. The June 2022 overturn of Roe v. Wade was greatly celebrated by pro-lifers and enabled newly-enforceable laws to save 200,000 or more lives a year, but the year since has been largely characterized by dueling claims about voters’ receptiveness to strong pro-life messages, and what role the issue may have played in election results that have disappointed Republicans.
READ: The post-Roe baby boom in Texas proves that pro-life laws save lives
Earlier this month, Ohio voters adopted an amendment to codify effectively-unlimited abortion in their state constitution, despite the efforts of Catholic and other Christian leaders to build opposition. Church officials’ tolerance of pro-abortion “Catholics” undermining the faith’s pro-life stance has long been a topic of concern.