abortion in cases of mothers death? (followup) QUESTION from Dustin Dreifuerst M.I. December 8, 1999
What i mean is what is the churches position on this subject? Because i thought that the church is opposed abortion nomatter what the circumstances. ANSWER by Mr. John Miskell on December 8, 1999
Dear Dustin, What I stated earlier is in conformity with the teaching of the Church. Let me begin by quoting Dr. Alan Gutemacher, past president of Planned Parenthood which is the world's leading provider of abortions; Today it is possible for almost any patient to be brought through pregnancy alive, unless she suffers from a fatal disease such as cancer or leukemia, and if so, abortion would be unlikely to prolong, much less save her life. Abortion to Save the Life of the Mother The 'Double Effect.' The very rare cases of pregnancy that pose a real and immediate threat to the mother's life including uterine cancer and ectopic pregnancies are a source of great confusion, among many Catholics. It's true that the Church bans abortion to save the life of the mother. However (and this is an extremely important point)the mother's life may be saved by a surgical procedure that does not directly attack the unborn baby's life. Common dysfunctions that may set a mother's life against that of her unborn child's are ectopic pregnancy, carcinoma of the uterine cervix, and cancer of the ovary. Occasionally, cancer of the vulva or vagina may indicate surgical intervention. In such cases, under the principle of the double effect, attending physicians must do everything in their power to save both the mother and the child. If the physicians decide that, in the case of an ectopic pregnancy, the mother's life can only be saved by the removal of the Fallopian tube (and with it, the unborn baby), or by removal of some other tissue essential for the preborn baby's life, the baby will of course die. But this is NOT categorized as an abortion. This is all the difference between deliberate murder (abortion) and unintentional natural death. Statement of Intent and Principle. Pope Pius XII summarized the intent of the double effect when he addressed the Family Front Congress on November 27, 1951; Both for the one and the other, the demand cannot be but this: To use every means to save the life of both the mother and the child. Article 14 of the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith's (November 18, 1974) says; Deliberately we have always used the expression 'direct attempt on the life of an innocent person,' 'direct killing.' Because if, for example, the saving of the life of the future mother, independently of her pregnant condition, should urgently require a surgical act or other therapeutic treatment which would have as an accessory consequence, in no way desired or intended, but inevitable, the death of the fetus, such an act could no longer be called a direct attempt on an innocent life. Under these conditions the operation can be lawful, like other similar medical interventions granted always that a good of high worth is concerned, such as life, and that it is not possible to postpone the operation until after the birth of the child, nor to have recourse to other efficacious remedies. In cases where the mothers life is in danger, it is NEVER the intention to cause the death of the unborn child, whereas in the case of abortion it is ALWAYS the intention to cause the death of the child. Finally a little perspective might help. There are more than 4,400 abortions done in America every single day, seven days per week, 365 days per year. Most of these abortions are done simply because the baby isn't wanted. The abortion industry admits that about 3% of all abortions are done because of rape, incest, fetal abnormality, or because the life of the mother was in danger. In Fiscal Years 1983 and 1984, (the last time we got semi-reliable government statistics) of the 3.2 million reported abortions, only 411 of them (0.01%) were reportedly done to save the life of the mother.. I hope this clears up the confusion. John Miskell Back to Index Page