BALTIMORE (AP) — Several U.S. Catholic bishops on Wednesday encouraged the church to boldly share Vatican teachings on a range of controversial issues, including condemnation of abortion, euthanasia, surrogacy and gender-affirming surgeries.
The prelates recognized that their perspective was often countercultural.
“We have apologized too much for too long,” said Bishop Robert Barron, a media-savvy priest who leads the Diocese of Winona-Rochester in Minnesota. “And we shouldn’t be intimidated by the celebrities, etc. in the culture who are preaching something that is deeply problematic.”
The comments came during the bishops’ annual fall meeting and a presentation on a Vatican statement released in April. “Dignitas Infinita,” or “Infinite Dignity,” exemplifies the Church’s teaching that promotes the dignity of all people and the protection of life from its earliest stages until death.
“The goal is to apply the lessons of ‘Dignitas Infinita’ to our American society,” said Barron, who praised the statement for its “unmistakably Catholic voice” – a voice that is neither Democratic nor Republican, nor liberal nor conservative.
Infinite Dignity’s 20 pages were five years in the making and highlight a range of harms, including forced migration and sexual abuse. In it, the Vatican describes gender-affirming surgeries and surrogacy as violations of human dignity and compares them to abortion and euthanasia.
Pope Francis has reached out to LGBTQ+ people throughout his papacy, and the document was a disappointing, if not unexpected, setback for transgender people and supporters of their rights. It comes during an election year in the United States that has seen a conservative backlash against transgender rights.
Bishop Thomas Daly of Spokane, Washington, spoke at the meeting about how Catholic schools can be a tool to educate teenage people about Catholic sexual ethics.
“We want our students to see the Church’s teachings on sexuality as an expression of this deeper understanding of the human person, rather than just a set of rules that conflict with our popular culture,” Daly said.
Bishop Michael Burbidge of Arlington, Virginia, who is completing his term as chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Pro-Life Activities, expressed his gratitude to the Vatican and called the statement “incredibly timely.”
“Unfortunately, many states continue to enshrine abortion in their state constitutions,” he told the gathering, citing recent state ballot initiatives. “We know we still have so much work to do.”
“Our work is not just to change laws, but also to change hearts and minds,” Burbidge added.
During their meeting, the U.S. bishops reaffirmed their commitment to opposing abortion, even in the face of losses at the ballot box.
Voters supported 7 of 10 state ballot measures on abortion rights this election. Even in Florida, where the abortion rights amendment failed, 57% of voters supported the measure, just shy of the 60% needed to pass.
Archbishop Joseph Naumann of Kansas City told the congregation earlier during an evangelization discussion that the success of abortion rights ballot initiatives should be “a wake-up call for us.” He said more targeted language was needed to facilitate people accept the church’s teachings on life issues.
In his opening remarks, Archbishop Timothy Broglio, president of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, laid out the vision of proclaiming church teachings even when they are not popular or practical.
“We never deviate from or deny the clear teaching of the gospel. We announce it both in season and out of season,” Broglio said. “We must insist on human dignity from the womb to the grave and be tireless in our commitment.”
___
Associated Press religion coverage is supported by the AP’s collaboration with The Conversation US, with funding from the Lilly Endowment Inc. The AP is solely responsible for this content.
