A contributing factor to post-abortion trauma is silence from the Church. The common reluctance to preach on the matter because there are some women in the Church who have had abortions and it will hurt them is misguided and harmful. There is a crying need to acknowledge the grief of abortion – silence pushes this grief underground and prevents forgiveness and reconciliation.
Since, sadly, the rate of abortion among Catholic women is about the same as the rate in the general population, there is no question that there will be many women in our parishes who have had abortions. They need the grace of the sacrament of penance, the understanding of the Church and the clear and unambiguous commitment of their priests to preaching compassionately against this evil – and indeed the reaffirmation of the virtue of chastity for their own children.
A mother and daughter, both of whom had had abortions, and became pro-life. They went to the parish priest with a pro-life poster asking him to display it in their church. He politely took the poster and folded it, saying to them: “You know, I can’t put this up. Don’t you know there might be women in my congregation who have had abortions?” Our silence denies these women the right/opportunity to grieve for their child. Silence means that their child’s existence is denied.
There are prayer vigils regularly outside the abortion mill at Bedford Square.
