Pope lets priests forgive abortion

In the news: Pope Francis extends Catholic priests' power to forgive abortion

Here are a couple of quotes from the article with my comments ...

The Catechism of the Catholic Church says that every human life "from the moment of conception until death is sacred" -- and that any Catholic who procures an abortion incurs automatic excommunication, a penalty that often only a bishop could lift.

The whole thing is based on some squirrelly theology. Why has abortion been only forgivable up until now by a bishop, while murder has always been forgivable by a priest? Why are women who get abortions excommunicated, while women who murder their six month old babies are not? You often hear church guys say abortion is much more serious than killing an adult .... why should that be so? None of this is based on scripture.

Kate D'Annunzio of Rachel's Vineyard, a Pennsylvania-based group that ministers to women who have had abortions, said Francis has "clarified" that now priests have the power to do both: forgive and welcome women back into the church. "We are extremely ecstatic that the Pope is recognizing that the decision women have made has harmed them in so many ways, and they want to be reunited with the Church. "The Church has had the ability to forgive these women, but many of these women had difficulty forgiving themselves.'"

Actually most Catholic women who have had abortions don't go to confession because they don't believe what they have done needs to be forgiven. Recent studies have shown that the great majority of women are not "harmed" by getting an abortion and are not wracked with guilt over their choice (99 Percent of Women Don’t Regret Their Abortions).

More: The pope's abortion 'forgiveness' is good politics, but changes nothing for women and Pope Should Declare A Ceasefire In Abortion War