THE
P RTAL
December 2017
Page 3
P ortal Comment
Remember those lost through
abortion when you enter the stable
at Bethlehem on 25 th December
O
n Monday, 25 th December we shall celebrate the
birth of the Christ Child; a baby born in a stable
to a very young mother. There were questions asked
about the baby’s father. No doubt, tongues wagged.
With the 50th anniversary of the passing of the
1967 Abortion Act, T he P ortal carries some words
delivered by Lord David Alton of Liverpool. The
facts mentioned by Lord Alton are shocking. Nearly
9,000,000 babies killed in the womb in 50 years.
In that time, an amazing £757,832,800 has been
paid by taxpayers to private sector abortionists. That
is £15,156,656 a year to kill 200,000 babies each
and every year – the equivalent of the population of
Sutton Coldfield sacrificed every twelve months.
Each of these is a precious life lost, many because
their birth would have been inconvenient for the
mother; others because they were less than perfect.
Often these have been late abortions, the horrors of
which beggar belief. Once discredited, eugenics is
being made acceptable once again.
Recently, Pope Francis addressed a conference in
the Vatican on the theme ‘Catechesis and persons
with disabilities’. His speech was recorded in
L’Osservatore Romano for 27 th October 2017.
The Holy Father said, “We recognise the great
development there has been over the course of
recent decades with regard to disability. Greater
awareness of the dignity of each person, especially
of the weakest, has led to the espousal of courageous
positions for the inclusion of those who live with
various forms of handicap, so that no one should feel
like a stranger in his own home.
“Yet, at the cultural level, through a prevailing
false understanding of life, expressions that harm
the dignity of these persons still persist. An often
narcissistic and utilitarian vision, unfortunately,
leads not a few to consider persons with disabilities
as marginal, without grasping their manifold human
and spiritual richness.
Pope Francis greets a woman in a wheelchair during an
audience with catechists and people with disabilities at the
Vatican on October 21st. (CNS photo/L’Osservatore Romano)
“In the common mind-set, there is still too strong
an attitude of rejection of this condition, as if it
prevents one from achieving happiness and self-
fulfilment.
“It is demonstrated by the eugenic trend of ending
the lives of the unborn who show some form of
imperfection. In reality, we all know many people
who, despite even serious fragility, have found, albeit
with difficulty, the path of a good life, rich with
meaning.
“Likewise, on the other hand, we know people who
are seemingly perfect, yet they despair! After all, it
is a perilous deception to think we are invulnerable.
As said by a girl whom I met on my recent journey
to Colombia: vulnerability is intrinsic to the essential
nature of mankind.” (Original italics).
Contrast these words from the Holy Father, with
recent statements in the, so-called, Catholic press to
the effect that abortion is not always wrong.
The Editors