By Judie Brown
The incipient speaker of the House of Representatives, Rep. Nancy Pelosi, is showing what I consider extreme arrogance, even for a pro-abortion figure in public life who claims to be a faithful Catholic. Her handlers are making it abundantly clear that anything goes in their effort to showcase Pelosi and her life story, including the use of a Catholic Mass to cement her public image as a Catholic mother and grandmother.
That, my friend, is a disgrace that I cannot ignore.
As a practicing Catholic mother and grandmother, I am highly offended that this woman would use the influence of her new office to flaunt her Catholic label while advocating the brutal murder of preborn children without apology. This "mother and grandmother" from California's 8th Congressional district in San Francisco has been one of the most outspoken advocates for unrestricted abortion in Congress.
Perhaps the only thing more egregious than her support for aborting preborn children is her inability to comprehend the sacrilegious nature of her intended use of the Mass scheduled for January 3 at Trinity University, a Catholic institution in Washington, D.C. To prevent such a scandal from occurring we have respectfully asked Archbishop Donald Wuerl of Washington, D.C. to intervene and cancel any festivities at the Catholic college, particularly any attempt to honor Pelosi during Mass.
The reasons for this request are best characterized by quoting Archbishop Wuerl's recent commentary, "The Human Quest for God." He faithfully wrote, "a reflection on the moral order in the universe can lead us to a natural knowledge of God. We are aware that our actions should be just, truthful and temperate."
The act of abortion is a grave injustice perpetrated against an innocent human being created by God in His own image. Those who advocate this act are deceiving mothers by suggesting to them that their children are nothing more than disposable problems and instilling in these mothers the idea that "freedom of choice" empowers them to make a decision that results in the death of their child. There is nothing temperate about the act of abortion. In fact, aborting a child falls into the category of one of the most intemperate acts currently engrained in the culture.
A thinking person with any sort of moral sensibilities would conclude that the bald-faced contradiction between advocating for abortion and heralding one's attendance at a Catholic Mass is simply outrageous and should not be permitted. While it is usually the case that we should not prevent another person from attending Mass, which is a source of grace and blessing, this is no ordinary grandmother attempting to reconcile her abortion advocacy with her God; this is the soon-to-be speaker of the House making a public spectacle of the Mass for political purposes as she attempts to improve her public image.
At what cost does a prelate of the Catholic Church permit such an atrocity?
Archbishop Wuerl wrote in the same column that we "hear in the voice of our conscience," which is a "manifestation of the presence of God," the insistent call to goodness. "Conscience is described as the still, quiet voice of God within each of us," he said. It seems to me that the archbishop would be doing Congresswoman Pelosi a tremendous favor if he were to quietly but firmly inform her that her staff's public and repeated focus on the Mass as part of her "agenda" is an insult to her faith because she has not listened to the voice of God, but rather has succumbed to the voices of the culture of death. Otherwise, she would not champion abortion on demand as a "right" in America, nor would she be continually casting her votes against even the slightest pro-life legislation.
Our request of the archbishop is based on the most basic of Catholic teachings: That the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass is both a reminder of Christ's ultimate sacrifice for us by His death on the Cross, and also an opportunity for Catholics, with contrite hearts, to come to Him and receive Him in the sacrament of the Eucharist. The Mass is not a political rally; the Mass is not a public relations event; the Mass is not an "extreme makeover" for an intransigent, pro-abortion politician.
Perhaps, as our public statements on this tragic state of affairs settles in on the minds and hearts of those closest to Congresswoman Pelosi, she herself will realize that her choice of venue is more scandalous than it is anything else. Perhaps that still, quiet voice within will invite her to cancel her public forays into a Mass that she might otherwise have attended without the public hoopla and without the disingenuous statements of those who work for her.
Perhaps, as Archbishop Wuerl wrote, Pelosi will come on her knees before the Lord, publicly repudiate her support for abortion, human embryonic stem cell research and other crimes against life, and "respond to God's loving call with a 'yes' of faith."
If not, we hope and pray that Archbishop Wuerl intervenes for the sake of every believing Catholic, young and old, who knows that every single abortion is an act of murder. For the sake of all those who believe, we beseech the archbishop to act in defense of Christ, regardless of headlines or public image. We need his leadership and, as a Catholic grandmother myself, I realize that Pelosi desperately needs his moral guidance as well.
Judie Brown is president and co-founder of American Life League, the nation's largest Catholic pro-life educational grassroots organization. She is a recognized expert on the sanctity of human life, member of the Pontifical Academy for Life and the author of three books.
