PAV on French abortion bill: There cannot be a ‘right’ to taking a human life

By Vatican News

The Pontifical Academy for Life  (PAV) has expressed its support to the French Church’s firm opposition against a constitutional amendment that would make France the first country to enshrine abortion as a constitutional right.

The proposed bill presented by President Emmanuel Macron’s government has been approved by both the National Assembly and the Senate, and is been discussed this afternoon in a joint session of Parliament for its expected final approval by a three-fifths majority.

In  the era of universal human rights, there cannot be a ‘right’ to taking a human life

In a statement issued on Monday PAV echoed the stance put forward by the French Bishops’ Conference  (CEF) that   abortion, “which remains an attack on life” cannot be seen “exclusively from the perspective of women's rights”, and joined the bishops in expressing regret that the  proposal “does not  mention support measures for those who would like to keep their child."

The Pontifical Academy  insisted that “in the era of universal human rights, there cannot be a ‘right’ to taking a human life.”

“All governments and religious traditions, they said, must “do their best so that at this stage in history, the protection of life becomes an absolute priority, with concrete steps in favor of peace and social justice and with effective measures for a universal access to resources, education and healthcare.”

Protecting the most vulnerable

“The particular life situations and difficult and dramatic contexts of our time must be addressed with the tools of a legal civilization that looks first of all to the protection of the weakest and most vulnerable,” PAV said.

“Protection of life, ought to be humanity’s “first objective,” and is something that can only develop in a world voice of conflict and with the fields of science, technology, and industry serving both “the human person and brotherhood.”

The  defence of life is not an ideology

Citing Pope Francis, PAV said that for the Catholic Church, “the defence of life is not an ideology, it is a reality, a human reality that involves all Christians, precisely because they are Christian and because they are human.”

“It is about acting on the cultural and educative level to pass on to future generations the attitude of solidarity, of care, of welcome, knowing well that, the culture of life is not the exclusive heritage of Christians, but it belongs to all those who, working to build fraternal relations, recognize the value of every single person, even the fragile and suffering,” the statement said.