Here is a letter that I have sent to Cardinal George.  If some of the ideas seem correct to you, you are welcome to use them in composing your own letter.  Address your letters to: Francis Cardinal George, Archdiocese of Chicago, 155 E. Superior St., Chicago IL 60611

October 9, 2008

Dear Cardinal George,

I read your letter of September 2nd.  I agree with you on the issue of the basic immorality of abortion and the duty of every Christian to work to reduce the number of abortions in this country.  What I disagree with, however, is your confidence that changing the law would effect the change we both want.  You state that “one cannot favor the legal status quo on abortion and also be working for the common good”.  I disagree.

I would argue that changing the law at this time in our country’s history would be immoral.  Why?  Because it would do little to limit abortions but it would lead to the death of many more of the women who will be procuring abortions in sub-standard medical environments.  I was teaching and counseling young people before Roe vs. Wade.  What I saw then was that wealthy women wanting abortions flew to Sweden and other places where they could have them legally, while poor women took their chances in the back-alley clinics.  I do not see creating this situation again as moral. 

What then would be a moral approach to lessening abortions?  First, we need to tackle the social injustices in our system.  I was somewhat surprised that you spoke to the issue of abortion without contextualizing it in the many practices of our society that are life-denying.  Your predecessor was wiser in seeing this issue in a larger context.  The women seeking abortions are often poor women who feel they cannot support another child.  Addressing issues of health care, minimum wages, and other social justice issues could dramatically limit abortions much more than a change in the law.

There are many other proactive steps that could be taken.  I know churches where there are numerous families ready to take in pregnant women and provide for them until a healthy child is delivered and then aid them in putting the child up for adoption.  We could do a lot more to publicize alternatives to abortion.  Workshops and forums could be held throughout the archdiocese to educate people about abortion and to help them understand some of the alternatives and to urge them to create those alternatives where they do not already exist.

Thomas Aquinas argued many years ago that an unenforceable law is not a good law.  There is no way to force a woman to bring a child to term.  Laws alone will not effect a change.  How sad it will be if some Catholics vote for a candidate because they believe he or she will help repeal the legality of abortion, while that same candidate may be doing nothing to change the social injustices that lead so many women to seek abortions in the first place.  As Christians, we must work to reduce the number of abortions in this country and I have suggested some positive ways of doing that.  Changing the law will not achieve this end but will indeed lead to the deaths of many more women, a result that is neither ethical nor Christian.