People who support abortion, euthanasia and embryonic stem cell research are worshipping "modern-day false idols," Cardinal Justin Rigali said in Lincoln Saturday.
BOB REEVES / Lincoln Journal Star | Posted: Friday, October 19, 2007 7:00 pm
People who support abortion, euthanasia and embryonic stem cell research are worshipping “modern-day false idols,” Cardinal Justin Rigali said in Lincoln Saturday.
“(They are) putting their faith in human ingenuity and technology,” rather than following God and moral principles, he told about 350 people attending the annual Nebraska pro-life convention.
Rigali, archbishop of Philadelphia and chairman of the U.S. Council of Catholic Bishops Committee for Pro-Life Activities, was keynote speaker at the convention, which focused on the theme, “Rebuilding the Culture of Life.”
In his address and an interview with news media, the cardinal spoke extensively about misleading claims of proponents of embryonic stem cell research. Those who want to eliminate restrictions on the research talk about its potential to save lives, he said.
“The truth is that embryonic stem cell research to date has not produced one cure. This is not faith, this is science.”
Meanwhile, he said, supporters of embryonic research downplay the continual advancements in the use of adult stem cells and stem cells from umbilical cords and placentas rather than embryos.
Opposition to embryonic research is not a religious position, but a moral stance based on scientific facts, Rigali said.
“Science tells us that the child in the womb is already formed,” he said.
Even an embryo has the full complement of DNA that make a human being, he noted.
He also talked about the incorrect concept of freedom espoused by those who support abortion choice.
“Freedom of choice is invoked against the freedom of someone to be born,” he said in the interview. “The most basic freedom is the freedom to exist, to live.”
That freedom, Rigali said, is denied when an unborn child in aborted.
“The cause of life cannot be served by destroying life,” he said in his speech.
Abortion is still a huge problem — more than 1.2 million abortions were performed last year in the United States alone — but statistics also show that both the number and rate of abortions is declining, he said. Public support for legalized abortion is at an all-time low, with 44 percent of Americans saying they would support a ban on all abortions except to save the life of the mother, he said.
He also talked about what happened in June when the Philadelphia City Council voted 9-8 for a resolution naming Philadelphia as a “pro-choice city.” Rigali said the resolution was promoted by Planned Parenthood but did not reflect the feelings of most citizens.
He immediately issued a statement opposing the resolution, and recorded his message on video for play on YouTube and other Internet sites. A groundswell of protest ensued, and the council voted 13-4 the following week to rescind the resolution.
“The City Council had mistaken evil for good, a modern-day form of idolatry,” Rigali said.
Greg Schleppenbach, Nebraska director of the Bishops’ Pastoral Plan for Pro-Life Activities, said Rigali’s appearance marked the first time since 1990 that a cardinal addressed the convention. Cardinal John O’Connor of New York spoke at the convention in 1990, he said.
The purpose of the convention is to “not only to focus on what we call the culture of death, but also on the roots of it — the sociological roots in our culture,” he said.
A major focus of Nebraska’s pro-life efforts is on giving young people a positive pro-life message “as part of our overall program to try to change the culture,” he said.
A series of pro-life advertisements produced by Virtue Media are scheduled to begin running on Nebraska television stations beginning in late December or January, Schleppenbach said. To see the ads in advance, visit www.virtuemedia.com.
Reach Bob Reeves at 473-7212 or breeves@journalstar.com.