The Catholic Church teaches that abortion is morally wrong. But the majority of Catholics in the developed world – who are educated, emancipated and enlightened – still exercise their own choice on the matter.
In the US, 53 per cent of white Catholics and 55 per cent of non-whites believe that most, or all, abortions should be legal. It is a position reflected throughout Europe and the Western world. Seventy per cent of British Catholics believe that a woman should have the right to choose whether to have an abortion. In Ireland, 70 per cent of Catholics voted to repeal the ban on abortion two years ago. In other Western countries from Italy, Spain, Portugal, Germany and France to Australia and New Zealand, the majority of Catholics differ from the official position of their Church on abortion.
In states which are predominantly Catholic, laws governing access to abortion need not – and, indeed, do not – adhere to the official Catholic position. Every country in Europe has passed laws which trust women to make a choice – their own informed choice – about abortion and their reproductive health. Choosing to follow their own conscience is the course adopted by the majority of...
