AMERICA/MEXICO - The Church in Mexico reaffirms its “yes” to life, “that cannot and should not be trampled by laws that threaten or destroy it”

Acapulco (Agenzia Fides) - Amidst the Archdiocese of Acapulco’s jubilee celebrations for its 50th anniversary as a diocese, “Buen Pastor” (Good Shepherd) Seminary organized a Bioethics Congress last week, entitled: “Euthanasia and Abortion: Challenges for Mexico,” featuring specialists in these topics. The Congress took place on the edge of the imminent verdict of the National Supreme Court on the unconstitutional claim made by the National Committee for Human Rights and the General Procurator of the Republic, versus the approval of the legalization of Pregnancy Interruption in the Federal District.
In the face of the culture of death, “the Church wishes to continue insisting on the yes to life that comes from the Gospel message of Jesus Christ and that cannot be negotiated nor dismissed,” a statement from the Archdiocese of Acapulco says. “We understand the yes to life in an integral manner, that is, from conception until natural death, as life is a gift from the Creator,” which necessarily implies attention to the situations in which life is threatened and “with the great threats to life so commonly present in our cities, such as malnutrition, unemployment, low income, addictions, violence, organized crime, and all the situations that cause a deterioration in the life and dignity of the people, especially those that live in a situation of high vulnerability, such as the unborn, the elderly, the native people, the sick, women, and children,” the statement continued.
They also mentioned that “the right to life is a natural right, recognizable by right reason,” and is therefore “a human rights issue, the first and foremost of all.” It is “from this rational perspective that the Church recognizes and defends the right to life, that cannot and should not be trampled by laws that threaten or destroy it.”
Thus, the Church makes an appeal asking that laws be passed that promote and defend life. In addition, it recalls, as Catholics “we cannot ignore our faith in appreciating this gift of life and in defending it from any abuse. The Biblical command of ‘You shall not kill’ always takes precedence over any human law that allows or promotes the elimination of the lives of the most vulnerable in society.”
Archbishop Felipe Aquirre Franco of Acapulco stated in the Congress that abortion degrades society. “We know, as priests, the drama lived out by those who have been responsible for an abortion. The guilt of having killed one’s own child is present in every conscience,” the Archbishop affirmed. He also mentioned that abortion is killing and that it is a crime condemned both by the law of God and the Constitution of Mexico, “where with permissive laws, thousands of children are killed in hospitals, due to the hedonist mentality of parties who disguise it all as reproductive health service.” (RG) (Agenzia Fides 16/4/2008; righe 36, parole 461)