Archbishop Eamon Martin welcomes Pope Francis’ call to always defend and love the unborn

08 May 2018

Archbishop Eamon Martin has welcomed comments by Pope Francis at his Regina Coeli address in Saint Peters’ Square, Rome, on Sunday 6 May in which the Pope spoke of the welcome that must always be afforded to the unborn.

Archbishop Martin said, “The words of Pope Francis over the weekend have a particular resonance with us as our country considers the Eighth Amendment of the Constitution of Ireland.  The Holy Father spoke about the Gospel teaching of Jesus to ‘love one another as I have loved you’ (Jn 15:12) and that this love must be part of our everyday lives as we are called to care for the elderly ‘as a precious treasure’; to provide ‘every assistance possible to those who are sick’, even when they are approaching the end of their lives; and to always welcome the unborn.  This, Pope Francis said, is why ‘life must always be defended and loved, from conception to its natural end.’”

Archbishop Martin continued, “The comments of the Holy Father are very important in situating our teaching on the sacredness of unborn life within the context of our belief in the centrality of the commandment of love.  Pope Francis said that the love of Christ is ‘not a superficial feeling’, but rather, ‘a fundamental attitude of the heart’.  Our belief in this teaching of Jesus should inspire us to defend life from conception to its natural end.” 

ENDS

  • The Regina Coeli prayer is recited in place of the Angelus during Eastertide, that is, the fifty-days from Easter Sunday to Pentecost Sunday.                                                        

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