In their letter the bishops say –
“We are morally obliged to save the lives of unborn children and to protect mothers from the pressures they might experience at the time of an unplanned pregnancy.”
“We urge you to take steps to formulate new Regulations that will reflect more fully the will of a significant majority of the people in this jurisdiction to protect the lives of mothers and their unborn children.”
Text of letter from the Catholic Bishops of Northern Ireland to all members of the NI Legislative Assembly regarding the New Regulations on Abortion Services in N Ireland:
Dear Member of the Legislative Assembly,
As the Catholic Bishops of Northern Ireland, we have a responsibility to do all we can to promote a culture of care and respect for life in our society. This includes a responsibility to inform the conscience of all members of the Catholic Church and people of good will regarding the fundamental moral values at stake in the issue of abortion.
Our opposition to the new abortion Regulations brought into effect here by the Westminster Parliament is rooted in the Catholic Church’s teaching concerning the dignity of every human life, regardless of age, ability, gender or background. This teaching prohibits the direct and deliberate intention to end the life of an unborn baby at any stage of his or her development. This right to life of the child is inextricably linked to the right to life and well-being of the mother.
At the same time, we recognise that the legislation passed into law by the Westminster Parliament stands now to be implemented. While we regard this to be an unjust law, which was imposed without the consent of the people of Northern Ireland, we are morally obliged, wherever possible, to do all we can to save the lives of unborn children, which could be lost through abortion, and to protect mothers from the pressures they might experience at the time of an unplanned pregnancy. We trust that you recognise this to be an obligation we all share as concerned citizens and public representatives.
In our recent press statement (Tuesday 31 March 2020), regarding the new Regulations concerning abortion services, we indicated that we would be contacting MLA’s with regard to the issues we have highlighted. We believe, ‘Politicians and all people of good will, who recognise the extreme nature of the Regulations, should not meekly acquiesce to their promulgation.’ (Press Release Tuesday 31 March 2020).
In particular, we take this opportunity to encourage you to debate these Regulations as a matter of urgency. Insofar as they exceed the requirements of the Northern Ireland Act 2019, we urge you to take steps to formulate new Regulations that will reflect more fully the will of a significant majority of the people in this jurisdiction to protect the lives of mothers and their unborn children. Indeed, as the NIO has noted, this commitment to protect life was expressed by 79% of people, who responded to the consultation exercise conducted by the UK Government last December.
As the Catholic Bishops of Northern Ireland we are eager to enter into dialogue with MLAs from across the political parties in an attempt to explore, where possible, how new Regulations can be formulated, which express the will of most people in our society to support and protect the lives of mothers and their unborn children. As a first step, we have included with this letter our recent submission (see below) to the Westminster Scrutiny Committee dealing with the relevant legislation, for your consideration.
We are very conscious that you and all MLAs are under great pressure at this time, due to the Covid-19 pandemic and the many issues you are called upon to address every day. However, we trust that within the Assembly, time can be made to undertake the initial debate that is so urgently needed regarding these extreme Regulations.
We look forward to hearing from you about these issues in due course.
Wishing you every blessing and strength in your important work,
Yours sincerely,
Most Rev Eamon Martin DD – Archbishop of Armagh, Apostolic Administrator of Dromore
Most Rev Noel Treanor DD – Bishop of Down and Connor
Most Rev Donal McKeown DD – Bishop of Derry
Most Rev Larry Duffy DD – Bishop of Clogher
Most Rev Michael Router DD – Auxiliary Bishop of Armagh
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