Archbishop says abortion and euthanasia are 'terrorism with a human face'

Monday, April 23, 2007 

Coat of Arms of the Holy See

A Vatican City official has referred to abortion and euthanasia as "terrorism with a human face."

Archbishop Angelo Amato is the acting Secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith which is led by William Cardinal Levada. He was addressing Vatican chaplains, when he made the remarks on Monday in a keynote address that opened an April 23 to 27 seminar in Rome with Catholic airport chaplains. The seminar's main focus is security and preparedness against acts of terrorism.

"[Abortion clinics are] slaughterhouses of human beings" and abortion is "abominable terrorism. [There are other] parliaments of so-called civilized nations where laws contrary to the nature of the human being are being promulgated, such as the approval of marriage between people of the same sex," said Amato, who has been a bishop for four years.

"For example, abortion is called voluntary interruption of pregnancy and not the killing of a defenceless human being, an abortion clinic is given a harmless, even attractive, name: centre for reproductive health and euthanasia is blandly called death with dignity," added Amato.

Amato called the press "a perverse film about evil. Evils that remain almost invisible" and also accused the press of "manipulating" their news content "to hide the tragic reality of the facts."

Sister links

• Abortion debate

• Euthanasia

Sources

• Philip Pullella. "Gay marriage evil, abortion terrorism - Vatican" — Reuters, April 23, 2007
• "Gay marriage evil: Vatican" — The Australian, April 23, 2007
• Cindy Wooden. "Terrorism based on real grievances, cardinal tells airport chaplains" — Catholic News Service, April 23, 2007