Friday 26 October 2007

Archbishop Denis Hart has made a submission to the Victorian Law Reform Commission's abortion law review. Below is the full text of Archbishop Hart's submission.

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Thursday 25 October 2007

Professor Neil Rees
Chairperson
Victorian Law Reform Commission
GPO Box 4637
MELBOURNE VIC 3001

Dear Professor Rees

I am writing in response to your letter of 26 September, 2007 inviting submissions on the reference the Law Reform Commission have received from the State Government on the reform of abortion law in Victoria.

Catholic Teaching and Ethical Principles on Abortion

In union with the Catholic Church world-wide, I support the continuing Christian tradition of recognizing the intrinsic value and moral respect due to the life of the child awaiting birth given by over 2,000 Catholic bishops at the Second Vatican Council in 1965 and quoted by Pope John Paul II in The Gospel of Life, 1995, N.62: "Life must be protected with the utmost care from the moment of conception: abortion and infanticide are unspeakable crimes." He continued: "I declare that direct abortion, that is, abortion willed as an end or as a means, always constitutes a grave moral disorder since it is the deliberate killing of an innocent human being." [N.62]. Again Pope John Paul II wrote "Laws which legitimize the direct killing of human beings through abortion or euthanasia are in complete opposition to the inviolable right of life proper to every individual; they thus deny the equality of everyone before the law." [Gospel of Life, N.72]

The protection due to the unborn child, however, would not morally forbid the performing of medically indicated procedures designed to save the life of a pregnant woman without any direct assault on the life of the foetus, even though death may be foreseen as an unwanted side effect of the procedure.

Pope John Paul II also pointed out that "When it is not possible to overturn or completely abrogate a pro-abortion law, an elected official, whose absolute personal opposition to procured abortion was well known, could licitly support proposals aimed at limiting the harm done by such a law and at lessening its negative consequences at the level of general opinion and public morality. This does not in fact represent an illicit cooperation with an unjust law, but rather a legitimate and proper attempt to limit its evil aspects." [Gospel of Life, N.73] In practice this would permit members of parliament whose absolute personal opposition to abortion is already well known to vote to lower the current gestational age limit for abortion.

Reason also supports this Catholic teaching. It is evident that children before their birth are human beings who are dependent on their mothers for nourishment and survival. Adults also depend on the supporting environment of the earth and atmosphere to survive. Through growth and development alone, unborn children and infants acquire the ability to use their natural inborn capacity to perform intellectual and free acts. Time alone is needed for the requisite maturation and brain development to occur before they can act as moral agents. Clearly unborn children are actual, not potential human beings.

Every moral duty or moral imperative serves a summons on our freedom and autonomy. While some values depend on one's personal choice, e.g. career or marriage partner, the obligations assumed by such choices are morally binding. Furthermore duties of justice towards individuals and the common good such as the care of the sick, professional ethics and public safety requirements trump the exercise of human individuals' autonomy or free choice. The morally inviolable value of the unborn child makes moral claims of a duty of reasonable care on the pregnant woman and others, including lawmakers and the State. Declaring that unborn children are not legal persons does not change the reality that they are human beings endowed with a rational nature and inherent inviolable worth. They are natural persons in virtue of their rational human nature and also subjects of basic human rights.

In our contemporary society, the moral significance of children yet to be born differs according to peoples' fundamental philosophical, religious and moral beliefs concerning the intrinsic value to be accorded to unborn children and their lives. Wanted unborn children are rightly cherished, even at the cost of personal sacrifices. On the other hand, many women with unwanted pregnancies see few moral problems in having recourse to safe induced abortion. This, however, does not justify depriving unwanted unborn children of life itself.

The termination of a pregnancy is a tragedy for the pregnant woman and her unborn child. Humanity risks losing its moorings if the termination of a pregnancy is deemed to be just a medical procedure or a mistake to be erased at will.

Practical issues on Reform of the Law of Abortion in Victoria

In the light of what I have written above, true to my own and the Catholic Church's moral convictions, I am morally opposed to abortion and child destruction and to legalizing these offences by removing them from the criminal code. Consequently I would have a conflict of interest to advise on aspects of abortion reform that could imply support of legally permitting abortion. To do so would amount to cooperation in facilitating abortion, since the plan is to "have in place clear laws which reflect current clinical practice and community standards. The government's aim is that reform should neither expand the extent to which terminations occur, nor restrict current access to services." [Terms of Reference].

Accordingly, I will briefly respond to some of the discussion questions raised by the VLRC.

Question 4. It would be a tragedy if the law permitted the abortion of unborn children with handicaps whom anti-discrimination laws protect after birth.

Questions 5 and 6. Since abortion is not something good in itself, I believe the legal time limit for abortion should be lowered as far as possible. It is inconsistent to have dedicated neonatal intensive care professions working to save the lives of some newborn babies whilst in other hospitals some unborn children of the same gestational age may be legally aborted. Human beings of the same age may legally be patients of doctors or destined to be killed depending on whether or not they are already born. This is intolerable. The VLRC should advise the Victorian Government and Parliament that its moral reputation could be at risk if it made it legally permissible to abort unborn children at the same gestational age as newborn infants who are currently treated in Victoria's neonatal intensive care units.

Question 9. It would be morally irresponsible for the VLRC to fail to mention the need of women to receive the benefit of counselling from professionals who are independent from abortion providers before they have their pregnancies terminated. It would be misguided compassion to advise a woman with an unwanted pregnancy to seek an abortion. Counselling should be required by law as a condition before abortions are performed. Many pregnant women, left to themselves alone, may not fully appreciate the implications and consequences of having an abortion. Vulnerable pregnant women need to be protected from exploitation. Counselling, including alternatives abortion, would help these women and may also result in fewer abortions occurring for some pregnant women who may not be able to think through all the relevant issues.

Question 10. Provision should be made to protect medical practitioners, nurses and medical trainees who are morally opposed to abortion from being coerced to act against their conscience to perform or participate in terminations of pregnancies under threats, say, of losing their employment or promotion opportunities. The same would apply to administrators of healthcare facilities whose ethos is morally opposed to abortion.

I am aware that you will have received submissions from Catholic agencies and individuals. I will be making my own submission available to the wider Catholic community through the parishes of the Archdiocese. I will be alerting them to your invitation to make submissions to the Commission.

Yours sincerely,

+Denis Hart
ARCHBISHOP OF MELBOURNE