Guest Post: The grim realities behind barring Nancy Pelosi from Communion Part II

By Robert Marshall

Editor's Note: See Part I here. Yesterday I published the first half of Bob's article. This continues the list of "grim realities" that Nancy Pelosi has inflicted on our country, especially babies in the womb. She is a Catholic by baptism, but an apostate by action. Please pray for her that she will not experience the worst "grim reality" possible on Judgment Day. My comments in red.

Nancy Pelosi—Abolishing Catholic-Christian Health Care

The Charlotte Lozier Institute notes that private Christian health care is especially undermined under the Women’s Health Care Protection Act from 2019, H. R. 2975. Law Professor and religious freedom expert Mark Rienzi points out that “virtually every state in the country has some sort of statute protecting individuals and, in many cases, entities who refuse to provide abortions and ‘[s]ome states expressly limit this protection to the practice of abortion, which is treated specially.’” Moreover:

• “Federal law also provides protections to individuals and institutions that object to performing abortions.”
• “H.R. 2975 poses a grave risk to those vital protections. Under H.R. 2975, doctors and nurses who conscientiously refuse to participate in abortion could lose their jobs and Catholic and other religious hospitals could be forced to provide abortions or lose public funds....”
• “Similarly, laws that protect Catholic and other religious hospitals from providing abortion services would fail under H.R. 2975 if an individual doctor or nurse could show that such laws limit their ability to provide ‘immediate’ abortion services and they believe based on their good-faith medical judgment that delay would pose a risk to the patient’s ‘health.’” [Evil is never content with tolerance; it demands active cooperation and participation. In the Old Testament those who refused to sacrifice to idols were martyred. In the 16th and 17th centuries, those who refused to give up the Catholic Mass in favor of Cranmer's new Mass were hanged drawn and quartered for attending the forbidden sacrament. Today, those who support Republican politicians and refuse to embrace the satanic Democrat agenda of abortion, euthanasia, transgender abuse of children, sodomy, etc. are labeled Nazis, fascists, and domestic terrorists. Right now it's white martyrdom, but look at history. Before the reign of terror, the gulags, the holocaust, and multiple genocides of the 20th century, massive immorality first took center stage. We are likely to see bloody persecution in the years ahead. Raise your children and grandchildren to be martyrs.]

H. R. 3755, the current House version of the Women’s Health Protection Act, could have been written by Karl Marx or Vladimir Lenin. Pelosi’s bill states, “Abortion-specific restrictions are a tool of “gender oppression”. The “findings” section on page 3 of HR 3755, which judges are supposed to reference to determine the meaning of the text of the statute states:

Reproductive justice requires every individual to have the right to make their own decisions about having children.... Reproductive Justice is a human right...[of] all people, regardless of...gender identity, sex stereotyping, or sexual orientation, age...(or) have the economic, social, and political power and resources to define and make decisions about their bodies, health, sexuality, families, and communities in all areas of their lives....” [If you don't want children, don't do what creates children. There is no such thing as a 100% effective contraceptive except the pill you put against the inside of your left knee and hold with your right. The baby is not part of the mother's body. The little ones have their own bodies and no one has a right to kill the tiniest member of the human family!]

Pelosi's affirmation that reproductive rights belong to all individuals "to define and make decisions about their bodies, health, sexuality," will make statutory rape and consent laws illegal in all fifty states and US Territories. This is a goal of abortionists and transgender zealots. Pregnancy from artificial reproduction outside the womb or marriage will become a right of individuals, threesomes, etc.

Pelosi’s radical policy is miles beyond “codifying” Roe v. Wade and she certainly knows that. Under Pelosi’s bill, LGBTQ+ persons would have a right to an abortion and to demand under a “surrogacy pregnancy contract” that a “surrogate” mother would be required to abort a child for any reason if the “owners” of the “child” were not satisfied. Note also that while “Abortion services” is defined in Section 3 under definitions, “Abortion” is not defined anywhere in the bill. Section 3 on page 16 states, “The term ‘pregnancy’ refers to the period of the human reproductive process beginning with the implantation of a fertilized egg.” The end of “pregnancy” is not defined. [We are already seeing support for legalizing infanticide as former Virginia governor, Ralph Northam, a pediatric surgeon, illustrated. Hey, if your baby is cross-eyed or has a hair lip, just keep the little one comfortable while you starve him to death.]

A legislator who wanted to authorize infanticide but who did not want use the word, could employ that verbal tactic. Further, H. B. 3755 (Section 7, page 24) contains a “Rule of Construction” which allows no government interference, “with a person’s ability to terminate a pregnancy, to diminish or in any way negatively affect a person’s constitutional right to terminate a pregnancy.” Other “Findings” on page 2 state, “Since 1973, the Supreme Court repeatedly has recognized the constitutional right...to terminate a pregnancy after fetal viability....”

The Church’s Response to Pelosi, and Pelosi’s Response to the Church

The San Francisco Examiner (5/21/22), eager to defend Pelosi’s self-affirming and contrived “Catholic” Faith, used inflammatory words to tag Archbishop Cordileone as an “insubordinate saboteur” acting “in open defiance of Pope Francis” for ruling that Speaker Pelosi is ineligible to receive Holy Communion.

But Cardinal Luis Ladaria , Prefect for the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, suggested to Los Angeles Archbishop Jose Gomez (5/7/21), President of the USCCB, that if the bishops wanted to establish nationwide standards relating to abortion-supporting Catholic politicians, the bishops should undertake a two-stage dialogue, “first among the bishops themselves, and then between bishops and Catholic pro-choice politicians within their jurisdictions.” Such a national policy on worthiness to receive Communion, should be applied to “all the faithful, rather than one category of Catholics….”

Pope Francis was cited in the Tablet (5/23/22):

One of the few times Pope Francis publicly addressed the issue of pro-abortion politicians receiving Communion was in 2021. He said that Communion is for those who are “in the community,” and that those who support abortion are “outside the community.” ...Then, “those who are not in the community, cannot receive Communion,” he said. “Out of the community: excommunicated. It’s a harsh word, but they don’t belong in the community, because they were not baptized, or because they are estranged from it.”

In many respects, the Pope’s actions regarding “Catholic” politicians Pelosi and Biden have been disappointing. U. S. Pro Life Bishop’s Chairman Archbishop Naumann (Kansas City, Kansas) stated that the Pope does not understand the Church in the United States, and he also noted that when the Pope publicly received Pelosi, the meeting “was politically exploited. In allowing this, Pope Francis is doing exactly what he warns others not to do.” During a recent papal interview with Spanish language Univision the Pope was asked about Nancy Pelosi’s “reportedly receiving Communion in Mass at St. Peter’s,” despite Archbishop Cordileone’s barring Pelosi from Communion. Pope Francis noted that Pelosi “continues to receive the Eucharist in Washington, D. C. as well.”

Yet during the interview, the Pope described Biden’s abortion position as an “incoherence” with the Catholic Faith. Archbishop Naumann commented in the National Catholic Register , “It’s very helpful because I think that’s exactly true, that his (Biden’s) position is incoherent with Catholic teaching. So I’m grateful for that clarification by the Holy Father.” We must pray that actions will follow the Holy Father’s words.

In June, 1990 the New York Times reprinted excerpts of comments made by John Cardinal O’Connor in his New York Archdiocese newspaper:

John Cardinal O’Connor warned Roman Catholic politicians yesterday that they risked being excommunicated from the Catholic Church if they were persistent in supporting a woman’s right to abortion. “For the common good...such Catholics must be warned that they are at risk of excommunication.” Those at risk...are Catholics who “are perceived not only as treating church teaching on abortion with contempt, but helping to multiply abortions by advocating legislation supporting abortion or by making public funds available for abortion. If such action persists...bishops may consider excommunication the only option.”

Pelosi responded: “There is no desire to fight with the cardinals or archbishops.... But it has to be clear that we are elected officials, and we uphold the law and we support public positions separate and apart from our Catholic Faith.” Yet, she also claims that her abortion votes are compatible with her Catholic Faith. [Nancy Pelosi is a liar who cares nothing for the truth or for her Catholic faith. She is not even a cafeteria Catholic. She is a heretic and apostate which puts her eternal soul in serious jeopardy. We need, in charity, to pray for these poor Catholics who are those "to whom much is given" because from them "much is expected.]

Some of Pelosi’s Faith-based claims about abortion being consistent with her Faith are linked below:

• Pelosi Interview with Dana Bash, CNN 5/15/22
• Editorial Board, Seattle Times, 5/4/22
• Pelosi Press Conference, 21/2/21
• Pelosi Remarks—Women’s Health Protection Act, 9/24/21
• Nancy Pelosi Press Conference, 7/22/21
• Eleanor Clift—Newsweek, 12/20/09
• CSPAN Interview with Brian Lamb, 7/16/08
• Pelosi on Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act, 6/13/13

After one of Speaker Pelosi’s “I am a Catholic and support abortion” interviews on Meet the Press with Tom Brokaw (8/24/08) Speaker Pelosi was rebuked by Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput: “Catholic public leaders inconvenienced by the abortion debate...seem comfortable in the role of theologian.... The Christian tradition from the earliest days reveals a firm anti-abortion attitude… The condemnation of abortion did not depend on and was not limited in any way by theories regarding the time of fetal animation.”

Pelosi Claims to Not Impose Her Views on Others

Nancy Pelosi claimed on the “Morning Joe” program (5/24/22) that, “I come from a largely pro-life, Italian-American, Catholic family, so I respect people’s views about that. But I don’t respect us foisting it onto others.” [What about "foisting on others" the laws against rape? Don't rapists have a right to do what they want with their own bodies? She would no doubt say, "But that violates the rights of women." Exactly! And abortion violates the rights of babies in the womb.]

However, Speaker Pelosi foisted her pro-abortion views on others by strongly supporting and voting for H. R. 5, the so-called “Equality Act,” promoted by homosexual activists who seek to impose their radical demands on individuals and institutions governed by the morals of Moses and Jesus. Pelosi’s misnamed “Equality Act” will compel doctors and health care institutions to perform abortions and “sex-change” operations, and furnish puberty blockers for minors or lose their medical licenses or accreditation.

Private conscience and religious rights are presently protected under various Federal and State conscience laws which exempt doctors, nurses and health care establishments from having to comply with such immoral practices, but Speaker Pelosi wants to strip away all conscience and privacy protections for girls and women, and destroy female sports. Under Pelosi’s alleged Equality Act, a person, business, church, private school or religious group that does not comply with or support the LGBTQ+ agenda will be charged with “discriminating” under the Civil Rights Act, equal to violating the civil rights of African Americans. Fines can be $500,000 per incident depending upon the size of the organization accused of “discriminating.”

Background Resources

Archbishop Cordileone wrote a succinct, well-reasoned letter to Speaker Pelosi. The Archbishop’s second letter explains to Catholics in the San Francisco Archdiocese (and beyond) how he reached his decision. His third letter was sent to priests in which he details the Canon law background for his decision, with which priests and deacons must comply. Interestingly, the very liberal Jesuit America magazine had an excellent, thorough interview with Archbishop Cordileone hosted by Gloria Purvis, available as a podcast and a shorter print version.

Recent Abortion Votes in Congress

To find out which Members of the House of Representatives and the Senate voted for the their respective versions of the Women’s Health Protection act, go the following links.

• Senate: S. 4132 U.S. Senate: U.S. Senate Roll Call Votes 117th Congress—2nd Session
• House of Representatives: Women’s Health Protection Act H. R 3577.

Did your “Catholic” member of Congress vote in favor of this abortion legislation? St. Paul (1 Timothy 2:1–4) urges us to pray for those in authority. In addition to praying, we should make immoral positions known to others, and vote in every special, primary and general election only for pro-life candidates. Now that the Supreme Court has overturned Roe we must work to convince state legislatures to pass legislation to secure legal protection for the lives of all innocent children before birth.

Bob Marshall served 26 years in the Virginia House of Delegates and was the chief House sponsor of the 2006 voter-approved Virginia Marriage Amendment and a ban on late term abortion. He recently wrote Reclaiming the Republic: How Christians and Other Conservatives Can Win Back America (TAN Books). Previously, he co-authored Blessed are the Barren, a social history of Planned Parenthood (Ignatius Press). Finally, don’t miss Bob’s Civics Lesson for Catholics in the Catholic Culture Podcast Episode 17. See the full bio.