Catholic Teaching on Abortion and Euthanasia Notable quotations from Catholic social teaching on the themes of abortion and euthanasia The Second Vatican Council, in a passage which retains all its relevance today, forcefully condemned a number of crimes and attacks against human life. They poison human society, and they do more harm to those who practice them than to those who suffer from the injury. They are endorsed increasingly without the veil of euphemism, as supporters of abortion and euthanasia freely concede these are killing even as they promote them. Such direct attacks on human life, once crimes, are today legitimized by governments sworn to protect the weak and marginalized. In other words, the choice of certain ways of acting is always and radically incompatible with the love of God and the dignity of the human person created in His image.
Direct abortion is never a morally tolerable option.
It is always a grave act of violence against a woman and her unborn child. Any politics of human life must work to resist the violence of war and the scandal of capital punishment. Any politics of human dignity must seriously address issues of racism, poverty, hunger, employment, education, housing, and health care. Therefore, Catholics should eagerly involve themselves as advocates for the weak and marginalized in all these areas. Catholic public officials are obliged to address each of these issues as they seek to build consistent policies which promote respect for the human person at all stages of life.