The Catholic Priest and Counseling Victims of Abortion Shepherding the Flock After Abortion Fr.
Abortion has many victims beyond the child who is destroyed.
Were all the abortions to stop tomorrow, the Church's work of healing these other victims will have only begun. Within the last ten years, in fact, there has been a proliferation of special groups and programs dedicated to post-abortion healing, and within the last two years, a notable increase in the numbers of people coming forth to seek such healing. The priest needs to be able to respond to the needs of the post-abortion movement. As a help, I have briefly highlighted some characteristics of post-abortion grief, limiting myself in this article to the mothers, and offer some guidance regarding our pastoral response. A Summary Post-abortion grief, in its varying degrees, essentially arises because of the failed attempt of the mother to distance herself from her own child.