All priests, according to the Pope, will be allowed to forgive women who have had abortions during the Holy Year, between the dates of from Dec. 8 to Nov. 26. Usually, this grave sin is an excommunicable offense, but in order to demonstrate the theme of mercy, women can be forgiven if they have a “contrite heart”.
Francis described the “existential and moral ordeal” faced by women who have terminated pregnancies and said he had “met so many women who bear in their heart the scar of this agonizing and painful decision”.
“This is by no means an attempt to minimize the gravity of this sin, but to widen the possibility of showing mercy,” Vatican chief spokesman Father Federico Lombardi told reporters.
It makes one wonder if a woman will wait for this window of time to have an abortion so she can gain mercy and forgiveness. Or if she has carried around this deep sadness and guilt for years so that she would not be excommunicated.
For those who believe that forgiveness comes from Jesus Christ alone because of His death on the cross and that mercy can be found there any day, anytime, this proclamation by the Pope makes him appear to be playing God and bestowing this power upon other priests .
Francis is the first non-European pope in 1,300 years and has marked himself out for tolerance on taboo topics. Although he has shown no intention of retracting the Church’s opposition to abortion, he has alarmed conservatives by taking a less forceful tone than his predecessors.
Jesus gave us many examples of His Great love for mankind. It says in the BIBLE that Jesus said to his Apostles, “What sins you say are forgiven, are forgiven on earth and in Heaven, what sins are held fast on earth will be held fast in Heaven too. Like anyone else, I truly believe Jesus knows what is in your heart and He has the final word on who is forgiven. That is his JOB. Not mine and certainly not yours. He also said not to judge. Let the Pope do his job and then let Jesus, God, Lord, Jehovah, what ever choose to address HIM make the final decision. The decision is way over my PAY GRADE! Our job is to follow His Loving Example. Question: Can you name just one time Jesus did not forgive someone’s sins? I rest my case….