The Archbishop of Madrid and president of the Bishops’ Conference of Spain, Cardinal Antonio Maria Rouco Varela, said this week the most serious element of the new bill on abortion is that it turns the practice into “a woman’s right.”
 
Speaking on the COPE radio network, the cardinal recalled that last June the Spanish bishops issued a statement about the proposed law that is under consideration and said turning abortion into “a woman’s right” signifies “a qualitative moral change that is very grave” and a “deep 'relativization' of the right to life.”
 
They called on all Spaniards to use every legal means possible to oppose the measure.
 
WYD Cross
 
Speaking later about the pilgrimage of the World Youth Day Cross throughout Spain, Cardinal Rouco noted that it was the same Cross given to the youth by John Paul II in 1984 when World Youth Day began.
 
The “underlying message” since the first World Youth Day is “the exaltation of the Cross. In the Cross is our salvation,” he said. “May young people know what path they must take in order to reach the fullness of their days.  The way of salvation is the crucified Lord,” who leads the way to man’s glorious future, the cardinal said.