Bishops in Mexico's Hidalgo state affirm opposition to abortion after decriminalization

By David Ramos

Tulancingo, Mexico, Aug 14, 2021 / 06:01 am

The bishops in the Mexican state of Hidalgo on Tuesday exhorted respect for life from conception, after the state legislature decriminalized elective abortion up to 12 weeks.

"Abortion is in itself is an evil act although some try to pass it off as good,” read an Aug. 10 statement signed by Archbishop Domingo Díaz Martínez of Tulancingo and his suffragans, Bishop José Hiraís Acosta Beltrán of Huejutla and Bishop Juan Pedro Juárez Meléndez of Tula.

They warned that whoever performs or procures an abortion "will be held accountable to God” and that “whoever seeks evil, sooner or later will find evil in his life.”

All three sees are located in Mexico’s Hidalgo state.

Hidalgo’s unicameral legislature decriminalized elective abortion up to 12 weeks of pregnancy June 30, with almost all members of Morena voting for it. Of the 30 representatives in the state legislature, 17 are from Morena.

Pro-life leaders have criticized the passage of the abortion law, citing irregularities in the legislative process.

A formal complaint was filed July 9 with the Hidalgo state Special Prosecutor's Office for Crimes of Corruption against the lawmakers who voted to legalize abortion.

In addition to Hidalgo, three Mexican federal entities have legalized elective abortion up to 12 weeks: Mexico City, Oaxaca, and Veracruz.

The bishops stated that "the moral gravity involved” in performing or procuring an abortion "is not diminished even if the attempt is made to use other language to describe the same reality (as abortion is euphemistically called 'interruption of pregnancy' or 'reproductive health'), or even if some law has approved it.” 

Addressing the term "interruption of pregnancy", the state’s bishops stressed that "when a pregnancy is interrupted, the new being is killed in the mother's womb."

"It is a definitive lethal action," they stressed.

“For that person who today is faced with the dilemma of aborting or not, we want to tell you that the legislators may have the power to pass a law, but they do not have the power to free you from guilt for the life they are annihilating; You’re approving of abortion! And by approving it you are perishing," they said.

 The bishops pointed out that "those of us who are convinced of the value of life have no need for a murderous law like the one they’re approving."

"We hope that your option for life is not conditioned by an ideology or a material interest, but is motivated by faith, hope and love," they stressed.

Graduated in Communication Sciences from the Universidad Privada del Norte in Trujillo, Peru. I have been part of the ACI Prensa team for more than 10 years. I have covered Pope Francis' trips to Ecuador, Paraguay, Mexico, Colombia, Chile, and Peru. I covered the beatification ceremony of today's Saint Oscar Arnulfo Romero in San Salvador, El Salvador, in 2015. Special envoy for investigation in Honduras in 2016. Head of the ACI Prensa Office in Mexico since 2018.