Little Rock, Ark., Mar 12, 2008 / 06:09 am
A Catholic leader in Arkansas has apologized to the Susan G. Komen for the Cure Foundation for warning Catholics that fundraising activities for the breast cancer charity sometimes support Planned Parenthood.
Though the apology said the warning was based on an error, one pro-life group contended that the initial warning was necessary and that the apology ignored several problems with the charity.
Last month Monsignor J. Gaston Herbert, the administrator of the Diocese of Little Rock, said in a letter to parishes and Catholic schools that many affiliates of the Komen foundation contribute some of their funding to Planned Parenthood, the nation’s leading abortion provider. He also said that the foundation supports embryonic stem cell research and refuses to acknowledge a link between abortion and breast cancer.
On Thursday Monsignor Herbert met with foundation officials and issued an apology saying that the national Komen foundation and its Arkansas affiliates do not give grants to Planned Parenthood. He said a small number of affiliates give some grants directly to Planned Parenthood for breast examinations, treatment, and education.