Aquila also stressed that Catholics who support these “rights” have “placed himself or herself outside of visible unity with the Church and thus should refrain from receiving Holy Communion” out of respect for the teaching of Jesus Christ and the Church.
On Tuesday, in an interview with the Associated Press, Brendan Daly, a spokesman for Pelosi, said that she "fully appreciates the sanctity of family" and based her views on conception on the "views of Saint Augustine, who said: '... the law does not provide that the act (abortion) pertains to homicide, for there cannot yet be said to be a live soul in a body that lacks sensation ...'"
While Daly could not deny that Catholic teaching is unambiguous about life beginning at conception, he tried to bolster Pelosi by saying that many Catholics do not agree with the Church’s teaching.
He also added that Rep. Pelosi "agrees with the Church that we should reduce the number of abortions" by increasing the availability of family planning such as comprehensive age-appropriate sex education and adoption programs.
CNA contacted the Archdiocese of San Francisco, the archdiocese to which Nancy Pelosi belongs, to determine whether or not Archbishop George Niederauer will issue a statement about the Speaker’s comments.
Maurice Healy, the Director of Communications for the Archdiocese of San Francisco, said that the archbishop will be addressing Pelosi’s comments in his September 5 column in the archdiocesan newspaper.
(Story continues below)
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Late on Wednesday afternoon the number of bishops criticizing Nancy Pelosi's comments grew as Archbishop Jose Gomez of San Antonio and his auxiliary Bishop Oscar Cantu added their voices.
"We agree whole heartedly with the statement issued by Cardinal Justin F. Rigali, chairman of the U.S. Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities and Bishop William E. Lori of the U.S. Bishops’ Committee on Doctrine," their statement said.