Pope Francis and the Pro-Abortion President (of Argentina)

National Catholic Register, 14 May 2021

The visit of Argentinian President Alberto Fernández to Pope Francis on Thursday was curious — and embarrassing — on several levels.

When Pope Francis thinks about Catholic politicians who promote abortion, it is likely that his first thought is about the president — not of the United States, but of his home country, Argentina. 

In a week where the duties of Catholic legislators regarding abortion was at the top of Vatican news, the visit of Argentinian President Alberto Fernández to Pope Francis on Thursday was curious on several levels.

It was the first visit of the president to the Vatican since Argentina legalized abortion last December. The topic was not raised in the meeting, or if it was, the Vatican press office chose not to mention it.

The Holy Father received President Fernández in a private audience on May 13. The meeting was held in a room adjacent to the Paul VI Audience Hall, not the library of the Apostolic Palace where heads of government are usually received. Nevertheless, Pope Francis does use it on occasion; he received Queen Elizabeth and the late Duke of Edinburgh there.

The same setting was used in 2009 when U.S. Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi requested an audience with Pope Benedict XVI. The Holy Father granted the audience, but forbade any photographs of it from being taken. There would be no photograph with Benedict for the Speaker to display, as President Joe Biden keeps a photograph of himself with Pope Francis in the Oval Office.

After any papal audience with government dignitaries, a bland statement is customarily issued. Not in 2009, when Vatican press office issued a rather spicy one, making it very clear that Benedict had told Pelosi that her public positions were incompatible with the Catholic faith:

 “[Benedict XVI] took the opportunity to speak of the requirements of the natural moral law and the Church’s consistent teaching on the dignity of human life from conception to natural death which enjoin all Catholics, and especially legislators, jurists and those responsible for the common good of society, to work in co-operation with all men and women of good will in creating a just system of laws capable of protecting human life at all stages of its development.”

Things were rather different on Thursday. For the first time in memory, the Vatican press statement did not even rise to the level of bland. It simply noted that the meeting took place without any reference to what the pope and president discussed.

The statement did note that in a subsequent meeting with the Secretary of State, gratitude was expressed for “good bilateral relations” and various topics were discussed: the pandemic, the economic crisis, the fight against poverty and the contribution of the Catholic Church in that regard.

There was no mention of Argentina’s recent abortion liberalization.

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