First the pope, now the bishops | National Catholic Reporter

First the pope, now the bishops | National Catholic Reporter by MSW.  MGB: Mr. Martin, like Burke, Vigneron and Paprocki still misunderstand the issue of abortion.  It is constitutional (for the most part), not political.  It can only happen in Congress, not in states and then only within the confines of the Fourteenth Amendment.  It can never be a mortal sin to accept the reality of the U.S. Constitution.  Indeed, any who feel that way are incompetent to serve and are lying when they swear to uphold it with no mental reservation.  Mostly, however, there is a profound difference with the law allowing some action by non-state actors and shouting ones support for abortion as some kind of cultural or environmental necessity (usually for the poor and the young).  The latter is sinful and requires looking at Canon 915.  Violation of it in the case of abortion is about direct and material involvement in a specific act or set of acts (like facilitating abortion for young black women or Catholic college bound girls).