L’Osservatore Romano Won’t Let me Defend Myself Says Brazil Archbishop

L’Osservatore Romano Won’t Let me Defend Myself Says Brazil Archbishop...

"Every man, woman, and child of the age of reason knows right from wrong, for he has been given an inborn conscience. At the moment of his conception life is within the womb, and at the moment of conception a life is forming, regardless of what the agents of hell now pollute the minds of mankind with, creating murders of the young! I say unto you, life begins at the moment of conception and all who extinguish this light are murderers, and without repentance shall be condemned to hell!" - Jesus, June 18, 1977

LifeSiteNews.com reported on June 3, 2009:

The Archbishop of Olinda and Recife, Jose Cardoso Sobrinho, is asking that the Vatican newspaper L'Osservatore Romano publish his response to Archbishop Salvatore "Rino" Fisichella, who criticized him on its pages on March 15 for having announced the excommunication of the doctors who assisted in a now-famous abortion on a nine-year-old girl.

"It seems to me important that L’Osservatore Romano should publish my response," Cardoso told the French newspaper Present in a recent interview. "This is what we are trying to obtain, as we have been from the start."

"We sent the archdiocese’s response to Mgr Fisichella’s article to Rome. It’s a natural right to be allowed to respond if someone has been publishing false information, for who knows which motive: the readers of L'Osservatore should also be in a position to know the other point of view."

The article, entitled "On the Side of the Brazilian Girl," shocked the pro-life world by defending the doctors who killed the unborn twins of a nine-year-old child in Recife, Brazil, and criticizing Cardoso for announcing the automatic excommunication from the Catholic Church incurred under Church law for committing an abortion.

Cardoso observes that the piece by Fisichella contained raw factual errors. In particular the article implied that the world would never have known about the case if the Archbishop had not mentioned the excommunication, suggested that Cardoso had immediately announced the excommunication without prior contact with the media, and that the girl's life was in danger from the pregnancy.

In reality, the Brazilian media had already been reporting on the girl's situation for several days, and the hospital where she was initially admitted acknowledged that she was in no danger at the time of the abortion (see LifeSiteNews' extensive coverage).

Cardoso also explains that he had already spoken to the media several times even before the abortion was committed. “I expressed myself several times [to the media] because this affair of a nine year-old pregnant girl attracted widespread media attention," he said. "Above all, we did all that depended on us to save three lives: not only the life of the little girl, but the three lives. When the abortion finally did take place, I simply recalled once more the law of the Church.”

Pro-abortion activists, including the former President of "Catholics for Choice," Frances Kissling, openly applauded the article by Fisichella, which critics have said used rhetoric similar to that of the pro-abortion movement.

Although the Archdiocese of Olinda and Recife has responded to the charges, L'Osservatore Romano has yet to reprint any of the material defending the decision by Cardoso. However, two members of the Pontifical Academy for Life, Judie Brown and Joseph Seifert (see coverage), have objected publicly to what they have said is an attack on Cardoso, as has Human Life International and other pro-life organizations.

Related Links:

English translation of "On the Side of the Brazilian Girl" by Archbishop Salvatore Fisichella
http://novantiqua.com/2009/03/20/translation-of-archbishop-fisichellas-intervention-on-the-brazilian-excommunications/

Declaration of the Archdiocese of Olinda and Recife
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/mar/09031805.html

Related LifeSiteNews coverage:

International Pro-Abortion Group Conspired With Hospital to Kill Unborn Twins in Famous Brazilian Case
Part I - http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/mar/09032018.html
Part II - http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/mar/09032413.html
Part III - http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/mar/09032018.html

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Archbishop of Recife Rebuts Criticisms of Vatican Official for Excommunication of Abortion Doctors...

LifeSiteNews.com reported on March 29, 2009:

The Archbishop of Recife, Brazil, Jose Cardoso Sobrinho has issued a firm rebuttal to criticisms that have been leveled at him for announcing the excommunication of doctors who performed an abortion on a nine-year-old girl in Recife in March. Although Sobrinho does not mention him by name, his response has been widely interpreted as being directed in part against an article written by Archbishop Salvatore Fisichella, President of the Pontifical Academy for Life, and published by the Vatican's newspaper, L'Osservatore Romano, following the excommunications.

In an interview with the French newspaper Present, Cardoso responded to statements by his critics, including Fisichella, that it wasn't proper to announce the excommunication of the doctors in the famous abortion case.

"Some, when speaking of the publicity given to this affair, affirm that it wasn't 'opportune' to speak of excommunication," said Cardoso. "I am not in agreement with this point of view. I am told that that the excommunication should have been almost forgotten. My opinion is different. I say that this law exists for the good of the Church."

Cardoso added: "This is a law of the Church, for the good of the Church. It has existed for several centuries ... Would it better to be silent? Well, in my opinion, it is of the highest importance to draw the attention of everyone and especially the Catholic faithful, to the seriousness of the crime of abortion. It is for that reason that the law exists."

The Archbishop explained that excommunication should not be considered an act of cruelty, but a way of correcting and healing those who involve themselves in evil.

"We, in our diocese, have received many messages from many people who have told me 'Now, I understand better the gravity of abortion, and I will change my conscience,'" said Cardoso. "In my opinion, the act of the drawing attention to the existence of this excommunication produces a spiritual benefit among the Catholic faithful, but also among others, who, apparently, quietly undergo abortions and who, I believe from now on, will weigh in their conscience the gravity of what they are doing. And this is the final goal of this law of the Church, of this penalty of excommunication: it is medicinal. It is a remedy in view of the conversion of all."

Cardoso also noted the likely political consequences of not enforcing the Church's law in Brazil.

Here in Brazil, we are in the process of preparing a law to legalize abortion," he told Present. "We Catholics must speak first on moral responsibility. Evidently, there are Catholics in our Parliament who defend the law of God, but there are others who defend this bill, beginning with the president of the Republic. We cannot remain silent!"

The article by Archbishop Fisichella, which appeared in L’Osservatore Romano on March 15 and was later republished by the newspaper in multiple languages, was written without consulting with Archbishop Cardoso. It defended the doctors who had killed the unborn twins and insinuated that the abortion had saved the life of the girl. However, as LSN has revealed in its reporting on the case, the hospital where the girl was originally admitted stated that her life was in no danger at the time of the procedure.

"Others deserve excommunication and our forgiveness, not those who enabled you to live and who will help you to recover your hope and trust - despite the presence of evil and the wickedness of many," Fisichella wrote, addressing the 9-year-old girl.

The article implied that the act of declaring the abortion against the physicians was cruel and distracted attention from the needs of the girl, a contention rejected by Archbishop Cardoso.

Although Fisichella is the President of the Pontifical Academy for Life, his statement in the Recife case have drawn criticism from Pro-Life leaders worldwide, including American Life League President Judy Brown, herself a member of the Academy, and Fr. Thomas Euteneur, President of Human Life International.

Archbishop Cardoso received Human Life International's Cardinal von Galen Award for the Defense of Life on April 16.

Related Links:

Extended excerpts from interview with Archbishop Jose Cardoso Sobrinho

http://bluewavecanada.blogspot.com/2009/05/exclusive-bishop-of-recife-defends.html

Previous LIfeSiteNews coverage:

International Pro-Abortion Group Conspired With Hospital to Kill Unborn Twins in Famous Brazilian Case –

Part I: http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/mar/09032018.html

Part II: http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/mar/09032413.html

Part III: http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/mar/09032514.html

Brazilian Archbishop Who Announced Excommunication of Abortionists Receives International Pro-Life Award

http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/apr/09041709.html

Pro-Life Leaders Worldwide Concerned About Weakening of Vatican's Pro-Life Stand in Wake of Uncorrected Vatican Newspaper Article

http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/may/09050104.html

Brazilian Medical Expert Counters Statements by Vatican Official Defending Abortion for Nine-Year-Old Girl

http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/mar/09031904.html

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"I'm not sorry. What I did was to declare the excommunication. It is my obligation to alert the people, so that they may fear the laws of God" - Archbishop Sobrinho

Archbishop announces excommunication of doctor and family members for abortion on nine-year-old girl...

LifeSiteNews.com reported on March 5, 2009:

The Archbishop of the Brazilian city of Recife has announced the excommunication of a doctor who performed an abortion on a nine year old girl, as well as the family members who made the decision to carry out the procedure.

The girl, whose name has not been revealed by the Brazilian media, was found to be pregnant with twins recently. Her stepfather has confessed that he began molesting her at the age of three and that he is the father of the child. He is under arrest pending an investigation of his relationship with his stepdaughter, as well as her 14 year old sister.

Although doctors at the hospital where the girl was initially admitted, Imip, reportedly said that her life was not in danger, her mother reportedly transferred her to another hospital, Cisam, that was willing to do the abortion, which is not penalized under Brazilian law because the girl was raped.

José Cardoso Sobrinho, Archbishop of Olinda and Recife, confirmed that while the child would not be held accountable for the act, the doctor who carried out the abortion and anyone who assisted or gave their approval were excommunicated by the Church.

"To be subject to this penalty is it is necessary to be of age. The Church is very benevolent, especially with minors," the Archbishop told the media. "Now the adults, those who approved, who carried out this abortion, are excommunicated."

Sobrinho brushed aside the notion that the legality of the abortion under Brazilian law was a sufficient excuse for those involved.

"The law of God is above all human law," he said. "Therefore, when a human law, meaning a law promulgated by human legislators, is contrary to the law of God, this human law has no value."

Abortion, he said, is "homicide against innocent life. We are talking about a silent holocaust, that kills a one million innocents in Brazil and fifty million in the world every year, a holocaust worse than the six million Jews, which we lament every year."

The Archdiocese of Olinda and Recife was preparing to file a motion to prevent the abortion when news arrived that it had already been carried out.

The Archbishop's decision to announce the excommunication, which is automatic under the Church's law for those who participate in an abortion, was met with denunciations publicized by Brazil's media, which is dominated by liberal ideologues. Among those quoted was Brazil's pro-abortion health minister, Jose Gomes Temporao, who repeated the claim that the girl was at risk from the pregnancy.

However, an attorney for the Archdiocese, who was preparing to file a motion to stop the abortion when word came that it had already been done, told the media that "various specialists from Imip, which is a major hospital, say that she didn't have a risk of dying. They could have waited longer."

In an interview with ElPais.com yesterday, Sobrinho held firm.

"I'm not sorry. What I did was to declare the excommunication. It is my obligation to alert the people, so that they may fear the laws of God," he told the online publication.

The Archbishop will reportedly give a homily against abortion at the launch of the National Conference of Brazilian Bishops annual Fraternity Campaign this Saturday. Last year's Campaign was entitled "Fraternity and the Defense of Life" and galvanized the nation's Catholic majority against the practice.

A nationwide poll last year indicated that 68% of Brazilians oppose the further legalization of the abortion, which is not criminally penalized only in rape cases, or when the mother's life is in danger.

Sobrinho made headlines earlier this month when he denounced the distribution of millions of contraceptives for Carnival, a festival that precedes the Catholic celebration of Lent.

Related LifeSiteNews coverage:

The Pro-Life Pentecost in Brazil, and what it Means for the Rest of the World
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/mar/08032010.html

Catholic Diocese Shows Horrors of Abortions to Faithful, Displays Fetal Models in Parishes
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/mar/08031208.html

Brazilian Bishops Launch Major National Campaign Against Abortion, Euthanasia, and Embryonic Stem Cell Research
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/feb/08020810.html

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"Our hearts are torn because of the wanton murder of the young by evil man. Abortion, My children, is murder, the most foulest of deeds, that is punishable by death! And what is worse than death of the soul?
"I say unto you, as your Mother, that any man or woman who performs or takes part of this abomination of the murder of the unborn shall be given a heavy penance upon earth, or if this penance is not given upon earth, that person found guilty in the eyes of his God shall suffer eternal damnation in the fires of hell." - Our Lady of the Roses, December 28, 1976

The awesome Bayside Prophecies... https://www.tldm.org/Bayside/default.htm
These prophecies came from Jesus, Mary, and the saints to Veronica Lueken at Bayside, NY, from 1968 to 1995:

SIN OF OMISSION
"The sin of omission shall condemn many to hell, be they layman or Hierarchy. I repeat: not the sin of commission, but the sin of omission will commit many to hell. Among them there will be also mitres." - Our Lady, October 6, 1980

U.S. SHALL BE FIRST STRUCK
"One of the reasons the Eternal Father chose your city and your state for My appearance was because of abortion, the murder of the holy innocents. Your nation, without repentance, shall be the first struck." - Our Lady, March 15, 1978

THE UNITED STATES SHALL FALL
"How can a great country like the United States fall, you say, My child? You ask Me in your heart. I read your heart. I will tell you why. Because they have given themselves over to satan. When a country has lost its morality and seeks the pleasures of the flesh, giving over, themselves over, to all manner of abominations, like homosexuality, and condoning this up the highest courts of the land, then that country shall fall." - Our Lady of the Roses, November 1, 1985

DOCTORS
"Doctors now are profaning their profession, those who have given themselves over to destroying human life in abortions." - Jesus, June 6, 1987

FOULEST OF DEEDS
"Our hearts are torn because of the wanton murder of the young by evil man. Abortion, My children, is murder, the most foulest of deeds, that is punishable by death! And what is worse than death of the soul?
"I say unto you, as your Mother, that any man or woman who performs or takes part of this abomination of the murder of the unborn shall be given a heavy penance upon earth, or if this penance is not given upon earth, that person found guilty in the eyes of his God shall suffer eternal damnation in the fires of hell." - Our Lady, December 28, 1976

DESTROYED
"All who become part of or condone abortion, the murder of the young, shall be destroyed!" - Jesus, June 2, 1979

HUMAN LIFE IS SACRED
"The Eternal Father command that you stop these murders at once! You will not destroy the lives of the unborn. Human life is sacred in the eyes of your God. No man has the right to destroy a life. The Father, He sends this life to you, and only He will decide when it will return back to the Kingdom.
"Do not, My children, be deceived by the words of the evil ones about you who cry to you of no space left for man. There is space, for My Father has a plan for every life He sends." - Our Lady, August 5, 1971

WILL NEVER BE CONDONED
"You will remember, My children and My child, to guard the young. Your clergy have fallen into darkness. Abortion will never be condoned. But We must have others who fervently will go forward and bring out to the minds of those who have actually seduced the country and the children--bring them the knowledge of Heaven, hell and purgatory. Then they will not have free license to sin." - Our Lady, May 28, 1983

GOVERNMENT
"For that one reason among many, the United States will suffer unless there is placed into your government a group that fears the Lord if they cannot love the Lord. They will fear Him and find measures to stop the slaughter of the unborn." - Our Lady, April 14, 1984

NUNS
"That is what makes My heart ache, My child. That is one of the reasons Theresa is crying constantly when she looks into the convents and sees what is going on. Many now believe in abortion, the murders of the children; and many have committed this act upon themselves." - Jesus, October 1, 1988

SIXTY MILLION
"I say this for this reason: the Eternal Father is much disturbed at the numbers of abortions being committed throughout your country and the world. These numbers go upwards to fifty to sixty million in one year throughout the world." - Our Lady, June 18, 1986

TREATED AS GARBAGE
"O My child, My tears fall upon you all when I see all of the innocent little babies being slaughtered . . . cast into garbage pails like nothing but dirt and scum. They are living human beings! And all murderers shall get their just recompense." - Our Lady, March 18, 1983

BOMBS IN THE UNITED STATES
"These interlopers upon the serenity of the United States have dark skins.... With their plans there will be bombs placed in strategic places and many shall die at the hands of these ruffians....
"One big reason for permitting this disaster in New York would be the abortion mills throughout the city and the country." - Jesus, October 1, 1988

HOLY SPIRIT
"At the time of conception, the Holy Spirit makes the child, and the breath of the Almighty gives it life." - Our Lady, June 18, 1991

LIMBO
"And what, My children, are We going to do with all the aborted babies? O My child, I know you feel as I do, for I can see the great distress on your face. What are We going to do, My child? Do you understand when they come to Us, they must go to Limbo? They are in Heaven, a happy place, but they cannot see God." - Our Lady, October 2, 1987

SORROWFULLY
"Sorrowfully, the penance that is to come upon the world for the murders of the unborn shall be a chastisement far greater in severity than man has ever witnessed in the past nor ever shall pass through again. Your world is plunging into a deep chasm of suffering and destruction." - Our Lady, May 20, 1978

OATH
"Your once loyal to the oath of a doctor, your once loyal doctors are now butchers! For money they kill the young!" - Our Lady, February 10, 1978

WOE TO THE WOMAN
"Know, My child, this simple lesson, that in these days of the latter times, women will seek to cast off their role as mother and a woman. Women will cast it off under the direction of satan, and murder her children. Woe to the woman who does not repent of this vile abomination! She has walked the road to eternal damnation and hell. Repent, O woman, or forever be lost!" - Our Lady, March 18, 1975

Directives from Heaven... https://www.tldm.org/directives/directives.htm

D23 - Abortion PDF
D142 - Sin of Omission PDF
D196 - Life Begins at Conception PDF

Articles...

Pope Benedict to bishops: Make everyone understand the "evil of the crime of abortion"
https://www.tldm.org/News8/PopeBenedictCrimeOfAbortion.htm

Pope Benedict: Abortion, divorce, homosexual unions "are evident signs of de-Christianization"
https://www.tldm.org/News9/PopeSignsOfDe-Christianization.htm

Sleep disorders increase after abortion, says new study
https://www.tldm.org/News9/AbortionSleepDisorders.htm

Pro-abortion scientist finds abortion causes, rather than prevents, serious mental disorders
https://www.tldm.org/News9/AbortionMentalDisorders.htm

Abortion: the ultimate exploitation of women
https://www.tldm.org/news6/exploitation.htm

Abortion and the contraceptive mentality
https://www.tldm.org/news4/contraception_abortion.htm

'Non-persons' in U.S. history
https://www.tldm.org/News9/AbortionNonPerson.htm

Archbishop Chaput says abortion is "central social issue of this moment" in U.S. history
https://www.tldm.org/news6/Chaput3.htm

Archbishop Chaput says those who support abortion "rights" cannot be Catholic
https://www.tldm.org/News7/Chaput.htm

Catholics who vote pro-abortion commit a mortal sin
https://www.tldm.org/News6/VotingPro-ChoiceJohnKerry.htm

Separation of Church and State: "a fatal theory"
https://www.tldm.org/News6/separation.htm

Full text of Cardinal Ratzinger's letter to U.S. bishops, that they must refuse Communion to pro-abort politicians
https://www.tldm.org/News7/Ratzinger.htm

Cardinal Ratzinger says that refusing Holy Communion to pro-abortion politicians is a "doctrine of the Church"
https://www.tldm.org/News7/Ratzinger3.htm

Your names have been written in Heaven… "It is not by accident that you are called by My Mother, for your names have been written in Heaven.... But with this great grace you have great responsibility to send this Message from Heaven throughout the world, for if you are able to recover just one more for Heaven, an additional star shall be placed in your crown." - Jesus, August 5, 1975

A great obligation to go forward... "It is not by accident that you are called by My Mother, for it is by merit and the prayers that have risen to Heaven for your salvation. For those who have received the grace to hear the Message from Heaven, you have a great obligation to go forward and bring this Message to your brothers and sisters. Do not expect a rest upon your earth, for you will have eternal rest very soon." - Jesus, June 12, 1976

The sin of omission... "The sin of omission shall condemn many to hell, be they layman or Hierarchy. I repeat: not the sin of commission, but the sin of omission will commit many to hell." Our Lady of the Roses, October 6, 1980

We encourage everyone to print or email copies of this web page to all the Bishops and all the clergy. Also, email or send this web page to the news media and as many people as possible.

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Abortion: the ultimate exploitation of women https://www.tldm.org/news6/exploitation.htm

Abortion: the ultimate exploitation of women
https://www.tldm.org/news6/exploitation.htm