Enemies From Within: The Role Of The Catholic Community

Enemies from Within In the age of modern secular culture, the life of the Catholic has become increasingly difficult to live out and uphold. Contradicting social influences, along with complex, ethical issues like abortion, lead many Catholic individuals astray, resulting in the development of fake, nominal Catholics and even formed organizations like Catholics for Choice. Religious freedom grants pro-choice Catholics the ability to withdraw from the faith, demonstrating its important role in protecting the dignity of all humans as well as establishing more genuine and consistent Catholic ideals of human life in the public square. Not only does the gift of religious freedom grant Catholics the right to their personal belief, but also

For example, Catholics for Choice, a pro-life and so-called Catholic organization, has come to rise and gained popularity, claiming their belief “in a world where everyone has equal access to the full range of reproductive healthcare services—including access to safe and legal abortion services and affordable and reliable forms of contraception” (Catholics). However, people who stand for pro-choice go against the Catholic teaching that, “Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception…Formal cooperation in an abortion constitutes a grave offense” (Catholic Church 2270). By claiming themselves as pro-choice supporters but contradictorily declaring themselves as members of the Catholic Church, nominal Catholics such as “Catholics for Choice” present the grave challenge of undermining the faith’s credibility through failure to exemplify and uphold the Catholic Church’s teachings on human life. Pro-choice Catholics cause confusion and contradicting views in the public sphere, making Catholicism appear inconsistent and unclear. Religious freedom assures that, “Nobody may be forced to act against his convictions, nor is anyone to be restrained from acting in accordance with his conscience in religious matters in private or in public” (2106). Rather than giving themselves the misnomer of a pro-choice Catholic and inaccurately representing the Church, pro-choice individuals have the capability to step down from the Catholic faith due to the rights imparted by religious