French Bishops Pressure Catholic Youths to Ignore Their Consciences in Regard to Women’s Rights
In response to the annual March for Life, held in Paris on January 21, the Rural Movement of Catholic Youth issued a statement calling the march’s antichoice message “intolerance and hate” disguised as Christian values. The group’s statement went on to declare that it recognized abortion to be a “fundamental right for women and couples.” A spokesperson for the church immediately described the statement as a result of “dysfunctioning” within the group and Bishop Bernard Ginoux declared the group was no longer Catholic and would no longer receive subsidies from his diocese. Facing severe financial and institutional pressure, the Rural Movement of Catholic Youth officially withdrew its statement and hoped that French Catholics would maintain an open dialogue on the topic of abortion.