SEATTLE – Washington state’s bishops have issued a statement supporting the dignity of all human life and opposing the state Legislature’s consideration of an “extreme constitutional amendment that would go far beyond Roe v. Wade.”
Senate Joint Resolution 8202 and House Joint Resolution 4201 would create a constitutional right to an abortion “at any point up to birth,” the bishops said in their Jan. 24 statement.
This goes beyond the current law, approved by Washington state voters, which allows abortions only until the point of viability, according to the statement signed by Seattle Archbishop Paul D. Etienne, Yakima Bishop Joseph J. Tyson, Spokane Bishop Thomas A. Daly, and Seattle Auxiliary Bishops Eusebio Elizondo and Frank Schuster, who shepherd some 1 million Catholics in Washington state.
In 2020, there were nearly 100,000 pregnancies in Washington state and just over 16,000 abortions, the bishops’ statement said, citing statistics from the state Health Department. The proposed constitutional amendment ignores an unborn baby’s right to life “and should be rejected by the Legislature,” they added.
On Jan. 24, Bishop Schuster testified on behalf of the five bishops before the state Senate Health & Long Term Care committee.
“Belief in the inherent dignity of every human life from the moment of conception until natural death is one of the most fundamental principles of Catholic moral teaching,” Bishop Schuster told the committee members. “This principle leads us to speak against abortion. This same principle of respecting the dignity of every human person also compels us to care for the most vulnerable in our communities, seek racial justice, accompany immigrant brothers and sisters, promote environmental justice and oppose the death penalty,” he testified. (Watch Bishop Schuster’s full testimony here.)
He noted that the Catholic Church has supported more than 10,000 families with young children around the state through the PREPARES (Pregnancy and Parenting Support) program, which operates under the umbrella of the state’s Catholic charities organizations.
SJR 8202, he said, “is extreme, it is evil and unnecessary.”
“We need to come together to care for individuals and families facing difficulties so they can choose life,” Bishop Schuster said. “So please join us in recognizing the dignity of all human life.”
In their statement, the bishops said Catholics must take this opportunity to speak up for the unborn and support life and contact the governor and their state representatives to weigh in on the issue.
“It is our moral obligation and our duty to vote our consciences on this amendment when the opportunity presents itself,” the bishops said.
“We call on Catholics and people of good will everywhere to continue their efforts to be involved in the political process to promote laws and policies supporting life, liberty, and justice for the common good,” they added. “This is our Christian calling and responsibility.”
Read the bishops’ full statement.
The Washington State Catholic Conference provides updates on state and federal legislation of interest to Catholics. Learn more here.