Bishop Linus Lee Seong-hyo says the Church emphasizes ‘sacredness and dignity of human life’ and resolutely opposes abortion no matter what age the fetus is. (Photo: CPBC)
By UCA News reporter
July 12 2022
Bishop Linus Lee Seong-hyo of Suwon calls Biden’s views on termination tantamount to being ‘anti-Christian’
A South Korean Catholic bishop has criticized the country’s existing policy of legalizing abortion and called on lawmakers to engage in meaningful dialogue for change after the US Supreme Court overturned a pro-abortion ruling.
Bishop Linus Lee Seong-hyo of Suwon Diocese insisted that the US ruling is a clarion call for the nation to change its abortion policy, reported the Catholic Peace and Broadcasting Corporation (CBPC).
“The fetus has never violated a woman’s right to self-determination. Life is innate and is a dignity that no one can invade through any ideology,” said Bishop Lee, chairman of the Committee for Life of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Korea, during a CBPC interview aired last week.
In line with a ruling from the Constitutional Court in 2019 that said a ban on abortions was illegal, the South Korean government decided to decriminalize abortion up to the 14th week of pregnancy last year.
“The Church is resolutely opposed to the movement to abolish the abortion law in any case”
In addition, abortions would only be permitted up to the 24th week in cases of pregnancies from rape and health-related things.
Currently, the Korean parliament has six bills pending related to abortion. These include a bill seeking complete abolition of abortion as a crime and two bills seeking a ban on abortion after 6 weeks and 10 weeks respectively.
Bishop Lee said the Church strongly opposes abortion no matter the age of the fetus.
“The Church is resolutely opposed to the movement to abolish the abortion law in any case, regardless of the number of weeks,” said Bishop Lee.
The prelate also criticized Catholic politicians such as US President Joe Biden who opposed the overturning of the Roe v/s Wade decision by the US Supreme Court.
President Biden said that he believes that a woman’s right to choose is fundamental.
“Helping terminally ill patients commit suicide is not mercy, it is preventing a soul from being saved”
“Roe has been the law of the land for almost fifty years, and basic fairness and the stability of our law demand that it not be overturned,” President Biden said in a statement after the court decision.
Bishop Lee said such support of abortion was tantamount to being “anti-Christian views.”
The prelate also slammed Korean politicians, including Catholics, for endorsing the Assisted Dignity Justice Act, which would legalize doctor-assisted suicide for ending the lives of terminally ill patients with no chance of recovery.
The act brings no dignity to patients because “helping terminally ill patients commit suicide is not mercy, it is preventing a soul from being saved,” he said.
Since the 2019 Korean court order, the country has seen a rise in abortion cases. Government data revealed there were an estimated 32,000 abortions in 2020, compared to 4,800 in 2017.
South Korea’s Mother and Child Health Act 1953 criminalized abortion. However, media reports suggested that abortion continued secretly because the law was not strictly enforced.
Women’s and rights groups termed the ban discriminatory against women in a country and called it part of a broader bias against women in society.
The BBC reported that in 2019 an opinion poll found 58 percent of South Koreans favored abolishing the ban on abortion.
The South Korean Church has long campaigned for the protection of life and opposed abortion based on the Catholic Church’s stance on the “sacredness of life” that teaches that human life must be protected “from the very moment of conception.”
It has been conducting an annual “March for Life” rally with pro-life slogans such as “Respect life” and “Protect the fetus.”
In 2018, a church-sponsored anti-abortion petition gained one million signatures. – UCA News
