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Pope Meets Nancy Pelosi; Criticizes Her Pro-Choice Views

By Howard M. Friedman

Yesterday Pope Benedict XVI met privately for 15 minutes with U.S. House Speaker Nancy Peolsi who is on an official visit to Italy . In what may have been an uncomfortable meeting with Pelosi who is Catholic, but who favors keeping abortion legal, the Pope, according to CNS, "told her that all Catholics, especially those who are lawmakers, must work to protect human life at every stage." In the past, Pelosi had said that church leaders over the centuries disagreed on when life begins. The Vatican's statement after the Papal meeting with Pelosi focused on the "church's consistent teaching on the dignity of human life from conception to natural death." Pelosi in a statement released after the meeting said nothing of the abortion issue, and instead congratulated the Pope on a number of initiatives such as fighting poverty, hunger and global warming. BeliefNet also comments on the Pope's "reprimand" to Pelosi.

Full post as published by Religion Clause on February 19, 2009 (boomark / email).