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CNA Staff, Jun 17, 2025 / 18:46 pm (CNA).

British lawmakers have voted to decriminalize abortions in England and Wales in a move that pro-life advocates and medical professionals say could endanger women and unborn children. 

The House of Commons — the publicly-elected house of Parliament of the United Kingdom — approved on June 17 an amendment to change the law so that it would no longer be illegal for women to abort their unborn children for any reason, up to birth.  

Abortions in England and Wales are currently legal for up to 24 weeks of pregnancy with the approval of two doctors and in some other cases after 24 weeks. 

Labor member of Parliament (MP) Tonia Antoniazzi, who introduced the amendment, argued it was cruel to prosecute a woman for killing her unborn child and cited police investigations of more than 100 women for suspected illegal abortions.

In one case Antoniazzi cited, a mother of three who was eight months pregnant killed her unborn child and was then sentenced to about two years in prison. Antoniazzi said of the current law: “This is not justice, it is cruelty and it has got to end.”

The amendment was opposed by pro-life advocates and medical professionals. In a June 17 letter, more than 1,000 medical professionals urged the members of Parliament to oppose the abortion amendment.

In the letter, the medical professionals noted that the amendment would make abortions “possible up to birth for any reason including abortions for sex-selective purposes.” 

Antoniazzi’s amendment would, they said, “remove any legal deterrent against women administering their own abortions late in pregnancy.” 

The letter also encouraged the MPs to reinstate in-person check-ins for chemical abortions — a measure that was defeated on Tuesday.

Right to Life United Kingdom expressed concern that Antoniazzi’s amendment could endanger women “because of the risks involved with self-administered late-term abortions.”

In the June 17 press release, the pro-life group noted the high risk of late-term abortions and abortion pills, maintaining that the amendment “would enable abortion providers to cover up the disastrous consequences of the pills by post scheme.” 

The group also noted the high cost of lives lost related to the prospective abortion of viable unborn children. The amendment, they said, could lead to “an increased number of viable babies’ lives being ended well beyond the 24-week abortion time limit and beyond the point at which they would be able to survive outside the womb.” 

The decriminalization amendment, which was part of a broader crime bill, passed 379-137. The House of Commons will need to pass the crime bill before it goes to the House of Lords — the second chamber of the U.K. Parliament — where it could be delayed but not blocked.

The top bishop for life issues for the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, Archbishop John Sherrington of Liverpool, said the bishops were “deeply alarmed” by the passage of the amendment. 

“This decision significantly reduces the protection of unborn lives and will result in grave harm for pregnant women,” Sherrington said in a June 17 statement. 

Sherrington voiced concern that the change “will result in women being more alone, vulnerable, and isolated.”

“Abortion is often chosen because of the personal challenges that a woman faces as well as the lack of proper suitable guidance and support,” he said. 

The change in the law will make women “even more vulnerable to manipulation, coerced and forced abortions,” he said.

“This legal change will also discourage medical consultation and make the use of abortion pills for dangerous late-term, at-home abortions more likely,” he added. 

But the Church, the archbishop said, “keeps working tirelessly to protect the dignity of every life.”

“We will not abandon pregnant women and their unborn children in their most vulnerable moment,” Sherrington said. 

“Let us continue to pray and commend the lives of these women, children, their families, and all who support them to the maternal intercession of Our Lady, Mother of God,” he concluded.

This story was updated on June 18, 2025, at 11:28 a.m. ET with the statement from Archbishop Sherrington.

Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Jun 17, 2025 / 18:26 pm (CNA).

As the Trump administration steps up immigration enforcement actions throughout the country, U.S. bishops are raising their voices in solidarity with unauthorized immigrants who are being arrested “on the basis of immigration status alone” and sending the message that “enforcement alone” cannot be the solution to addressing the nation’s immigration challenges.

Speaking on behalf of his fellow bishops, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops president Archbishop Timothy Broglio stated that “law enforcement actions aimed at preserving order and ensuring community security are necessary for the common good. However, the current efforts go well beyond those with criminal histories.”

“The mass arrest and removal of our neighbors, friends, and family members on the basis of immigration status alone, particularly in ways that are arbitrary or without due process, represent a profound social crisis before which no person of goodwill can remain silent,” Broglio said.

“On behalf of my brother bishops, I want to assure all of those affected by actions which tear at the fabric of our communities of the solidarity of your pastors,” Broglio continued. “Count on the commitment of all of us to stand with you in this challenging hour.”

At the same time, referencing protests against immigration enforcement in various cities across the country, Broglio insisted that “while protest and dissent can be a legitimate expression of democratic participation, violence is never acceptable.”

The prelate also pushed back against what he said were “unfounded accusations against Catholic service providers, who every day endeavor to provide critical support and care to the most vulnerable,” adding that such accusations “contribute to societal tensions and a growing climate of fear.”

Broglio concluded by calling for “just and humane solutions” to these immigration challenges and pledged the “cooperation and goodwill” of the nation’s bishops toward that end.

Washington D.C., Jun 17, 2025 / 17:56 pm (CNA).

During the first hearing of President Donald Trump’s Religious Liberty Commission, Bishop Robert Barron echoed Pope Benedict XVI’s warning against the “dictatorship of relativism” encroaching on American society.

Barron, bishop of the Diocese of Winona-Rochester, Minnesota, said at the June 16 hearing that “religion is being attacked in our society” and referenced a homily given by then-Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger in April 2005, the day before he was elected pope.

“[This attack] is coming from a … philosophy that Joseph Ratzinger — Pope Benedict XVI — called the ‘dictatorship of relativism,’” Barron said. “I call it the culture of self-invention: the complete prioritization given to individual autonomy; that we decide value, that we decide meaning, that we decide purpose.”

That philosophy, according to Barron, “rightly appreciates the classical religions as the chief opponent.” He said these tensions arise from religious views that stand for objective moral values grounded on God and a stable human nature, which leads adherents of relativism to seek to push faith out of sectors of public life, such as in education and health care.

Many members of the commission and guest witnesses expressed similar concerns about the lack of faith and decline in religious liberty in the country through laws and regulations at the federal and state levels of government.

This includes rules that force religious Americans to violate their beliefs through contraception mandates for health care coverage, which the Little Sisters of the Poor defeated at the Supreme Court. Yet Catholic nuns are still fighting state-level contraception mandates in states like New York. 

Members also touched on parental rights in education, such as the ongoing Supreme Court case against Montgomery County Public Schools, where officials are denying parents the ability to opt their children out of lessons that promote transgenderism as early as preschool.

The commission includes two Catholic prelates: Barron and Cardinal Timothy Dolan, the latter of whom was absent due to transportation issues. The 14-member commission is led by Texas Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick and includes Ryan Anderson, president of the Ethics and Public Policy Center; Pastor Paula White, special advisor to the White House Faith Office; psychologist and talk show host Phil McGraw; and neurosurgeon Dr. Ben Carson.

Attorney General Pam Bondi, who spoke at the hearing, said the president is seeking to reverse these trends, adding that the commission’s work is “vital to addressing the emerging threats to religious liberty.” The commission will develop a report within the next year to advise Trump on how he can combat threats to religious freedom.

Bondi, who said religious liberty is “built into the foundation of our founding documents,” voiced criticism of the past administration under former President Joe Biden. She noted some recent threats to religious liberty including the prosecution of pro-life protesters, an FBI investigation into traditionalist Catholics, and the shutdown of places of worship during COVID-19.

“Every individual must be free to worship without fear, without coercion, and without government interference,” Bondi said. 

Freedom to worship or free exercise?

One theme throughout the first hearing of the commission was that the First Amendment guarantee that Congress shall make no law “prohibiting the free exercise” of religion is not limited to simply a freedom to worship God but rather extends to living out one’s faith.

Anderson, for example, argued that attacks on religious liberty are not just related to worship but rather extend to attacks on the right to “bring your religious values into the public square.”

One of the expert witnesses who addressed the commission, Becket Fund for Religious Liberty president Mark Rienzi, emphasized this point, noting that the “freedom to live out one’s faith” is essential to the First Amendment, adding that religious liberty is “the basis and bellwether for all human rights.”

Rienzi spoke about the historical efforts to defend religious liberty in the United States, noting that there were bad Supreme Court cases throughout American history, such as the Minersville School District v. Gobitis decision, which sought to force Jehovah’s Witnesses to salute the flag in schools despite their belief that it was “equivalent to worshipping a false idol.” 

This 1940 decision was quickly overturned just three years later when the court ruled in favor of Jehovah’s Witnesses in West Virginia who refused to salute the flag. Rienzi said governments often try to reject religious liberty for the case of convenience but that the court decided “some things are beyond the reach of politics and government.” 

“There are places in our lives where the government is not allowed to go,” Rienzi added.

Separation of church and state

Questions about the separation of church and state and to what degree the government can or should promote religion as a public good were also discussed at length during the commission’s hearing. 

Mark David Hall, the director of the Center for Religion, Culture, and Democracy at Regent University, testified that the separation of church and state is not a “bilateral barrier” but is rather meant to only restrict the state from imposing itself on the church.

Former Notre Dame law professor Gerard Bradley, who spoke as an expert witness, similarly said the American Founding Fathers did not envision a public “secularized space in which religion was banished.”

He argued that a proper promotion of the common good includes “encouragement and help and recognition of religion.” For example, he criticized lawmakers for justifying legislative prayer as just a way to solemnize the activity, arguing they should simply say “we’re praying here.”

“It’s fine if the government works with religion, even for the sake of religion,” Bradley said. 

Bradley encouraged “promoting religion for the sake of religion,” such as having prayer in public schools, but noted that the government must be careful to not be sectarian. He also said any promotion should have voluntary observance and any policy should be “considered carefully” to ensure there are no violations of people’s rights.

McGraw, commonly known as “Dr. Phil,” mildly pushed back on that position, saying: “If we’re promoting religion, that’s different than promoting choice.”

Bradley responded, arguing that just like the government “ought to promote marriage and family as good things” it should also “promote [religion] as a good thing” rather than remain neutral on the subject.

Archbishop Edward J. Weisenburger greets parishioners at Our Lady of the Lakes Parish in Waterford after Mass on Sunday, June 15, during a reception at the parish. The archbishop continues to greet parishioners around the Archdiocese of Detroit as he travels throughout southeast Michigan's communities.