The Catholic View

Opposition to abortion is one of the clearest and oldest moral preachings of the Roman Catholic Church; it dates back to the 1st century. The destruction of the fetus, the church teaches, is a morally indefensible attack on human life. The only exception is "indirect abortion," or abortion as an incidental byproduct of a necessary attempt to save the mother's life. Ectopic pregnancy and cancer of the uterus are grounds for indirect abortion. Rape and incest are not exceptions, because the fetus conceived has the same right to life as any other fetus.

The Catholic view is based on a general respect...

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