Source: Huffington Post
Pope Francis is reportedly planning to offer a special pardon of sins to women who have undergone abortions, along with the doctors and nurses who helped them with that choice.
As part of his upcoming Holy Year of Mercy, the pontiff plans to send specially trained priests as “missionaries of mercy” to Catholic parishes around the world. The army of priests will reportedly hear these women’s confessions and absolve them of the “sin of a procured abortion,” the Irish Times reports. The forgiveness can also be given to healthcare workers who perform abortions.
Official Catholic doctrine places abortion in a special class of sins that leads to excommunication, a banishment from the life of the church that is considered one of its most serious punishments. Usually, only bishops or the Pope can offer forgiveness for these types of sins.
Pope Francis’ stance on the legality of abortion is in line with that of his predecessors, Pope Emeritus Benedict XVI and Saint John Paul II. During a Vatican meeting with doctors and ethicists last fall, Francis called abortion a “sin against God.”
But Francis has also placed a strong emphasis on mercy. In the past, he’s criticized church leaders for becoming “obsessed” with hot-button issues like abortion and same-sex marriage, instead of focusing on making sure the church is a “home for all.”
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Categories: Catholics, Europe and Australia, Highlight, The Muslim Times, Vatican City State
We appreciate Pope’s kindness, but, it is not up to the Pope or up to me or any person to forgive sin. It is up to God, who according to Islam is the “Master of the Day of Judgment.” Someone tweeted in response to my tweet about the Pope, in total amazement: “What? A priest can’t forgive his own sins!”
This may precisely be the reason, why there is no priesthood in Islam and every individual is encouraged to have a direct relationship with All-Knowing God, not to be modulated by any organized religion or individuals be they the Pope or the king of Saudi Arabia.
For a genuine understanding of repentance and reformation, may I suggest an article:
How to be Free from Addiction and Sin?