By Rev. Ronald J. Wasowski, C.S.C.
I trust that Kevin Hershey's guest commentary in the March 5 Beacon does not give anyone the idea that he favors abortion.
I gather that he is profoundly pro-life but wants us to go farther. He is quite correct in asserting that all faithful Christians should have a very broad range of concerns encompassing violations of human dignity at all life stages and all social levels.
Hershey, however, draws a conclusion that is all too common among those who do not personally know many people who stand in defense of those yet to be born.
I am blessed to know many such people from around our nation. Without exception, they are deeply concerned not only about abortion but all violations of human dignity.
Their broader concerns go far beyond words and prayers; they extend as well to generosity of time, talent and treasure.
It is as if they had internalized the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' document entitled "Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship" long before it was published in November 2007.
True, that document begins with and emphasizes abortion, precisely because it is the deliberate killing of about 3,300 unborn children every day in the United States and a staggering 125,000 per day world wide.
Abortion is immediate, even in Portland. Carefully consider the following:
On Sep. 23, 2008, the Guttmacher Institute (the research and public relations affiliate of Planned Parenthood) issued a press release on abortion trends in the United States during the last 30 years. It states that "Hispanic and black women obtain abortions at rates three and five times higher, respectively, than non-Hispanic white women."
With city approval, Planned Parenthood is building one of its largest abortion clinics in the United States in the Portland neighborhood that has the highest population density of black women in the entire State of Oregon.
Should we simply stand back and let Planned Parenthood selectively kill unborn children of color, or should we try to do something constructive about it?
However, "Forming Consciences" goes far beyond abortion and addresses virtually all violations of human dignity, among them physician assisted suicide, immigration reform, unjust war and world justice and peace.
Long before "Forming Consciences" was published, the University of Portland established and continues to expand opportunities for the campus community to become aware of and active in a remarkably broad range of social justice issues.
For example, Hershey seems to be unaware of the Moreau Center for Service and Leadership and the many opportunities it provides, including plunge and immersion programs and the summer "Interns for Justice" program.
Similarly, the University of Portland's Garaventa Center for Catholic Intellectual Life and American Culture offers a wide variety of superb opportunities to expand our horizons on these issues.
Hershey listed several blatant violations of human dignity worldwide that apparently went unaddressed on our campus.
I regret that they went unaddressed, and I encourage him to form a student group similar to Voice for Life to raise awareness of these injustices and move beyond heartfelt words to constructive action.
