Cardinal Raymond L. Burke Cardinal Raymond Burke has maintained that Catholic bishops have a “sacred duty” to apply canon law by advising pro-choice politicians not to receive Holy Communion.
Issuing a 2,800-word statement Cardinal Burke recalled his efforts to persuade Catholic politicians to defend the lives of unborn children while serving as the bishop of La Crosse, Wisconsin, and later of St Louis, Missouri.
Cardinal Burke explained that he was speaking out because the issue was “a matter of life and death for the unborn and of eternal salvation for the Catholic politicians involved.” Addressing the controversy surrounding certain bishops’ refusal to administer Holy Communion to Catholic politicians who are pro-choice, Cardinal Burke stated that he believed that it was in the best interests of the Church to continue to withhold the Sacrament to those who contravene Church teaching as it could possibly “correct the scandal of Catholic politicians who publicly and obstinately promote procured abortion”.