In a comment that has ignited the ire of many Mexicans, Carlos Garfias Merlos, the archbishop of Morelia, recently referred to abortion as more serious than rape.
Garfias Merlos was responding to a question about Giovanni Battista, the Italian cardinal who made similar statement days earlier regarding the rape of a nine-year-old Brazilian girl by her stepfather.
“Morally speaking, abortion is worse because it is killing an innocent (person),” Garfias said at a press conference. “Abortion cannot be forgiven … while abuse can take on different forms … that can reduce the seriousness of the crime.”
Garfias was talking to reporters about Pope Francis’ new global rules for reporting sexual abuse in the Catholic Church, which for the first time will require all dioceses to set up systems for reporting abuse and cover-ups.
Under the new rules, Catholic dioceses around the world must have a “public and accessible” system in place for reporting abuse by June 1, 2020.