Bishop Thomas John Paprocki of the Diocese of Springfield, Ill., has barred Sen. Dick Durbin from receiving Holy Communion for his recent vote against a bill that would have banned late-term abortions.
Paprocki, who heads the Roman Catholic community in the Springfield area, made his decision last week to ban the senator from receiving the sacrament after the Senate failed to pass The Pain-Capable Unborn Children’s Act last month.
The act, which failed to win the 60 votes needed to advance the bill in the Senate, would have prohibited abortion procedures after 20 weeks after conception.
“Fourteen Catholic senators voted against the bill that would have prohibited abortions starting at 20 weeks after fertilization, including Sen. Richard Durbin, whose residence is in the Diocese of Springfield in Illinois,” Paprocki wrote in a statement. He made the decision last week, but it reported widely on Wednesday.
Citing his predecessors and Sen. Durbin’s former pastor’s decision to bar him from Holy Communion due to his pro-choice stances, Paprocki announced he will continue to hold that position “until he repents of this sin.”
The bishop explained that the Catholic Church’s Code of Canon Law and other governing doctrines have explicitly said those who commit “grave sins” and fail “to protect the lives of the innocent and defenseless” should not be admitted Holy Communion.
“Because his voting record in support of abortion over many years constitutes ‘obstinate persistence in manifest grave sin,’ the determination continues that Sen. Durbin is not to be admitted to Holy Communion until he repents of this sin,” he said. “This provision is intended not to punish, but to bring about a change of heart. Sen. Durbin was once pro-life. I sincerely pray that he will repent and return to being pro-life.”
Durbin’s office did not return the Washington Examiner’s request for comment.
