Contraception maybe, but never abortion in Zika crisis, pope says
ABOARD THE PAPAL PLANE — Pope Francis has suggested women threatened with the Zika virus could use artificial contraception, saying “avoiding pregnancy is not an absolute evil” in light of the global epidemic.
He unequivocally rejected abortion as a response to the crisis in remarks Wednesday as he flew home after a five-day trip to Mexico.
He drew a parallel to a decision by Pope Paul VI in the 1960s to approve giving nuns in Belgian Congo artificial contraception because they were being systematically raped.
Abortion “is an evil in and of itself, but it is not a religious evil at its root, no? It’s a human evil,” Francis said. “On the other hand, avoiding pregnancy is not an absolute evil. In certain cases, as in this one (Zika), such as the one I mentioned of Blessed Paul VI, it was clear.”
Francis was responding to a reporter’s question about whether abortion or birth control could be considered a “lesser evil” when confronting the Zika crisis in Brazil.
Worldwide emergency
The World Health Organization has declared a worldwide health emergency over the Zika virus and its suspected link to birth defects. Thursday, the U.N. agency advised sexual partners of pregnant women to use condoms or abstain from sex if they live in or have visited Zika-affected areas, echoing a recommendation made by U.S. health officials.
The virus has been reported in at least 34 countries, most of them in overwhelmingly Catholic Latin America and the Caribbean, where access to birth control is often limited and abortion is heavily restricted.
Coming home from Africa last year, Francis dismissed a question about whether condoms could be used in the fight against AIDS, saying there were far more pressing issues in Africa, such as poverty and exploitation, and that only when those problems were resolved should questions about condoms and AIDS take center stage.