Was Archbishop Cordileone’s Pelosi decision the correct one?

The recent decision from San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone to ban House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Catholic, from receiving the Eucharist in her home archdiocese has caused division among Catholics. Many Catholics, and non-Catholics alike, have risen to the House Speaker’s defense and called the ban a “weaponizing” of the Eucharist or “politicizing” the Eucharist. Others have argued the archbishop did the right thing and have praised the archbishop for his “boldness” and “courage”. So, was it the right decision?

 Let’s take a look, first, at what the archbishop says in his letter to Pelosi and the public regarding the decision.

 “I am grateful to you for the time you have given me in the past to speak about these matters. Unfortunately, I have not received such an accommodation to my many requests to speak to you again since you vowed to codify the Supreme Court’s Roe v Wade decision in federal law following upon passage of Texas Senate Bill 8 last September. That is why I communicated my concerns to you via letter on April 7, 2022, and informed you there that, should you not publicly repudiate your advocacy for abortion ‘rights’ or else refrain from referring to your Catholic faith in public and receiving Holy Communion, I would have no choice but to make a declaration, in keeping with canon 915, that you are not to be admitted to Holy Communion. As you have not publicly repudiated your position on abortion and continue to refer to your Catholic faith in justifying your position and to receive Holy Communion, that time has now come. Therefore, in light of my responsibility as the Archbishop of San Francisco to be ‘concerned for all the Christian faithful entrusted to my care’ by means of this communication I am hereby notifying you that you are not to present yourself for Holy Communion and, should you do so, you are not to be admitted to Holy Communion, until such time as you publicly repudiate your advocacy for the legitimacy of abortion and confess and receive absolution of this grave sin in the sacrament of Penance.” (Letter from Archbishop to Pelosi)” (Read the full text here)

The archbishop issued a public letter to Catholics and explained that he had made “numerous attempts to speak with her to help her understand the grave evil she is perpetrating, the scandal she is causing, and the danger to her own soul she is risking. I have determined that the point has come in which I must make a public declaration that she is not to be admitted to Holy Communion unless and until she publicly repudiates her support for abortion ‘rights’ and confess and receive absolution for her cooperation in this evil in the sacrament of Penance.”

Was the archbishop correct in his decision or was he using the Eucharist as a political tool?

Let’s begin with his letter to all Catholics. He said he had made “numerous attempts to speak with her to help her understand the grave evil she is perpetrating, the scandal she is causing, and the danger to her own soul she is risking.” Let’s take a look at the Catechism to see if he is correct in considering this a ‘grave evil’. (a great place to start when speaking of Catholic theology and belief) The Catechism of the Catholic Church says, in CCC 2271, “since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable. Direct abortion, that is to say, abortion willed either as an end or a means, is gravely contrary to the moral law.” The Catechism is not the only source reflecting the early Church’s belief of the sin of evil. The Didache and Letter of Barnabas both condemned the practices, along with early Church councils.

Abortion is viewed as an attack against a human being who has a human destiny and purpose created by God. “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you,” says the Lord. (Jeremiah 1:5) Scripture is very clear that God creates life, and He has a purpose for that life when it is created. He does not say the life only has a purpose if it is wanted, was intentional, is completely healthy with no disabilities, or if it is convenient. He says it has a purpose even before the moment God forms it in the womb. To destroy that is an attack on a creation of God. To destroy that is an attack on God’s Will.

In Cordileone’s letter to all Catholics, he said he made “numerous attempts” to talk to the House Speaker regarding the “grave evil she is perpetrating” and the “danger to her own soul she is risking.” It is the job of a priest or bishop to help Catholics understand when they are doing something that endangers their soul. Cordileone says in his letter that he met with Pelosi multiple times, so it is understood that he has addressed this with her over the course of many years. Additionally, she has now cut off communication with the archbishop and refuses to even discuss it with him. This is a sign of a hardened heart toward the Church, the teachings of Sacred Scripture, and the urgings of the Holy Spirit calling for repentance.

Is Pelosi committing a mortal sin and therefore, as Cordileone claims, endangering her soul? Yes. Three conditions must be met for an act to be a mortal sin. The first condition is that it must be committed with full knowledge that the action is a grave and mortal sin. You cannot commit a mortal sin by accident. It is clear and evident Pelosi understands that supporting abortion, using her power and position to ensure more abortions are committed, is a mortal and grave sin due to her having met previously with the archbishop. It is not an accident. It does not matter if she agrees that it is a sin. It is only required that she be informed and aware that it is a grave matter according to the Word of God and the teachings of the Church.

The second condition that must be met is that it must be committed with full consent and without pressure from others or fear. It is clear, based on her continued advocacy for abortion and creation of bills that would pave the path for more abortions, she is enabling abortions with full consent. Last year, Nancy Pelosi visited Texas where she joined multiple other Democrats for a press conference touting their intention to codify Roe v. Wade. According to KXAN, Pelosi said, “when we go back to Washington, we will be putting Roe v. Wade codification on the floor of the House to make sure that women everywhere have access to the reproductive health that they need.” In other words, to make sure every woman can have an abortion if they desire.  

The third condition for mortal sin is that it involves a grave matter. Abortion is viewed, in the eyes of the Church and Scripture, as the taking of a life. The intentional taking of a life is murder and a violation of the Ten Commandments, the basic precedent for determining what is considered a mortal sin.

Mortal sin breaks our fellowship with God and by partaking of the Eucharist in an unworthy matter and in mortal sin it is blasphemy. It is basically saying I want my cake and eat it too. I want to believe what I want to and advocate for my own agenda and political ideas while, simultaneously, receiving the Real Presence of Jesus in the Eucharist. I want God and I want the world both. However, that’s like saying I want a room completely dark, but I want the light on as well. You can’t have it both ways. They don’t blend together and never will. The Eucharist and the Church is not Burger King. You cannot have it your way.

Imagine, being on a boat and you tell your father you want to row. You grab the oars from his hand and start rowing. The more you row, the further from shore and safety you get. Suddenly, your father warns you that you are rowing too far from shore and to start going the other direction. Your father tells you it’s dangerous to go any further out. You refuse and continue rowing because you want to be in control while also being in the safety of the boat. Your dad continues to warn you that you must turn around because you are risking your safety. You refuse. Would anyone blame the father if he grabbed the oar back from you and began rowing the right way to safety, to shore? I doubt anyone would blame the father. In essence, that’s what Archbishop Cordileone has attempted to do in banning Pelosi from the Eucharist. He is attempting to change her destination to one of safety rather than danger. He is attempting to get her to change direction where she can have eternal life rather than eternal damnation.

Critics, including apparent uneducated or misled Catholics, have made allegations the archbishop is politicizing and weaponizing the Eucharist. On the contrary, Pelosi is the one who has politicized the Eucharist and the Catholic Church by refusing to comply with its teachings, listen to the instruction and urging of its leaders, and still promote her own belief of the need to ensure mortal sin is available to all women while proclaiming to be a “devout Catholic”. Devout Catholics follow Church teachings, not their own opinions and agenda. Pelosi may be a Catholic by her Confirmation, but she is certainly not “devout” and is under the authority of Church leadership just like you and I are under our leadership’s authority. There are grave consequences to her soul for receiving the Eucharist in an unworthy manner and the archbishop is taking the necessary step to try and help her see the danger she is in by continuing to advocate for abortion.

Yes, the archbishop was correct in his decision and many other bishops should follow his boldness and courage in addressing Catholic politicians within their dioceses that continue to advocate for abortion and live in mortal sin.