While abortion remains one of the most divisive issues in American public life, particularly among people of faith, a new study suggests that it is rarely discussed from the pulpit.
Findings from the Pew Research Center released on April 29 found that only four percent of sermons posted online during the spring of 2019 discussed abortion. Further, the study revealed that when pastors do discuss it, the topic is rarely repeated and Church leaders are almost unanimous in their opposition to it.
While the study is not comprehensive of all sermons from Christian churches in the U.S., analysts reviewed nearly 50,000 sermons posted during an eight-week period from over 6,000 U.S. churches.
The study found abortion was most commonly mentioned by evangelical and Catholic congregations, with 22 percent of evangelical congregations and 19 percent of Catholic congregations sharing at least one sermon mention abortion during the period of the study.
Further, the study showed that abortion was rarely the focus of the entire sermon, with researchers segmenting out the percentage of words dedicated to abortion during the entire sermon.
“When sermons are broken into smaller segments of 250 words (the median sermon runs 5,502 words), three-quarters of all sermons that mention abortion do so in just one segment,” the concluded. “As a result, only 1 percent of all sermons across the whole database discuss abortion in more than one segment….”
The above comes from an April 29 story in Crux.
For more information on the Weisberg Incident (in photo above), click here and here.
In what percent of Jesus’ sermons was abortion mentioned?
Jesus did not mention rape either, but he did keep and tell us to keep the Ten Commandments. One of which is “Thou shalt not kill”, meaning harming or killing the innocent.
He also took a little child and sat him along him alongside himself and commented, “Let the little children come unto me, for such are the Kingdom of Heaven.” If we are killing them, how can they come to him?
Sorry for the typo. Just ex out the words “along him” in your minds in my second paragraph.
In what percent of Jesus’ sermons was abortion mentioned?
Are you implying by that logic that Jesus is down with pedophilia, euthanasia and murdering high school kids with high capacity automatic rifles?
Ah. The sins against the environment will now be front and foremost at the pulpits. After all, environmental sins are on a par with human sacrifice, so say a growing number of bishops.
Yes, Anonymous at 4:21 pm….that is a DUMB question.
Why are we surprised? How often is MORTAL SIN mentioned?
A suggestion: if a priest or deacon addresses abortion or other issues that are controversial charitably and truthfully, please send him a note or email thanking him, including letting him know why. And, if the priest is not the pastor, let the pastor know as well. Most communication to pastors is negative. We should always preach the truth because it’s the right thing to do, regardless. That said, we are human and it does help to know that at least some in the congregation are behind us when we address hard topics. When I say something that is counter-cultural, like “marriage is one man and one woman,” I realize some who hear it will be unhappy. One Sunday, I was angrily confronted be a parishioner who walked out of my homily before hearing the entire homily. I mentioned the unborn, yet also the persecuted and the poor, which, apparently, she didn’t hear or care. I don’t think I’ve ever devoted an entire homily to a single issue, yet, we must preach the truth, that is one of the reasons we’re ordained. I’ve found encouraging priests when they do the right thing does make a difference. And, pray for all of us who preach.
Great advice Deacon Anderson for all of us. The same in the political sphere — praise the good deeds, discourage the bad. Not always easy when we are tired or impatient but necessary nonetheless.
When abortion is treated as “one more issue” or one among many to choose to touch on in homilies, parishioners can quickly assume that it is perhaps not that earth-shaking in importance. Refusal to to kill the inconvenient person, but rather nurture and defend him, is foundational to Catholic ethics. Love should be the root and foundation of our lives (Ephesians 3:17). There should never be a Mass without some reference to the plight of the unborn and the courage it takes to be counter-cultural on this point. It can be directly dealt with in the homily or a passing reference. It can be part of the prayer of the faithful. As a longtime catechist (teens and pre-teens) I know that it is seldom dealt with because it is easier not to.
The homily is supposed to be about the Gospel and other readings. It is supposed to help people live their lives in Christ. Catholics have abortions at the same rate as other people but maybe not the Catholics in the pews. Catholics can and do vote for pro-choice candidates even when they themselves are pro-life. This is a place of needed catechesis and I think most priests feel the homily is not the place for that. Prayer of the faithful, bulletin inserts, posters in the narthex, opportunities to join the March for Life and 40 Days of Life, the Bishop’s letters in the Diocesan papers, Holy Hours for Life, special speakers before or after Mass or during childrens’ CCD classes and writing and videos online. Also, documents from the Pope or USCCB are written about. These are the ways I see it addressed most of the time.
Remember, in his comments Pope Francis suggested that abortion is mentioned all the time, to an obsessive level. Wrong again.