San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone’s instruction to his local priests to withhold Holy Communion from House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., because of her longstanding and public pro-abortion advocacy, was carefully considered and will be respected in the Arlington diocese, Bishop Michael Burbidge said May 25.

Speaking on “The Walk Humbly Podcast,” Bishop Burbidge said that he knows the California prelate “very well” as someone who loves the Lord, the church and his people. The archbishop’s May 20 announcement documented that “he did what he could” to counsel the speaker privately, Bishop Burbidge said, but concluded that she had no desire to align with church teaching on the sanctity of life. “I trust that he did everything possible,” he said.

Asked on the podcast by Chief Communications Officer Billy Atwell whether he would respect Archbishop Cordileone’s decision should Speaker Pelosi present herself for Mass in the Arlington diocese, Bishop Burbidge responded, “In short, yes, I would.”

“He is her bishop and as that bishop the direction and guidance he provides is not limited to just a geographical area,” the Bishop said.

These matters and decisions “are not political for bishops. They’re moral and they’re spiritual. They’re the result of prayer and discernment,” Bishop Burbidge said. “I can’t say it enough, (these) decisions are made for the good of individuals to guard the faithful from scandal….”

The above comes from a May 26 Catholic Herald story via Spirit Daily.