“The choice before us at this moment is either we pursue a path of strengthening unity or settle for a document that will not bring unity but will very well further damage it,” he said.
Part of the division on display stems from the focus on Biden, a lifelong Catholic who attends Mass regularly, and what some say was a failure to criticize President Donald Trump, who has had two divorces, three marriages and an extramarital affair, and whose administration separated families at the border and revived the federal death penalty.
There were also explosive, profound differences about theology, pastoring, human nature and a political backdrop that set off a rare public show of division at the bishops’ conference. One bishop said the men were meeting at a time of “historic opportunity.” Yet another said he saw a national push for abortion access “the most aggressive I’ve ever seen.”
The church is grappling with a decline in the number of adherents to the faith, especially among some millennials, and a sense that by ignoring Catholic politicians who support abortion access it is being asked to compromise on one of the core aspects of its belief.
