In San Marino, the bishop calls for a commitment to life
On Sunday 26 September 2021 in San Marino a vote was taken on the legalization of abortion: at the polls 41.1% of the voters (60.30% of internal citizens, 5.69% of foreigners). The ‘yes’ reached 77.30%: 11,119 San Marino citizens (out of 14,558 voters) declared themselves in favor not only of the legalization of abortion up to the twelfth week.
One month after the result, the bishop of San Marino-Montefeltro, Msgr. Andrea Turazzi, made an appeal to ‘reorganize hope’, inviting you to participate in the ‘Vigil for nascent life’, organized by the ‘Pope John XXIII’ association on Monday 29 November, right in the city of Mount Titano:
“Now comes the time for consistency: not with declarations or proclamations, but with an active commitment. I welcome and invite the testimonies of help to women and families from afar and to inform those who have experienced the tragedy of the termination of pregnancy: it is a space of suffering that unites us and provokes us ”.
Thanking those who committed themselves to the referendum, the bishop pointed out that the campaign lacked the involvement of citizens: “I thank those who committed themselves to this and spent time, intelligence and heart; both those who did it for a profound religious sense of life, and those who did it in the light of reason. For both it remains unacceptable that there are hands that suppress a bud already full of life in the womb.
What has happened involves us in the educational field for an ethic of responsibility, which does not include shortcuts or easy slopes, to better guide the younger generations. An open question remains: how long will debates, comparisons, reflections be needed if only a minimal percentage of San Marino citizens expressed themselves with the vote? “
Finally, he invited the legislator to offer a legislative framework for the protection of life: “I hope to offer a legislative framework for real help to women, for the protection of life and the acceptance of conscientious objection. There will be legislation other than the current one; it gives itself a freedom that was not previously foreseen. I hope it is not an incentive to an abortion practice, to a lightness in decisions “.
While in the appeal before the referendum, Msgr. Turiazzi had urged in the protection of motherhood: “We are on the side of the mother and the future father; in particular, we do not want the woman to be left alone either before or after the birth of her baby. In motherhood her beauty shines in an admirable way.
The voluntary termination of pregnancy is never without consequences for the woman, a reason for the unique and sublime bond with the creature she carries in her womb. We believe that no woman faces abortion with a light heart; it’s always a tragedy: we don’t want to leave any stone unturned to find an alternative. We must ensure that never again a life does not blossom out of insecurity, mistrust, loneliness, lack of custody and protection or for economic reasons “.
And the letter contained the invitation to defend every right, starting from that of life: “Today, with the progress of the sciences, with the means available, with the social sense, it is possible to make a lot of growth to accommodate the nascent life . We believe that the development index of a society is not evaluated so much with the economy, but with respect for the rights of all, starting with those who are fragile, defenseless, unborn.
And the days of the post-referendum will come. Whatever the outcome, we will be consistently committed to witnessing the Gospel, to a culture and a policy favorable to the family, to a leap of awareness and responsibility. We will look for friends to reorganize hope. Everyone is invited ”.
The defense of human rights is part of one’s identity, he underlined in the homily of the feast of the patron of the city: “Considering, discerning and acting on these issues of society is an essential part of the Christian faith and our ‘human identity’. It is a question of giving a soul to the social.
Our commitment cannot be reduced to formally functional practices. The development index today is not evaluated only by the economy, but above all by respect for human rights, by respect for the other: the different, the fragile, the unborn … “.