RELIGION: Polish Catholics and Abortion.

Sunday, January 10, 2010

To: Polish American Journal
Re: “Polish Americans to President: Veto health Care if it Finances Abortion”, January 2010

I was disappointed but not surprised to read “Polish Americans to President: veto health Care if it Finances Abortion”, January 2010.

My mother, who is in her late eighties, very Polish and very Catholic, told me that the question of abortion is such a personal issue that no one, not even the Pope, Polish or otherwise, can dictate what a person should or should not do. I told her that she is not following the dictates of her religion. She smiled and said that the boys in Rome don’t always know about the realities of life and that is why many Catholics, especially in the United States, choose to disagree with Rome on a number of issues. She added that everyone is entitled to their beliefs but if their beliefs infringe on the freedom of other people to choose how to manage their lives, then they are plainly wrong. She called the abortion fanatics “ciemnota”.

The Polish word is interesting and hard to accurately translate but it describes people that allow religious superstitions to dictate how they think and behave, usually in a very conservative manner bordering on backward.

Yes, the Polish community is more than Polkas and pierogis but progressive it is not. Let us hope that eventually it can climb out of the darkness.