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This one got it exactly right--about the bishops as much as about the politicians. The Perez example is one I myself remember. I often wonder why contemporary bishops are so much less steadfast--unless, of course, they themselves do not really believe abortion is wrong either.

You've asked a good question.

My response is twofold.

A) The bishops have, in large measure, ceased being shepherds for Christ and prophetic voices enunciating Biblical truth. They have lost their fear of God and replaced it with fear of man.

B) The fear may have an economic basis as well as a simple human desire not to be defamed for standing for the right.
Some years ago I recall a Catholic pro-abort congressman, a New York Democrat, responding to an interviewer who asked what would be his reaction should the church excommunicate him over his stance.

The congressman replied something to the effect that then perhaps the time will have come to re-examine the Catholic Church's tax-exempt status.

Translation: Fine, prelate. You want to put the screws to me and cost me votes with Catholic constituents by putting me outside the Roman Catholic community? Well, let's see how long you can operate a diocesan budget with a secular adjustment of the tax code.

I often wonder why contemporary bishops are so much less steadfast . . .

The answer to that question can be found in the Gospels themselves.

The Gospels offer a stark contrast between St. Peter and St. John. Peter was the short-tempered, flawed human being who would deny Christ three times during the night before the crucifixion, while John "the beloved" was the favorite disciple of Christ. John was the only one of the twelve apostles who was not afraid to follow Jesus to Calvary, and consequently it was John to whom Our Lord entrusted His mother. John was also the only apostle whose love for Jesus Christ was so unquestioned during his life that he didn't have to die a martyr's death.

And yet Jesus selected Peter as the rock upon which He would build His Church.

There is a lesson to be learned here -- this was not just an accident of history. To be an effective shepherd of men it takes more than just ardent devotion to Christ. In fact, for some modern "shepherds" the application of this devotion may even be an obstacle.

I agree---the church is not about rituals or liturgies, it is about moral absolutes.

Life begins at conception; any politician who supports abortion is defying the Creator of life.

Some might say, "Sure, but they'll be dealt with in the afterlife..."

I say, "Why wait?"

Excommunication isn't extreme, it's necessary.

And it pales in comparision to the horror suffered by prenatal babies, sentenced in all their innocence to death by dismemberment under the steel cruelty of abortionists' knives.