The following is from the Sunday Bulletin of Our Lady Star of the Sea Catholic Church, Ponte Vedra Beach, Florida, June 14, 2009.
What constitutes "torture?"
There has been enormous debate in our media recently as to what constitutes "torture." This has been generated because of the waterboarding treatment of three known mass murderers.
The following is a description of abortion by Justice Breyer in the Supreme Court decision of Carhart v. Stenberg (2000):
"During...the most common abortion procedure...dilation and evacuation (D&E)...the doctor pulls a portion of the fetus through the cervix into the birth canal...removes at least some fetal tissue using non-vacuum surgical instruments, and...there is a potential need for instrumental dismemberment of the fetus with non-vacuum surgical instruments..."
A little translation is necessary: "at least some fetal tissue" translates to the unborn child's arm, a leg, or maybe her head. "Dismemberment of the fetus with non-vacuum surgical instruments" means cutting off her arms or legs with razor-sharp implements. It is a scientific fact that the child, still alive, is capable of feeling excruciating pain.
Rest assured this is not torture!!! It does not meet the legal definition of torture because under the rule of Roe v Wade, the unborn child does not meet the legal definition of "a person." May God forgive us!
