Good Catholics: The Battle over Abortion in the Catholic Church

343 Pages·2014·1.69 MB·English

by  Patricia Miller

Good Catholics
the battle over abortion in the
catholic church
Patricia Miller
university of california press
Berkeley Los Angeles London
Good Catholics

Good Catholics
the battle over abortion in the
catholic church
Patricia Miller
university of california press
Berkeley Los Angeles London
The publisher gratefully acknowledges the generous support of the
General Endowment Fund of the University of California Press
Foundation.
The publisher gratefully acknowledges the generous support of Jamie
Rosenthal Wolf, David Wolf, Rick Rosenthal, and Nancy Stephens as
members of the Publisher’s Circle of the University of California Press
Foundation.
University of California Press, one of the most distinguished university
presses in the United States, enriches lives around the world by advanc-
ing scholarship in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences.
Its activities are supported by the UC Press Foundation and by philan-
thropic contributions from individuals and institutions. For more infor-
mation, visit www.ucpress.edu.
University of California Press
Berkeley and Los Angeles, California
University of California Press, Ltd.
London, England
© 2014 by The Regents of the University of California
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Miller, Patricia, 1964–
Good Catholics : the battle over abortion in the Catholic Church /
Patricia Miller.
pages cm
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-520-27600-0 (cloth : alk. paper) — ISBN 978-0-520-
95827-2 (e-book)
1. Abortion—Religious aspects—Catholic Church—History. 2. Catholic
Church—United States. 3. Church and state—United States. I. Title.
HQ767.3.M56 2014
241'.6976—dc23 2013035084
Manufactured in the United States of America
23 22 21 20 19 18 17 16 15 14
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
In keeping with a commitment to support environmentally responsible
and sustainable printing practices, UC Press has printed this book on
Natures Natural, a fi ber that contains 30% post-consumer waste and
meets the minimum requirements of ansi/niso z39.48–1992 (r 1997)
(Permanence of Paper).
To my parents,
Madelyn S. Miller
and John J. Miller

Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Introduction: The Virgin, the Saint, and the Nun 1
part i the history of an idea
1. The Four Wise Women 11
2. The Dread Secret 33
3. Pope Patricia 58
4. Coming of Age 83
5. The Cardinal of Choice 104
part ii the bishops’ lobby
6. The Bishops’ Lobby 131
7. Showdown at Cairo 154
8. Matters of Conscience 174
9. Playing Politics 200
10. Health Care and Politics Redux 233
Epilogue: The Philippines 270
Notes 273
Bibliography 317
Index 321

Acknowledgments
Writing a book makes you acutely aware of how much any creative
endeavor is more than the work of one person. Writing a book about his-
tory doubles this awareness, because you are of necessity telling the stories
of other people. Writing a book about people who have been neglected by
history, especially women, leaves you in awe of the many people whose
shoulders you are standing on in your own life, even if you don’t know
their names. This book tells the story of some of these people, the women
and men—many previously unknown—who contributed to the Catholic
reproductive rights movement, with the hope that they will be acknowl-
edged by history.
I thank the many individuals who generously shared their time with me
to recount their involvement in the movement. As any historian knows,
fi rsthand historical recollections are a precious commodity, a fact that I
was reminded of when I would track down a source only to discover that
she or he had passed away just a few months earlier. I will always regret
not being able to tell their stories.
I also thank the librarians and archivists who assisted me, in particular
those at the Pennsylvania State Archives, the Sophia Smith Collection at
Smith College, and the Rockefeller Center Archives.
ix