Catholic doctors see pressure to violate Church teaching

(Dec.12, 2012) Catholic doctors in Bangladesh say their life of faith often conflicts with reality in professional duties. Catholic physicians say they are often forced to defy the Church’s social teachings on abortion and artificial birth control, which the government and NGOs have made available throughout the country, in an effort to control the population. Birth control has been heavily encouraged in Bangladesh, a country of more than 152 million people. It is the eighth most populous on the planet, since the 1990s.
Abortion is illegal in Bangladesh unless the life of the mother is in danger, but doctors say it is a common practice. Several doctors attending a recent program “Faith in the life of Medical Professionals,” said it was difficult to be faithful to religious teaching, while performing their professional duties. The program was organized by the Catholic Bishops’ Commission for Healthcare and Association of Catholic Doctors. Holy Cross Bishop Theotonious Gomes of Dhaka, head of the commission and keynote speaker at the workshop said a Catholic doctor shouldn’t just look for money. “Catholic social teaching puts human life on top of everything and we never support destroying life. Even if our faith collides with reality, we need to stick to our faith,” said the prelate. Bishop Gomes added that they are currently thinking of installing a ‘model Catholic hospital’ in the country, where people can receive treatment in accordance to Catholic social teachings