Pope Francis said in an interview Tuesday that President Joe Biden's claims to be a faithful Catholic are "incoherent" because he publicly advocates for abortion.
Pope Francis to Joe Biden: No, you can't be Catholic and pro-abortion.
— LifeNews.com (@LifeNewsHQ) July 13, 2022
The Pope said in the interview with Mexican journalists from Televisa Univisión that from both a spiritual and a scientific point of view, life begins at conception, and anyone who denies that cannot coherently call himself a Catholic at the same time. He said that unborn children deserve the dignity of life (via Catholic News Agency):
During an interview with Univisión and Televisa broadcast July 12, Pope Francis spoke about abortion and Biden's position, after being asked about whether to admit politicians who promote legal abortion to Holy Communion.
The Holy Father affirmed that there is scientific data that show that “a month after conception, the DNA of the fetus is already there and the organs are aligned. There is human life.”
“Is it just to eliminate a human life?” he then asked.
As for the defense of abortion by the U.S. president, Pope Francis stated that he leaves it to Biden’s "conscience.”
"Let (Biden) talk to his pastor about that incoherence," the pope said.
Though a Catholic, Biden has repeatedly supported abortion rights despite the Church’s teaching that human life must be respected and protected from the moment of conception.
In a recent speech — which was infamously as incoherent as his Catholic faith — Biden repeatedly referred to abortion as a fundamental "right" and said the Supreme Court was "terrible," "extreme," and "wrongheaded" when it overruled Roe v. Wade. He has also explicitly admitted in the past that he does not think life begins at conception.
The Pope, however, did not directly comment on whether Biden or other pro-abortion politicians should be allowed to receive communion. As Townhall reported, the Pope has been wishy-washy about denying communion to pro-abortion politicians, as evidenced by his administration of the sacrament to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA).
Pope Francis has said he is reluctant to make church matters political, which is why he has not made strong comments about whether known abortion advocates should be able to receive communion (via Life News):
When the Church loses its pastoral nature, when a bishop loses his pastoral nature, it causes a political problem. That’s all I can say.
He said of Biden in his Tuesday interview that it's up to the president's conscience and that he should talk to his pastor about it.