Cardinal Keeler asks Senate to avoid pro-abortion test for judges

Published: 2005-01-07

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- Cardinal William H. Keeler of Baltimore has urged U.S. senators to resist pressures to impose a pro-abortion litmus test on federal judicial nominees. In a letter Jan. 6 to all senators, the cardinal said the U.S. Supreme Court's 1973 Roe vs. Wade decision legalizing abortion virtually on demand "is an impoverished standard for assessing judicial ability." "For over three decades, Roe has sparked more informed criticism and public resistance than any other court decision of the late 20th century," he wrote. "Even legal scholars who support abortion have criticized Roe for not being grounded in the U.S. Constitution." Cardinal Keeler is chairman of the U.S. bishops' Committee on Pro-Life Activities.

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