Bishop Michael F. Burbidge’s Statement on the Gospel of Life and the Church’s Relationship with Civil Authorities
From Bishop Michael F. Burbidge, originally published October 1, 2025, Catholic Diocese of Arlington
I am relieved to hear that Sen. Dick Durbin has chosen to decline a Lifetime Achievement Award which was to be awarded by the Archdiocese of Chicago.
Cardinal Cupich now appeals for suggestions on how the Church might move forward in unity. As Pope Leo XIV’s motto reminds us, “In the One, we are one”. Certainly, we can only move forward together if we recognize that our unity as a Christian people depends upon our responding with daily fidelity to our Lord and by our witness to the Gospel of Life. We may enjoy unity, by God’s grace, through faithfulness to his commands and, when we fail, by our humble willingness to repent and begin anew.
All the faithful, and especially all bishops, priests, and consecrated religious, must recognize the immense importance of their acting and speaking with clarity about the Church’s teachings, particularly when in dialogue with civil authorities. All politicians, by virtue of their responsibility to the common good, bear a duty to uphold and promote “the natural law that everyone can recognize, even non-Christians, even non-believers”, which our Holy Father has called “a doctrine of salvation that aims at the good of every human being”. Only by doing so can we hope to enjoy what Pope Leo described as “peaceful, harmonious, prosperous and reconciled societies”.
Bishops should always regularly appeal to politicians for their spiritual welfare as much as for the general welfare of the nation, but such personal outreach is primarily pastoral in nature and profoundly distinct from public honors and awards, under the banner of dialogue, for politicians whose careers have been built upon the denial of the natural law.
Sincere dialogue will always be essential to the health of any political community, yet productive conversations occur only when participants share a basic commitment to certain objective moral realities about what is good and evil. Among these realities is the first and most fundamental natural right, that of the human right to life. True dialogue cannot take place when a purportedly Catholic lawmaker turns a blind eye to the killing of innocent persons. By God’s grace, interior conversion of heart and mind must come first.
The Church must continue to boldly proclaim the Gospel of Life in its entirety. Our public witness to the Gospel, to convincingly move hearts and minds to conversion, will always require that the Church show the hierarchy and unity of all truths. A consistent ethic of life requires the faithful proclamation of challenging teachings just as it also requires the avoidance of scandal from actions that would convey ambiguity or indifference to the moral law.
Certainly, the prudential application of the Church’s teachings on the dignity of the human person will remain complex, particularly in our ideologically and politically polarizing time. For this reason, may we join in prayer to God for a new unity, as bishops, as a Church, and as a nation.
Finally, in a special way may we implore the Holy Spirit to enlighten the hearts of all our civil authorities in the righteous exercise of their powers, ever conscious that “there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been established by God”. (cf Romans 13:1)
Most Reverend Michael F. Burbidge is the Bishop of the Catholic Diocese of Arlington in Virginia.