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I would now like to say a special word to women
who have had an abortion. The Church is aware of the
many factors which may have influenced your decision, and she does
not doubt that in many cases it was a painful and even shattering
decision. The wound in your heart may not yet have healed.
Certainly what happened was and remains terribly wrong. But do not
give into discouragement and do not lose hope. Try, rather, to
understand what happened and face it honestly. If you have not
already done so, give yourself over with humility and trust to
repentance. The Father of mercies is ready to give you His
forgiveness and His peace in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.
You will come to understand that nothing is definitively lost, and
you will also be able to ask forgiveness from your child who is now
living in the Lord. With the friendly and expert help and advice of
other people and as a result of your own painful experience, you can
be among the most eloquent defenders of everyone’s right to life.
Through your commitment to life, whether by accepting the birth of
other children or by welcoming and caring for those most in need of
someone to be close to them, you will become promoters of a new way
of looking at human life.
Pope John Paul II, Evangelium Vitae, paragraph 99
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