BOSTON - All four Massachusetts bishops testified before the Massachusetts legislature on May 18 at a hearing regarding partial-birth abortions.

It was a historic first as Cardinal Bernard Law of Boston, Bishop Sean O'Malley of Fall River, Bishop Daniel Reilly of Worcester and Bishop Thomas Dupre of Springfield urged legislators to pass a bill banning abortions in the third trimester of a pregnancy, after 24 weeks, unless a mother's life is at risk.

The bill would also impose a maximum fine of $2,000 and a possible prison term of up to five years on doctors who perform partial-birth abortions.  A similar ban has been passed twice by the U.S. Congress; the bill was vetoed by President Bill Clinton both times.

During the May 18 testimony at the statehouse, Cardinal Law read a prepared statement signed by all three bishops.  The statement urged elected representatives to "stop this procedure which has its sole aim the killing of a child in the process of being born."

"This procedure takes an innocent human life, and does so in a visibly brutal manner," the statement continued.  "It also poses serious physical and emotional risks to the mother, while answering no medical necessity."

Reading the statement, Cardinal Law added, "We are concerned, as members of the legislature are, about the difficulties women may face with unplanned pregnancies.   Our challenge as a society, however, is to offer solutions to these difficulties which affirm human dignity and concern for the common good, and to reject anything which undermines the value and dignity of human life. Partial-birth abortion clearly fails to meet this challenge."

He stated that partial-birth abortions are "never medically indicated to preserve the mother's life or health."

The cardinal also noted, "While the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists supports partial-birth abortion, it could identify no circumstances where partial-birth abortion 'would be the only option to save the life of the mother or preserve the health of the woman.'"

He said that if the legislature accepted partial birth abortions it would be accepting infanticide, "a frightening possibility already disturbingly evident in the culture."

"This is the context in which the General Court of Massachusetts will debate and vote on this critical issue," Cardinal Law continued.

"We ask you, we implore you, to take a stand against this violence and devaluation of life.  You have an opportunity to set a model for the nation.  We must stop partial-birth abortions in this Commonwealth."

Bishop Dupre also spoke to the legislature, citing an article which appeared in the Boston Globe in 1997. 

"It should have caused a great deal of consternation and eyebrow raising, but apparently did not."

The article, by John Ellis, focused on the comments of Steven Pinker, a professor of psychology at MIT, which "basically argued that the indefensible - baby killing - was not indefensible."

Bishop Dupre said, "We are dreadfully close to having infanticide now.  How much closer can we get than killing a child in the act of being born?"

"The procedure involves killing a fetus in while its head is still in the birth canal, though the rest of its body is already delivered.  If the head were out, it would be simply homicide, murder.  But because the head is inside the birth canal, only a few inches and a few moments away from being delivered, the procedure is called an abortion," said Bishop Dupre.

Bishop Dupre concluded: "If we truly believe in the value of human life and if we wish to put a brake on the downward spiral of desensitization to the dignity of human life which is occurring in our society, we must stop this barbaric and inhuman procedure.   I urge you to ban partial birth abortion."

Additional support for the abortion ban came from former Boston Mayor Ray Flynn and Maryclare Flynn, executive director of Massachusetts Citizens for Life, both of whom spoke in favor of the proposed law during the May 18 hearing.