Scottish Catholic Observer

The cardinal said that it was ‘most heartening’ to be at the first screening of Doonby, as part of the Inner-Life Film Festival, a film which, he said ‘unashamedly upholds the most precious of all values, the right to life.’

He pointed out that the launch of the film comes at a worrying time for Christianity in the United Kingdom.

“Surely there has never been a time in the 2000-year history of Christianity when we need help in discerning the decisions before us—particularly with regard to every aspect of human morality and especially with regard to ‘life’ issues,” Cardinal O’Brien said. “Concentrating on human life, as does this film Doonby, we must again ask ourselves just what has been happening since the 1967 Abortion Act. We are aware of the tens of thousands of unborn babies killed in the womb in the UK since then. It is estimated that the total of babies killed in the womb at this present time is over 200,000 per year—which means 600 babies are killed daily which is the equivalent to 30 classrooms of children. What a horrible thought.”

The cardinal also highlighted media reports in the preceding days, including news of clinics across England ‘illegally offering to abort babies on the basis of gender,’ ethicists call for killing of newborns to be made legal and the recent decision of the Court of Session in Edinburgh that two Catholic midwives could be forced to supervise abortions.

“We might wonder just what aberrations are around the corner when we tamper with God given life in the ways in which we do,” the cardinal said.

He added that the film, Doonby, which was recently launched in the US, could be ‘a wakeup call to those who see it’ and that he has ‘been greatly encouraged to read and hear some of the positive responses that the film has received.’

“Gianfranco Grieco of the Pontifical Council for the Family remarked that this film weaves ‘an intriguing tapestry of complex choices and their consequences,’” the cardinal said.

The one-day Inner-Line Film Festival was organised by the Catholic Parliamentary Office as part of the Archdiocese of Glasgow Arts Project’s Lentfest programme.

Pics: Paul McSherry