Cardinal Blase Cupich, the Archbishop of Chicago, has elected to honor Senator Dick Durbin with an award for his work with undocumented immigrants. The problem with that is that Senator Durbin has a strong pro-abortion record; so strong, in fact, that his own bishop has barred him from receiving Holy Communion while in his home diocese.

Senator Durbin, however great his record is on immigration and protecting migrant workers’ rights, support for abortion is absolutely inexcusable and is the preeminent issue of all guides to Catholic voters. The seamless garment of life runs from conception to natural death, and so while all people have the right to exist and to protections under the law, it has to start at conception.¹

Much like the Avengers, we don’t trade lives in the Catholic Church. You can’t permissibly support a pro-choice politician even if they work to increase social welfare as a means of reducing abortion. Honoring an outspokenly pro-choice politician is inexcusable.