Pope Benedict XVI ardently expressed his anti-abortion stance and defended the traditional family structure during his visit to the Spanish pilgrimage site, Santiago de Compostela late last week. Pope Benedict denounced what he perceived to be Spain’s growing secularization and spoke out against its laws that permit gay marriage and access to abortions. Pope Benedict told the Catholic News Service, “we need to hear God once again under the skies of Europe.”
Several hundred women also gathered to protest the status of women in the Catholic Church. A crowd of approximately 200 people gathered in protest to the Pope’s visit, including a group of gay rights activists who staged a “kiss in” as the Pope’s motorcade passed.
Pope Benedict XVI also expressed his opposition to family planning during his visit to Cameroon in March 2009, claiming that condoms “increase the problem” of AIDS. While visiting the country, Pope Benedict reportedly said “You can’t overcome this problem of AIDS with just money. It helps, but if there is no soul, the money cannot help. You cannot overcome it just by distributing condoms. You will increase it.”
