I am not a coward to express my views

"Coward! You should be ashamed to call yourself a Catholic!" I was startled by the loudness as much as by the accusation. A few months ago, an individual had verbally assaulted me in church just seconds after Mass had ended with that statement. For those of you unfamiliar with the Catholic rite of Mass, there is a part where we pray for various intentions which are already written out. Most often they are for those who are sick, a crisis somewhere in our country or the world and the deceased. Our parish also has one to pray for an end to abortion. In visiting other Catholic churches in the area, I have heard this prayer for respect for all life from beginning to end. So, for the last few years when it was my turn to read these prayers to the congregation, I've just simply changed it to "respect for all life, from the moment of conception, till the end at a natural death." I believe that a pro-life stance not only includes birth, but everything in between until God calls us home at his choosing. By changing the wording of the petition, I had obviously set off a nerve with this person. I was asked why I wouldn't say the word "abortion". I explained that it's not that I can't say the word, but that I look at life in total from beginning to end as being respected and that's why I changed the wording. That answer wasn't good enough. The voice of this person started to get louder and more intense. I knew that no matter what I said, the reasoning wasn't going to be good enough. Since we were still in the House of the Lord, I didn't feel it respectful to continue the conversation, so I turned to go about putting my books away. It was then that I was called a coward and then came the line that I should be ashamed to call myself a Catholic. Since the anniversary of the Supreme Court decision of Roe v. Wade is just around the corner, many "pro-lifers" will be out in force with their calls to save the unborn from being aborted. I agree with them. But being pro-life is more than just saving a fetus. It's about the full gamut of support needed to secure that child a successful life – health care, a clean environment, proper nutrition, and a quality education are just a few of the social initiatives that need to be supported, even if the funding needs to come from my tax dollars. And lastly, if you are truly pro-life, you support the abolition of the death penalty as a means to punish criminals for any heinous crime they may commit. To be pro-life is an all-encompassing ideal – it just can't stop at birth. I am a Catholic. I am a Democrat. I am pro-life from the moment of conception through the end at a natural death. Even though I have serious concerns about Catholic Church leadership at times, I am not ashamed to be a Catholic simply because I hold different views than the magisterium. Jesus was condemned by many for his social teachings of the poor and disadvantaged in life. He was vilified, crucified and certainly was not a coward. I'm not Jesus by any stretch of the imagination but, like him, am not a coward to express my views — even if it means vilification from those who disagree with me. Dennis Stieber is a Norwalk resident.