US Priests Upset Biden Received Communion Upon Meeting Pope Despite His Stance on Abortion

Biden had an approximately 90-minute private meeting with the Pope on Friday, after which he told reporters that they discussed faith, but abortion wasn't touched upon. The president claimed Pope Francis was just "happy that I was a good Catholic" and told Biden to "keep receiving Communion."

US President Joe Biden received Communion at St. Patrick's Church at Saturday Vigil Mass, a day after declaring Pope Francis advised him he should continue to partake in the sacrament, triggering criticism from some Catholic priests who believe the president's pro-abortion stance contradicts the church's teaching.

Bishop Joseph Strickland of Tyler, Texas, shared a scathing blog article by conservative Cardinal Raymond Burke, reiterating that Catholic politicians who support abortion rights are ineligible for the sacrament.

"Let us pray for the repentance of all who support the murder of the unborn…" he added in his Twitter post, which included a link to the article.

In his turn, Bishop of Providence Thomas Tobin posted on Twitter on Friday that he feared that "the Church has lost its prophetic voice."

"Where are the John the Baptists who will confront the Herods of our day?" he asked rhetorically.

Earlier this week, Tobin publicly urged the Pope to refuse Biden's communion.

Dear Pope Francis,
You have boldly stated that abortion is “murder.” Please challenge President Biden on this critical issue. His persistent support of abortion is an embarrassment for the Church and a scandal to the world. Thank you.
Very respectfully,
Your brother +Thomas

— Bishop Thomas Tobin (@ThomasJTobin1) October 27, 2021

Considering his outspoken support for unrestricted abortion, the president has been chastised by Catholic priests and parishioners across the country for continuing to accept communion and proclaiming his Catholic religion.

A group of Catholic bishops reportedly met in June to discuss the possibility of a communion ban, which Biden publicly dismissed, saying, "I don't think that's going to happen."

American bishops have also repeatedly lashed out at another pro-abortion Catholic politician, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi. However, she seems unaffected by such criticism.

While Biden gets communion on a regular basis in his home dioceses of Washington and Delaware, the fact that he also received communion in Rome was important in terms of the church.

While the Pope delegates day-to-day management to his vicar, St. Patrick's parish is technically located within the pontiff's archdiocese.

As a result, Biden was able to receive communion in Pope Francis' archdiocese. The Mass was attended by about 30 individuals, according to the Associated Press, and security officers were placed along the aisles. The Bidens took a seat in the back row, which had been cordoned off as "Reserved," and entered discreetly shortly after Mass had started.