Nov 29, 2008 8:00 pm US/Pacific
Priest: Voting For Obama Could Be 'Mortal Sin'
Father Joseph Illo Says Parishioners Should Repent
MODESTO, Calif. (CBS) ―
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The Rev. Joseph Illo sent a letter on Nov. 21, 2008, to 17,000 parishioners of St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Modesto, Calif., saying those who voted for a pro-abortion candidate on Nov. 4 need to repent.
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A Roman Catholic priest has told parishioners they should confess if they voted for Barack Obama because the president-elect supports abortion.
Voting for Obama could be a mortal sin, says Father Joseph Illo, of St. Joseph's Catholic Church in Modesto, California. The reverend sent a letter to parishioners telling them they need to repent before taking communion if they voted for a pro-abortion candidate.
Rev. Illo says his parishioners at the Modesto church shouldn't risk losing their "state of grace" by receiving communion sacrilegiously. He delivered the message in a Nov. 21 letter and during mass.
Illo spoke on the issue at mass before sending the letter to more than 17,000 members of St. Joseph's.
In the letter, Illo poses the question, "Have I spoken out of turn?"
Some parishioners seem to think so, saying politics shouldn't be preached from the pulpit, reports CBS station KOVR-TV in Sacramento. Others agree with the priest's move.
"It's certainly a mistake to vote for a candidate that's very pro abortion," Illo told KOVR. "It could be a mortal sin," the priest added.
In an interview this week with the Modesto Bee, Illo says he sent the letter because Catholic teaching requires that people go to confession when they commit a mortal sin.
During the 2008 campaign, many bishops told Catholic politicians and voters that abortion should be the most important consideration in deciding which candidate to back.
(© 2009 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. The Associated Press contributed to this report.)
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