The Most Rev. Salvatore J. Cordileone, archbishop of San Francisco, has notified House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) that she cannot receive the Eucharist unless she publicly reverses her stance on abortion and confesses her sins. Pelosi has been vocal in her support of abortion, wanting to enshrine the right in federal law.

Cordileone said the decision to block her from the Sacrament is one of the “unpleasant” aspects of his due to look over all the faithful under his care.

“This most serious duty can sometimes become unpleasant, especially when Catholics in public life explicitly promote practices that involve the direct taking of innocent human life, which is what abortion does,” he said in a release. “I have struggled with this issue in my own conscience for many years now, especially with regard to the Speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives and member of our Archdiocese, Nancy Pelosi... Unfortunately, Speaker Pelosi’s position on abortion has become only more extreme over the years, especially in the last few months.” 

She has also publicly put herself in direct opposition to Pope Francis, he wrote, citing some of her recent comments, including: “They say to me, ‘Nancy Pelosi thinks she knows more about having babies than the Pope.’ Yes, I do. Are you stupid?” 

Cordileone said he has met with her numerous times to try to sway her opinion, but to no avail. More recently, the archbishop reached out to Nancy Pelosi six times since September, NPR reported, but Pelosi did not respond to any of Cordileone's attempts to reach her. 

“The point has come in which I must make a public declaration that she is not to be admitted to Holy Communion unless and until she publicly repudiate her support for abortion ‘rights’ and confess and receive absolution for her cooperation in this evil in the sacrament of Penance,” he said.

The Catholic Church has maintained a strong stance against abortion for centuries, regardless of evolving biological theories about when exactly life begins, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops said. That is in accordance with the Catechism, which says: ”Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable. Direct abortion, that is to say, abortion willed either as an end or a means, is gravely contrary to the moral law." 

A Gallup poll conducted in May 2021 found that the majority of Americans do not support unrestricted access to abortion. Nearly half, 48%, of those surveyed said they believe abortion should be legal only under certain circumstances; 19% believed abortion should be illegal in all circumstances; and 32% believed abortion should be legal in all cases.