House Speaker Nancy Pelosi was seen at Mass in Washington, D.C., on Sunday, May 22, 2022. She received the sacrament of Holy Communion.

According to a report by Mail Online, the California Democrat, whose hometown San Francisco archbishop banned Pelosi from taking the communion due to her stance on abortion. She attended the 9 a.m. Mass at Holy Trinity in the Georgetown neighborhood.

Cardinal Wilton Gregory of the Archdiocese of Washington has not publicly released his comment on whether the Speaker can receive the Eucharist.

In the past, Gregory has been vocal opposition to weighing in on whether Catholic politicians can take the Eucharist in relation to their varying political positions.

In 2021, amid calls for President Biden to be denied communion over his position on abortion, the parish council of Holy Trinity released a statement saying that it “will not deny the Eucharist to persons presenting themselves to receive it.”

The council explained that communion is not a prize for the perfect. Instead, it is powerful medicine and nourishment for the weak. He also mentioned that the great gift of the Holy Eucharist is too sacred to be made a political issue. 

Banning of Pelosi

Bishop of Sta. Rosa, Robert Vasa, said that the ban on Pelosi would follow her to the parish where she attends Mass while staying at her nearby vacation home in Napa Valley.

On the other hand, San Francisco Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone said that the California Democrat lawmaker’s stance on abortion is getting more extreme. He said his “conscience” made him act against her in the church.

He denied that his decision is connected to the leaked Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which shows that a majority of justices favored overturning Roe v. Wade.

Cordileone explained that Pelosi’s ban is based on Pope Benedict’s advice on abortion and euthanasia, written in a letter he sent to bishops in the United States in 2004.

Calling Out Cordileone

The San Francisco archbishop has been called on to step down over the decision by an op-ed by the San Francisco Examiner’s Editorial Board. Cordileone was accused of acting in open defiance of the Catholic Church’s current leader Pope Francis on Saturday.

Cordileone explained that the leaked decision and the Dobbs case have nothing to do with its timing. He also disclosed that Pelosi ‘did meet with me and speak with me over the years a couple of times.’

According to him, Pelosi’s recent advocacy for codifying the Roe decision into federal law is becoming more extreme and aggressive. He suggested he tried to reach out to Pelosi regarding the matter but to no avail.

The archbishop mentioned that he has been trying to speak with Pelosi about the said concern. He has been debating within his conscience for many years. He explained that his decision has not just come up recently. He has been struggling with it for a long time. He has been praying and fasting about it.

He also ran into opposition from Pope Francis when he previously waded into political waters as part of a push to ban President Joe Biden from Communion.