CATHOLIC Social Services Australia chairman Fr Joe Caddy said he hopes the misguided debate over Centacare’s role in a new Federal Government pregnancy counselling service will not discourage women from using the helpline.
Fr Caddy, who is also director of Centacare Melbourne, said to suggest Centacare should not be involved in pregnancy counselling was to misunderstand the practice of non-directive counselling, mistake the purpose of the helpline, and mistrust the well established professionalism of Centacare.
The Federal Government awarded part of its $51-million pregnancy counselling contract to health care group McKesson Asia Pacific which will subcontract some of the work to Centacare Catholic Community Services.
Fr Caddy said in the heated debate that followed the announcement, a number of public commentators felt unrestrained in attacking Catholic social welfare services generally and aired the ill informed view that such services were incapable of providing professional pregnancy counselling given the Church’s moral and ethical stance regarding abortion.
He said it was common knowledge Catholic organisations like Centacare cannot advocate, directly refer, or assist in the procurement of abortions, but he said the helpline was not an abortion referral service.
