Priests have been given authority to forgive women who had abortion in the past. The clearance came from Pope Francis, and this edict is in effect throughout the duration of the Catholic Church's Holy Year of Mercy, from Dec. 8 this year to Nov. 20, 2016. 

In a statement that captures the dilemma of many women in the world today, the Pope said, "I know that it is an existential and moral ordeal. I have met so many women who bear in their heart the scar of this agonizing and painful decision."

For the Catholic Church, abortion is a sin so grave that it can get a woman excommunicated from the church. The only repeal can come from a bishop. The proclamation from the Pope changes a lot of things and people from both ends of the abortion spectrum have reacted. 

In a Reuters report, Vatican chief spokesman Father Federico Lombardi was quoted as saying, "This is by no means an attempt to minimize the gravity of this sin, but to widen the possibility of showing mercy." 

The Catholic Church has always been a hardliner about abortion and this stand has been practiced all too well by the church, perhaps even at the expense of women who are seeking redemption. Pope Francis gets to the heart of the matter and the very purpose of the statement.

He said, "The forgiveness of God cannot be denied to one who has repented, especially when that person approaches the Sacrament of Confession with a sincere heart in order to obtain reconciliation with the Father."

This new stance of the church, however, concerns some people.

"We would be concerned that a too widespread permission could be misinterpreted as the Church softening its teaching on abortion that it is the taking of the life of an innocent human being," John Smeaton, the chief executive of the Society for the Protection of Unborn Children in Britain, said in a cautionary tone common among anti-abortion campaigners. 

The said statement from the Vatican might cause confusion about the teachings of the church on the sanctity of life and this can be as threatening to the hardline stance of the church regarding the matter.