For William Penn, laws were meant to restrain vice and encourage virtue: to “terrify evil-doers” and “to cherish those that do well.” St. Thomas Aquinas likewise taught that laws are meant to form virtue, not merely permit behavior, warning that societies decline when laws reinforce the very vices they are intended to restrain.
The Seven Deadly Sins — Pride, Greed, Lust, Envy, Gluttony, Wrath, and Sloth — were not, for Aquinas, merely private failings, but moral disorders that, when normalized, corrode justice and harm the vulnerable. When legislation reflects these vices instead of cultivating responsibility and care for human life, it fails in its most basic purpose.
Now, Democrat leadership in the Pennsylvania House of Representatives, backed by the abortion lobby that is responsible for the more than 35,000 abortions in Pennsylvania in 2023, is pushing a package of seven abortion bills slated to be voted on this week — just days before the celebration of Christ’s birth this Christmas.
The following proposals terrifyingly reflect these ancient warnings in modern legislative form.
1. Pride — HB 1957
Enshrining abortion in the PA constitution, effectively allowing abortion until birth, and overriding virtually all limits.
Pride is the belief that we alone decide right and wrong.
HB 1957 would elevate abortion to an untouchable constitutional “right,” rejecting any moral limits or responsibility to unborn life. It would effectively allow abortion-until-birth, removing parental consent, and forcing taxpayers to pay for elective abortions.
2. Greed — HB 1640
Legal shields for abortion providers.
Greed puts profit over people.
HB 1640 would protect abortion providers from accountability, insulating an industry that profits from abortion while denying families the ability to seek justice when harm or negligence occurs.
3. Lust — HB 2005
Removing informed consent and the 24-hour waiting period.
Lust prioritizes immediate gratification without reflection or responsibility.
HB 2005 would strip away counseling and waiting periods that exist to ensure women are informed and supported — replacing thoughtful decision-making with speed and profits.
4. Envy — HB 1641
Suppressing legal claims from victims’ families.
Envy resents accountability and fairness.
HB 1641 would deny families equal access to justice, ensuring abortion providers receive special protections unavailable to others under the law.
5. Gluttony — HB 1966
Expanding abortion access without the value of safeguards.
Gluttony is excess without restraint.
HB 1966 would present another “shield” to abortionists, favoring unlimited access to abortion while rejecting even modest guardrails — without acknowledging the human cost.
6. Wrath — HB 670
Jeopardizing individuals with criminal prosecution for peaceful assembly and offers of help.
Wrath punishes dissent and silences compassion.
HB 670 would threaten peaceful citizens who pray, speak, or offer resources to women outside abortion facilities — using state power to intimidate and silence those offering women real options and care.
7. Sloth — HB 1643
Avoiding responsibility by blocking oversight and accountability
Sloth is moral laziness — refusing to confront consequences.
HB 1643 would remove incentives for oversight, investigation, and improvement, allowing harm to persist by choosing inaction over responsibility.
William Penn and St. Thomas Aquinas, from different traditions, shared the conviction that laws should restrain vice and cultivate virtue, especially in defense of the vulnerable. The seven abortion bills now before the Pennsylvania House of Representatives abandon that responsibility.
Current Pennsylvania law states that the public policy of this Commonwealth is “to encourage childbirth over abortion.” The question before our state representatives is whether Pennsylvania’s laws will move toward virtue and protect life — or normalize the very vices that history warns lead societies astray.
We pray our government leaders choose to cherish life and terrify evil-doers.
Contact your state representative today and urge them to oppose these abortion bills. Lawmakers need to hear from you now! Click here or go to pafamily.org/NoAbortionChristmas
