The American portal The Pillar revealed that the Archdiocese of Chicago plans to award a “lifetime achievement” prize to Democratic Senator Dick Durbin, one of Illinois’s most veteran politicians and known for his persistent support of legal abortion. The award, which will be presented on November 3 at a charitable event presided over by Cardinal Blase Cupich, has provoked a strong reaction from several American bishops, led by Msgr. Thomas Paprocki of Springfield, who described the decision as “scandalous”.
An Award Despite Durbin’s Pro-Abortion Record
The official invitation to the “Keep Hope Alive Benefit 2025” event, which will take place at St. Ignatius College Prep in Chicago, announces that Durbin will receive the recognition for his “support for immigrants.” However, critics recall that the senator, despite proclaiming himself Catholic, has built a political career in Congress marked by support for public funding of abortion and even opposition to laws seeking to protect babies who survive abortion attempts.
Msgr. Paprocki: “Grave Scandal”
In a statement reported by The Pillar, the Bishop of Springfield declared: “Honoring a politician who has actively worked to expand and consolidate abortion undermines the very idea of human dignity that this award seeks to exalt.” Paprocki warned that this decision “causes confusion among the faithful” and contradicts both the internal policy of the Archdiocese of Chicago, which prohibits awarding honors to people contrary to fundamental moral principles, and the repeated teaching of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops.
The bishop recalled that since 2004, Durbin has been prohibited from receiving Communion in his home diocese “due to his obstinate persistence in manifest grave sin” by repeatedly supporting abortion.
Episcopal Support: Cordileone Joins In
Paprocki’s reaction was not isolated. Msgr. Salvatore Cordileone, Archbishop of San Francisco, publicly expressed his support on his X account:
“I stand in solidarity with Bishop Thomas Paprocki of Springfield in asking Cardinal Cupich to reconsider giving Senator Durbin a lifetime achievement award […] given his long record of support for legal abortion.”
Cordileone emphasized that both unity and doctrinal clarity are at risk and called on Catholics to speak firmly against “the grave evil that ending the lives of the innocent in the womb represents.”
Background: Paprocki and the Defense of the Eucharist
Paprocki had already taken similar decisions in 2019, when he prohibited other Catholic politicians from Illinois—Mike Madigan and John Cullerton—from receiving Communion due to their systematic support for abortion. As he explained at the time, applying canon 915 is not a punishment, but a “medicinal remedy” aimed at conversion.
Silence in Chicago
The Archdiocese of Chicago, for the moment, has not responded to requests for comment on the controversy. However, the official confirmation of the event through the promotional poster adds weight to the charge that it is a public recognition granted in open contradiction to Catholic norms and principles.