excommunicated the mother and doctors of a 9-year-old girl for carrying out an abortion on the girl's twin fetuses. The girl was impregnated by her own stepfather, who had repeatedly raped her since she was six years old. The doctors recommended the abortion because they believed the girl's youth would prevent her from delivering the twins safely. The affair shocked the Brazilian government and provoked disgust from President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva. Pope Benedict XVI later gave a controversial speech in Angola where he condemned all forms of abortion, even those considered to be therapeutic. Therapeutic abortion is the term for abortions that are typically performed to save the life of the mother or in which the fetus has been found to have a defect incompatible with life. See also References External links In support Why We Need The Child Custody Protection Act– NRLC Analyzing the Effect of State Legislation on the Incidence of Abortion Among Minors– Heritage Foundation In opposition Restrictions on Young Women's Access to Abortion– NARAL Parenthood.org/news-articles-press/laws-requiring-parental-consent-of-notification-for-minors-abortions.htm Laws Requiring Parental Consent or Notification for Minors' Abortions – Planned Parenthood Neutral HealthVote.org– Non-partisan Analysis of California's Proposition 85 (Parental Notification & Waiting Period for Minors' Abortions– November 2006 Election) Abortion Abortion debate Abortion law Family law Sex laws Youth rights