text: "It has been treated almost as adultery was during Christs' time."  
  
  During Christs's time, there was a lot of barbaric conduct, including adultery and abortion. But the point is, Jesus condemned those things.  So thank for giving us some historical context.  That the treatment of male adulterers in those days was sexist says nothing about the mortally sinful quality of abortion.  You ask:  "What does the priest even know about the psychological, mental and often physical situations that often leads a woman to procure an abortion?" In the confessional, the priests can gain some understanding of the circumstances. But you sound as if you believe abortion is excusable because of mental stress. But the frequency of abortion tells much about how ill-prepared women are in their Catholic upbringing to withstand stress and spare another's life. The lack of moral preparedness goes back years before the abortion itself.  Seems the preparation was by those who think abortion is like adultery.