Alfred Schlert, bishop of the Diocese of Allentown, responded to the U.S. Supreme Court's decision on abortion by saying it’s time to heal from what the nation has allowed for half a century.

"While we rejoice at this decision, we recall and mourn the 60 million procured abortions in our nation in the last 50 years,” Schlert said in a statement published on the diocese’s website. “We beg God to forgive us for this national scourge of sin that has been permitted for so long. We repent of the human and judicial arrogance that manipulated the Constitution to allow humans to play the role of the Creator and the arbiter of who deserves to live.”

The ruling does not result in an outright ban on abortion. Rather, the Supreme Court’s 6-3 decision puts the issue back in the hands of state legislative bodies to determine.

“The Constitution makes no reference to abortion, and no such right is implicitly protected by any constitutional provision, including the one on which the defenders of Roe and Casey now chiefly rely — the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment,” CNBC reported that Justice Samuel Alito wrote in the Court’s majority judicial opinion. “It is time to heed the Constitution and return the issue of abortion to the people’s elected representatives.” 

With that, abortion remains unrestricted in Pennsylvania, a WHTM report said. 

“Unfortunately, there will be much work to be done if abortion is to be outlawed in Pennsylvania,” Schlert said in the statement. “The pro-abortion lobby is very powerful in Pennsylvania and has great sway over many legislators. As a result, our prayers, our advocacy for life, and our legislative involvement must continue.”

More than 63 million babies were aborted in the United States while Roe v. Wade was in effect, data from the Guttmacher Institute said.

In a statement, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) thanked pro-life supporters for their tireless work.

“Today’s decision is also the fruit of the prayers, sacrifices, and advocacy of countless ordinary Americans from every walk of life,” the bishops said. “Over these long years, millions of our fellow citizens have worked together peacefully to educate and persuade their neighbors about the injustice of abortion, to offer care and counseling to women, and to work for alternatives to abortion, including adoption, foster care, and public policies that truly support families. We share their joy today and we are grateful to them. Their work for the cause of life reflects all that is good in our democracy, and the pro-life movement deserves to be numbered among the great movements for social change and civil rights in our nation’s history.”

Catholics are now tasked with broader outreach to women who might have otherwise chosen to terminate their pregnancy.

Catholic Charities is one of many programs that can provide free support and resources for pregnant women. Catholic Charities offers counseling and guidance for mothers, helping them come up with plans for parenting or adoption. The organization helps the mothers even after they have given birth by offering a support system they can turn to for the rest of their lives.

The USCCB said Americans need to do their part to make sure the violent threats that have emerged from the case don’t come to fruition, choosing instead to live in peace.

“Now is the time to begin the work of building a post-Roe America,” the conference said. “It is a time for healing wounds and repairing social divisions; it is a time for reasoned reflection and civil dialogue, and for coming together to build a society and economy that supports marriages and families, and where every woman has the support and resources she needs to bring her child into this world in love.”