Thanks to Tom Snead, who in his letter (March 7) quotes the Rev. Graham’s question, “Where are the children of abortion now?”

Certainly no one knows for sure, but this is one man’s opinion based on what my faith taught me, and simple logic. Raised a Catholic, among the many teachings I learned were the following: 1. This life doesn’t matter; it’s the eternal afterlife that counts. 2. “Life” begins at the moment of ­conception. That’s when the soul is united with the body. 3. God never punishes the innocent. 4. Eventually there will be only heaven and hell. (Years ago the church abandoned the concept of limbo — the place between heaven and hell where unbaptized souls would go.)

Applying these tenets logically, I have no doubt that aborted (or ­miscarried or stillborn) souls, ­innocent of any sin, can go nowhere but to heaven. Would anyone suggest that a loving, merciful God would send an innocent soul to eternal damnation? The logic is so simple, I never understood why Graham’s question needed to be posed.

Just as when a loved one passes, we take solace that he/she is now with God. I believe the same applies to fetuses. I’ve advocated that the bumper stickers that read, “Abortion stops a beating heart” should then add, “... and sends the soul directly to God.” The only people to take exception to that are some pro-lifers whose views of abortion are part of a ­political agenda.

And Tom, since you obviously feel strongly about the number of yearly abortions (you thought it was 1 ­million per year), take comfort in these correct figures. After Roe, abortions increased less than 100,000 per year. In 1977 that number hit 1 million. The high was 1.4 million in 1990 and has declined ever since. In 2005 (the last year available), 820,151 abortions were performed, the lowest number since 1974.

Rick Gagliardo

Pinehurst