Pope Francis called abortion an “absolute evil,” even if there is a threat of a fetus would be born with microcephaly, according to ABC News. | Getty Pope: Birth control OK in Zika areas

Pope Francis on Thursday suggested that women who live in regions affected by the Zika virus could use artificial contraception, but he strongly stressed they should not abort their fetus.

The comments, reported by media accompanying the pope to Rome, break from the Catholic Church’s standard teaching against the use of contraception. They come amid concern that the Zika virus is closely linked to a spike in severe birth defects. Some countries in Latin America have urged women to avoid getting pregnant for up to two years, despite strong Catholicism in the region and limited access to contraception in some countries.


“Avoiding pregnancy isn't an absolute evil, and in certain cases ... it was clear,” the pope said, according to The Wall Street Journal.

He called abortion an “absolute evil,” even if there is a threat that a fetus would be born with microcephaly, according to ABC News

Pope Francis also criticized Republican presidential front-runner Donald Trump’s position on immigration as “not Christian.”

“A person who thinks only about building walls, wherever they may be, and not building bridges, is not Christian. This is not in the Gospel,” the pope said. “This man is not Christian if he talks that way.”

The pope made the comments to reporters on his plane on his way home from Mexico.