The Catholic bishops of Texas praised a federal court's Jan. 10 confirmation of a law requiring abortion providers to conduct an ultrasound and give women access to its results.

"These consultations save lives by educating mothers who may not realize that the child in their womb is exactly that - a unique, irreplaceable human life," said Cardinal Daniel N. DiNardo of Galveston-Houston, in a statement released by the Texas Catholic Conference on Jan. 11.

He also noted that ultrasound access helps women know "the risks and complications associated with abortion."

Tuesday's ruling reversed a lower court's order that had halted enforcement of the law. A top priority for Texas' bishops during 2011, the legislation required abortion doctors to make the sonogram images available to women, along with a description and a chance to hear the child's heartbeat.

Opponents of the law claimed that it violated free speech rights. But the federal three-judge panel, led by Chief Judge Edith Jones, ruled that Texas could require "truthful, non-misleading, and relevant disclosures" about abortion from doctors.

Texas Governor Rick Perry said on Jan. 10 that the ruling was "a victory for all who stand in defense of life."

San Antonio Archbishop Gustavo Garcia-Siller agreed, and said he appreciated Judge Jones' acknowledgment of a state interest in the unborn child's life.

The archbishop said on Jan. 11 that the court had "acted to protect the smallest voices of those whom God already knows, alive in their mothers' wombs."