Monthly Archives: November 2013

Pope Francis’ “The Joy of the Gospel” is a beautiful and thoughtful celebration of the Catholic Church’s love for unborn children and their mothers

November 26, 2013   Religious

Pope Francis’ “The Joy of the Gospel” is a beautiful and thoughtful celebration of the Catholic Church’s love for unborn children and their mothers

 

By Dave Andrusko

Pope Francis

Pope Francis

Pro-lifers will come away from Evangelii Gaudium (“The Joy of the Gospel”) — Pope Francis’ 84-page Apostolic Exhortation released today– blessed by his breadth of his insight and depth of his compassion for mother and unborn child.

It is not surprising, of course, that Pope Francis affirmed the Catholic Church’s historically staunch pro-life position. But adding to the force of his presentation is Pope Francis’s plain-spoken explanation of why reason, faith, and internal consistency mean that this position could never be up for discussion.

Pope Francis writes

“Among the vulnerable for whom the Church wishes to care with particular love and concern are unborn children, the most defenseless and innocent among us. Nowadays efforts are made to deny them their human dignity and to do with them whatever one pleases, taking their lives and passing laws preventing anyone from standing in the way of this. Frequently, as a way of ridiculing the Church’s effort to defend their lives, attempts are made to present her position as ideological, obscurantist and conservative. Yet this defense of unborn life is closely linked to the defense of each and every other human right. It involves the conviction that a human being is always sacred and inviolable, in any situation and at every stage of development. Human beings are ends in themselves and never a means of resolving other problems. Once this conviction disappears, so do solid and lasting foundations for the defense of human rights, which would always be subject to the passing whims of the powers that be. Reason alone is sufficient to recognize the inviolable value of each single human life, but if we also look at the issue from the standpoint of faith, ‘every violation of the personal dignity of the human being cries out in vengeance to God and is an offence against the creator of the individual.’ Precisely because this involves the internal consistency of our message about the value of the human person, the Church cannot be expected to change her position on this question. I want to be completely honest in this regard. This is not something subject to alleged reforms or ‘modernizations.’ It is not ‘progressive’ to try to resolve problems by eliminating a human life.”

More: http://www.nationalrighttolifenews.org/news/2013/11/pope-francis-the-joy-of-the-gospel-is-a-beautiful-and-thoughtful-celebration-of-the-catholic-churchs-love-for-unborn-children-and-their-mothers/

First they came prenatally for Down syndrome…

November 26, 2013   pre-natal testing

First they came prenatally for Down syndrome…

By Kurt Kondrich

BrilliantSoulsreI speak frequently to large groups of students, families, and professionals about the silent eugenic movement against children diagnosed prenatally with Down syndrome, and I also write regular articles about this disturbing subject. I warn people that if the culture can identify, target and eliminate unborn children with Down syndrome at a 90%+ rate because they are viewed as “defective” then we should all ask who is next?

There has been a focus in parts of the Autism community to unlock the genetic code for this diagnosis, and I have cautioned that this could lead to the same type of prenatal slaughter unborn children with Down syndrome are experiencing.

As bioethicist Wesley Smith commented this week, “More boys than girls have autism, so now, an Australian IVF clinic will search out male embryos for destruction before implantation, e.g., sex selection.” Not surprisingly there has been a lot of comment.

This week I read an article from Australia titled “Comment: Should there be prenatal screening for autism?” that shows how the culture of death is seeping into the prenatal Autism community while placing a focus on prenatal sex-selection.

Andrew Whitehouse, the author, explains

“Pre-implantation genetic diagnosis/screening (PGD) is an IVF technique that occurs at the embryo stage prior to implantation. An egg from a woman and a sperm from a man are combined outside of the body (i.e., in a petri dish) to create an embryo (a fertilized egg). That embryo can then be ‘screened’ to determine whether its genetic make-up increases risk for a given disorder.”

Whitehouse shows how PGD can be misused:

“The Reproductive Technology Council will now allow certain women undergoing IVF treatment to be selectively implanted with female embryos only. The rationale for this practice is that autism is more likely to affect males than females (approximately 4 males for every 1 female), and by selecting female embryos, the chances of this child developing autism are reduced.”

So the Reproductive Technology Council, by giving permission to eliminate a male embryo (via sex selection), concludes this will assist in reducing the births of children diagnosed with Autism?

Had this technology been available we may have “terminated” the lives of amazing, brilliant males like Mozart, Michelangelo, Newton, Picasso and Lewis Carroll (www.autismsupportnetwork.com/news/5-famous-autistic-people-throughout-history-3543522).

As we know, of course, it is not only male babies with fetal anomalies who are targeted. Some societies label prenatal females as “undesirable.” Hundreds of millions of girls are “missing,” the victims of prenatal targeting via ultrasounds.

Where is the outcry, protests and shock from women’s rights groups? The silence is deafening!

Read More: http://www.nationalrighttolifenews.org/news/2013/11/first-they-came-prenatally-for-down-syndrome

Beautiful Women Sell Their Eggs to the Highest Bidder, No Uglies Allowed

Beautiful Women Sell Their Eggs to the Highest Bidder, No Uglies Allowed

by Wesley J. Smith | Washington, DC | LifeNews.com | 11/25/13 4:22 PM

Ounce-for-ounce, human eggs are the most valuable commodity in the world–if you are beautiful and intelligent. Why, young college women at elite colleges receive tens of thousands for delivering a microscopic product to would-be parents who don’t just want a child, but one beautiful and smart enough to suit their high standards.

That crass market was the subject of a piece in the Daily Mailabout an actress, named Robyn Young, who has sold her eggs repeatedly to help support herself as she tries to build a career.

From the story:

The process works much like an acting audition with the egg agency setting up interviews with different couples until one picks her. A full background check is carried out on each of the participants. It involves standard health checks such as a blood test for diseases, however it even goes as far as to check her high school grades. The better you did at school, the more money you can command for each donation session.

The story describes some of the pain involved in the process. But the news for suppliers is worse than that. As the CBC’s (for which I am a paid consultant) award-winning documentary Eggsploitaiton clearly demonstrates, i

n some cases, the egg sellers are the ones who pay a high price. A few egg suppliers die. Some lose fecundity or suffer terrible side effects such as ovaries that swell to the size of a peach, or larger.

Watch Video and More: http://www.lifenews.com/2013/11/25/beautiful-women-sell-their-eggs-to-the-highest-bidder-no-uglies-allowed/

Abortion Activists Upset Pro-Lifers Are Getting Abortion Clinic Workers to Quit

Abortion Activists Upset Pro-Lifers Are Getting Abortion Clinic Workers to Quit

by Lauren Enriquez | Washington, DC | LifeNews.com | 11/24/13 5:12 PM

In a five-page piece, the Washington Times showcased a spectrum of abortion advocates who blame pro-life scare tactics and intimidation for the recent migration of abortion workers out of the abortion business and into the pro-life movement, and touts evidence of other ‘Gosnells’ as purely fictional.

The article primarily aimed to conduct the misleading voices of many abortion workers across the country. Towards the end of the piece, however, a seeming contradiction occurs when the author cites Lila Rose and Live Action’s undercover investigations, which maim the entire article’s entire premise (that the abortion industry is awesome and — with the ‘anomaly’ of Gosnell — it is never associated with illegal or unsafe practices), but fails to attempt to refute or offer follow-up to the citation.

The piece quotes clinic workers who staunchly deny Gosnell-like activity within the US abortion industry, saying:

Pro-choice leaders insist that the Gosnell incident will not have lasting effects because he was “a rogue” and not representative at all of the industry as a whole.

“No, no, no,” Ms. France said when asked about “other Gosnells.” There are hundreds of clinics, and 13 in Ohio, she said. “Certainly, we all give good care. We are regulated, and we want to do good work.”

“Gosnell was very much a rogue and had nothing to do with what good abortion care is,” Ms. Taft said.

The article goes on to quote Live Action president Lila Rose, who refutes the perception that Gosnell was a “rogue” within the industry:

Dr. Kermit  HYPERLINK “http://www.washingtontimes.com/topics/kermit-gosnell/”Gosnell is not alone” in the kinds of “inhuman practices” he and his staff performed at their Philadelphia clinic, said Lila Rose, president of Live Action, citing her group’s “undercover” videos at abortion clinics. The abortion industry is “united,” Ms. Rose said. If there’s a problem in one clinic, “you’re going to find it in another one.”

Read More: http://www.lifenews.com/2013/11/24/abortion-activists-upset-pro-lifers-are-getting-abortion-clinic-workers-to-quit/

Society of Centurions

Society of Centurions

For some 18 years, under the leadership of Canadian psychiatrist Dr. Philip Ney, the Society of Centurions has existed to provide a mutually encouraging fellowship of those who have used their professional skills to kill children by abortion, but now have ceased to do so.

Like the Centurion who, upon taking part in the death of Jesus, repented and declared, “Surely, this was an innocent man,” so the Centurions of today, having partaken in the deaths of unborn children, have repented and declared, “Surely, these were innocent lives.”

But what happens next?

These individuals need healing, and a helping hand to walk the difficult path of re-humanizing the children they killed by re-humanizing themselves. The Society of Centurions provides this path to healing through powerful seminars that gather and guide such former abortion providers.

Priests for Life is playing a key role in announcing and fostering this healing. We invite those who are in the abortion industry to come out. We invite those who have come out of the abortion industry to contact us and to discuss their options for healing and wholeness.

We also invite those who know anyone who may benefit from the Centurions to likewise contact us.

And let’s pray for all these men and women, that the peace of Christ may be theirs.

Fr. Frank Pavone
National Director, Priests for Life

Fr. Frank’s Column about the Society of the Centurions

Audio: Society of the Centurions

http://www.priestsforlife.org/centurions/

Abortion Activists Upset Choose Life License Plates Fund Adoption Centers

Abortion Activists Upset Choose Life License Plates Fund Adoption Centers

by Cassy Fiano | Washington, DC | LifeNews.com | 11/24/13 8:49 PM

Want to infuriate a pro-abort? Make “choose life” license plates available for people to buy. Never mind that no one is required to purchase one. Never mind that having them available is merely giving someone a choice to publicly express their beliefs on a contentious subject.

The mere fact that these license plates are available infuriates abortion advocates. Pro-lifers evidently shouldn’t even be able to publicly proclaim themselves as pro-life.

nc choose life license plate

At RH Reality Check Andrea Grimes uncovered some absolutely horrifying, outrageous news this week: the sales of “choose life” license plates in Texas have raised — are you ready? — tens of thousands of dollars for crisis pregnancy centers and adoption agencies. Tens of thousands!

Tens of thousands of dollars raised from sales of newly authorized “Choose Life” license plates in Texas will go to 13 crisis pregnancy centers and adoption agencies, as part of an effort “to encourage adoption as an alternative to abortion.”

The state attorney general’s office will award a total of $46,100 to the recipients, including $10,000 to the Gladney Center for Adoption and $7,500 to the Houston Pregnancy Help Center, according to a press release sent Monday. The grants are awarded for purposes that include “[m]edia advertising to promote adoption,” “material assistance for pregnant mothers considering adoption,” “adoption training for staff,” and “educational and training materials on adoption.”

Truly, this is an outrage. Less than $50,000 will be donated to help pregnant women who, perhaps, don’t feel so great about killing their unborn children. And that money was freely given, raised by Texans who willingly chose to purchase the license plates. It wasn’t just taken out of taxpayers’ pockets without giving them any choice in the matter… like, say, federal funding for Planned Parenthood, which Grimes, of course, doesn’t mention. Planned Parenthood received over half a billion dollars from taxpayers last year. But under $50,000 in donations — donations — going towards abortion alternatives? How awful!

Read More: http://www.lifenews.com/2013/11/24/abortion-activists-upset-choose-life-license-plates-fund-adoption-centers/

Three men tell their abortion stories intended to create support for abortion; impact is exactly the opposite

November 25, 2013   Abortion

Three men tell their abortion stories intended to create support for abortion; impact is exactly the opposite

By Dave Andrusko

sadman4The impact of the 26 abortion stories collected by Meaghan Winter for a cover story in New York Magazine continues to resonate. (Seenrlc.cc/1c595hc and nrlc.cc/1c599xw.)

Pro-abortionists insist it is the latest and perhaps most visible example of women “telling my story.” This, they maintain, will contribute to the “destigmatization” of abortion.

Pro-lifers look not just at these accounts, but so many like them, and conclude that could not possibly be further from the truth. At one or many levels, most of the women suffered egregiously. The ugly face of abortion—which included many stories of subtle and overt pressure to abort—was everywhere.

For me the most telling observation was

“When I had the ultrasound, I asked for the picture and a nurse said, ‘Seriously?’ A month later, he [the boyfriend] said he regretted it too. When I cry about it, I cry alone. He thinks it would make me sad to talk about, but I don’t want our baby to think we forgot. I’ve never heard of anybody else having an abortion here.”

But our opponents keep trying to salvage something. Today there is “Men Recall the Pain and Turmoil of Abortion,” which appeared at The Root whose stories are written by and for African-Americans.

The writer, Jozen Cummings, was the father of a baby aborted between Cummings’ sophomore and junior years in college. Before he’s telling us that his accounts of three men whose girlfriends aborted are not to be confused with “the many men who are the enemy to abortion rights,” Cummings mentions almost casually, “while I don’t think about it everyday, like I once did, I have never forgotten it.”

Read More: http://www.nationalrighttolifenews.org/news/2013/11/three-men-tell-their-abortion-stories-intended-to-create-support-for-abortion-impact-is-exactly-the-opposite

Human life develops in stages inside the womb and continues to grow after birth. LIFE…IN PROGRESS

LIFE…IN PROGRESS
By Maria Lewis
On October 27, 1994, I was born Maria Michelle Lewis.
According to the National Center for Health Statistics, 3,979,000
children were born in the United States in 1994 (―Live Births
and Birth Rates, by Year  Infoplease.com‖). Johnson &
Johnson affiliates reports that four million children are born each
year (―Surprising facts about birth in the United States  Baby
Center‖). Each of these children‘s lives began at conception.
Human life develops in stages inside the womb and continues to
grow after birth. Without proper protection and care from the
mother, a human cannot grow. Abortion halts growth,
terminating the young life inside of a woman. In the 40 years
since Roe v. Wade, 55,772,000 children have been victims of
abortion (Ertelt, Steve). More innocent human lives have been
eliminated over forty years than are annually born. That is about
fourteen abortions for every child born.
Life is a process. Our physical and mental development are part
of this process. The older we get, the taller, more intelligent,
and more mature our bodies are. We do not come out of the
womb with a brain filled with knowledge. Over time, we
acquire wisdom and hone our skills. The same happens with a
fetus. A fetus is not conceived at the size of a full baby. A fetus
requires time to grow, to develop. Parents experience this
growth through a child‘s first steps or first words. Parents feed
their child to ensure the child‘s proper development. The same
must be done for a fetus. If the mother does not nourish this
human life, the human cannot grow.
Even though we don‘t see every stage of a fetus‘s development,
a fetus is still a person. As philosophy professor Stephen
Schwarz once said, ―Being a fetus is merely on stage in the life
of a person‖ (Cozic, Tipp 34). Everyone must go through the
fetus stage. If we didn‘t, we would not be here.

Read More: Life…  in Progress.  Nov 2013 Teachers Saving Children Newsletter. http://www.teacherssavingchildren.org 

Stripping away illusions: The truth about abortion enablers

Published: November 21, 2013 3:25 pm

Stripping away illusions: The truth about abortion enablers

I’ve got a habit of meeting ex-strippers. There’s no clear explanation for this, as I don’t frequent the places where they used to work. Yet somehow, I’ve ended up with several former dancers in my circle of friends. While their reasons for entering the business ranged from the mundane to the heart breaking, there’s one point that they all agree on: stripping is about illusions.

Strippers try to project the illusion that they’re both interested in and available to an establishment’s clientele. In return, the clientele offer financial  rewards.  Unfortunately, many of the clientele also offer servings of objectification and denigration as well as money, but that seems to come with the turf. In any event, my friends made it clear to me that they had zero romantic interest in and offered no real availability to their customers.* Rather, they were simply selling an image.

luv-with-stripper

*Note: This rule may not apply to T-Pain.

Strippers aren’t the only ones who can peddle an image that doesn’t fit with reality–pro-abortion politicians are pretty good at it too. They offer speeches wrapped in buzz words like “choice,” “reproductive freedom,” and “family planning.” What they really deliver is a set of policies that help sexual predators harm girls and allow “choice providers” to turn babies into medical waste. Earlier, we examined how abortion fans are waging wars on women andchildren. Now it’s time to look at their political enablers.

“Can we honestly say that we’re doing enough to keep our children, all of them, safe from harm?” President Barack Obama asked this question in the wake of the Sandy Hook school massacre. And the answer to that question is…no, no we’re not. Thankfully, there’s a helpful device that the president can use if he’d like to see part of the reason why we’re not doing that. It’s called a mirror.

One of Obama’s first acts upon taking office was to suspend the Mexico City Policy–an executive order that prohibited US foreign aid dollars from paying for abortions overseas. He also rolled back Bush-era executive orders that protected healthcare workers who refused to assist with abortions. Further, President Obama has vowed to defend funding for abortion giant Planned Parenthood in spite of proof that it’s employees have been willing to work with sex traffickers and racists. And that’s not all, because the abortion lobby has probably been helped as much by what the president hasn’t done as what he has.

Read More: http://liveactionnews.org/stripping-away-illusions-the-truth-about-abortion-enablers

C. S. Lewis, Reepicheep, and our chests

C. S. Lewis, Reepicheep, and our chests

BY JOHN STONESTREET

  • Wed Nov 20, 2013 12:54 EST

November 20, ,2013 (BreakPoint) – Half a century after C. S. Lewis joined the Church Triumphant, the Oxford don’s works are still offering almost-prescient insights into our culture. In one of my favorite Lewis books, “The Abolition of Man,” he describes and predicts with eerie accuracy trends that have come to define the society we live in today.

In the first chapter, entitled “Men without Chests,” Lewis slams the schools and the textbooks of mid-twentieth century Britain for abandoning the teaching of virtue.

Using the analogy of the head to represent the intellect, the belly to represent the passions, and the chest to represent rightly-ordered affections, Lewis laments that modern education has allowed young chests to shrivel by teaching students to dismiss transcendent truth and morality as nothing more than personal preferences. Instead of freeing them to think, he argues, this regimen enslaves them to their bellies—their animal passions—and leaves them easy picking for propagandists.

As Chuck Colson documented in the “Doing the Right Thing” video series on ethics, the 2008 financial collapse and recession were largely the result of a society-wide failure to say no to our own desires. Yet we were shocked and angry when this dearth of virtuous decision-making brought the world economy to its knees.

“In a sort of ghastly simplicity,” Lewis writes, “we remove the organ and demand the function. We make men without chests and expect of them virtue and enterprise. We laugh at honour and are shocked to find traitors in our midst. We castrate and bid the geldings be fruitful.”

Read More: http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/c.-s.-lewis-reepicheep-and-our-chests