JOIN THE ACTION: BE A PART OF THE NATIONWIDE PILL KILLS PROTESTS

JOIN THE ACTION: BE A PART OF THE NATIONWIDE PILL KILLS PROTESTS
Posted: Monday June 2, 2008 at 7:38 pm EST by Judie Brown
Since the early 1960’s most medical professionals have known that the birth control pill can kill preborn children. Now, as we approach the 43rd Anniversary of the United States Supreme Court decision Griswold v. Connecticut that wiped out all laws designed to protect Americans from the side effects of birth control in general, American Life League has taken up the mantle of leading grassroots Americans across the country in a protest against the pill.

Before I tell you how irate our opponents are about this latest activity and our staff who are bubbling with excitement around American Life League headquarters, let me give a little history lesson about that particular Supreme Court decision. A little-known fact is that it was this decision that created, for the first time in American jurisprudence, a right to privacy in matters of intimate sexual relations. It was in Griswold v. Connecticut that the Supreme Court defined a "right to privacy" in marital relations as emanating from the penumbra of decisions relating to the meaning of the words within the various amendments to the United States Constitution.

Yes, what I have just told you is true and extremely confusing if not downright stupid. But I did not write the decision.

In his dissent, Justice Stewart, who had no problem with birth control per se, said this about the Constitution of the United States and the Griswold decision:

Since 1879 Connecticut has had on its books a law which forbids the use of contraceptives by anyone. I think this is an uncommonly silly law. As a practical matter, the law is obviously unenforceable, except in the oblique context of the present case. As a philosophical matter, I believe the use of contraceptives in the relationship of marriage should be left to personal and private choice, based upon each individual's moral, ethical and religious beliefs. As a matter of social policy, I think professional counsel about methods of birth control should be available to all, so that each individual's choice can be meaningfully made. But we are not asked in this case to say whether we think this law is unwise, or even asinine. We are asked to hold that it violates the United States Constitution. And that I cannot do.


So from the very beginning the Griswold decision raised concerns among those who felt that the framers of the Constitution did indeed know precisely what they meant, and that they never intended for the Constitution to be interpreted to affect how birth control or abortion was legally treated in this country. But, as history has shown, political activist judges did not agree in 1965 and they do not agree today. The Griswold decision, in my opinion, was instigated by Dr. Griswold, a Planned Parenthood physician, to set the stage for decriminalizing abortion just eight short years later. It was, in essence, Planned Parenthood’s greatest victory.

But I digress!

In a few days The Pill Kills protests will take place in cities across the nation. Today American Life League premiered our latest video news report with the subject The Pill Kills.

And just today the National Organization for Women issued an alert, or should I say, an all-out attack on The Pill Kills events. They are, in a word, desperate. Their screed, "Expose the Lies: Protect Birth Control," is accompanied by a "fact sheet" and other hype. The real blessing in all this is, of course, that those who have been lying to women for the last 43 plus years simply cannot comprehend the idea that the facts about the pill are finally going to be told, shared and otherwise spread across the nation.

No wonder they are so distraught.

Perhaps this is why the pro-abortion, anti-family NOW says,

Birth Control Doesn't Intervene with Pregnancy, it Prevents it. Combination birth control pills function to prevent pregnancy by delivering a daily dose of two hormones, estrogen and progestin. These hormones stop the release of an egg from a woman's ovaries, eliminating the chance that an egg would join with sperm. These hormones also cause a woman's cervical mucus to thicken, blocking any sperm from joining an egg.


NOW conveniently leaves out the third mode of action of the pill which is to irritate the lining of the uterus so that the embryonic child cannot implant and therefore dies. The architects of the culture of death haven’t stopped deceiving people, even though the scientific evidence is mounting. They cannot afford to tell the truth because if they did, women would no longer invest in one of the most lucrative pharmaceutical discoveries of the past century!

But perhaps the most telling statement on the NOW "fact sheet" is this one: "Birth Control is one Component of Reproductive Freedom."

What exactly is reproductive freedom?

The American Civil Liberties Union says reproductive freedom is "everyone's right to make informed decisions free from government interference about whether and when to become a parent."

Or to put it another way, every person should have the right, with legal protection, to kill their babies before birth if they have chosen not to become a parent at the time they discover they are with child. Everyone has the right to ingest chemicals that will remove the possibility of the preborn child growing. Everyone has the right to be free of responsibility and free of moral guidelines when it comes to human sexuality.

To put it succinctly: Everyone should have the right to do evil regardless of the harm done.

This is the situation in America today; American Life League is striving to change it! But we need you!
We need you to get active and do something now. Please plan to be part of The Pill Kills protests on Saturday, June 7. Decide today to join thousands all across the nation – your fellow Americans who love life and want to tell the truth about the fact that the pill kills. They will be out in force protesting and hopefully you will be too.

Complete details including maps showing where protests are taking place can be found at www.thepillkills.com.
Judie Brown

FETAL SURGERY AFFIRMS PERSONHOOD

FETAL SURGERY AFFIRMS PERSONHOOD
Posted: Thursday June 12, 2008 at 1:17 pm EST by Judie Brown
I suppose there are many ways to interpret the remarkable story of Macie Hope McCartney. This precious baby girl is alive today because a team of fetal surgeons was able to operate on her at six months of gestation, thus making it possible for Macie to survive another 10 weeks in the womb. Had the courageous doctors not done what they were confident could be done, the tumor that they removed would have killed this little one.

The entire news report and the accompanying video are well worth your time, as are the many stories of such victories over potentially terminal conditions in utero. In addition to the remarkable surgical team at Texas Children's Hospital who saved Macie, there are fetal surgery centers located in other major cities, such as the Fetal Care Center of Cincinnati and the Center for Fetal Diagnosis and Treatment at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia.

If anything, it should be an inspiration to each of us that doctors are able to do everything possible to treat the preborn child, as they would any other patient at any age. This miracle of modern medicine affirms that the child in the womb is indeed not only a member of the human family, but someone for whom medical practitioners can work wonders.

The downside of this – and yes, there is one – is that, due to the legal protection granted to the act of abortion, the very same professionals who can treat the child in the womb are compelled by law to explain when and if aborting the baby may be another option. For example, at the Center for Fetal Diagnosis and Treatment in Philadelphia, the web site describes the problem of hydrocephalus and its diagnosis in preborn children. In the process of providing the explanation, the web site states that,

hydrocephalus treatments depend on the type of fetal hydrocephalus, rate of progression, gestational age and, ultimately, the family's wishes. Isolated hydrocephalus without associated malformations, detected before the legal abortion limit, may be reason enough to terminate the pregnancy for families who cannot accept the prospect of having a handicapped child.

In other words, the ultimate decision resides with the parents and, all of a sudden, that potential second patient who could receive treatment becomes someone whose life can be snuffed out because that baby's mom and dad cannot accept the child due to his negative prognosis. It is curious to me that the identity of the child in utero is lost in the phrase "terminate the pregnancy." It would seem that not even those who have to abide by the law while being in the business of caring and curing cannot bring themselves to call a thing by its proper name: "Kill the baby prior to birth."

As sad as this is, it is yet another fruit of the tree of evil that grows and prospers in the culture of death. And it should be a stark reminder to us that Macie Hope is a miracle in more ways than one. Her identity as a member of the human family was never in doubt, because her parents loved her unselfishly and had total confidence that, whatever might happen, their child would be cared for. Their hope for the best possible outcome was never in doubt, for as another news report on this remarkable story reads,


Just four months [sic] into Keri McCartney's pregnancy, an ultrasound revealed a tumor growing on the baby's tailbone the size of a grapefruit - nearly as large as the baby herself - that was stealing the baby's blood and weakening her heart. Armed with the hope of just a 10% chance at survival, but facing the certain death of their child if nothing was done, the McCartneys entrusted their unborn daughter's fate to the skillful surgeons at Texas Children's Hospital in Houston.


Today Macie is at home with her four siblings, and one day she will hear the amazing story of how she, having been literally "born twice," beat the odds. And we suspect that she will know what a blessing her parents are to her, for she could have just as well become a terminated pregnancy.

To my mind, stories like Macie Hope McCartney's affirm an aspect of personhood that is rarely thought about these days: the value and the power of hope. A person who has confidence that each human being is worthy of whatever it might take to affirm his dignity is a person who loves life, comprehends the fact that a human being is created by God and appreciates what it means to be a person. Within the context of man's ability to hope resides the resolution to defeating the culture of death.

Providing killing as an alternative to living is hopelessness; devotion to elevating the human person to his rightful place as a blessing is hope. For all the Macie Hopes in the world, we raise our voices in praise to God, Who is hope!
Judie Brown

International abortion network trying to dupe bishops and pro-life groups

International abortion network trying to dupe bishops and pro-life groups

Lima, Jun 20, 2008 / 02:31 pm (CNA).- With financial backing from worldwide abortion supporters, film maker Eve Reinhardt is traveling through Peru this week seeking interviews with bishops and pro-life leaders for a documentary she is directing and that—far from being unbiased as she claims—is intended to become an instrument for regaining financial support from the United States for making abortion legal in poor countries.

One of the pro-life leaders contacted by Reinhardt was Carlos Polo, director of the Latin American office of the Population Research Institute. Polo discovered that the project is called “The Decency Gap,” and he met with Reinhardt to unmask her intentions. The encounter was caught on video by Polo.

Polo told CNA that Reinhardt contacted him by phone and said she was an “independent” film maker who wanted to interview people on both sides of the abortion debate, that her project was not yet titled and that she had already interviewed bishops and pro-life leaders in Cuzco and Lima.

However, Polo discovered that the project not only has a title, but also an official web site (http://www.thedecencygap.org). “The Decency Gap,” Polo discovered, is not a neutral production but rather is funded by the fiercest abortion supporters from around the world, including the International Planned Parenthood Federation, Marie Stopes International and the Center for Reproductive Rights.

He said the project is intended to push for the end of the U.S. government’s Mexico City policy, which prohibits U.S. funding of organizations that carry out abortion or promote its legalization in foreign countries. Polo said the purpose of the documentary is “to influence American public opinion in order to regain access to tax-payer funds and use them for the international abortion industry.”

“Such a perspective makes it impossible for Reinhardt to claim she is impartial in the area of abortion. Her interest in recording the testimonies of pro-life leaders was more than suspicious,” Polo added.

He said an interview with the Population Research Institute would have been of special interest to Reinhardt because “through its research into the abuse of human rights, it has contributed to restricting funds for the abortion industry more than any other entity in the world. The evidence compiled on China’s one-child per couple policy and on forced sterilizations in Peru by the Fujimori government are only some of the actions carried out by the Institute that have meant a loss of more than $500 million for the international pro-abortion movement,” Polo said.

“This is always the way pro-abortion groups lie to us. They invite pro-lifers to pseudo-debates that are supposedly unbiased only to later call us fundamentalists and backwards. This time it wasn’t even an invitation but rather a sick deception,” said Polo.

“‘The Decency Gap’ intends to portray us as enemies of poor women, when in reality it’s religious groups, mostly Catholic and evangelical, that take care of poor women and their children when they don’t want to have abortions. The only thing ‘The Decency Gap’ and its collaborators want is to legally and financially protect powerful economic groups that have made an industry out of abortion. And this is repeated around the world,” Polo said.

CNA has learned that following the publication of this article on its Spanish language news site, “The Decency Gap” web site was removed from the internet.

Eucharist: The Presence of Mercy

Eucharist: The Presence of Mercy
Meditation Reprinted in Honor of Eucharistic Congress.

By Fr. Seraphim Michalenko, MIC (Jun 20, 2008)
In honor of the 49th International Eucharistic Congress, which concludes Sunday, June 22, in Quebec, we are reprinting this excerpt from the booklet "The Divine Mercy Message and Devotion" by Fr. Seraphim Michalenko, MIC.

In His great love for us, the Lord Jesus gave us a great miracle of mercy: the Sacrament of the Holy Eucharist.

God did not only become man in the Incarnation to give His life for us on the cross and to rise again in glory. The Incarnation also looked forward to Jesus remaining with us to the end of time in the Eucharist. By this great miracle of Our Lord's love, the Real Presence of Jesus remains with us under the form of bread and wine. As Pope Paul VI wrote in The Credo of the People of God:

"The unique and indivisible existence of the Lord glorious in heaven is rendered present by the sacrament in the many places on earth where the Mass is celebrated. And this existence remains present after the Sacrifice, in the Blessed Sacrament which is, in the tabernacle, the living heart of each of our churches. And it is our very sweet duty to honor and adore in the blessed Host which our eyes see, the Incarnate Word whom they cannot see, and who, without leaving heaven, is made present before us" (pub. 1968).



The Eucharist is central to devotion to The Divine Mercy, and many of the elements of the devotion are essentially Eucharistic — especially the Image, the Chaplet, and the Feast of Mercy. The Image, with its red and pale rays, represents the Eucharistic Lord Jesus, whose Heart has been pierced and now pours forth blood and water as a fountain of mercy for us. It is the Image of God's sacrificial gift of mercy made present in every Mass.

Several times in her Diary, St. Faustina writes of seeing the red and pale rays coming, not from the Image, but from the Sacred Host; and once, as the priest exposed the Blessed Sacrament, she saw the rays from the Image pierce the Host and spread out from it all over the world (see 441). So too, with the eyes of faith, we should see in every Host the merciful Savior pouring Himself out as a fountain of mercy for us.

This concept of the Eucharist as a fountain of grace and mercy is not only found in the Diary, but also in Church teaching. The Church clearly teaches that all the other sacraments are directed towards the Eucharist and draw their power from it.

In the Constitution on the Sacred Liturgy, for example, we read: "Especially from the Eucharist, grace is poured forth upon us as from a fountain." And, in a note in the Catechism of the Council of Trent, pastors are urged to "compare the Eucharist to a fountain and the other sacraments to rivulets. For the Holy Eucharist is truly and necessarily to be called the fountain of all graces, containing, as it does, after an admirable manner, the fountain itself of celestial gifts and graces, and the Author of all the Sacraments, Christ Our Lord, from whom, as from its source, is derived whatever of goodness and perfection the other sacraments possess" (10).

No wonder, then, that St. Faustina was so devoted to the Eucharist and wrote so powerfully about it in her Diary:

"Oh what awesome mysteries take place during Mass! ... One day we will know what God is doing for us in each Mass, and what sort of gift He is preparing in it for us. Only His divine love could permit that such a gift be provided for us ... this fountain of life gushing forth with such sweetness and power" (914).

"All the good that is in me is due to Holy Communion" (1392). "Herein lies the whole secret of my sanctity" (1489). "One thing alone sustains me and that is Holy Communion. From it I draw all my strength; in it is all my comfort. ... Jesus concealed in the Host is everything to me. ... I would not know how to give glory to God if I did not have the Eucharist in my heart" (1037).

Eucharist and Authentic Adoration

Eucharist and Authentic Adoration

Philippine Bishop Calls for True Worship at Congress

QUEBEC CITY, JUNE 20, 2008 (Zenit.org).- Members of the Church should be on guard against making ecclesiastical customs and even Church figures a hindrance to true worship, said a bishop from the Philippines.

Bishop Louis Tagle of Imus spoke Thursday at the 49th International Eucharistic Congress, which is being held through Sunday in Quebec. He called for spiritual worship and authentic adoration in his address dedicated to the Eucharist as the life of Christ in our lives.

"The Church [...] must also constantly examine its fidelity to Jesus' sacrifice of obedience to God and compassion for the poor," the bishop said. "Ecclesiastical customs and persons, when naively and narrowly deified and glorified, might become hindrances to true worship and compassion."

He gave the example of how bishops can face the temptation of falsely glorifying their roles: "One Saturday morning [...] I saw a woman selling fruit and vegetables in a corner. She was one of those who went to Sunday Mass regularly. It was only 10 in the morning but she was already closing her store. So I asked her the reason. She told me, 'I belong to a prayer group. We have a big assembly this afternoon. Some tasks were assigned to me. So I want to be there early.'

"Upon hearing this, the pragmatic side of me surfaced. I responded, 'The Lord will understand if you extend your working hours. You have a family to support. [...] I am sure the Lord will understand.'

"With a smile, she said, 'But Bishop, the Lord has been faithful to me. [...] We may not be rich but we have enough to live by. Why will I fear?' Then looking at me tenderly, she said, 'Are you not a bishop? Are you not supposed to be encouraging me in faith?'

"I was quite embarrassed. But for me it was an experience of spiritual worship. I, the religiously and culturally accepted presence of God, was revealed to be a faltering representation of God."

A model

Along these lines, Bishop Tagle also called for "authentic adoration."

Speaking of Eucharistic adoration outside of Mass, the prelate said, "Beholding Jesus, we receive and are transformed by the mystery we adore. Eucharistic adoration is similar to standing at the foot of the cross of Jesus, being a witness to his sacrifice of life and being renewed by it."

He pointed to the example of the Roman centurion who guarded Jesus on the cross as a "model of adoration."

"We learn from the centurion's 'adoration' that Jesus' sacrifice of life cannot be appreciated for what it truly is unless the horror of the cross is confronted," the bishop said. "Like any leader of guards, he kept careful watch over this criminal Jesus. [...] Physical nearness was not enough however. He had to be intent, vigilant and observant so that he could account for every detail.

"We learn from the centurion to face Jesus, to keep watch over him, to behold him, to contemplate him. At first the centurion spent hours watching over Jesus out of duty but ended up contemplating him in truth. What did the centurion see? We can assume that he saw the horror of suffering that preceded Jesus' death.

"But I also believe that in Jesus the centurion saw incredible love, love for the God who had failed to remove this cup of suffering from him, and love for neighbors."

Hope

Bishop Tagle pointed to the example of Jesus, innocent and crucified, and tied it to the plight of many innocent people who suffer today.

The prelate recounted: "I visited a poor section of a parish that opened a feeding program for malnourished children. The parents were required to supervise the meal of their children. As I went around the crowded noisy hall, a teenage girl who was gently feeding a young boy caught my attention. She must his elder sister, I thought to myself. I approached them and asked where their mother was. She was looking for a job that day, I was told.

"Thinking that she must be as hungry as her brother, I asked, 'Have you eaten?' 'No,' she said, 'I am not part of the program. I am already 13.' I was surprised at her honesty. For hungry children, this was an opportunity to cheat in order to fill one's stomach. [...] I responded, 'I will instruct a volunteer to give you lunch, if some food is left after all the children have eaten.'

"Thankful but embarrassed she said, 'No, Bishop. There are many other hungry children in this village. Give the extra food to them.' I was drawn into deep silence. 'My God, my God, why are these children going hungry?' I prayed. Yet I also exclaimed, 'I did not expect to see sharing and integrity in this place of death. [...] There is hope for the world.'"

The bishop concluded inviting the faithful to Eucharistic adoration, to "join the centurion in watching over Jesus and see what he has seen."

"I wish that Eucharistic adoration would lead us to know Jesus more as the compassionate companion of many crucified peoples of today," he said. "Let us adore Jesus who offered his life as a gift to the Father for us sinners. Let us adore him for ourselves, for the poor, for the earth, for the Church and for the life of the world."