49,551,703 and Counting

A "holocaust?" Are you kidding me? The more I think about these comments by Rep. Grayson, the more frustrated I become. At first I wondered if he understood the irony in his comments. After all, there have been 49,551,703 abortions in the United States since 1973--an average of 1,376,436 per year and he happens to be a proponent of abortion rights. Rep. Grayson says that there have been 44,789 deaths every year due to lack of health care. Of course no one thinks that preventable deaths are acceptable. But there is a huge difference between a person dying because of omission and the willful taking of an innocent life. He makes it clear that he understands the connection between the abortion and health care debates when he says, "We should care about people even after they are born."

To say that the health care situation is even close to a holocaust is ridiculous. No one's life is being taken. However, I can think of over 49,000,000 examples of a true holocaust.

BloodMoney Trailer

Burden to the Economy?

Below is an exerpt from a conversation between George Stephanopoulos and Nancy Pelosi on ABC's This Week.

STEPHANOPOULOS: Hundreds of millions of dollars to expand family planning services. How is that stimulus?

PELOSI: Well, the family planning services reduce cost. They reduce cost. The states are in terrible fiscal budget crises now and part of what we do for children's health, education and some of those elements are to help the states meet their financial needs. One of those - one of the initiatives you mentioned, the contraception, will reduce costs to the states and to the federal government.

STEPHANOPOULOS: So no apologies for that?

PELOSI: No apologies. No. we have to deal with the consequences of the downturn in our economy.

How long before we start emptying the mental health care facilities because they are a "burden to the economy?" How about the convalescent hospitals? In fact, why don't we just have the family with five children pick their favorite three becuase the other two are too expensive? Where do we draw the line?

Life - Imagine the Potential

The ad was produced by CatholicVote.org, a site which launched last September to educate and inspire Catholic voters.

January 18, 2009 - National Sanctity of Human Life Day

Catholic News Agency:
In what may be his last declaration as U.S. president, George W. Bush has announced that he is establishing January 18, 2009 as "National Sanctity of Human Life Day."

President Bush writes that "All human life is a gift from our Creator that is sacred, unique, and worthy of protection.

"On National Sanctity of Human Life Day, our country recognizes that each person, including every person waiting to be born, has a special place and purpose in this world. We also underscore our dedication to heeding this message of conscience by speaking up for the weak and voiceless among us." . .

The president closed his declaration by saying that "the sanctity of life is written in the hearts of all men and women" and that National Sanctity of Life Day should be dedicated building "a society in which every child is welcome in life and protected in law."

Read the full article:

President declares Sanctity of Human Life Day, sums up pro-life victories

Whose Rights Are We Protecting?

Fr. Peter Irving has this video posted on his blog. What a fantastic testimony.

Catholics Appalled at Anti-Mormon Slur

To View This Video on YouTube, Click Here

To View This Video on Michael Barber's Blog, Click Here.

For More on this Issue, Read Here.

Head Knight of Columbus warns Freedom of Choice Act threatens pro-life successes

“All of these restrictions on abortion - all of the progress we've made over the past 35 years in trying to limit and reduce abortions in the United States - would be invalidated with the stroke of a pen if the next Congress passes, and the next president signs, the so-called ‘Freedom of Choice Act’.”
-Carl A. Anderson, Supreme Knight of the Knights of Columbus

McCain Carries Catholic Medals

I found this article on one of my few blogs that I try to read daily. Hat tip to the Catholic Knight.

________________________________________

"It has been revealed that John McCain, though not himself Catholic, regularly carries around Catholic medals - particularly Our Lady's Miraculous Medal and one of the Blessed Mother Teresa. Even though the Senator from Arizona is a Southern Baptist, he was raised Episcopalian, and apparently the Catholic faith and value system have some appeal to him.Last summer, John McCain made a pilgrimage to the shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico. There he was blessed by Monsignor Monroy. Since then McCain has backed away from his previous support of embryonic stem-cell research and has promised a pro-life administration if elected President of the United States.

The following is an account of Senator McCain's Catholic medals from Eduardo Verastegui, producer and lead actor of the 2007 American film Bella....

“I said more than 45 million babies have been killed by abortion in America and more than 200,000 Latino babies are killed by abortion each year. I told everyone that we need to put an end to this and, when I finished, I went to John McCain and I said, ‘Senator, thank you for your commitment to life. I’d like to give you something.’ I gave him a Miraculous Medal blessed by Pope Benedict XVI and he was amazing. He said, ‘Thank you so much! Look what I have here in my pocket.’

Then Sen. McCain took a medal out of his pocket that he carries everywhere and it was a Blessed Mother Teresa medal. He said, ‘Eduardo, now I am going to keep both.’Verastegui also gave McCain’s wife, Cindy, a Miraculous Medal. He said, “I was touched when I found out that the McCains adopted one of their daughters from Mother Teresa’s orphanage in India. There is nothing more beautiful than to give children homes with families who will love them. I hope that one day that I can do the same.”

Read the full article here.

A vote for Obama is a vote for...

Can a Catholic in good faith vote for a candidate who openly supports abortion? Many will say that abortion isn't the only issue at stake in this election. They are correct. Our next president will have to address some very important issues ranging from war to the economy to energy. However, the correct position on these issues can be debated. Under no circumstances can one argue for the morality of abortion. It is intrinsically evil.

The bishops of Fort Worth and Dallas have issued a joint statement. In this statement they say that "to vote for a candidate who supports the intrinsic evil of abortion or "abortion rights" when there is a morally acceptable alternative would be to cooperate in the evil – and, therefore, morally impermissible. " Read the full text here.

Archbishop Chaput of Denver has gone so far as to call out Barack Obama by name. He states that there hasn't been a "more committed" abortion rights candidate from a major party in the last 35 years and that Catholic organizations who support Obama are doing a "disservice to the church." Read the article here.

**Update**
Yesterday, the USCCB came out with an official statement regarding our obligation to protect the unborn as well as care for the needs of mothers. You can find the statement here.

Tertullian On the Sanctity of Human Life

Here's a few quotes from Tertullian, an Early Church Father, written sometime between 160-240 A.D.

"For us [Christians] we may not destroy even the fetus in the womb, while as yet the human being derives blood from other parts of the body for its sustenance. To hinder a birth is merely a speedier man-killing; nor does it matter when you take away a life that is born, or destroy one that is coming to birth. That is a man which is going to be one: you have the fruit already in the seed." -Apology 9:6

"They [John and Jesus] were both alive while still in the womb. Elizabeth rejoiced as the infant leaped in her womb; Mary glorifies the Lord because Christ within inspired her. Each mother recognizes her child and is known by her child who is alive, being not merely souls but also spirits." -De A ninta 26:4

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"For those who would say that the early Church was silent on the question of abortion, even the few select quotations quoted above from the Church Fathers give witness to the contrary."

[1] Quotations from the early Church Fathers on the Sanctity of Human Life

YES On Proposition 8!

Proposition 8 protects the people’s will and overturns activist judges.
In 2000 over 61% of Californians voted in favor of Proposition 22 to reaffirm that only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California. However, because this language wasn’t put into the state Constitution when it was approved, four activist judges from San Francisco wrongly overturned the people’s vote. In November 2008, Proposition 8 gives California voters the opportunity to reverse the court’s decision and restore the definition of marriage as between a man and a woman in the state Constitution.


Proposition 8 is simple and straightforward.
Proposition 8 contains the same 14 words that were previously approved in 2000 by over 61% of California voters: “Only marriage between a man and a woman is valid or recognized in California.” By putting these words directly into the state Constitution, the court cannot strike them down as unconstitutional.


Proposition 8 is about preserving marriage; it’s not an attack on the gay lifestyle.
Proposition 8 doesn’t take away any rights or benefits from gay or lesbian domestic partners. Under California law, “domestic partners shall have the same rights, protections and benefits” as married spouses. (Family Code §297.5.) There are no exceptions to this. Proposition 8 will not change this.


Proposition 8 protects our children.
Proposition 8 protects our children from being taught in public schools that same-sex marriage is the same as traditional marriage. In health education classes, state law requires teachers to instruct children as young as kindergarteners about marriage. (Education Code §51890.) If the same-sex marriage ruling is not overturned, teachers will be required to teach young children that there is no difference between gay marriage and traditional marriage.


Proposition 8 protects marriage as an essential institution of society.
Proposition 8 protects marriage and the important role of a traditional family. While death, divorce or other circumstances may prevent the ideal, the best situation for a child is to be raised by a married mother and father.


YES on Proposition 8 does three simple things.

􀂃 It restores the definition of marriage to what the vast majority of California voters already approved and human history has understood marriage to be.

􀂃 It overturns the outrageous decision of four activist Supreme Court judges who ignored the will of the people.

􀂃 It protects our children from being taught in public schools that “same-sex marriage” is the same as traditional marriage.

Vote Yes on Proposition 8!
www.ProtectMarriage.com

Legalizing same sex marriage has real consequences. Clink on the link below to view full article:

First Graders Taken To San Francisco City Hall For Gay Wedding

The Church on Abortion (Hint: it has been a little longer than 50 yrs. Ms. Pelosi)

The Didache
"The second commandment of the teaching: You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not seduce boys. You shall not commit fornication. You shall not steal. You shall not practice magic. You shall not use potions. You shall not procure [an] abortion, nor destroy a newborn child" (Didache 2:1–2 [A.D. 70]).

The Letter of Barnabas
"The way of light, then, is as follows. If anyone desires to travel to the appointed place, he must be zealous in his works. The knowledge, therefore, which is given to us for the purpose of walking in this way, is the following. . . . Thou shalt not slay the child by procuring abortion; nor, again, shalt thou destroy it after it is born" (Letter of Barnabas 19 [A.D. 74]).

The Apocalypse of Peter
"And near that place I saw another strait place . . . and there sat women. . . . And over against them many children who were born to them out of due time sat crying. And there came forth from them rays of fire and smote the women in the eyes. And these were the accursed who conceived and caused abortion" (The Apocalypse of Peter 25 [A.D. 137]).

Athenagoras
"What man of sound mind, therefore, will affirm, while such is our character, that we are murderers?. . . [W]hen we say that those women who use drugs to bring on abortion commit murder, and will have to give an account to God for the abortion, on what principle should we commit murder? For it does not belong to the same person to regard the very fetus in the womb as a created being, and therefore an object of God’s care, and when it has passed into life, to kill it; and not to expose an infant, because those who expose them are chargeable with child-murder, and on the other hand, when it has been reared to destroy it" (A Plea for the Christians 35 [A.D. 177]).

Tertullian
"In our case, a murder being once for all forbidden, we may not destroy even the fetus in the womb, while as yet the human being derives blood from the other parts of the body for its sustenance. To hinder a birth is merely a speedier man-killing; nor does it matter whether you take away a life that is born, or destroy one that is coming to birth. That is a man which is going to be one; you have the fruit already in its seed" (Apology 9:8 [A.D. 197])."Among surgeons’ tools there is a certain instrument, which is formed with a nicely-adjusted flexible frame for opening the uterus first of all and keeping it open; it is further furnished with an annular blade, by means of which the limbs [of the child] within the womb are dissected with anxious but unfaltering care; its last appendage being a blunted or covered hook, wherewith the entire fetus is extracted by a violent delivery."There is also [another instrument in the shape of] a copper needle or spike, by which the actual death is managed in this furtive robbery of life: They give it, from its infanticide function, the name of embruosphaktes, [meaning] "the slayer of the infant," which of course was alive. . . ."[The doctors who performed abortions] all knew well enough that a living being had been conceived, and [they] pitied this most luckless infant state, which had first to be put to death, to escape being tortured alive" (The Soul 25 [A.D. 210])."Now we allow that life begins with conception because we contend that the soul also begins from conception; life taking its commencement at the same moment and place that the soul does" (ibid., 27)."The law of Moses, indeed, punishes with due penalties the man who shall cause abortion [Ex. 21:22–24]" (ibid., 37).

Minucius Felix
"There are some [pagan] women who, by drinking medical preparations, extinguish the source of the future man in their very bowels and thus commit a parricide before they bring forth. And these things assuredly come down from the teaching of your [false] gods. . . . To us [Christians] it is not lawful either to see or hear of homicide" (Octavius 30 [A.D. 226]).

Hippolytus
"Women who were reputed to be believers began to take drugs to render themselves sterile, and to bind themselves tightly so as to expel what was being conceived, since they would not, on account of relatives and excess wealth, want to have a child by a slave or by any insignificant person. See, then, into what great impiety that lawless one has proceeded, by teaching adultery and murder at the same time!" (Refutation of All Heresies [A.D. 228]).

Council of Ancyra in AD 341
"Concerning women who commit fornication, and destroy that which they have conceived, or who are employed in making drugs for abortion, a former decree excluded them until the hour of death, and to this some have assented. Nevertheless, being desirous to use somewhat greater lenity, we have ordained that they fulfill ten years [of penance], according to the prescribed degrees" (canon 21 [A.D. 314]).

Basil the Great
"Let her that procures abortion undergo ten years’ penance, whether the embryo were perfectly formed, or not" (First Canonical Letter, canon 2 [A.D. 374])."He that kills another with a sword, or hurls an axe at his own wife and kills her, is guilty of willful murder; not he who throws a stone at a dog, and unintentionally kills a man, or who corrects one with a rod, or scourge, in order to reform him, or who kills a man in his own defense, when he only designed to hurt him. But the man, or woman, is a murderer that gives a philtrum, if the man that takes it dies upon it; so are they who take medicines to procure abortion; and so are they who kill on the highway, and rapparees" (ibid., canon 8).

John Chrysostom
"Wherefore I beseech you, flee fornication. . . . Why sow where the ground makes it its care to destroy the fruit?—where there are many efforts at abortion?—where there is murder before the birth? For even the harlot you do not let continue a mere harlot, but make her a murderess also. You see how drunkenness leads to prostitution, prostitution to adultery, adultery to murder; or rather to a something even worse than murder. For I have no name to give it, since it does not take off the thing born, but prevents its being born. Why then do thou abuse the gift of God, and fight with his laws, and follow after what is a curse as if a blessing, and make the chamber of procreation a chamber for murder, and arm the woman that was given for childbearing unto slaughter? For with a view to drawing more money by being agreeable and an object of longing to her lovers, even this she is not backward to do, so heaping upon thy head a great pile of fire. For even if the daring deed be hers, yet the causing of it is thine" (Homilies on Romans 24 [A.D. 391]).

Jerome
"I cannot bring myself to speak of the many virgins who daily fall and are lost to the bosom of the Church, their mother. . . . Some go so far as to take potions, that they may insure barrenness, and thus murder human beings almost before their conception. Some, when they find themselves with child through their sin, use drugs to procure abortion, and when, as often happens, they die with their offspring, they enter the lower world laden with the guilt not only of adultery against Christ but also of suicide and child murder" (Letters 22:13 [A.D. 396]).

The Apostolic Constitutions
"Thou shalt not use magic. Thou shalt not use witchcraft; for he says, ‘You shall not suffer a witch to live’ [Ex. 22:18]. Thou shall not slay thy child by causing abortion, nor kill that which is begotten. . . . [I]f it be slain, [it] shall be avenged, as being unjustly destroyed" (Apostolic Constitutions 7:3 [A.D. 400]).

Thanks to Taylor Marshall for compiling this list from Catholic Answers.

What is at stake?

"I stand by my votes against confirming Justices Roberts and Alito," he stated to a cheering crowd. "I made it equally clear that I will never back down from making sure that women have their reproductive rights here in this country -- that's what's at stake in this election."

--Barak Obama

Read the entire article here.

How can a Catholic or any Christian for that matter vote for this man?

Should We Be Surprised? (Updated)

Art suggested that we submit "Should We Be Surprised?" as a letter to the editor in our local paper. After much deliberation, I have decided to do so. My good friend AJ Fredette looked it over and offered some suggestions, which I will gladly take. I would also like any readers of our blog to offer comments and/or suggestions before I send it off to the paper. So...the semi final draft is as follows:

As we all know, the California Supreme Court recently decided to make same sex marriage a fundamental right. Needless to say, this has created quite a stir. Chief Justice, Ronald M. George wrote the majority opinion and was quoted as saying, "I think there are times when doing the right thing means not playing it safe." I completely agree. Doing the right thing does mean not playing it safe; especially when one is defending the rights of others, which is what the Court believes it has done. Others, however, disagree that this is what was accomplished.The central problem in the debate over same sex marriage revolves around the definition of marriage. There are those who argue, as the California Supreme Court does, that marriage is simply an agreement between parties to share certain assets as a result of the experience of a certain degree of affection. Dissenters, however, recognize that marriage has a deeper meaning, basis, and function.

Marriage, in this view, has two components: contractual and covenantal. The Court has the legal right to do what they please with the contractual part of marriage, as contracts are strictly legal instruments. However, they have no say over the covenantal, or sacramental, aspect of marriage, as this part is subsumed in spiritual considerations. While a contract is an exchange of goods and services, a covenant is a union of persons.

The sacrament of matrimony is more than just two people who love each other agreeing on terms and conditions under which they will share a life. It is more than being able to file a joint tax return or reap legal benefits granted by the government. These are the contractual aspects of marriage that should be the Court’s purview. But the covenantal, spiritual dimension of matrimony transcends and supersedes the contractual and is beyond the scope of the Court’s authority.

Matrimony, in its fullest sense, is about the communion of persons as God intended from the beginning. Look no further than Matthew 19 to see Jesus' teaching on marriage:

"And the Pharisees came up to him and tested him by asking, "Is it lawful to divorce one's wife for any cause?" He answered, "Have you not read that he who made them from the beginning made them male and female, and said, `For this reason a man shall leave his father and mother and be joined to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh'? So they are no longer two but one flesh. What therefore God has joined together, let not man put asunder."

Notice that Jesus refers to the "beginning,” harkening to the Creation. Genesis 1:27 states, “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” Together, male and female make up "man." And "man" is created in the image of God. The way we reflect the image of God is in the one flesh union of the marital act. This is not possible in a same sex union as the marital act requires a male and a female. Why?If God is a communion of persons, then we, as images of God, are to be a communion of persons. But God is the communion of Three Persons in the Blessed Trinity and a married couple is just a communion of two persons. Where is the third person of the human trinity? Well, my wife and I have four of them. The love between a husband and wife is so real that in nine months you give it a name. That is how we image God. This is what makes marriage a covenant rather than merely a contract. Covenants create families.

Covenants, then, result in procreative, self-perpetuating unions. Contracts specify terms, conditions, limits, and duration of agreement. In contracts, the parties remain separate. In covenants, the parties become one. Further, now that the courts have officially taken marriage out of the context of a covenant and made it purely a contract between consenting adults, what is to keep them from allowing multiple marriage partners? After all, contracts often involve more than two parties. This and a variety of other marital contractual arrangements become permissible by denying or ignoring the covenantal aspect of matrimony.

A difficulty, perhaps by now insuperable, is that many of the folks who are so upset about this decision, claiming that it isn’t the way God intended or it isn’t “natural,” have become part of the problem without realizing it. Marriage was actually taken out of its covenantal context long ago. The 1970’s saw the legalization of “no fault” divorce as well as abortion. And the door to all of this was opened in the first part of the 20th century with the legalization of artificial contraceptives. With the extensive use of contraceptives, most married couples have negated the third person of the family and reduced the marital act to a pleasurable, strictly physical experience. Husbands and wives are simply using each other for pleasure. How is that different from that which a same sex couple can accomplish? The thing that sets the covenant of marriage apart is life-giving love. If the possibility of life is taken out of the marriage by way of contraception, then it is no different than any other act between two people who "love" each other, thereby reducing the marriage to a contract. The irony is striking. While proponents of contraception, “no fault” divorce, and abortion claim to work for happy, healthy families, what they have accomplished is a diminution of the importance of the covenantal, procreative, life-giving aspect of the institution, thus degrading it. Many of these people are the loudest voices protesting the statutory recognition of same-sex marriages.

If we truly want to protect the sanctity of marriage, then we need to reclaim the covenant of marriage. If we want to reclaim the covenant of marriage, we had better take a hard look at how we can protect the sanctity of life. When it comes to life and marriage, God has brought them together, let no man put them asunder. So really, we shouldn’t be surprised by the court’s decision-- our society has been working to destroy the underpinnings of marriage for years.

I would appreciate any feedback I can get...thanks.

US Bishops on Stem Cell Research

The US Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) recently made a statement regarding stem cell research. It is worth reading at length. Stem cell research has caused quite a bit of controversy, and rightfully so. It seems that the stem cells from adults as well as umbilical cord blood has proven beneficial while the stem cells from embroys haven't been proven to be effective. Why would the scientific community insist on "harvesting" stem cells by destroying the lives of human embryos when umbilical cord blood is easy to come by?

Holy Innocents Church

I had the opportunity to travel with Fr. Scott to Long Beach last week. He meets with a group of priests for an Opus Dei circle. The parish we visited was Holy Innocents and Fr. Peter is a fantastic man to talk to. His blog is very interesting and I will be adding it to our blog roll. Take a look when you get a chance. Fr. Peter is doing a great job of spreading the Pro Life message.



To go to Fr. Peters blog, click here.

40 years of Humanae Vitae

To [Christian married couples] the Lord entrusts the task of making visible to men the holiness and sweetness of the law which unites the mutual love of husband and wife with their cooperation with the love of God the author of human life. (Pope Paul VI, Humanae vitae)

July marks the 40 year anniversary of Humanae Vitae, the encyclical letter written by Pope Paul VI outlining the Church's teaching on the sanctity of life. Specifically it reaffirms the Church's teaching on abortion and contraception. Humanae Vitae is a beautiful letter that outlines God's plan for protecting the sanctity of life beginning with the marital act itself. It has also been a very controversial letter as many Catholics have rejected this teaching.

Fr. Tom Euteneuer, the president of Human Life International, is collecting pledges of assent to the teachings outlined in Humanae Vitae.

Please read the text of Humanae Vitae and then go to the HLI website to sign the pledge.

The Film Bella is Available for Pre-order

The film Bella is now available for pre-order at amazon.com

You can pre-order here: Bella the Film

Also, click here and view Taylor Marshalls thoughts on the film Bella.

Thoughts on the Film

Walk For Life 2008

Hi everyone, I'm Melissa and I just thought I'de use Art's blog to share a little bit about my wonderful experience this past weekend. I attended my first Walk For Life in San Francisco! This years Walk For Life was a great out come with over 25,000 people showing up to show their support for life. The day also included prayers for those who have been killed through abortion and also to pray for the women who have been hurt through abortion. This is a spiritual battle that we are fighting against everyday, along with abortion genocide. Please continue to pray for the rights of the unborn and for the healing of all women who have suffered from their abortion.

For more information about this year's Walk for Life event, please visit their website by clicking on the link below.

Walk for Life