January 2005 Archives

God has not asked us to take that responsibility. He keeps it for Himself. When is the right moment to release a suffering soul to death? He knows. And He will do it when the moment is perfect. - Wittenberg Gate answers tough questions about euthanasia.

Three decades after Roe v. Wade, many people still do not understand basic facts about legal abortion -- like the fact that abortion is legal through all nine months of pregnancy," said Cathy Cleaver Ruse, Esq., Director of Planning and Information for the Secretariat, The Second Look Project.

HT: Hyscience

GodBlogCon2005 is a conference for Christian bloggers that has self-organized at SmartChristian.com in a matter of one-week. The conference is rapidly growing and will be held in beautiful Mesa, AZ in the Fall of 2005.

This will be a great opportunity for Christian pro-lifers to learn, network and strategize about how the blogosphere can be used to communicate a Christian pro-life message that will engage the non-Christian culture, heal the broken hearted, catalyze change and motivate action. It is also an opportunity for pro-life organizations and ministries to discover how bloggers and blogging technology can benefit their web presence.

Here is what you can do:

1. Sign-up for the conference at SmartChristian.com. This is not yet formalized but a head count of potential attendees is needed.


2. Spread the word about the conference through your blog


3. Get involved with the Pro-Life Blogging Workshop. This is your invitation. I�m facilitating it and would appreciate your assistance, even if you are not able to attend (I�m told there may be a live web link). To volunteer or provide a suggestion simply leave on comment below this message.

Please phone and write to save Terri�s life. Details at Orthodoxy Today.

Press release from Terri's Fight:

Following a court hearing today before Judge George Greer in the Pinellas County FL Probate, Robert and Mary Schindler, parents of Terri Schiavo, made public a settlement offer that was proposed by their attorneys to attorneys for Michael Schiavo on October 26, 2004.

Although Mr. Schiavo's attorneys have verbally rejected their proposal, the Schindlers will continue to keep their offer on the table and remain hopeful that they will one day be allowed to bring their daughter home.

Rita Fedrizzi died this week after refusing cancer treatement that would have required her to have an abortion [more, HT: WorldMagBlog]. Her death came three months after giving birth to a healthy baby boy.

The U.S. Supreme Court refused to hear the appeal of Florida Governor Jeb Bush to reinstate the Florida law that barred Terri Schiavo's husband from starving her to death [more]. While the case is disappointing it does not affect the ongoing legal avenues being pursued in Florida by the Schindlers, Terri's parents. In fact, there's a key court hearing today [AP].

LifeNews reports that a settlement between the Schindler's and Terri's husband is unlikely.

"They offered to give him everything and they would pay all the costs of her rehabilitation and her care -- even if he wanted to stay married to her and inherit everything,'' said Barbara Weller, the Schindlers' attorney.

Yes, letting go is painful when your daughter�s husband has been living with another woman for years, has two children with this other woman, and won't divorce your daughter because he's after the money that he promised to use to rehabilitate her.

• Mod-blog - Terri's Last Hope is... Divorce


• Life Matters - Will End of Terri's Law Mean End of Terri's Life?

Add your comments and look for more information later today.

Updates:

Life Steward has more.

The American Life League identified 72 pro-abortion Catholics in the U.S. House and Senate through a two-page newspaper advertisement. The report reveals a gross inconsistency between the professed faith of these representatives and their public action.

Given the pro-abortion position and voting record of these 72 Catholics, what should be the response of voters, the Church and Christians in general?

The Coalition on Abortion/Breast Cancer applauds the successful prosecution of a lawsuit against an abortion clinic and a physician for performing an abortion on a 15-year-old girl without informing her of the psychological risks and the increased risk of breast cancer. It is the second abortion-cancer lawsuit to be successfully prosecuted in the U.S. and the first case to obtain a judgment.

Source: Christian Communication Network

Thousands of pro-life demonstrators yesterday rallied on the frozen, snow-covered Ellipse, and then marched to the Supreme Court as part of the 32nd annual protest against the high court's 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which legalized abortion. - Washington Times

With a larger turnout that in previous years, at least 250,000 pro-life advocates marched in Washington Monday for the annual March for Life. . - more from LifeNews

Michelle Malkin and La Shawn Barber led the way yesterday in the coverage of public demonstrations that marked the 32nd Anniversary of legalized abortion in the United States. The protestors received a word of encouragement and hope from President Bush, who has expressed pro-life views and likely will appoint at least one Supreme Court justice during his second term.

I appreciate so very much your work toward building a culture of life-- (applause) -- a culture that will protect the most innocent among us and the voiceless. - President Bush

Update: Sounding the Trumpet has more pictures. Here is one of them:

Rae at A Likely Story has published a moving and personal story about the decision she faced after an unexpected pregnancy 13 years ago.

[Dr. X] told me that she could recommend a place, a "warm and understanding" place where I would receive help and counseling. And an abortion at a discounted rate....

This was a child from the very beginning. There was never a question of what was growing in me, only of how to provide the best for this person whose very life depended on what decision we made.

More

A few modifications have been made to our aggregator. First, when users click on any aggregated link within either the main page or the aggregator page a "hit" will register in the associated blog's profile. As a result, our member blogs get credit for both hits they receive from the blog database and the blog aggregator.

Second, I've added a "recent posts" link next to each entry in the blog database. By following this link you can view the most recent entries aggregated from each of our bloggers.

Third, a "pro-life filter" has been added as an option on the aggregator page to identify and display posts that cover pro-life related issues. The filter itself is somewhat crude but appears to be correctly identifying the majority of posts. Incidentally, the same filter is used to asterisk pro-life related content on the main page.

Finally, I want to warmly welcome all of the new bloggers who have joined the ranks of pro-life blogs. We are 148 strong and growing.

Thanks for blogging for Life!

In the United States, over 45 million pre-born boys and girls have been killed since the Jan. 22, 1973 Supreme Court Decision that legalized abortion. Each year, nearly 20,000 abortions are performed after the 21st week of pregnancy.

• Our most recent member, Stacy at Media Soul, has published a touching and appropriate song she wrote about the horrors of abortion in our land. Click here to listen.


• Tulip Girl remembers the women killed by legal abortion. "I remember when 17 y/o Latachie Veal died in 1991. We were the same age. She died at the hands of Dr. Robert Crist in Houston--the same abortionist who serviced one of the clinics in San Antonio where I lived."


• Emily from After Abortion is in D.C. with Silent no More, breaking the silence.


• La Shawn Barber, blogging about this infamous anniversary, writes, "... The U.S. Supreme Court held that women have a right to privacy to kill their unborn children...." She also has a round-up of others blogging about this day.


• LifeSteward - After all the arguments, there is really only one issue worthy: the over 46 million abortions that have occured in the United States since Roe constitute nothing less than a Holocaust of the Unborn.


• Jeff at ProverbsDaily has posted a series on the sanctity of human life starting with The Ugly Truth (of abortion). Today he publishes Part 6, the positive news of Pro-Life Miracle Stories.


• Little Bit Tired - On this date in 1973 this nation, America, the best hope of freedom and equality in the history of the world, began the process of allowing 46 million people to be legally murdered.... As a nation we need to repent (and not just for abortion).


• Joshua Claybourn In the Agora writes, "People involved with punditry can get tired of the endless focus on abortion. But for those, like me, who see the act as the taking of an innocent human life, there can be little else that precedes it in significance."


• Commonwealth Conservative - I�m going to go hug my two children now.


• Stand-up and Walk - I've been mulling around on something to write on today... and have not come up with anything that represented my heart on the tragedy of this day.... But, I pray right now for women everywhere who are contemplating using their "right."


• Scattershot Direct - Bloody anniversary ... We've all lost so many to abortion.


• My Domestic Church - While remembering Roe V. Wade Day, it might be appropriate to remember some of the survivors of abortion. Link here and here.


• Eric Seymour In the Agora - As Sanctity of Human Life Week draws to a close, I have been reflecting a lot on pro-life issues. One thought that I keep returning to is how much I admire pro-life women. These women give their time and energy not only to take a public stand against abortion, but also to volunteer as peer counselors and other staff at crisis pregnancy centers. In addition to the usual consequences of involving oneself in a controversial issue, they risk scorn and ridicule from self-appointed guardians of "women's rights."


• Standing in the Trenches - Saturday, January 22, 2005 - The Death of the Innocents: 32 Years


• Proverbial Wife - The masses who succeeded in securing abortion rights for the nation would not have existed if their own parents had believed so strongly in so-called "choice." Had the murder of the unborn been legalized one generation earlier, numerous defenders of reproductive freedom wouldn't have had any voice at all. I wonder if they ever think about it that way...


• Spokane Rock for Life - I pray that we may see clearly the horror that goes on right under our nose on a daily basis. God give us strength to fight this genocide.


• Adrian Warnock - Any decent person would put themselves out and even at risk of physical injury when the benefit is to spare even a strangers life. How then is it that society has become so warped that women feel under pressure to take the lives of their own unborn children? ... Abortion kills. We want it to stop.


• Anywhere but Here - 32 years of legalized murder


• A Likely Choice - Rae has something in the works. She has been "thinking and stewing and writing".


• Exultate Justi - ... the shadow continues to spread over our land - blessed by many of those who have pledged to "first, do no harm", and sheltered by our own government.


• jivinjehoshaphat - We should also remember that the Supreme Court decided Doe v. Bolton on the same day 32 years ago.... My guess is the large majority of our country has no clue about Doe v. Bolton and how that ruling effects Roe v. Wade and abortion especially when we have the AP using completely inaccurate polling questions. Interested? Read more.

Note: I will be updating this post through-out the day with information from our member sites. If you haven't posted something already it is not too late.

As most of you know, Saturday marks the 32nd anniversary of the infamous Roe v. Wade decision which legalized abortion in America. In remembrance of this date, the Christian Carnival, hosted by our own Mark Sides (Sidesspot) includes in a number of posts related to abortion, the unborn and the sanctity of human life that are definitely worth reading.

Amid extraordinary security, George W. Bush took the oath of office and entered his second term as President of the United States. While his inaguration speech optimistically addressed the defeat of tyranny through freedom and self-government, he did send a (subtle) message to pro-lifers. Did you notice?

From the day of our founding, we have proclaimed that every man and woman on this earth has rights and dignity and matchless value, because they bear the image of the maker of heaven and Earth.... [snip]

Americans at our best value the life we see in one another and must always remember that even the unwanted have worth.

WASHINGTON, January 18, 2005 - Norma McCorvey, the former "Jane Roe" whose case first legalized abortion on demand 32 years ago, today announced she is formally asking the U.S. Supreme Court to take her case and to reverse Roe v. Wade, or at least, order a trial on the merits. McCorvey's case cites the sworn testimony of more than 1,000 women hurt by abortion.

"This is the day I've longed for," said McCorvey, who deeply regrets her role in legalizing abortion. "Now we know so much more, and I plead with the Court tolisten to the witnesses and re-evaluate Roe v. Wade. It was a dreadful day in America when the Supreme Court allowed a woman to kill her own child.

"With each child aborted, there is another tragedy: the harm to the mother," McCorvey said. "I've worked in abortion facilities, and I've seen firsthand the horrific nature of abortion and its devastation to women and girls."

Allan Parker, president of The Justice Foundation, and lead attorney on the case, said much has changed since the high court's 1973 ruling.

"We're asking the Court to find, based on the changed legal and factual conditions, that it would be a grave injustice to continue Roe v. Wade," Parker said.

The Foundation filed a petition for writ of certiorari on January 14, 2005, which reached the Court today, January 18, asking the Supreme Court to hear the case. It was first filed in a district court in Dallas in June 2003. Federal rules allow an original party to request a ruling be vacated when factual and legal changes make the decision no longer just. A legal summary and other documents can be viewed at www.alarryross.com or at www.operationoutcry.org.

HT: Pajamahadin

World Magazine's Marvin Olasky writes the following column on the "tidal wave of death" for Townhall:

Two tidal waves of death: the tsunami late in December and 32 years of massive abortion since the Roe vs. Wade decision on Jan. 22, 1973.

Television images and Internet blogs have brought home to Americans the reality of one disaster. Ultrasound images have shown many young women and their boyfriends the reality of lives that can be saved. We have fewer excuses than we once had for not loving our neighbors as ourselves, no matter how far away or how small they are.

[snip]

What to do? Another intense Asian tsunami may be a century away, but the abortion tsunami occurs every year. An overall constitutional amendment would be great, but in this meantime many lives can be saved through a compassionate conservative approach that features ultrasound machines, waiting periods, involvement of boyfriend or husband and both sets of parents, information about post-abortion syndrome and pro-adoption counseling.

I started working at the clinic in 2002. I had just graduated as a medical assistant. I had applied at a lot of places, but I didn't get a job because I didn't have any experience. Then someone told me that Sonia, an acquaintance of mine, needed someone. When I talked to her, she made it clear that it had to do with a clinic where they do abortions, but that they do other things, too. My goal was to gain at least six months' to a year's experience in the medical field. Sonia told me to go to the clinic to try to help out the doctor, and that if I couldn't take it, it was no problem, they would have me do something else. I didn't like the idea, even though having an abortion isn't something I'm unfamiliar with. I myself had an abortion a year before. Sonia had the same thing happen to her, though it wasn't as voluntary as mine. Her parents took her to get the abortion.

"I agreed to try it out," Yeni continued. "The first time I helped the doctor, I almost fainted. I couldn't see, and I couldn't hear. I was overwhelmed by the blood and the girl's screams. They took me out of there and I told Sonia that I couldn't do it, but they advised me to try it once more. By the second abortion I found that I could deal with it. The weeks went by, and even though the job is ugly, I was learning a lot about medicine.

"I made up my mind to withstand the work at the clinic until I got a little experience I could apply somewhere else. Then came the abortions of babies who were five or six months, and it became impossible for me to continue. After three months, I resigned. But the pressure to pay my bills, all my debts, and my situation as a single mother, forced me to go back to work at the clinic.

"To this day, I have left and returned three times," she said, but added, "I myself can't believe that I'm here for the money. That's what is so absurd. I make $8.50 an hour here. But because I wanted a career as a medical assistant, I stayed."
. . .
"I can't help being angry ? at the patient, at the doctor, and at myself. It's useless to be here. We aren't doing anything good. I'm very mad at myself. I feel wasted away. I feel as if I'm not the same person."

[more offsite]

This question has been frequently debated by pro-lifers and is the subject of a recent Washinton Post editorial. Here are two views that are listed:

Yes. Without getting into the debate about what the Old Testament and New Testament teach, I say look at the obvious. The person who is on death row awaiting execution is there as a result of his/her own actions. The unborn child who is aborted dies from the action of another. The child has not done anything warranting such a harsh penalty.

Michael Spenard, Columbia

My belief is that this is morally inconsistent. I'm Catholic, and my church teaches that human life is sacred. This includes unborn fetuses as well as adult criminals who have committed horrible acts.

The basic thought is, we as humans do not have the authority to decide who lives and who dies. In our belief, that decision is up to God alone. By having abortions or instituting the death penalty, we humans are arrogantly presuming an authority which simply is not ours.

Arthur Liu, Gaithersburg