Grateful for Life

Bella Santorum: God's Gift of Life and Love

2012-02-01T00:30:00.000-05:00

"We just thank God every day we have her. I would say Bella makes us better. Some people describe people like Bella as disabled children; and I look at her and I look at the joy and I look at the simplicity and the love that she emits and it's clear to me that we're the disabled ones, not her. She's got it right. She's got a...great beautiful spirit--one that emits unconditional love--and we can learn a lot from that."

~ Rick Santorum ~

Bella Movie Helps Save Lives

2012-01-31T11:43:00.000-05:00

460 Bella Babies Saved to date: Click here and you will read the inspiring Bella baby stories from Pregnancy Care Centers throughout the country and see how Bella is continuing to change lives and save babies. MORE »

Steve Jobs: How His Mother Saved His Life

2011-10-09T10:26:00.000-04:00

Since this is Respect Life Sunday, and the beginning of Respect Life month, I wanted to talk about one woman who did respect life – and her choice has made a difference in the life of virtually every person in this church.

Her name is Joanne Schiebel. In 1954, she was a young unmarried college student who discovered that she was pregnant. In the 1950s, her options were limited. She could have had an abortion – but the procedure was both dangerous and illegal. She could have gotten married, but she wasn’t ready and didn’t want to interrupt her education. Joanne opted, instead, to give birth to the baby and put it up for adoption.

And so it was that in 1955, a California couple named Paul and Clara Jobs adopted a baby boy, born out of wedlock, that they named Steven.

We know him today…as Steve Jobs.

It would not be overstating things to say that Steve Jobs is my generation’s Thomas Edison. As one observer put it, he knew what the world wanted before the world knew that it wanted it.

If you have an iPhone or an iPad or an iPod, or anything remotely resembling them, you can thank Steve Jobs.

If your world has been transformed by the ability to hear a symphony, send a letter, pay a bill, deposit a check, read a book and then buy theater tickets on something roughly the size of a credit card…you can thank Steve Jobs.

And: you can thank Joanne Schiebel.

If you want to know how much one life can matter, there is just one example.

~ Excerpt from Deacon Greg Kandra's Homily Oct 2, 2011 ~

Legal Killing of Humans: German Holocaust Compared to Abortion Holocaust

2011-10-05T11:34:00.002-04:00

A new 33-minute documentary film titled 180 is changing public opinion on abortion 180 degrees in a matter of minutes, as author and film producer Ray Comfort uses the new film to ask students a question that challenges their abortion views.

Abby Johnson, who resigned her position as the director of a Texas Planned Parenthood abortion business, has also seen the film and said pro-life advocates “must check it out,” saying it is “one of the best things you will ever watch.”

~ Excerpts from here ~

Abortion Stops a Beating Heart: Join Supporters of the Heartbeat Bill!

2011-05-20T11:30:00.000-04:00

"Science has already given us a yardstick to determine if someone is alive--a beating heart. We just want to see that measurement applied evenly. This bill calls for an end to discrimination and the protection of every human being with a beating heart--no matter their age!

~ Lynn Wachtmann, Ohio State Representative and New Chair of the House Health Committee ~

"Knowing that I killed my own precious baby, who had a beating heart, has traumatized and devastated me beyond description and has destroyed so much happiness and has lead to chronic migraine pain easily triggered by inconsolable grieving. An unplanned pregnancy would have lead to unplanned joy. I regret this choice with every fiber of my heart and soul... I've thought about and loved this baby intensely every day of my life for almost 30 years. And I never was a mom to another child-due to infertility. This means that in a moment of haste, in my youth, not fully informed, I killed the only child I ever conceived. If I would have seen an ultrasound--would have seen that beating heart-wild horses couldn't have kept me in that clinic. I would have known the truth and my baby would be alive today. That's why I'm here. Please vote yes on this important legislation."

~ Kathryn Bretz, Post-Abortive Woman, Cleveland, Ohio ~

~ HeartbeatBill.com ~

Dr. Paul Byrne: What Everyone Should Know About Organ Donation

2011-05-19T13:07:00.002-04:00

Uploaded by franciscanfriars on Jun 24, 2008

Ave Maria! In this Roving Reporter, Dr Paul Byrne alerts us on the laws being passed by states nation wide called 'Presumed Intent', which states that all persons are perspective organ donors (... or involuntary organ donors) unless the individual declares otherwise, under the guise of 'brain death'.

About Zack Dunlap who was declared brain dead:

The young man himself told NBC that he heard the doctors pronounce him brain dead, and said, "I’m glad I couldn’t get up and do what I wanted to do." When asked what he wanted to do, he responded, "There probably would have been a broken window they went out." (Source)

A more detailed interview with Dr. Byrne:

Zen Garcia interviews Dr. Paul about the uniform anatomical gift act and how this law requires people to give up their organs without consent especially if they are not of sound mind or have disabilities. This video also warns people about the living will and why you should use a durable power of attorney for health care decisions for protecting one's life in an emergency situation. Living wills do not protect you, they only protect the doctors and institutions which take your life and organs.

~ Articles written by Dr. Byrne on life issues ~

Bl. Teresa of Calcutta: "America...Roe vs. Wade has deformed a great nation."

2011-05-16T18:10:00.008-04:00

"America needs no words from me to see how your decision in Roe vs. Wade has deformed a great nation. The so-called right to abortion has pitted mothers against their children and women against men. It has sown violence and discord at the heart of the most intimate human relationships. It has aggravated the derogation of the father's role in an increasingly fatherless society. It has portrayed the greatest of gifts--a child--as a competitor, an intrusion and an inconvenience. It has nominally accorded mothers unfettered dominion over the dependent lives of their physically dependent sons and daughters. And, in granting this unconscionable power, it has exposed many women to unjust and selfish demands from their husbands or other sexual partners."

"Human rights are not a privilege conferred by government. They are every human being's entitlement by virtue of his humanity. The right to life does not depend, and must not be contingent, on the pleasure of anyone else, not even a parent or sovereign. The Constitutional Court of the Federal Republic of Germany recently ruled: 'The unborn child is entitled to its right to life independently of its acceptance by its mother; this is an elementary and inalienable right which emanates from the dignity of the human being.'"

~ Blessed Teresa of Calcutta ~

A Pro-Life Prayer for Our President and Public Officials

2011-05-04T17:32:00.001-04:00

Lord God, Author of Life and Source of Eternal Life,

move the hearts of all our public officials and especially our President,

to fulfill their responsibilities worthily and well to all those entrusted to their care.

Help them in their special leadership roles,

to extend the mantle of protection to the most vulnerable,

especially the defenseless unborn,

whose lives are threatened with extermination by an indifferent society.

Guide all public officials by your wisdom and grace

to cease supporting any law that fails to protect the fundamental good that is human life itself,
which is a gift from God and parents.

You are the Protector and Defender of the lives of the innocent unborn.

Change the hearts of those who compromise the call to protect and defend life.

Bring our nation to the values that have made us a great nation,

a society that upholds the values of life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness for all.

Mary, the Mother of the living,

help us to bear witness to the Gospel of Life with our lives and our laws,

through Christ, Our Lord. Amen.

Imprimatur: January 22, 2009 + Most Reverend Robert J. Baker Bishop of Birmingham in Alabama

Pope John Paul II: Children Are the Future of a Nation

2011-04-05T17:52:00.000-04:00

"I wish to express the joy that we all find in children, the springtime of life, the anticipation of the future history of each of our present earthly homelands. No country on earth, no political system can think of its own future otherwise than through the image of these new generations that will receive from their parents the manifold heritage of values, duties and aspirations of the nation to which they belong and of the whole human family. Concern for the child, even before birth, from the first moment of conception and then throughout the years of infancy and youth, is the primary and fundamental test of the relationship of one human being to another. And so, what better wish can I express for every nation and for the whole of mankind, and for all the children of the world than a better future in which respect for human rights will become a complete reality throughout the third millennium, which is drawing near?"

~ Pope John Paul II, excerpt from Familiaris Consortio ~

March 25: Honoring the Conception of Jesus-- "Day of the Unborn Child"

2011-03-25T10:38:00.042-04:00

Celebrate the “Day of the Unborn Child” on the March 25th Feast of the Annunciation

This site was developed to advance the movement toward international recognition of March 25th as the “Day of The Unborn Child,” and equally to promote among Christians the observance of this traditional feast day of the Incarnation honoring Christ’s conception (once celebrated as the old New Year’s Day) which is currently named “The Feast of the Annunciation.” The date was chosen because it falls nine months before the most celebrated birth in Western civilization, known throughout the world as Christmas. Regardless of whether one emphasizes the secular or religious aspects of the March 25th memorial, the symbolic interval of a full-term pregnancy reminds us of the reality and dignity of life from conception.

PRAYER TO CHRIST UNBORN

Dear Lord Jesus in the womb

of Blessed Virgin Mary,

before your birth You filled

the unborn Baptist

with the joy of the Holy Spirit.

Inspire us to see You

in every unborn child.

Grant us the perseverance

to defend vulnerable human life

from abortion, abandonment,

experimentation, and all violations.

Fill us with reverence for the moment

of your Incarnation in Nazareth

when the Word became flesh.

Celebrate the March 25th Feast of the Annunciation

(Festum Incarnationis) as the “Day of the Unborn Child”

Lk 1:15, 30-44; '94 Cat., pass. 717, 486, 495

REDEEMER IN THE WOMB

Lord Jesus Christ, You took our human nature upon Yourself. You shared our life and death, our childhood and adulthood.

You also shared our time in the womb. While still God, while worshiped and adored by the angels, while Almighty and filling every part of the universe, You dwelt for nine months in the womb of Mary. You were our Redeemer in the womb, our God who was a preborn child.

Lord Jesus, we ask You to bless and protect the children who today are in their mothers’ womb. Save them from the danger of abortion. Give their mothers the grace to sacrifice themselves, in body and soul, for their children. Help all people to recognize in the preborn child a brother, a sister, saved by You, our Redeemer in the womb. (Source)

Archbishop Timothy Dolan & Dr. Alveda King: Abortion in New York City

2011-03-19T17:41:00.001-04:00

Archbishop Timothy M. Dolan of New York and Dr. Alveda C. King, Director of the African American Outreach for Priests for Life, sat down recently with CNA and commented about abortion and pro-life issues facing New York City.

~ To see the New York billboard,
"The Most Dangerous Place for an African Americam is in the Womb", go here. ~

Quiet Euthanasia: Death by Dehydration

2011-03-18T14:34:00.000-04:00

"Evil has a way of mixing in truth with untruth, partial truth rather than whole truth, or using something appropriate at one time but misusing it at another time. In the 'active phase of dying' — the very, very end — a person does not eat or drink naturally, for he or she is truly dying: The individual's organs and bodily systems are shutting down. At that time, it would be inappropriate to provide food — he or she would choke on it or it would be aspirated into the lungs — and a good amount of fluid would easily go right into the lungs.

"But if one deprives a patient of food and fluid before he or she is at the very, very end, the patient is dying not of their terminal illness, but of dehydration. There is not enough fluid in the circulatory system and it collapses, causing death. It 'looks' peaceful if the patient is sedated, which is often the case nowadays." (Source)

~ Ron Panzer founder and executive director of Hospice Patients Alliance ~

Ave Maria! ...a two part series hostess Corinn Dahm discusses with guest Darlene Wagner the increasing rates of euthanasia being committed against our elderly since the Teri Schiavo case. They call it the "Quiet Euthanasia" a "third way" by using dehydration of elderly to quietly sidestep the law. Ave Maria! +++

Saint Faustina Suffered in Reparation for Souls Murdered in the Womb

2011-03-14T17:45:00.001-04:00

September 16, 1937. I wanted very much to make a Holy Hour before the Blessed Sacrament today, but God's will was otherwise. At eight o'clock I was seized with such violent pains that I had to go to bed at once. I was convulsed with pain for three hours; that is, until eleven o'clock at night. No medicine had any effect on me, and whatever I swallowed I threw up. At times, the pains caused me to lose consciousness. Jesus had me realize that in this way I took part in His Agony in the Garden, and that He himself allowed these sufferings in order to offer reparation to God for the souls murdered in the wombs of wicked mothers. I have gone through these sufferings three times now. They always start at eight o'clock in the evening and last until eleven. No medicine can lessen these sufferings. When eleven o'clock comes, they cease by themselves, and I fall asleep at that moment. The following day, I feel very weak.

This happened to me for the first time when I was at the sanatorium. The doctors couldn't get to the bottom of it, and no injection or medicine helped me at all nor did I myself have any idea of what the sufferings were about. I told the doctor that never before in my life had I experienced such sufferings, and he declared he did not know what sort of pains they are. But now I understand the nature of these pains, because the Lord himself has made this known to me.... Yet when I think that I may perhaps suffer in this way again, I tremble. But I don't know whether I'll ever again suffer in this way; I leave that to God. What it pleases God to send, I will accept with submission and love. If only I could save even one soul from murder by means of these sufferings!

~ St. Faustina; excerpt 1276 from The Diary of St. Maria Faustina Kowalska ~

40 Days for Life, Lies of Planned Parenthood, Pro-life Witness at Abortion Centers

2011-03-09T11:48:00.001-05:00

"Any country that accepts abortion is not teaching its people to love,

but to use violence to get what they want.

That is why the greatest destroyer of love and peace is abortion"

~ Blessed Teresa of Calcutta ~

Fr. Barron Comments on Abortion: Shocking Numbers Out of New York!

2011-03-04T08:48:00.001-05:00

Eduardo Verastegui: Dura Realidad--Hard Truth About Abortion

2011-02-16T09:55:00.000-05:00

"We need to put an end to abortion."

~ Eduardo Verastegui ~

~ To see Eduardo's video Dura Realidad--Hard Truth, click here.

Watch video in Spanish or English

Eduardo's recommended links:

Hispanics for Life and Human Rights

Vida Humana Internacional

ProLife.com

Blessed Teresa of Calcutta: Answering to God for Ending the Lives of His Children

2011-02-13T18:14:00.000-05:00

"I find it a great, great poverty that a child must die

because we are afraid to feed one more child,

to educate one more child.

The fear of feeding one more old person in the family

means that that person must be put away,

and yet one day we too have to meet the Master.

What will we answer to Him about that child,

that old father and mother, because they are His creation,

they are children of God."

~ Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta ~

Pope John Paul II and Fr. John Corapi: A Nation That Kills Its Own Children

2011-02-08T18:07:00.001-05:00

"A nation that kills it's own children is a nation without hope."

~ Pope John Paul II ~

Death Wish! The Impending Suicide of a Once Great Nation

An excerpt from Father Corapi's book, Letters.

A large number of endangered, unwanted, and unborn children held a town hall meeting on the 4th of July - alarmed at the brutal and untimely killing of millions of their brothers and sisters in recent years. That the murderous war waged on them had the full force and respectability of the law made their plight all the more terrifying.

Their complaint was humble and it was simple. They were not distressed by rising gas prices, or the deteriorating economy in general. They were not even frightened by the exponential increase of natural disasters. The threat of global warming or global terrorism did not greatly disturb them.

They had become an endangered species, and little had been done to answer their terrified and silent screams from the womb. They decided that the barbaric treatment that they and their fellow unwanted unborn human beings have had to endure for perilous decades was unconscionable and unbearable. They cried out to their Creator for inspiration and protection, and then unanimously they put forth a declaration. It began as follows:

"When in the course of human events it becomes necessary for one people to dissolve the political bands which have connected them with another and to assume among the powers of the earth, the separate and equal station to which the Laws of nature and the Nature's God entitle them, a decent respect to the opinions of mankind requires that they should declare the causes which impel them to the separation. WE HOLD THESE TRUTHS TO BE SELF-EVIDENT, THAT ALL MEN ARE CREATED EQUAL, THAT THEY ARE ENDOWED BY THEIR CREATOR WITH CERTAIN UNALIENABLE RIGHTS, THAT AMONG THESE ARE LIFE, LIBERTY AND THE PURSUIT OF HAPPINESS...

THAT AMONG THESE IS LIFE; THAT AMONG THESE IS LIFE; THAT AMONG THESE IS LIFE!"

The first and pre-eminent right is the right to life. This truth the Founding Fathers were sure of, and anyone with any common sense at all is equally sure of it. 232 years after the Declaration of Independence was signed the amount of common sense that seems to be operative in many spheres of influence - most notably the courts and the political arena - can easily be poured into a very small thimble. The United States of America seems to have a death wish, and we have traveled far down the road to having that wish realized. When law divorces itself from common sense and spawns the illegitimate offspring of distortions of law, resulting in illegal laws - based neither on the natural law nor divine law - this undermines law itself, generating disdain for the law. Erosion of trust in the courts, or the system in general, is inevitable.

The genesis of the death wish is rooted in the fall of man that we see in the Book of Genesis. The substance of the fall is wrapped up in Lucifer's pride, transferred to Adam and Eve - "You can be like gods, knowing good and evil." The unholy, yet inevitable, consequence of that price is disobedience - eating the forbidden fruit. The ultimate end is death, as God said it would be. That's the way it was in the beginning. That's the way it is now. That's the way it will be until time breathes forth it's last moment.

The prototypical sin is pride, the pride that seeks to exalt the creature above the Creator:

"I can be like God." Then, subjectively and arbitrarily, man tries to assert himself, imagining that he knows what's good and evil for himself without reference to God and God's law. This was the fall of the angels and the fall of man. The attempt by creatures to usurp what is only the province of God. Only God knows what is good for His creation.

In recent years it took the form of a self-inflicted heart wound when some dissident Catholics rejected the teaching of the Church, a teaching that clearly held that artificial contraception is intrinsically evil. Then, as Pope Paul VI had warned, it metastasized into abortion. From abortion it degenerated even further into partial-birth abortion. It was then a short and easy step to infanticide.

It's hard to believe that we have degenerated to the point that we'll murder a helpless baby should it escape the violence of an abortion and be born alive. Can a Catholic vote for such persons? [who support abortion] We are told, "yes" for a "proportionate reason." What, I might ask, is the proportionate reason so weighty as to excuse supporting those responsible for what is tantamount to genocide?

The judges and politicians that support such barbaric practices are truly guilty of genocide: genocide - the deliberate and systematic destruction of an ethnic, racial, religious, national, or social group. "What is the group so targeted?", you might ask. The group is unwanted, unborn children - tens of millions of them. The Supreme Court justices that gave us Roe v. Wade will have to plead temporary insanity in the court of history. There will be no defense in the highest Court that is the judgment seat of almighty God if they do not repent of the incalculable evil they have wrought.

Yet, despite the life and death importance of this travesty of authentic law, there will be no serious discussion among political candidates, or anyone else. It is as if society has been bewitched, blind to the splendor of truth, deaf to the cries of the most innocent, most vulnerable, and most utterly helpless.

From artificial contraception to abortion to partial-birth abortion, then on to infanticide we march toward the abyss of oblivion, a society marked for death...

Fr. John Corapi, SOLT, STD

Rick Santorem: The Denial of Civil Rights to Slaves and Unborn Human Beings

2011-01-22T09:49:00.000-05:00

"For decades certain human beings were wrongly treated as property and denied liberty in America because they were not considered persons under the constitution. Today other human beings, the unborn of all races, are also wrongly treated as property and denied the right to life for the same reason; because they are not considered persons under the constitution. I am disappointed that President Obama, who rightfully fights for civil rights, refuses to recognize the civil rights of the unborn in this country."

~ Former Senator Rick Santorem ~

The Presence is Real: The Holy Eucharist and Catholics Who Support Abortion

2011-01-20T11:41:00.002-05:00

From the moment of consecration, Christ is truly present in the Holy Eucharist. We do not see Him as we see other people, but He is there, Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity. Even though we cannot see Him, He is always with us in the Blessed Sacrament.

From the moment of creation, a person is truly present. We can't see him or her as we see other people, but the whole person is there. Unique DNA can be detected, which will determine his or her physical and mental characteristics.

There is a striking similarity between the number of Catholics who support abortion (40-47 percent) and those who do not believe in the Real Presence of Christ in the Eucharist (43 percent). Thus, we must pray and fast for intellectual, spiritual, and psychological healing for baptized Catholics who have strayed from the truth. ( from American Life League)

Claire Culwell: The Twin Who Survived an Abortion

2011-01-10T12:43:00.001-05:00

"My life is a miracle and I would be selfish to keep this GIFT of life to myself. I want to tell everyone what a gift I and even they have been given!! I want to encourage them to seek alternatives to abortion because I would never want any woman/man to go through the grief and the pain that my birth mother went through simply because she didn’t know she had any other option. I also want to be a vessel to offer God’s forgiveness to the men and women who have previously had abortions. I know healing is possible and I have been given the gift of surviving an abortion so that I can tell these men and women that they are forgiven…coming from an aborted child, I hope they know the power of forgiveness and healing through meeting me... “I am here not because of anything I did, but ONLY because of God’s mercy and love for me.”

"My life is a testimony that there are wonderful alternatives to abortion (such as adoption in my case) and an accident/unwanted child still deserves life…even a child with disabilities. I was born 2 1/2 months early, weighed 3 lbs 2 oz, had dislocated hips and club feet. I had to wear casts on my feet, a harness and eventually a body cast. The abortion still affects me today. All that to say, LIFE IS STILL WORTH IT. If my life can touch just one person who has had an abortion or considering an abortion or adoption, then I am fulfilling my purpose in the pro-life movement."

~ Claire Culwell ~

~ Above quote is from Claire's website ~

Pope John Paul II: Jesus Christ Will Judge Everyone on Love of God and Neighbor

2010-12-28T09:47:00.000-05:00

Our faith tells us that Jesus Christ, who "is seated at the right hand of the Father", will come to judge the living and the dead. On the other hand, the Gospel of John assures us that Christ was sent "into the world, not to condemn the world, but that the world might be saved through him" (Jn 3:17). In what then does judgment consist? Christ himself gives the answer: "And this is the judgment, that the light has come into the world... But he who does what is true comes into the light, that it may be clearly seen that his deeds have been wrought by God" (Jn 3:19, 21). Recently, the Encyclical Veritatis Splendor also reminded us of this. Is Christ then a judge? Your own actions will judge you in the light of the truth which you know. Fathers and mothers, sons and daughters, will be judged by their actions. Each one of us will be judged according to the Commandments, including those we have discussed in this Letter: the Fourth, Fifth, Sixth and Ninth Commandments. But ultimately everyone will be judged on love, which is the deepest meaning and the summing-up of the Commandments. As Saint John of the Cross wrote: "In the evening of life we shall be judged on love". Christ, the Redeemer and Bridegroom of mankind, "was born for this and came into the world for this, to bear witness to the truth. Everyone who is of truth hears his voice" (cf. Jn 18:37). Christ will be the judge, but in the way that he himself indicated in speaking of the Last Judgment (cf. Mt 25:31-46). His will be a judgment on love, a judgment which will definitively confirm the truth that the Bridegroom was with us, without perhaps our having been aware of it.

The judge is the Bridegroom of the Church and of humanity. This is why he says, in passing his sentence: "Come, O blessed of my Father... for I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, I was a stranger and you welcomed me, I was naked and you clothed me" (Mt 25:34-36). This list could of course be lengthened, and countless other problems relevant to married and family life could be added. There we might very well find statements like: "I was an unborn child, and you welcomed me by letting me be born"; "I was an abandoned child, and you became my family"; "I was an orphan, and you adopted me and raised me as one of your own children". Or again: "You helped mothers filled with uncertainty and exposed to wrongful pressure to welcome their unborn child and let it be born"; and "You helped large families and families in difficulty to look after and educate the children God gave them". We could continue with a long and detailed list, including all those kinds of true moral and human good in which love is expressed. This is the great harvest which the Redeemer of the world, to whom the Father has entrusted judgment, will come to reap. It is the harvest of grace and of good works, ripened by the breath of the Bridegroom in the Holy Spirit, who is ever at work in the world and in the Church. For all of this, let us give thanks to the Giver of every good gift.

We also know however that according to the Gospel of Matthew the Final Judgment will contain another list, solemn and terrifying: "Depart from me... for I was hungry and you gave me no food, I was thirsty and you gave me no drink, I was a stranger and you did not welcome me, naked and you did not clothe me" (Mt 25:41-43). To this list also we could add other ways of acting, in which Jesus is present in each case as the one who has been rejected. In this way he would identify with the abandoned wife or husband, or with the child conceived and then rejected: "You did not welcome me"! This judgment is also to be found throughout the history of our families; it is to be found throughout the history of our nations and all humanity. Christ's words, "You did not welcome me", also touch social institutions, governments and international organizations.

~ Pope John Paul II: excerpt from Letter to Families ~

"To the Mystery" by Michael Card: The Father's Only Son Became a Holy Embryo

2010-12-26T10:31:00.000-05:00

To the Mystery Lyrics

Michael Card

When the Father longed to show

The love He wanted us to know

He sent His only Son and so

Became a holy embryo

Chorus

That is the Mystery

More than you can see

Give up on your pondering

And fall down on your knees

A fiction as fantastic and wild

A mother made by her own child

A hopeless babe who cried

Was God Incarnate and man deified

Chorus

Because the fall did devastate

Creator must now recreate

So to take our sin

Was made like us so we could be like him

Repeat Chorus

Fr. Thomas Euteneuer: The Demonic "Sacrament" of Abortion

2010-12-16T23:02:00.002-05:00

The standard Catholic description of a real Sacrament is that it is an “efficacious sign instituted by Christ to give grace.” The “sign” is whatever the particular Sacrament is meant to convey: Baptism—cleansing from sin, Eucharist—union with Christ, Penance—forgiveness of sins, etc. “Efficacious” means that it actually produces the effect it signifies, and it “gives grace” as sort of a conduit of divine life into our souls. A Catholic Sacrament is holy in itself and does not need a holy person to administer it, and on the basis of the Sacrament’s innate holiness, the children of the Church are sanctified and in turn sanctify the world in which we live.

The demonic “sacrament” of abortion has the same characteristics as a real Sacrament except that it reverses any concept of holiness and perverts its meaning. This is because the devil always mimics God’s plan to communicate His life to us and does everything he can to draw us away from that life. In this case, abortion is a “sign” that points to death; it is “efficacious” in that it brings death through bodily destruction; it “destroys grace” in that each act of abortion is a mortal sin that seduces and corrupts all of those who take part in it.

Furthermore, abortionists, witches and Satanists put their “faith” in the “sacrament” of abortion. Don’t take my word for it. In a 1999 LifeSite interview, retired abortionist Patricia Baird-Windle, self-professed wiccan (witch), actually said, “Abortion is a major blessing, and a sacrament in the hands of women. ... At the very crucible of the sacrament of abortion work is that some women have an abortion out of love for the baby, [some] out of love for the children they already have and are having a hard time feeding.” Rarely am I shocked by what abortion apologists say, but this perverse logic leaves me utterly speechless. It shouldn’t surprise me, though; Ms. Baird-Windle claims responsibility for 65,000 abortions in the three death centers that she owned.

There’s more. An Episcopal “priestess,” Carter Hayward said, “Abortion would be a sacrament if women were in charge. Abortion should be a sacrament even today. I suspect that for many women today, and for their spouses, lovers, families and communities, abortion is celebrated as such, an occasion of deep and serious and sacred meaning.” No comment is really necessary here.

Let us never pretend that abortion is just a social or political phenomenon that has to be voted out of office to be defeated. We must do everything we can to restore legal protection to our most innocent citizens, but our battle against the devil will not be won at the polls. It will be won on our knees before the Lord and on our feet before the centers of death. More than ever we need men and women of tested holiness who are willing to fight the spiritual battle for the lives of God’s precious babies and the souls of their mothers and fathers. Even abortionists like Baird-Windle are caught up in a demonic religion which can be challenged and defeated by those of us who belong to the true Church of Christ, the only spiritual power strong enough to defeat the “sacrament” of abortion.

~ Fr. Thomas Euteneuer ~

Abortion is Demonically Inspired

2010-12-01T16:26:00.000-05:00

Pro-Abortion Violence

2010-11-29T17:22:00.000-05:00

Pope Benedict XVI: Unique Unborn Humans Are Threatened by Selfishness

2010-11-28T17:34:00.000-05:00

"The embryo in the maternal womb is not 'a pile of organic material,'

but a new living being, dynamic and wonderfully ordered,

a new and unique individual of the human species,

so it was for Jesus in Mary's womb,

so it was for each of us in our mother's womb."

~ Pope Benedict XVI ~

Population Control: Abuse of Women's Rights and Crime Against Humanity

2010-11-19T16:34:00.000-05:00

Fr. Samuel Medley: Contraception is Wrong Because...

2010-11-16T10:24:00.000-05:00

"Contraception is not wrong because it fails in everything it attempts to do.

It is wrong because it leaves God out of the sanctuary of the marital act."

~ Fr. Samuel Medley ~

Pro-life Advocates Help Prevent Forced Abortion

2010-11-14T18:01:00.000-05:00

The Effects of Abortion on Men

2010-11-10T08:54:00.000-05:00

Melissa Ohden, Abortion Survivor: The True Reality of Abortion

2010-11-09T11:36:00.000-05:00

"...the true reality of abortion...abortion impacts people across generations..."

~ Melissa Ohden ~

~ For more about Melissa, click here. ~

Prayer for Women Considering Abortion

2010-11-08T18:46:00.000-05:00

Archbishop Raymond Burke: Obligations of Catholics When Voting

2010-10-28T09:16:00.001-04:00

CatholicAction.org link

The Cost of Abortion is TOO HIGH!

2010-10-27T20:03:00.000-04:00

"A nation that kills it's own children is a nation without hope."

~ Pope John Paul II ~

Vietnamese Man's Incredible Mission to Save Babies

2010-10-25T18:04:00.001-04:00

Fr. Thomas Euteneuer: The Demonic Abortion Industry

2010-10-22T11:30:00.002-04:00

The following is an excerpt from my upcoming book on exorcism. One chapter of the book is entitled, “Pro-Life and Exorcism” and is devoted to reflecting on the evil of abortion from a spiritual perspective. As a caution for those who may not be accustomed to the language of spiritual warfare, I would mention that the view of abortion contained in the passage below is derived primarily from Jesus’ presentation of the devil as “a murderer from the beginning” (Jn 8:44) and from scriptural passages that identify other demons who collaborate with Satan in his attempt to destroy the very life of God’s children. Make sure to pray as you read this passage.

In what sense is abortion demonic?

The spiritual dimension of this grisly “business” is its systematizing of ritual blood sacrifice to the god of child murder, Moloch, who we know of from the severe condemnations of him in the Old Testament (Lev 18:21, 20:2-5, 1 Kings 11:5.33, 2 Kings 23:13 and Zephaniah 1:5). This demon of murder appears in many forms and cultures through history (Phoenician, Carthaginian, Canaanite, Celt, Indian, Aztec and others) but is always the same bloodthirsty beast that demands the killing of children as his form of worship. This demon is not content with a single act of murder here and there. His insatiable appetite for the death of innocents seeks public endorsement to justify his gruesome deeds, and he needs a systematic expression of it to increase his worship.

The modern abortion industry offers ritual blood sacrifice to the ancient abortion demon. It is in every way a demonic religion. It has its sacred dogma (“choice”), its ruling hierarchy (Planned Parenthood), its theologians (feminist ideologues), its sacrificing priesthood (abortionists), its temples (abortion mills), altars (surgical tables), ritual victims (primarily babies and secondarily women), acolytes and sacristans (clinic workers and death-scorts), congregations (all supporters of abortion) and its own unifying principle of sacramental “grace” (money). In short, the abortion industry is a perfect demonic system which offers a perverse form of worship to the devil.

The sacrificial victim in this demonic religion is not a brute animal as was offered to the Old Testament God of Israel in a legitimate system of religious sacrifices. In abortion, the victim is an innocent human being who is made in the “image and likeness of God” and who can never defend herself. This combination of innocence, parental participation and ritualized obliteration of the visage of God in human form is the devil’s way of blaspheming the Father with the misguided participation of God’s own children. The systematic destruction of the human body which St. Paul calls “the temple of the Holy Spirit” is a blasphemous insult to God. If the abortion business is not truly demonic, nothing is. (End of excerpt.)

.............................................................................................

From this perspective, the need for a deeply spiritual approach to ending the abortion holocaust is fundamental. It does not absolve us from working in every way humanly possible to end abortion, but it puts all our human activity into the right perspective. In this month of the Precious Blood we must cover every abortionist, abortion mill and client of the abortion industry with Christ’s Blood in order to conquer the blood sacrifice of the devil with the greatest force of good known to man. If His Blood is properly applied over time with great love, we will see conversions from even the most devoted advocates of abortion. The Blood of Christ is a strong shield for all who pray and work for life and reminds us that our pro-life work brings us to Calvary to stand in solidarity with the unborn child who is unjustly deprived of life.

~ Fr. Thomas Euteneuer, July 27, 2007 ~

"This Is My Body": The Consequences of Choice--Life or Death for Unborn Babies

2010-10-19T11:40:00.000-04:00

Prayers of Priests Outside Abortion Mill Help Save Lives of Unborn Babies

2010-10-08T20:52:00.000-04:00

Post-abortion Testimony: Daughter of an Abortionist

2010-10-04T23:03:00.000-04:00

"In the space of a few months I had gone from bright, hopeful young honor student with perfect boyfriend and prestigious university, to… what? I didn't know. I knew how to drink, party, eat, and cry. So I did those things. Addictively. I spent endless nights in my room weeping and cutting and burning myself. I have physical scars to match the mental ones, and I considered suicide more than once. I went from anorexia to bulimia to compulsive overeating and back again. The future that I had always seen - the one my mother planned out for me and pushed me toward - had evaporated. I knew one thing for certain - I was never going to be the feminist lawyer of her dreams. I spent a few years going aimlessly from job to job, never lasting more than a few months. Most of the time I was unemployed and hung around the house reading, drinking, and waiting for the next opportunity to party.

"I had nightmares all the time - when I could sleep. I slept with all the lights on and music playing for years, because I was terrified of darkness and silence."

~ Excerpt from Abigail Seidman's post-abortion testimony ~

Project Truth: Video of Unborn Child in the Womb

2010-09-23T20:09:00.000-04:00

This pro-life advert was previously banned by the Irish government who said it was too 'political' for the airwaves. Now Project Truth, first produced by Youth Defence in 1996, has been set to some amazing footage of the unborn child in the womb. It's challenging, thought-provoking, beautiful and sad. Show it to your friends. Spread the message.

Dangers of Birth Control Pills, Patches and IUD's

2010-09-22T09:01:00.007-04:00

Birth control pills and patches pose a risk of death to women and also to unborn babies that have been conceived on those occasions when the contraceptive fails to prevent pregnancy. To those ladies who use contraceptives, how many of you have read the warnings of possible side effects of your drug of choice? Maybe you THINK that only a rare few women would be affected so seriously as to cause a heart attack, stroke or death, but what if one of those women was you, your mother, daughter, granddaughter, sister, niece or beloved friend? What if one of those to die was your unborn baby, sibling, or grandchild? Maybe you are one who would never deliberately choose to have an abortion, but by using contraceptives you are accepting the possibility that one or more of your children will die because you chose to try to prevent their conception.

Use of an IUD can also cause serious health risks for a woman and death to her unborn baby or babies. Read the true and unforgettable story of Dr. Gloria Polo who was struck by lightening while implanted with a copper IUD.

Ladies, please put your trust in God and His Commandments instead of in the FDA and those who promote the use of contraceptives.

Barack Obama and Margaret Sanger's "Negro Project"

2010-09-17T20:28:00.000-04:00

St. Gianna Beretta Molla: Patroness of Mothers and of the Unborn

2010-09-14T18:02:00.005-04:00

PRAYER OF ST GIANNA BERETTA MOLLA

Jesus, I promise You to submit myself to all that You permit to befall me,
make me only know Your will.
My most sweet Jesus, infinitely merciful God, most tender Father of souls,
and in a particular way of the most weak, most miserable, most infirm
which You carry with special tenderness between Your divine arms,
I come to You to ask You, through the love and merits of Your Sacred Heart,
the grace to comprehend and to do always Your holy will,
the grace to confide in You,
the grace to rest securely through time and eternity in Your loving divine arms.

Many women, longing to conceive a child, have come to the Shrine to touch and venerate St. Gianna’s gloves and ask for her intercession. God has granted many of them new life. There have also been many other kinds of answered prayers. St. Gianna holy cards & pamphlets in English and Spanish are available at the shrine.

Msgr. Reilly: Only the Power of God Can Overcome the Culture of Death

2010-09-09T08:45:00.007-04:00

Msgr. Reilly leads a Prayer Vigil in Chicago. He also gives a presentation on the Helpers spirituality. The purpose of the Helpers is not primarily about saving the physical life of the child, but it's about conversion, and the salvation of the souls of the mothers, abortionists, their staff, and all involved. The culture of death is so sweeping that legislation cannot stop it. Population control is an international conspiracy. The mentality of the culture of death is beyond the help of humans. Msgr. urges all not to be upset about the darkness, but to bring light into the darkness. "In order for this darkness to be overcome, you and I have to be the light!" We must go to the Calvary at the same mindset as John and Mary at the foot of the Cross. It is the risen Christ who is present at the modern-day Calvary, in the mystical body of His Church. "You (God), and you alone can overcome death, and error, and darkness, with your light, your life, and your love. Use me as your instrument!" When we go to Calvary, we should remove all spiritual baggages, signs of confrontation and condemnation, we are there in absolute love, to be Christ to them, in meekness and gentleness. The power of God takes over. Msgr. also stresses the importance of post-abortion counseling. He said the greatest place for evangelization is at the Calvary -- the abortion clinics. The Helpers hands out 10,000 Rosaries anually at abortion clinics. To overcome the culture of death, Jesus Christ is the only ultimate answer. "He is the Gospel of Life! He is Life! He is alive in you, and me!"

Mother Mary Song by Deanna Jones

2010-09-08T08:54:00.002-04:00

Mother Mary...song and singing by Deanna Jones author of the pro life memoir TO BE A MOTHER and artwork by Joe Nicosi of Rockford Illinois

Fr. Bill Casey: Defeat the Culture of Death

2010-09-07T15:34:00.002-04:00

Margaret Sanger, Planned Parenthood's Racist Founder

2010-09-01T09:59:00.002-04:00

Fr. Frank Pavone: The Culture of Death Will Not Prevail Against the Church!

2010-08-31T18:37:00.005-04:00

The Gates Of Hell Shall Not Prevail Against It!

"The need to end abortion is our world’s first obligation at the moment, because nothing takes more lives, and no right other than life itself is more necessary to secure if all our other rights are to be preserved.

"The war against the unborn can only ultimately be stopped by and through the Church. When we mobilize the Church, when we fully activate and encourage the Body of Christ to use the natural and supernatural gifts given to us to overcome the Culture of Death, then victory will be achieved.

"Imagine the vast structure of the Catholic Church. In the United States alone, we have nearly 19,000 parishes, 8,000 schools, and over 41,000 priests. Each diocese and parish has means of communication with the people they serve on a daily basis. Just from a natural, sociological point of view, this is a vast network of interaction and communication, geared precisely to helping people love God and neighbor. Imagine what can happen if our priests infuse that vast structure with clear, vigorous, and compassionate pro-life teaching and action.

"The Church is the only institution that has a Divine guarantee that it will prevail over the culture of death. “The gates of hell will not prevail against it,” the Lord said (Mt.16:18). In a battle, a gate does not go into the battlefield to attack the enemy; rather, it stands still to defend the city against the attack of the enemy. It is the Church that is on the offensive against the gates of hell. Those gates cannot withstand the power of heaven. The gates of death fall in the presence of eternal life. Sin melts in the presence of saving grace. Falsehood collapses in the presence of living truth.

"To fully exercise those gifts and apply those tools to the specific problem of abortion, therefore, does not so much require more structure as it does more spirit, more awareness, more courage, and more determination to use both the means and the opportunities we already have.

We will win; after all, it’s an unequal praying field."

~ Fr. Frank Pavone ~

Prayer For Those Who Are Suicidal

2010-08-23T21:09:00.001-04:00

Jimmy Price: A Child's Prayer

2010-08-13T12:52:00.001-04:00

In GOD We Still Trust: One Nation Under GOD!!!

2010-08-10T08:22:00.005-04:00

"In God, we still trust here in America,

He's the one we turn to every time the goin' gets rough.

He is the source of all our strength, the One who watches over us.

Here in America, in God, we still trust.

Now there are those among us, Who wanna push Him out.

And erase His name from everything,

This country's all about.

From the schoolhouse to the courthouse,

They're silencing His Word,

An' now it's time for all believers,

To make our voices heard."

"You place your hand on His Bible, when you swear to tell the truth. His name is on our greatest monuments an' all our money too. An' when we pledge allegiance, there's no doubt where we stand: There's no separation, we're one nation under Him. In God, we still trust here in America, He's the One we turn to every time the going gets rough. He is the source of all our strength, the One who watches over us. Here in America, in God, we still trust. Instrumental break. Now there are those among us, Who wanna push Him out. And erase His name from everything, This country's all about. From the schoolhouse to the courthouse, They're silencing His word, An' now it's time for all believers, To make our voices heard. In God, we still trust here in America, He's the one we turn to every time the goin' gets rough. He is the source of all our strength, the one who watches over us. Here in America, in God, we still trust. Here in America, Here in America, Here in America, in God, we still trust. Here in America, in God, we still trust. Here in America. You place your hand on His bible, when you swear to tell the truth. His name is on our greatest monuments an' all our money too. An' when we pledge allegiance, there's no doubt where we stand: There's no separation, we're one nation under Him. In God, we still trust here in America, He's the One we turn to every time the going gets rough. He is the source of all our strength, the One who watches over us. Here in America, in God, we still trust. Instrumental break. Now there are those among us, Who wanna push Him out. And erase his name from everything, This country's all about. From the schoolhouse to the courthouse, They're silencing His Word, An' now it's time for all believers, To make our voices heard. In God, we still trust here in America, He's the One we turn to every time the goin' gets rough. He is the source of all our strength, the One who watches over us. Here in America, in God, we still trust. Here in America, Here in America, Here in America, in God, we still trus...all » You place your hand on His Bible, when you swear to tell the truth. His name is on our greatest monuments an' all our money too. An' when we pledge allegiance, there's no doubt where we stand: There's no separation, we're one nation under Him. In God, we still trust here in America, He's the One we turn to every time the going gets rough. He is the source of all our strength, the One who watches over us. Here in America, in God, we still trust. Now there are those among us, Who wanna push Him out. And erase His name from everything, This country's all about. From the schoolhouse to the courthouse, They're silencing His Word, An' now it's time for all believers, To make our voices heard. In God, we still trust here in America, He's the One we turn to every time the goin' gets rough. He is the source of all our strength, the One who watches over us. Here in America, in God, we still trust. Here in America, Here in America, Here in America, in God, we still trust. Here in America, in God, we still trust. Here in America."

Msgr. Reilly and Helpers of God's Precious Infants: Going to Calvary

2010-08-09T08:46:00.007-04:00

Msgr. Reilly describes the Helpers' method of 'taking God seriously', and the importance of being physically present where innocent life is taken. Walk with Msgr. Reilly in this 12 minute video as he leads a prayerful and peaceful vigil through the streets of Cape Town, South Africa to a modern day "Calvary".

Dr. Oscar Biscet: Cuba's Pro-life Hero and Prisoner of Conscience

2010-08-03T06:39:00.002-04:00

An Inside View: God's Awesome Creation of Human Life in the Womb

2010-07-29T08:38:00.007-04:00

40 Days for Life: Miracles Happen at Hopeless Places

2010-07-20T11:18:00.004-04:00

"When you take prayer to the most hopeless places in our nation--

you get out of the way and allow the mercy and love of God

to penetrate hearts that are impacted by abortion--

miracles happen!

~ Shawn Carney ~

~ From 40 Days for Life ~

Love Life: Are You Pro-life or Pro-choice?

2010-07-17T20:35:00.000-04:00

How "The Pill" Works as an Abortifacient

2010-06-30T22:38:00.001-04:00

Fr. Samuel Medley: Healing Contraception, Abortion, Divorce and Unfaithfulness

2010-06-29T23:46:00.001-04:00

Phil Keaggy: Who Will Speak Up for the Little Ones

2010-06-28T22:07:00.001-04:00

Testimonials of Women Who Regret Their Abortions

2010-06-25T08:37:00.004-04:00

Coalition for Life website

Abby Johnson: 40 Days for Life Works--Miracles Happen!

2010-06-24T21:09:00.003-04:00

Abby Johnson, former Planned Parenthood Director of the Bryan, TX, speaks out against abortion in front of the clinic she used to run.

Fr. John Corapi: "Every Breath is a Gift From God"

2010-06-22T16:30:00.001-04:00

A Litany for Life to Good St. Joseph

2010-06-21T18:34:00.000-04:00

Good Saint Joseph, pray for us.
Husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary, pray for us.
Protector of the Mother of God, pray for us.
Faithful spouse, pray for us.
Good worker, pray for us.
Good and gentle man, pray for us.
Man of faith and hope, pray for us.
Man of kindness and charity, pray for us.
Man of love, pray for us.
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, pray for us.
Guardian of the Christ child, pray for us.
Teacher of virtue, pray for us.
Model of patience, pray for us.
Model of kindness, pray for us.
Loving Father, pray for us.
Kind father, pray for us.
Example of holiness, pray for us.
For all unmarried fathers, pray for them.
For all who are afraid, pray for them.
For all tempted to despair, pray for them.
For all tempted by evil, pray for them.
For refugees and orphans, pray for them.
For those condemned to die, pray for them.
For those mortally ill, pray for them.
At the hour of their death, pray for them.
For doctors and nurses, pray for them.
For those who wait for death, pray for them.
For the old and the alone, pray for them.
For truth and justice, pray for them.
For legislators and judges, pray for them.
For our President and Vice-President, pray for them.
For all who work for life, pray for them.

Good Saint Joseph, your faithful love protected and nourished the Mother of God and Jesus Christ, her son. Your fatherly care led to maturity of He through whom all creation began.

Through your intercession, may God guide and protect all human life from conception to natural death, and lead this nation in the ways of truth and of love.
Pray for us, good Saint Joseph, that joined with Christ Jesus, we might give praise to God forever. Amen.

~ Source: USCCB ~

Friar Augustine: "I Regret My Abortion."

2010-06-18T09:43:00.002-04:00

Baby Steps: Amazing 4D Ultrasound Images of Preborn Babies

2010-06-17T03:00:00.000-04:00

American Life League presents amazing 4D ultrasound imagery featuring preborn babies from eight weeks to thirty-four weeks old. You'll see detailed pictures of babies as they roll, yawn, blink, spin, smile and stretch throughout their 16 stages of development.

Shocking Abortion Statistics!: Ending Abortion by 2020

2010-06-16T10:48:00.004-04:00

This is a shocking video of the current statistics of abortion in the U.S. -

Pledge to wear black on Fridays at http://www.abortionblackout.com

to mourn the lives lost to abortion.

Andrea Bocelli: His Mother's Choice Spared His Life

2010-06-06T17:14:00.003-04:00

The song at the end says:

I want to live like this with the sun on my face, and I sing happily, gracefully. I want to live like this, with the air of the mountains, because this enchantment doesn't cost anything.

(God bless Fr. S at Clerical Reform for drawing attention to this video.)

God's Will: Praying For an End to Abortion

2010-06-04T17:49:00.004-04:00

Fr. Frank Pavone, National Director of Priests for Life, explains why we pray to God when God clearly already knows what He wants to do. In the Lord's Prayer, He commands us to pray, "Thy Will Be Done." Yet as God carries out His will, He wants us to be involved in what He is doing. His will is that our prayers and actions do make a difference in the building up of His Kingdom. Therefore, we who are pro-life are to pray fervently every day for an end to abortion. This video begins a special series in which Fr. Frank will explain various aspects of how and why we pray to end abortion. Please be sure to subscribe to these videos and tell others about them!

Sins Against Life Grieve the Heart of Jesus

2010-06-02T17:12:00.010-04:00

Prayer for the Little Ones Unborn

2010-05-25T12:29:00.001-04:00

Our Father, we thank Thee for letting us share Thy gift of life.

We know that all Thy children are precious to Thee.

We pray that Thou may give special protection to little ones not yet born.

Guard them from those who would do them harm.

Permit them to enter the world safely, to live in the light of day.

and to make their way to the place Thou hast prepared for them.

Grant that every mother would welcome her child with love

as Mary welcomed her Divine Son.

We ask this in the name of Jesus, Our Lord. Amen.

Pro-Life Prayers to the Holy Spirit

2010-05-23T03:00:00.000-04:00

"The Spirit God has given us is no cowardly spirit."

2 Tim. 1:7

Prayer to the Holy Spirit, Giver of Life

Come Holy Spirit, Creator of all things...You who breathed over the waters at the dawn of creation and brought forth all living beings...You who filled the apostles when the Risen Lord breathed on them on the first Easter night, giving them the power to restore life to those dead in sin...You who, on the last day, will breathe again over all the dead and raise them from the grave--Come! Come and breathe on our world again, immersed as it is in the Culture of Death! Come, O Lord and Giver of Life! Defeat the works of death in our midst, that abortion may no longer stain our land.

We worship You, O Holy Spirit, and we rejoice in You. We know that no matter how strong the forces of death may be, we can still find in You the endless source of life. Renew that life in each of us, and make us worthy apostles of the Culture of Life in our day! Amen.

Prayer to the Holy Spirit, the Advocate

O Holy Spirit of God, You were promised to us by the Lord Jesus as an Advocate, as one who pleads our cause and speaks up for us in the heights of heaven. "I will ask the Father, and he will give you another Advocate, to be with you forever..."(Jn.14:15).

The apostle Paul has taught us that You intercede for us with groanings that cannot be expressed in speech (Rom. 8:26).

We praise You today for the gift of salvation, for we are deeply aware that we cannot save ourselves. We have sinned, and we cannot win forgiveness on our own. We need an Advocate.
We ask You, O Holy Spirit, to make us ever more aware of those who need us as advocates. Grant that we may hear the cries of our youngest, smallest brothers and sisters, those still in the womb, who cannot speak or defend themselves, and who cannot even pray.

Holy Spirit, as You are the Advocate, so make us advocates. As You hear our cries for mercy, so let us hear the cries of others for mercy. Save us from the misfortune of seeking mercy only for ourselves, while being deaf to others. As you loosened the tongues of the apostles at Pentecost, so grant us today a Pentecost for the unborn, that we may speak for them before the great and the small, before governments and institutions, and before all Your people. Amen.

~ Prayers from Priests for Life ~

Bringing Jesus to Planned Parenthood Through the Blessed Virgin Mary

2010-05-15T06:18:00.007-04:00

STOPP Planned Parenthood is launching a new campaign to bring Jesus to Planned Parenthood through Mary.

Get your official campaign signs at http://www.prolifegear.com/

Pray With Me: Prayer to End Abortion

2010-05-14T19:21:00.009-04:00

Lord God,
I thank You today
for the gift of my life,
and for the lives of all
my brothers and sisters.
I know there is nothing that
destroys more lives
than abortion,
Yet I rejoice that You have
Conquered death by the
Resurrection of Your Son.

I am ready to do my part in
ending abortion.
Today I commit myself
never to be silent,
never to be passive,
never to be forgetful
of the unborn.
I commit myself to be active
in the Pro-life Movement, and
never to stop defending life
until all my brothers
and sisters are protected, and my country once again
becomes a country which
respects life from conception
to natural death
not just for some, but for all,
through Christ our Lord.
Amen.

Who Will Save the Little Ones?

2010-05-12T20:45:00.004-04:00

Randy Albright: "Mary Said Yes"

2010-05-11T19:06:00.001-04:00

The Miracle of Life

2010-05-10T18:14:00.002-04:00

Without Mary...

2010-05-07T18:24:00.001-04:00

David Bereit: What Is God Asking of You?

2010-05-06T06:36:00.001-04:00

David Bereit's personal message to the Life Fair and Toledo. Ohio: We all need to do our part to end abortion in our lifetime and to cultivate a culture of Life.

2 main points: Depend on God and pray! Get involved! Visit ProLifeConnection.com to educate yourself and find out what YOU can do in the pro-life movement!

2010 Northwest Ohio Life Fair--David Bereit from ProLifeConnection on Vimeo.

Explanation of Euthanasia

2010-05-05T20:43:00.000-04:00

Oliver de Vinck: A Powerful Blessing

2010-05-04T21:02:00.004-04:00

" I grew up in the house where my brother was on his back in his bed for almost 33 years, in the same corner of his room, under the same window, beside the same yellow walls. Oliver was blind, mute. His legs were twisted. He didn't have the strength to lift his head nor the intelligence to learn anything."

"Oliver grew to the size of a 10-year-old. He had a big chest, a large head. His hands and feet were those of a five-year-old, small and soft. We'd wrap a box of baby cereal for him at Christmas and place it under the tree; pat his head with a damp cloth in the middle of a July heat wave. His baptismal certificate hung on the wall above his head. A bishop came to the house and confirmed him.

"Even now, five years after his death from pneumonia on March 12, 1980, Oliver still remains the weakest, most helpless human being I ever met, and yet he was one of the most powerful human beings I ever met. He could do absolutely nothing except breathe, sleep, eat, and yet he was responsible for action, love, courage, insight. When I was small my mother would say, "Isn't it wonderful that you can see?" And once she said, "When you go to heaven, Oliver will run to you, embrace you, and the first thing he will say is 'Thank you."' I remember, too, my mother explaining to me that we were blessed with Oliver in ways that were not clear to her at first."

~ Christopher de Vinck:

Excerpts from Power of the Powerless: A Brother's Lesson
~

Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta: Protecting the Unborn

2010-04-27T18:11:00.002-04:00

"I am sure that all people know deep down inside

that the little child in the mother's womb is a human being

from the moment of conception,

created in the image of God to love and be loved.

Let us pray that nobody will be afraid to protect that little child,

to help that little child to be born.

Jesus said: 'If you receive a little child in my name, you receive me.' "

~ Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta ~

40 Days for Life: Inspired and Sustained by the Holy Spirit

2010-04-22T12:00:00.001-04:00

Shawn Carney, co-founder of 40 Days for Life, describes the early days of its formation and rapid expansion as heroes from across the country join the pro life movement.

Abby Johnson: Important Insights Into the Abortion Industry

2010-04-21T10:27:00.002-04:00

Abby Johnson, a former Director of Planned Parenthood, shares the truth about the abortion industry.

Planned Parenthood Can't Be Trusted!

2010-04-16T12:30:00.001-04:00

Whether Planned Parenthood workers are deliberately dishonest or just plain ignorant about fetal development in the womb, the fact is they can't be trusted to give scientifically factual information. Even if they are informed, why would they want to discourage abortions? Their jobs and paychecks depend on women having abortions. Only God's grace can provide the conversion of heart needed to turn away from their jobs at abortion centers. Please pray and fast for them and for all who participate in, encourage, support, or are indifferent to the serious sin of abortion!

Today there is no shortage of available, detailed, accurate scientific information on life in the womb, including spectacular ultrasound images which clearly show the developing unborn child in the earliest stages of life. The truth about abortion is available for anyone who WANTS to hear it and accept it. God is providing an unprecedented abundance of reliable information for the education of His people regarding LIFE in the womb, lives created by Him. What excuse could any of us give when we face Him at judgement (as we all will) if we have not done what we could to protect and defend HIS unborn children, our own brothers and sisters in Christ?

From liveaction.org

Bishop Kevin Farrell's Pro-Life Witness: We Must Never Give Up !

2010-04-08T18:39:00.004-04:00

Celebrating Eliot's Life: A Love Story

2010-04-08T18:06:00.003-04:00

Eliot was born with an undeveloped lung, a heart with a hole in it and DNA that placed faulty information into each and every cell of his body. However, that could not stop the living God from proclaiming Himself through this boy who never uttered a word.

In the midst of heartbreaking tragedy, the Mooney family found the presence of God strengthening, comforting, and guiding them. Their story reminds us to seek God and endure our struggles rather than blame Him for our hardships.

99 Balloons from Catholic Media House on Vimeo.

Keep GOD in America: HOPE for America

2010-04-06T09:21:00.002-04:00

40 Days for Life at Keep God in America rally from David on Vimeo.

The Potential of Each Precious Life

2010-03-30T18:40:00.001-04:00

Archbishop Timothy Dolan: Abortion Compared to Slavery

2010-03-29T08:20:00.004-04:00

The comparison of abortion to slavery is an apt one. The right of a citizen to "own" another human being as property—to control him/her, use him/her, sell him or decide her fate—was, prior to 1865, constitutional, sad to say.That "right" to own a slave was even upheld by a decision of the U.S. Supreme Court (whose Chief Justice at the time, Roger Brooke Taney, was a Catholic, "personally opposed" to slavery!) in the infamous 1857 Dred Scott Decision, declaring that a slave who had escaped and claimed freedom had to be returned to his "master," because he had no rights at all.

Tragically, in 1973, in Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court also strangely found in the constitution the right to abortion, thus declaring an entire class of human beings— now not African-Americans, but pre-born infants—to be slaves, whose futures, whose destinies, whose very right to life —can be decided by another "master." These fragile, frail babies have no civil rights at all.

But the most pressing life issue today is abortion. If we're wrong on that one, we're just plain wrong.

When our critics—and their name is legion—criticize us for being passionate, stubborn, almost obsessed with protecting the human rights of the baby in the womb, they intend it as an insult. I take it as a compliment.

I'd give anything if I could claim that Catholics in America prior to the Civil War were "passionate, stubborn, almost obsessed" with protecting the human rights of the slave. To claim such would be a fib. But, decades from now, at least our children and grandchildren can look back with pride and gratitude for the conviction of those who courageously defend the life of the pre-born baby.

~ Archbishop Timothy Dolan: excerpts from On the Front Lines for Life ~

USCCB: Litany for Life to Good St. Joseph

2010-03-27T19:03:00.006-04:00

Good Saint Joseph, pray for us.
Husband of the Blessed Virgin Mary, pray for us.
Protector of the Mother of God, pray for us.
Faithful spouse, pray for us.
Good worker, pray for us.
Good and gentle man, pray for us.
Man of faith and hope, pray for us.
Man of kindness and charity, pray for us.
Man of love, prayfor us.
Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, pray for us.
Guardian of the Christ child, pray for us.
Teacher of virtue, pray for us.
Model of patience, pray for us.
Model of kindness, pray for us.
Loving Father, pray for us.
Kind father, pray for us.
Example of holiness, pray for us.
For all unmarried fathers, pray for them.
For all who are afraid, pray for them.
For all tempted to despair, pray for them.
For all tempted by evil, pray for them.
For refugees and orphans, pray for them.
For those condemned to die, pray for them.
For those mortally ill, pray for them.
At the hour of their death, pray for them.
For doctors and nurses, pray for them.
For those who wait for death, pray for them.
For the old and the alone, pray for them.
For truth and justice, pray for them.
For legislators and judges, pray for them.
For our President and Vice-President, pray for them.
For all who work for life, pray for them.

Good Saint Joseph,
your faithful love protected and nourished
the Mother of God and Jesus Christ, her son.
Your fatherly care led to maturity
he through whom all creation began.

Through your intercession,
may God guide and protect all human life
from conception to natural death,
and lead this nation
in the ways of truth and of love.

Pray for us, good Saint Joseph,
that joined with Christ Jesus,
we might give praise to God forever. Amen.

~ From the USCCB. ~

Feast of the Annunciation: Mary's Yes and Jesus' Conception

2010-03-25T19:41:00.000-04:00

Baby Born Alive in Abortion Clinic Left Alone To Die

2010-03-22T16:54:00.001-04:00

Abortion Clinic Horror Story

2010-03-20T22:00:00.001-04:00

Abortion Clinic Emergencies: Botched Abortions

2010-03-19T18:36:00.000-04:00

This is a composite of ambulance calls to Aware Woman abortion clinic in Melbourne, Florida. It shows the tragic results of botched abortions. Countless women have been injured at Aware Woman and other abortion clinics throughout the United States where abortion is legal but not safe.

The last frame of the video shows the abortionist who injured these women. Aware woman abortionist William Philip Egherman was trained by Martin Haskell, the inventor of partial birth abortion.

The bomb squad vehicle is the one with ramps on the back for their bomb handling robot. Notice the neighborhood school children walking by from their school bus stop within sight of the bomb squad truck as the bomb squad does their job.

The video is overlaid with audio from the actual 911 calls and one message left on our answering machine by one young woman whose abortion at Aware Woman went terribly wrong.

Transcript of an Aware Woman patient:

This young woman is responding to one of many letters sent to Aware Woman patients offering help with problems after an abortion. She did not identify herself but she is obviously hurting both physically and mentally:

"Hi, I had a procedure done there (at Aware Woman abortion clinic) in January and I just think that while you are protesting you should just maybe tell the people what happened to me. I had an abortion in January of this year and two days later . . . they didn't give me an abortion. A baby came out in the toilet and I held it in my hand.

"I tried to get counseling and things like that. You know all the therapist does is just want to dig up things that have happened in your life. She never wants to hit the issue that you want to talk about.

"Well, I'm just calling . . . I mean you can tell the girls that, you know, if this is something they want to do, then don't go there (Aware Woman).

"I tried to seek legal advice and pretty much Aware Woman has covered their butt. You know they are not going to let anything happen to them.

"So, my intentions are only just to tell these girls that they might go in and pay $480.00 and their termination might be what happens. They don't know what might happen 2 or 3 days later. Maybe they may have a chance that nothing would happen to them. Their baby might come out like mine did -- whole. It wasn't torn, it wasn't anything. I was 13 weeks and I held it in my hand. It fit in the palm of my hand.

"I have terrible, terrible problems. I bleed every day. I don't know if I will ever have children again. I am 22 years old.

"Maybe I should have listened to the lady who was trying to talk to me when I went inside. I haven't talked to anyone else about this so it felt good just to have someone listen and not say anything."

Tim Juillet: America Repent

2010-03-18T11:54:00.002-04:00

Fr. John Hardon: Pro-Life Responsibility of Catholics

2010-03-16T18:31:00.006-04:00

"Our focus in this conference (you may be surprised) will be on the responsibility that we Roman Catholics have throughout the world to stop the global homicide which is plaguing most of the nations in the twentieth century. Over the years I have been telling one audience after another, one of the main reasons for the world wide homicide of millions of innocent unborn children is because Catholics are not living up to practicing their faith.

"How well I know so many Catholics, and I mean every syllable, are cowards. Over the years I have been saying that there is no stopping the crime of abortion without the Catholic Church. Until Christianity came into the world with the death of Christ on Calvary abortion was universally, and I mean that adverb literally, was universally practiced and legally approved throughout the whole Roman Empire."

"Our present conference has a thesis. Our thesis may be stated in one declarative sentence. Professed Catholics must become channels of extraordinary grace to the modern world. And they will become channels of grace to others in the measure, I repeat only in the measure, of their own reception of grace through the Holy Eucharist as the sacrament sacrifice of the Mass, as the Communion sacrament of Holy Communion and as the presence sacrament of Christ’s Real Presence now on earth in the Holy Eucharist.

"We are only channels of grace to others in the measure that we are possessed of God’s grace ourselves. Let me repeat in the clearest words in my disposal. I would restate our thesis in two propositions. Proposition #1 There is no stopping abortion without an ocean of grace from Jesus Christ. No way will human means stop abortion.

"#2 The principle source of this grace is the Holy Eucharist."

~ Servant of God Fr. John Hardon, S.J.

from There is No Stopping Abortion Without the Eucharist ~

Fr. Thomas Euteneuer: Abortifacient Contraceptives

2010-03-16T10:39:00.001-04:00

Catholic, But...

2010-03-15T17:48:00.001-04:00

"Begin to make reparation."

~ Servant of God Fulton J. Sheen ~

Fr. John Corapi: Every Breath Is A Gift From God

2010-03-13T12:48:00.001-05:00