Recently in Pro Life Category

Voice for Life, a student led pro-life group that meets at Johns Hopkins University, has been denied by the University's student government official recognition. The student government officials are saying several crazy things about the Voice for Life group, namely that the group violates the harassment policy and that VfL is equal to the philosophy of white supremacy.

The Washington Times article is here.

No shortage of ideology to defend killing of the unborn.

1 Million Hits for Life!

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The Franciscan Friars of the Renewal are launching a video hoping to make 1 Million Hits for Life! 


Please view the video and share with your friends.

Pro Life 2013 pictures in NYC

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Here are photos from yesterday's pro-life Mass and rosary procession from NY's Saint Patrick's Cathedral. 


22 January 2013 is the 40th anniversary of Roe v. Wade which legalized abortion in the USA. A Catholic New York article speaks of positive signs of change.


The March for Life will happen on Friday, 25 January, Washington, DC.


Thanks to George Goss for the pictures.

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Human dignity is not respected: people are treated as objects and the "virtual reality" encourages us to see people as objects to be manipulated. While many will challenge this idea, there is no doubt that fear of living and a rejection of true happiness in this life drives us postmoderns to euthanize the self (think of the recent suicide pack of deaf twins), or the growing selection of the desired sex and traits of babies (girls aren't wanted in this country either) or the marginalization of the elderly and mentally challenged. Members of our society kill children because the are are seen as threats to freedom, to our lifestyle, or position in society. I don't think it is an overstatement to quote Pope John Paul II who said we live in a culture of death. Think of Newtown and Aurora, think of many cities were abortion, murder, rape, poverty, unemployment, homelessness, isolation and thievery are rampant. And sex is rarely seen as a beautiful event shared between a married couple and that we relate to one another within the family unit.


Today we recognize that Roe v. Wade is 40 years old and c. 55 million lives have been lost.


Merely remembering is not enough. We all need to work for a culture of love, a culture of life. Prayer is essential, but the Holy Spirit requires that His grace be extroverted. Contemplation and action....

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Let's agree to follow the promptings of the Church and build a culture of LOVE.


Perhaps we can gather to have time for mental prayer, or to pray the Rosary and the Chaplet at 3pm.


From the US bishops we have this Mass rubric:


In all the dioceses of the United States of America, January 22 (or January 23, when January 22 falls on a Sunday) shall be observed as a particular day of penance for violations to the dignity of the human person committed through acts of abortion, and of prayer for the full restoration of the legal guarantee of the right to life. The Mass "For the Preservation of Peace and Justice" (no. 30 of the "Masses for Various Needs") should be celebrated with violet vestments as an appropriate liturgical observance for this day.

General Instruction of the Roman Missal, no. 373

Recall Abortion

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Recall Abortion.jpgPerhaps this new book on myths of abortion contributes to what Pope Benedict calls "human ecology." In the days before the annual March for Life, Recall Abortion is fitting.

Recall Abortion, the first book by longtime pro-life activist Janet Morana, examines the societal changes that led to legal abortion and the lies that ensure it continues to be one of the most common medical procedures for women. Through research, interviews with medical professionals and testimonies of women who have had abortions, Morana takes apart the myth that abortion is safe and necessary health-care and shows the abortion industry for what it is: A profit-driven, unscrupulous and often criminal enterprise that victimizes women.
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Alexia Kelley.jpgAlexia Kelly is the new president of a prominent Catholic fundraising office in  Dupont Circle, Washington, DC. 

Ms Kelley holds a Masters degree in theology from Harvard Divinity School is reportedly committed to dialogue with others for the sake of advancing the common good, and interested in Catholic charitable works. Her resume includes being a former employee of the Catholic Campaign for Human Development; the executive director of Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good; the Deputy Director and Senior Policy Advisor for the Whites Office for Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships; and the First Lady's Office, for whom she launched Let's Move Faith and Communities. Most recently Kelley's been the director of the Faith-Based and Neighborhood Partnerships at the HHS.

The front page of today's New Haven Register carried an article by Jordan Fenster, "Right-to-die bill may be discussed by legislature" by which the citizens of Connecticut were alerted to the possibility that in the next session of the legislature the question of assisted suicide will be on the table. Following the defeat of Massachusetts ballot on the same subject last week, the contagion is now again flowing south. Already three US states, Oregon, Montana and Washington, allow for physician assisted suicide. 34 states prohibit lethal doses of medication that would end human life.

Let me say from the outset, this is not a Catholic issue. Persons of belief and unbelief ought to be concerned about the potential passing of a law that legalizes medically induced suicide. Hence, this is not a conservative issue. This is not a an anti-human dignity issue. It is just the opposite: this is a human issue. Who we are a human beings, and how we teach each other is a human issue that is informed by what we believe and how we behave. Committing this legislative error is a problem of education. Recall that in the past when a similar bill was brought to the CT voters it failed only 51-49%.

Several weeks ago there appeared in the New York Times an intriguing OP-ED article that I believe we need to seriously consider in the discussion of physician assisted suicide. Considering voices that differ from ours need to be thoughtfully taken into account because we are people use who reason to frame our moral lives. We can't simply dismiss the other and therefore I appeal to people of belief and unbelief to reasonably discuss what's at stake. When we rush the discuss without fact we always get burned.

In my opinion not enough attention has been devoted to considering how this legislation has been lived out in this country and in others, nor have we considered the philosophical, theological, sociological and human consequences of such an act. Most often our heart-strings are pulled, even stretched leading us to decide weighty matters without due attention to the reality in front of us --to the person and people and intimately connected with life and death issues. We also don't always adequately consider the eternal consequences of killing someone before natural death happens. 

Who's life are we "making dignified" by engaging death before it's naturally presented? What really is human dignity? What does it mean to be truly a man or a woman in relationship with other men and women here-and-now, and following death? To what extent does fear, anxiety and perceived suffering dictate how we think and act toward others? Are we sufficiently aware of and sensitive to the difference between ideology and being a person, no matter how debilitated?

Here is Ben Mattlin's October 31, 2012 New York Times article published online.

Suicide by Choice? Not So Fast

Last weekend Nellie Gray, 88, the "Mother of the Pro-Life" movement in the USA died at her Washington, DC home. She was the voice of the marginal in the USA. The annual March for Life was founded by Nellie 39 years ago. She worked to shed light on the evil of abortion which has claimed 55 million lives. The Mass of Christian Burial was celebrated for the repose of Nellie Gray on the Solemnity of the Assumption.

Cardinal Sean Patrick O'Malley, OFM, Cap, said of Nellie Gray:


Nellie Gray.jpg

Having received news of Nellie Gray's death, I wish to express my sincere condolences and prayers for her family and for all who came to know and love her in the Pro-Life Movement. Her love for life and her dedication to protecting the unborn, the most vulnerable among us, have inspired countless generations of Catholics and non-Catholics alike, and we will miss her tremendously.

Nellie Gray will be remembered as the Joan of Arc of the Gospel of Life. The architects of the pro-abortion movement in the United States thought that the opposition would go away, but close to 40 years later the issue is still very much alive, thanks in part to the annual March for Life and because of people like Nellie who are committed to the culture of life. Having participated in every single March for Life since its inception, I have witnessed firsthand her advocacy and dedication. I was honored by her presence in Boston in 2009, when during the Boston Catholic Women's Conference we conferred upon her the Culture of Life Award.

Her death is a great loss for both our Church and our Country, but her life has left a meaningful and lasting impression upon the hearts of those who knew her and upon the many hearts of those whose lives she saved. We will keep Nellie Gray and all those who mourn her death in our prayers. We ask God to grant her eternal rest and peace, and we give thanks to Him for the gift of her life.


Our Lady of Life, pray for Nellie Gray, and for us.

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There's been a lot of posturing --let alone misinformation-- about the recent revelation that the Cardinal of New York, Timothy M. Dolan, invited the US President to the famed Al Smith Dinner. He wants to be inclusive, open to dialogue, and helpful in trying to inform politicos about Catholic teaching on life and public service. Civility is Dolan's hope. 

Indeed, it is noteworthy that civility ought to be a Catholic approach. In a time when civility is lacking in and outside the Church, perhaps this event may be a good example. Who could deny the value of such a method. Perhaps, one may ask, is it time to change the focus of the Al Smith Dinner or do away with it altogether?

Read the Cardinal's comments on his blog here. (Why it took so long for the Cardinal to make his reasoning public is negligent.)

Nevertheless, I wonder if the Al Smith crowd and the Cardinal with his managers are working overtime to defend a prudential (reasonable?) judgment that's really too difficult to defend by inviting a pro-choice US President.
The white-tie Al Smith Dinner on 18 October may have one of the worst public officials whose record for life issues at a key table: The US President. Mr Obama is known as one of the worst offenders on matters of life. And his dinner partner is Timothy Michael Cardinal Dolan of New York. In extending an olive branch to the Democratic and Republican Presidential candidates His Eminence is fueling a fire that may not merely do away with troublesome undergrowth but kill off the roots, too. Exactly, how is inviting Mr Obama and Mr Romney helpful to the pro-life movement?

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The US Bishops composed and received approval of a ritual that invokes God's blessing upon the child in the womb. The idea came from Archbishop Joseph Kurtz when he was the bishop of Knoxville several years ago. What better way to observe Mother's Day in the USA than for us to be in prayerful solidarity with expectant mothers!

As the Introduction to this rite, the Bishops write that 

"The Church welcomes with joy and compassion the mothers who, recognizing that all life is a gift from God, come to the Church seeking a blessing for their unborn child. Such a blessing sustains the parents by imparting grace and comfort in time of concern and need, unites the parish in prayer for the unborn child, and fosters respect for human life within society."

Here's the key prayer: 


Several days ago the Business Insider published a fascinating story: "Time To Admit It: The Church Has Always Been Right On Birth Control" by Michael Brendan Dougherty and Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry. Read it. You may agree with the exposition of the authors. Can't contradict experience. Recall: this publication is not connected with the Catholic Church.

Pope Paul VI continues to be vilified for teaching the beauty of sex is indeed Catholic, beautiful and reasonable, that the contraceptive mentality leads to a wrong, destructive end of humanity, that abortion is always wrong and that women should not be used as objects (e.g., porn).

Let those who have ears, hear.
The intention for today is for those who have died as a result of abortion and for the women and men directly affected by abortion.

Give peace, O Lord, to those who wait for you; hear the prayers of your servants and guide us in the way of justice (antiphon for the Mass For the Preservation of Peace & Justice)

O God, who have revealed that peacemakers are to be called your children, grant, we pray, that we may work without ceasing to establish that justice which alone ensures true and lasting peace.

Day of Penance and Prayer to be observed on January 23rd this year.

In November, 2001, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops approved the adaptation of the General Instruction of the Roman Missal. Following confirmation by the Holy See in February, 2002, the following became particular law for the dioceses of the United States of America:

In all the dioceses of the United States of America, January 22 (or January 23, when the 22nd falls on a Sunday) shall be observed as a particular day of penance for violations to the dignity of the human person committed through acts of abortion, and of prayer for the full restoration of the legal guarantee of the right to life. The Mass "For Peace and Justice" (no. 21 from "Masses for Various Needs") should be celebrated with violet vestments as an appropriate liturgical observance for this day.

On January 22, 2003, a "day of penance for violations to the dignity of the human person committed through acts of abortion, and of prayer for the full restoration of the legal guarantee of the right to life" will be mandatory in the dioceses of the U.S. for the first time. As an "Optional Memorial," the Mass celebrated that day may be the Mass "For Peace and Justice" or follow the normal weekday Mass readings and prayers for the day found in the Ordo, with or without optional prayers related to St. Vincent of Saragossa whose Feast Day falls on January 22.

Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
3211 4th Street, NE
Washington, DC 20017-1194

(202) 541-3070

About the author

Paul A. Zalonski is from New Haven, CT. He is a member of the Fraternity of Communion and Liberation, a Catholic ecclesial movement and an Oblate of Saint Benedict. Contact Paul at paulzalonski[at]yahoo.com.

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