Crusade for the Church

TOB Made Simple

2006-09-29T11:24:00.000-04:00

GOULBURN, Australia, SEPT. 28, 2006 (Zenit.org).- Pope John Paul II responded to the sexual revolution with his innovative teachings on human sexuality, says the author of a new book on the theology of the body.

Father Anthony Percy is the author of "Theology of the Body Made Simple," published in Australia by Connorcourt Publishing, by the Daughters of St. Paul in the United States, and by Gracewing in Great Britain. It is being translated into Chinese, Spanish, Italian and German.

In this interview with ZENIT, Father Percy speaks of John Paul II's contribution to the Church's teaching on human sexuality.

* * *

Q: Some say that since the sexual revolution of the 1960s, the Church has been challenged in a way it has never been before to defend its teachings on sexuality. In what way?

Father Percy: Most cultural commentators would agree that the sexual revolution began in the 1920s. In fact, G.K. Chesterton said of the sexual revolution that there was "more madness coming out of Manhattan than there was out of Moscow!"

He perceived that the next heresy the Church would have to deal with would be of a sexual nature. We, now living in the 21st century, surely have no problems in recognizing the immense challenge before us.

But "today" is our starting point and not "yesterday" or "tomorrow" -- what might have been or what might be. And the starting point -- or so it seems to me -- is this wonderfully intriguing and inviting teaching called the theology of the body. ...

Read the Rest.

Great Response to Islam

2006-09-20T08:32:00.000-04:00

Yesterday, a group of Americans larger than the number killed on 9/11 died.

The day before that it was the same. And the day before that. In fact, every day is 9/11 for America's unborn children. Every day, we cleanly, efficiently, legally and privately dispatch as many children — more in fact — than Osama bin Laden had victims on that horrible day five years ago. When we speak about "post-Christian values" we have to remember that this dedication to the culture of death is one of them: a dedication enshrined in law in much of the West (including our own country) and surrounded by ever more draconian punishments for those who dissent. Increasingly, our culture's devotion to abortion, gay marriage, blasphemy, the harvesting of dead babies for body parts, and the stampede to kill the weak and old is becoming a central component of Why We Fight. More and more, the struggle of the West with Radical Islam looks like a battle, not between Good Guys and Bad Guys, but between pagan Rome and pagan Carthage.

Where the Battle Is

When I point this out, some people ask me if I'm saying that since Western culture is depraved, we have no right to fight radical Islam.

No. I do not say we are too morally bankrupt to fight radical Islam. I say we are too morally bankrupt to trust that our opposition to radical Islam makes us trustworthy. I say that Christians, in particular, have to remember that though we are obliged to the duty of patriotism (which is, after all, simply another way of saying we are obliged to love our neighbor), it does not follow that we are obliged to love our neighbor more than God. When our neighbor tries to get us to defend his sinful acts because they aren’t as nasty as somebody else’s sinful acts, we have a duty to tell him he’s wrong.

The older I get, the more incorrigibly Catholic my outlook gets. I regard the great struggles of our time through the lens of Ephesians 6:12 and following. I do not believe flesh and blood is our ultimate enemy. I also do not believe flesh and blood is our ultimate Friend. I think the projects of demonizing our enemies and the project of making the post-Christian secular West the highest good are both riddled with folly. Our enemies think they are fighting a Holy War. But not a few in the West are promising a secular messianic vision of a world made happy through democracy and capitalism unfettered from the Christian tradition that gave rise to them. Christians have to be very careful in how they respond to that, because the easy temptation, in our revulsion at the brutality and evil of radical Islam, is simply to baptize whatever the post-Christian West wants to do in response.

Christians must indeed fight a Holy War. But that means they must pay attention to St. Paul, who tells us that the weapons of our warfare are primarily spiritual and are ordered toward Christ, not toward earthly power and domination. Therefore, we Christians cannot just fight against radical Islam (which is but one of the enemies of Christ). We must also fight against post-Christian secularism that hates Christ just as much as radical Islam. And we must supremely fight against the sin in the Church (and in our own hearts) that always tempts us to say "I thank you O Lord, that I am not like other men." Yes, sometimes literal arms are necessary in this world. But without the spiritual arms, we are fighting in vain. Indeed, we are fighting against Christ.

Follow Christ!

The temptation of this world is always to lure us with the siren song of believing that we can make this world enough — that one of our little systems of order can stand in for heaven. And one of the best tricks the devil has in his little bag is the trick of sending evils into the world in pairs. That way, he can inflame our hatred of one evil and stampede us into the defense of the opposite evil. The sensible path through all this is to follow Christ, not the winds of this world. For the reality is that a diseased and inflamed spirituality like radical Islam cannot be cured by a diseased and flaccid spirituality like post-Christian secularism and the New-Age goo of the West. Only a healthy spirituality can cure what ails both East and West: and that means the fullness of the Catholic faith.

On the whole, I'm glad pagan Rome defeated pagan Carthage. Rome was about the best there was in paganism. But the very best of paganism still was incapable of looking God in the eye without saying "Crucify Him." We Christians will have to remember that both when radical Islam threatens to kill us and when Caesar seeks to co-opt us.

Mark Shea is Senior Content Editor for Catholic Exchange and a weekly columnist for the National Catholic Register. You may visit his website at http://www.mark-shea.com/ check out his blog, Catholic and Enjoying It!, or purchase his books and tapes here.

New Bishop for South Dakota!

2006-09-01T09:24:00.000-04:00

Pray for Bishop-elect Paul Swain. This will have a major impact on the abortion ban. Praise God!

Sioux Falls, Aug. 31, 2006 (CNA) - Today, Pope Benedict XVI named a new bishop for the Diocese of Sioux Falls, Monsignor Paul Joseph Swain, an adult convert to Catholicism and Bronze Star winner. Bishop-elect Swain, who is currently serving as Vicar General for the Diocese of Madison, will be taking the reigns of a South Dakota diocese which has been with out a bishop for over one and a half years. Read the Rest.

New US Seminary Guidelines Insist on Total Acceptance of Full Teaching on Sexuality

2006-08-30T13:46:00.000-04:00

WASHINGTON, August 30, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Officially promulgated on August 4, a new 98-page Program of Priestly Formation has been issued by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) after being approved by the Vatican. Replacing the fourth edition of the norms guiding priestly formation in all seminaries published in 1992, the fifth edition has taken seriously the scandal of priestly sexual abuse. Speaking of a proper formation in sexuality, the document states, "As we have recently seen so dramatically in the Church, when such foundations are lacking in priests, the consequent suffering and scandals are devastating." Read the rest.

Viva il Papa!

2006-08-28T16:46:00.000-04:00

POPE WEARS SUNGLASSES WHILE ON VACATION - Pope Benedict XVI, wearing sunglasses, smiles as he come back from a walk while on vacation in Les Combes in the northern Italian Alps July 18. (CNS/Catholic Press Photo)

LES COMBES, Italy – Vacationing in the Alps, Pope Benedict XVI made a brief visit to Switzerland, walking across the Italian border to visit the famed Saint Bernard kennel of an Augustinian monastery. Read the rest

a bit of brilliance from Planned Parenthood

2006-08-25T13:05:00.000-04:00

Concerning the FDA's age-restrictions on the purchase of Plan B:

“While we are glad to know the FDA finally ended its foot-dragging on this issue, Planned Parenthood is troubled by the scientifically baseless restriction imposed on teenagers,” Planned Parenthood President Cecile Richards said. “The U.S. has one of the highest rates of teen pregnancy in the Western world. Anything that makes it harder for teenagers to avoid unintended pregnancy is bad medicine and bad public policy.” (Source)

That the U.S. has one of the highest teen pregnancy rates is obviously because of the inability of minors to access Plan B. It's not at all because of the influence of Planned Parenthood and so many like them. By all means, let's start giving out Plan B to school children along with pornography, condoms, and the birth control pill. Oh, and remember, don't tell their parents!

There is God's plan, and there is Plan B

2006-08-25T08:47:00.000-04:00

The decision from the FDA to approve plan B will set this country back.

First, let me voice my utter disappointment with our president, and all his staff. How can a person be in favor of saving millions of embryonic babies by vetoing a deadly stem cell research bill and then 'lobby' for a pill that will kill millions of embryonic babies through chemicals?! Where is the consistency? Where is the outrage from the Catholic community and the pro-life communities?

I for one did not do all that I should have to help my family and friends understand why this is a tragic decision. This is, however, a good teaching point for the Church, for ever single Catholic, and every single pro-lifer.

Let's look at the big picture of plan B for a second: two people have sex. Before they do, however, they are conditioned to think that they have to protect themselves. From what? Sex has been so cheapened that near strangers will have sex with each other: they might have diseases so they have to be protected from that. The natural function of sex is designed for the bonding of the two people and creation of new life. That would mean that these near strangers would have to see each other again to raise this child. You have to be protected from that, right? In another way, you have to be protected from the responsibility, from bringing love into the relationship. However, what many people are finally admitting is that these lines of defense do not work- they do not do what they claim they do. So you need yet another measure to protect yourself; another pill.

Why do people take pills? When there is something wrong, correct? You have a cold, so you take a decongestant. You have an infection, so take anti-biotics. A headache; aspirin. Why are people taking a pill because they engage in sex? Is something wrong? "O no! I need a pill- I just had sex!"

Let is set the record straight- there is nothing wrong with sex. God invented it. It is an fundamental part of the sacrament of marriage in the Catholic Church. It is window into the joy that God has planned for us in heaven. How sweet is that!

However, there is somthing terribly wrong with how we are using sex. It would be like saying there is nothing wrong with food, but if we start eating until we are sick...that is an indicator something is off. If we have to start taking a pill to protect ourselves from eating, we have to have 'safe-food', it is probably a sign that our use of food is off.

With all of these we are clearly faced with two options: God's glorious plan and plan B.

With God's plan, sex is what is was meant to be. People who use God's wonderful plan do not need to worry about disease, about cheating or fleeting partners, about armor or other means of defense. There is no reason to be defensive! God's plan for sex is for one man and one woman to enter into marriage and to express the love that is already there through this most special gift of self. The husband loves his wife so much that he is not seeking his own pleasure, but hers and visa versa. They enter into this love freely, totally, faithfully and this love is fruitful. It is fruitful in their relationship- they are ever more closely bonded. It is also fruitful in the very real way. The child that is conceived through this embrace is the symbol of the love between the two. This child is a most welcomed gift beacuse this love between them is real, it is incarnational.

We will have to work overtime to remind people that when there is a plan A, why choose plan B?

Married with out Children

2006-08-22T09:09:00.000-04:00

Report Reveals Changes in Attitudes Towards Kids

PISCATAWAY, New Jersey, JULY 22, 2006 (Zenit.org).- Life without children is a growing social reality for an increasing number of American adults. This is the conclusion of the 2006 edition of "The State of Our Unions" report on marriage, released last week by the National Marriage Project.

The project is based at Rutgers, the State University of New Jersey. Up until recently, for most people, the greater part of adult life was spent with young children forming part of the household. A combination of marrying later, less children and longer life expectancy means, however, that a significantly greater part of adult life is spent without kids being in the house.

The report, titled "Life Without Children," was authored by Barbara Dafoe Whitehead and David Popenoe. They start by noting how many recent publications complain of the difficulties in raising children. Many surveys also show that parents report lower levels of happiness compared to non-parents. In fact, an increasing number of married couples now see children as an obstacle to their marital happiness. This isn't to say that children are rejected by the majority of couples. Nevertheless, there is a growing feeling of trepidation about taking on the responsibilities of parenthood. Of course, bringing up kids has never been easy, but there are good reasons why a growing number of parents are feeling increased pressures, the report explains. A weakening of marriage bonds contributes to the difficulties of having children. Cohabiting women, the report explains, may postpone childbearing until they have a better sense of the long-term future of the relationship. If they wait too long, however, this places them at risk for never having children. Being in an unhappy marriage is another source of uncertainty. Couples who are worried about getting divorced are the most likely to remain childless.

Changing families

Citing Census Bureau reports, Whitehead and Popenoe lay out just how much family structures have changed.

-- In 1970 the median age of first marriage for women was just under 21years-old. The age of first marriage has now risen to just short of 26. Women who have a four-year college degree marry at an even later age.

-- In 1970, 73.6% of women, ages 25-29, had already entered their child-rearing years and were living with at least one minor child of their own. By 2000, this share dropped to 48.7%. For men in the same age bracket in 1970, 57.3% lived with their own children in the household. In 2000 this had plummeted to 28.8%.

-- In 1960, 71% of married women had their first child within the first 3 years of marriage. By 1990, this almost halved, to 37%. So after getting married, couples now experience a greater number of child-free years.

-- In 1970, 27.4% of women and 39.5% of men, ages 50-54, had at least one minor child of their own in the household. By 2000, the shares had fallen to 15.4% and 24.7%, respectively.

-- In addition, a growing number of women are not having any children. In 2004, almost one out of five women in their early forties was childless. In 1976, it was only one out of ten.

-- The proportion of households with children has declined from half of all households in 1960 to less than one-third today -- the lowest in America's history. In general, then, a few decades ago life before children was brief, with little time between the end of schooling and the beginning of marriage and family life. Life after children was also reduced, with few years left before the end of work and the beginning of old age.

Less fun

Contemporary culture has quickly reflected the changes in family life, the report observes. It is increasingly common to find the years spent raising children portrayed as being less satisfying compared to the years before and after. Adult life without children is depicted as having positive meaning and purpose, and as being full of fun and freedom. Life with children, by contrast, is seen as full of pressures and responsibilities. In general, life without children is characterized by a focus on the self. "Indeed, the cultural injunction for the childless young and the child-free old is to 'take care of yourself,'" the report comments. The years spent bringing up children is just the opposite. Being a parent means focusing on those who are dependent and subordinating adult needs to the requirements of the children. By way of compensation traditional culture normally celebrated the work and sacrifice of parents, but this has now changed. Increasingly, the popular image of parents is a negative one. The new stereotypes range from the hyper-competitive sports parents who scream at their own kids, to those who ignore the problems their undisciplined children cause for others in public places. The latest variant are the so-called "helicopter parents," who get their name from the way they supposedly hover over their children and swoop down to rescue them from any negative consequences of their behavior. Television programs have long made fun of fathers, notes the report. More recently mothers are also being shown as unfit, unable to carry out their responsibilities without the help of a nanny, or as being over-indulgent and negligent. By contrast a number of the most popular television shows in America in recent years, such as "Friends" and "Sex and the City," celebrated the glamorous life of young urban singles.

Bias against children

What does this portend for the future, the report asks. For a start, less political support for families. In the last presidential election, parents made up slightly less than 40% of the electorate. Less votes translates into less support for funding of schools and youth activities. Already a number of communities across the nation are trying to hold down property taxes by restricting the construction of affordable single family housing. In cultural terms the bias against children is likely to grow. Entertainment and pastimes for adults -- gambling, pornography and sex -- is one of the fastest growing and most lucrative, and exciting, sectors of the economy. By contrast, being a devoted parent is increasingly subject to a ruthless debunking, the report notes. In fact, the task of being a mother is now seen by a growing number as being unworthy of an educated women's time and talents. So the more staid values supportive of raising children -- sacrifice, stability, dependability, maturity -- will receive less attention. "It is hard enough to rear children in a society that is organized to support that essential social task," the report observes. "Consider how much more difficult it becomes when a society is indifferent at best, and hostile, at worst, to those who are caring for the next generation," it concludes. The family, "founded on indissoluble marriage between a man and a woman," is where men and women "are enabled to be born with dignity, and to grow and develop in an integral manner," explained the Pope in his homily concluding the World Meeting of Families in Valencia, Spain, on July 9. "The joyful love with which our parents welcomed us and accompanied our first steps in this world is like a sacramental sign and prolongation of the benevolent love of God from which we have come," he noted. This experience of being welcomed and loved by God and by our parents, explained Benedict XVI, "is always the firm foundation for authentic human growth and authentic development, helping us to mature on the way towards truth and love, and to move beyond ourselves in order to enter into communion with others and with God." A foundation that is increasingly being undermined in today's society.

No, Virginia, There Are No Unwanted Children

2006-08-18T16:02:00.000-04:00

It doesn’t take a doctor of semantics to decipher the fact that Planned Parenthood’s tag-line, “Every child a wanted child,” carry’s absolutely no substance at all. The phrase is used to justify abortion, which is by definition, the killing of an unborn baby. Planned Parenthood touts the phrase around and around the country, and we, the really educated citizens of the states have not united in coming up with cogent rhetoric as to why there is no such thing as “unwanted children.”

Before we deconstruct the idea of “unwantedness,” let’s recognize the appeal of the tag-line. It is appealing to consider that every child will be absolutely cherished by his or her birth parents upon birth. The appeal comes from the imbedded notion that “wanted babies” will live a life of giggling while the so-called “unwanted babies” will live a life of crying.

Giggling vs Crying.

“I want you, therefore thou shall giggle.”

“I just wanted sex and now I have a new, little, pooping human, therefore thou shall cry.”

Planned Parenthood likes the giggles, right? There’s where it gets the tag line, right? If only that were remotely true, I could be writing blogs about fashion or celebrity divorces, or something else Really Important. Unfortunately, Planned Parenthood isn’t thinking giggling vs crying. Planned Parenthood is a business and it wants your money. The way it gets your money is by scraping the lining of your uterus with a curette and emptying the “contents of the uterus” (read: YOUR BABY) out into a collection bottle. (I am not trying to be crass. I am seriously just telling the truth.)

Let’s go deep. The entire idea of “unwanted children” is a FICTIONAL IDEA. As in, it’s fake. There’s actually no such thing as unwanted children. A human being in and of his or herself cannot be ‘unwanted.’ The basic reason for this is the fact that every human being has human dignity! (Dignity means “worth.”) You’ve got it. I’ve got it. The babies of Papa New Guinea have got it. It is The Reason why we can’t abort babies.

Human dignity is understood to be inherent; something that is “inherent” is integral to our very being. The U.S. government does not grant this unto us, the National Education Association doesn’t vote on our dignity, and Kofi Annan has no part in the delineation of dignity. Human beings should have the right to live solely on the basis of being human. Furthermore, since unborn humans are human, they should have the same inherent right to live as humans that are born.

The unwanted state of being pregnant and the human inside of a pregnant woman is often confused. We transfer the idea that when being pregnant is not the desired outcome of sex, that a child is unwanted as well. This false correlation of ours does not strip the baby of his or her inherent human dignity. Just because we don’t “get” that sex makes babies, does not give us license to kill babies.
Remember that in-utero and out-of-utero, we are talking about the same child. Just as we cannot kill a child that is, for example, orphaned, out-of-utero, we cannot kill a child who is theoretically orphaned while he or she is still in-utero. Killing is still killing even if the location has changed.

The following may illustrate more clearly why ‘wanted-ness’ is not a measure by which we can justify the legality of abortion. You are walking down the street and come upon an infant lying on the sidewalk with a sign above him or her that states, “Unwanted, do not disturb.” How many people would keep walking past the baby because the sign says “unwanted?” I truly think that whether you are a business man speed walking to a meeting, a fourth grader on the way to the park, or a grad student on the way to defend your doctoral thesis, you will stop in your tracks, pick up the baby, call the police, and hold the baby until the police arrive.

Consider another angle. “Wanting” someone is a changeable feeling from one human to another human. The key here, is that human feelings change. Monday: I “want” you. Tuesday: I don’t “want” you. We cannot have legal abortion based upon a sentiment that changes.

It is often argued that it is “not fair” to bring a child into the world under particular circumstances. So is dismemberment the answer? Being killed is “more fair?” Besides, the unborn are already in the world. They are “brought in” by sex, not by birth. Birth is an event that happens in life, it does not give life.
Randy Alcorn, in the book, “Pro-Life Answers To Pro-Choice Arguments,”
comments on why it is invalid to assert that abortion is in the best interest of the child.

“One of the most misleading aspects of prochoice argumentation is that it makes it appear that abortion is in the best interests of the baby. This is so absurd that it would be laughable if it were not so tragic. A little person is torn limb from limb, never to see the light of day, for her benefit? Slave owners argued that slavery was in the best interest of the blacks, since they couldn’t make it on their own. Today people say, “I can’t have this child because I can’t give it a good life.” And what is the solution to not being able to give him a good life? To take from him the only life he has. Exploiting people and stripping them of their rights is always easier when we tell ourselves we’re doing it for their good rather than our own.” (page 142)

It is our adult assumption that babies born into particular circumstances are destined to be unhappy. It is then our assumption that we should kill people who are destined to unhappiness. We forget that the babies are already in the world and are alive. We forget that it is our adult problem of not loving enough, our adult problem of not wanting, and our adult problem of not seeing that unhappiness is not a true destiny, it is a projected assumption. How dare we assume another person’s life is doomed based upon circumstances of his or her parents.

We are being lied to by Planned Parenthood. The lie is, “You don’t have the capacity to love children that did not spring from your very own loins.” However, as the example of coming across a baby with an “unwanted” sign illustrates, we do truly have the capacity to put aside our very important lives and care for the smallest, most defenseless among us. We must recognize the lies of Planned Parenthood, we must ignore the signs above unborn babies heads that figuratively read, “Unwanted,” and we must publicly and confidently acknowledge that the standard of being “wanted” is an invalid measure when it comes to the legality of killing a little baby.

Why the Anglicans can never come back...

2006-07-11T09:22:00.000-04:00

The Anglican church said it is "theologically justified" to ordain women, not only as priests, but even as bishops.

The Vatican said that full communion will no longer be possible.

Why? Is this really a big issue? It appears there is no developed theology of the male-only priesthood in the Scriptures. Isn't this more of a pastoral issue? It would be understandable if the Church said full communion is no longer possible if a religious community denied the resurrection, or the Trinity, or something like that.

Well, denying the fatherhood of the priesthood (which has its fullness as a bishop) is an assault on the Trinity.

The preface is, "in the beginning, God created them male and female." God did not create us "sexually autonomous". We come to know Him through our sexual identity and our relationships here on earth.

The most practical fact of this is the family. Papa B just said in Spain at the conference on the family, that parenthood reflects the love of God the Father. This cannot happen with a-sexual beings. The male and female relationship, in their sexual complemtarity, in a way, is a mirror of the free exchange of love in the Blessed Trinity. The Father gives, and the Son receives. The Son receives this love and is conceieved and bears much fruit. He then, offers himself back in a total gift to the Father. This exchange of giving and receiving is stamped into our bodies; we cannot understand who we are if we fail to grasp this point. "Male and female He created them." The husband, in a very physical way, gives himself to his bride, she receives, conceives and bears fruit (the child). They then offer this fruit totally to eachother and to the Father.

It is no mistake that the Church is to represent this image. The Church, as we know from the Book of Revelation and the writings of Saint Paul (see Ephisians 5), is the Bride of Christ. In this image, Christ gives, the Church receives, conceives and bears fruit. The Church then offers Herself (e.g., all Her children) totally back to Christ. If we take this real image further, the priest then is "another Christ", "the emmisaries of Jesus" (call to mind, "do this in memory of me," "whose sins you forgive are forgiven them," "Go therefore, and teach them all I have taught you..." etc.). In a very real way, the priest represents Christ on earth. They are married to the Church. They give us the Sacraments and we receive them, conceive their grace and bear fruit. The priests then offers the sacrifice of His people totally back to the Father.

This is the foundation, and this is why the Church says this issue is such a huge deal. It is the foundation of our very existence. If we get this wrong, we can never fully understand ourselves in Christ. This might be a good chance to mention how we are all called to be Marian. Even the most machismo man is called to be the Bride of God. We are all called to be totally receptive as Mary was and is. However, to help us all be receptive to God, He gives us His Sacraments and men who are consecrated to give His sacraments in His name.

If God made "Adam and Steve; not Adam and Eve" what happens? Well, there is no way they can receive the gift of the other, no way they can conceive and bear fruit. It is physically impossible. The same way with women priests. Essentially, they are making a lesbian union with the Church, and that is just not cool.

Praise God!

2006-07-11T08:49:00.000-04:00

Vatican, Jul. 10 (CWNews.com) - Pope Benedict XVI (bio - news) has named three prelates to the supreme tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura. They are: Cardinal Zenon Grocholewski, the prefect of the Congregation for Catholic Education; Archbishop Raymond Burke of St. Louis; and Archbishop Luis Martinez Sistach of Barcelona.

The supreme tribunal of the Apostolic Signatura forms-- together with the tribunals of the Roman Rota and the Apostolic Penitentiary-- the top ecclesiastical courts of the Church. They are distinct from the tribunal of the Vatican city-state, which handles secular issues. The Apostolic Signatura is the final court of appeal for marital cases and other juridical matters under the Code of Canon Law. It is the Vatican equivalent of the US Supreme Court. The current prefect, or head of the Apostolic Signatura is Cardinal Agostino Vallini.

"Protect Yourself"

2006-07-06T10:38:00.000-04:00

(http://blog.coolz0r.com/2006/06/25/legend-condoms/)

Above is an advertisement from Legends Condom company of Austrailia. The subtext reads "protect yourself."

The premise is that their condom will protect you from the little children who are being held back by latex.

I would like to call to mind two points this ad brings to light.

First, take a look at the kids. They are demonic! How many times walking down the street do you see kids like that? We all know about the terrible two's, and those fits that can try the patience of the best of us, but come on!

The first impression the viewer of this ad gets is that the child is somthing to be protected from. That one has to "be defended" from these little hellians. The exaggeration of these faces brings this to light on a very visible level. However, beneath those creepy faces, you have the mentality that kids will ruin your life. A person has sex for the orgasm; not only are they trying to forget about their natural fertility, their are supposed to be repulsed by it.

It follows that since our culture (typified by this ad) removes fertility from the picture, and even make it somthign to fear, that sex really becomes mutual masturbation. That is to say, one partner is not concered with the other, in fact, they must protect themselves from them, so in the end, one person just using the other for the orgasm. If one partner starts to think of the "f-word" (fertility), they have to think about the great mystery of the other person. They cease to be an object and you can start to see them as a great subject, a beauty to behold, a vessel for transmitting new life- a mystery that is worty of protecting- not somthing you have to be protected from. They cease to be an object for their gratification and instantly become the mother (father) and nurturer (protector) of their children.

The second point that is one that I think was accidental. By placing grown children behind huge rubber walls, Legends admitts that they are creating an artificial barrier to stop the most amazing process in the universe! The ads points out that sex if for babies and bonding, and the condoms will protect you from both. Copulation creates kids. That is its function. So say as such is not anitquanted, it is a biological fact. Sex is certainly more the process to make new life; but if our culture does away with the acts primary function it will start to look for secondary functions to replace it. Hence, the dispproportionate attention toward the individualistic pleasure seeking at the expense of the other partner and the potential children.

In respect to bonding, the point is obvious. Sex with condoms is like kissing with a pillow case. Recall the great scene from Naked Gun 33 1/3...That is not bonding, that is foolishness!

I have to admit, the first thought that came to mind when I saw this ad is, "I like it". I wish I had thought of that. Really. It shows accuratley what condoms do and the feelings they invoke. They keep children who meant to be here from ever gracing us with thier lives, their talents, their love. This ad also shows how the culture of death has transfomred the innocence and beauty of a child and turned them into demonic hellians. We tend to do the same when we are at war. We demonize our enemy. It is just sad we are demonizing these little kids so that our culture can have fruiless, lifeless, and selfish sex.

Assault on Fatherhood

2006-06-20T09:50:00.000-04:00

The Episcopals now say it is okay for their bishops to be women. Presbyterians now say the Trinitarian formula is sexist. The "Father Son and Holy Spirit" will now be replaced with "Rock Redeemer and Friend" or even "Mother Child and Womb".

What is going on here?!

Many people could spend pages picking apart different pieces of this puzzle.

Among the key points are the roots of Protestantism and its current application. If the Church of England can change its teaching on marriage because some of its members want a divorce, why not change its teachings on homosexuality or women ordination because some it its members demand it. If the Presbyterians could teach that alcohol was evil because its abuse causes problems, the same can be taught about fatherhood.

Take, for example, the 2,000 year Christian tradition against contraception and abortion. When the world cried out "sterililze us! sterilize us!" in 1930's, the Episcopals lead the charge by echoing Pilate "what is truth?...judge for yourself." Now, there is not one mainline protestant sect that upholds what the conjugal act really is or claims a preborn child has the right to life.

If you read the the mentality of many of the leaders in the Epicopal and the Presbyterian sects, it they are more concerned with maintaining membership and appeal than proclaiming the Truth. The above cited article on the Presbyterians says, "The Rev. Deborah Funke of Montana warned that the paper [defending the Trinity] would be ``theologically confusing and divisive'' at a time when the denomination of 2.3 million members faces other troublesome issues. "

At the core of all this is the identity of Christ. Is He God? Did He reveal the Trinity to us? Did He not teach us to call God, Abba, Father? Did He consumate His mission with His unblemished bride, the Church?

We will accept the premise that Christ is who He said He was- that is God incarnate. Otherwise, Christ would have either been a lunatic or a liar and all this talk is useless. So, resting on the premise that Christ is Divine, His Revelation must be taken seriously and safeguarded with the utmost care.

Christ did in fact teach us to call God our Father, in fact He taught us to pray "Our Father..." and to baptize in the name of the "Father Son and Holy Spirit".

Could this simply been because he was raised in a patriarchal culture? The Jews would not have accepted a baptism in the name of "Mother Child and Womb"...but really, isn't that what Jesus was really trying to teach us?! It just took us 2,000 years to get to the bottom of it...

What is at stake here is the very identity of God. We are trying to make God into our image, not live up to His image. While this reality may be diabolical, it is understandable.

Someone just told me that 94% of convicted criminals do not have a stable father. With divorce rate that is over 50%, most of us don't have a stable father. Our culture does not know what fatherhood is. So, to call God "Our Father" is very uneasy. If the term "father" brings to mind that fellow who ran out years ago, or the abusive guy who drinks too much, or the machismo womanizer... to associate God with this feeling will drive the strongest person to atheism.

Nevertheless, our bodies reveal what Fatherhood is and should always be. The male body reveals the act of giving while the female body reveals receptivity. The male body reveals his role as protector, defender while the female body reveals nurturer, care-taker. In the Creed, we affirm the "Father, the giver of life" who created all that is seen and unseen.

If we abolish God as Father, we in turn abolish our role with God as receptive to His life, His creation, to His commandments.

One last aspect about this whole mess is the Bride of Christ, the Church. She is our Mother! I am convinced the Trinity is being attacked by the protestants because of their mis-understanding of God as Father which goes right along with their mis-understanding of Church as Mother. The wedding feast of the Lamb and His bride the Church! This is misunderstood because, in part, of all the divorces that have taken place in the Christian communities. A new "church/bride of Christ" is formed every day. There are over 30,000 Protestant "churches". Clearly, Christ cannot have 30,000 wives- but only One!

It is the spotless bride of Christ who is our Mother. She is the one who takes care of us, who nurtures us with the Love of the Father. It is no coincidence that the Bride of Christ is the only one who vigorously defense the Fatherhood of God and the dignity of Fatherhood for every man.

Thanks for your prayers...

2006-06-16T14:29:00.000-04:00

Our Shephers have approved a new, more authentic, translation of the Holy Mass from the offical Latin to the English.

I pray this is the first of many steps toward fully implimenting Vatican II. I condend that if we implimented the Mass the way the Church Fathers intended, we would never have had huge number the schismatics nor fallen away Catholics.

Keep up the good work!

All is Gift

2006-06-14T10:08:00.000-04:00

Words from Papa B's General Audience today:

"Tradition recounts St. Andrew's death in Patras on a diagonal cross as, "like his brother Peter, he asked to be crucified on a cross different from that of Jesus." Benedict XVI then quoted the words attributed to St. Andrew during his agony when he said of the cross: "before the Lord was placed upon you, you incited earthly terrors. Now, blessed with a heavenly love, you are received as a gift."

This phrase, the Pope continued, contains "a profound Christian spirituality, which sees in the cross not so much an instrument of torture as the unrivaled means of full assimilation to the Redeemer. ... Our crosses acquire value if considered and accepted as part of the cross of Christ. ... Only from that cross do our sufferings become ennobled and acquire their true significance."

The phrase that really sticks out are "you are received as a gift" in reference to the Cross. How remarkable! Once an instrument of torture, when it is transformed by Christ, into a gift. How are we to approach this gift? With receptivity. Receive and embrace the cross!

If such a thing can be said about the Cross, what then, can be said about our bodies? If the an instrument of torture can be transformed into a gift simply because Christ encountered it- our bodies, which have always been good, was elevated to extreme heights when Christ took on our human nature! The WORD became flesh!

How much so ought our bodies be a gift? What should be our attitude toward the gift of the other? A spirit of docility and receptivity.

That is awesome! Praise God.

GOD IS NOT INFINITE SOLITUDE, BUT COMMUNION OF LOVE

2006-06-13T09:27:00.000-04:00

VATICAN CITY, JUN 11, 2006 (VIS) - Before praying the Angelus with thousands of pilgrims gathered in St. Peter's Square, Benedict XVI recalled that today is the Solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity.
"Thanks to the Holy Spirit, Who helps us to understand the words of Jesus and guides us to the truth entire," said the Pope, "believers can experience ... intimacy with God Himself, discovering that He is not infinite solitude, but communion of light and love."

"In this world, no one can see God, but He made Himself known so that, with John the Apostle, we can affirm: 'God is love.' We have come to know and to believe in the love God has for us. Whoever meets Christ and enters into friendship with Him, welcomes Trinitarian communion into his soul."

"For those with faith, all the universe speaks of God, One and Triune. ... Everything that exists leads back to a Being Who communicates Himself in the multiplicity and variety of elements, as in an immense symphony. All beings are ordered in a harmonic dynamism that we can analogously call 'love.' But only in human beings ... does this dynamism become spiritual, does it become responsible love: a response to God and to others in a sincere giving of self. In this love, human beings find their truth and happiness."

There are, said Benedict XVI, "various analogies of the ineffable mystery of God, One and Triune." In this context he mentioned the family, which "is called to be a community of love and of life, in which differences must come together to form a 'parabola of communion'." Another "masterwork of the Most Holy Trinity" is the Virgin Mary, because "divine love found perfect correspondence in her, and in her womb the only begotten Son became man."

After the Angelus prayer, the Pope invited the faithful to participate, on Thursday, June 15, in the traditional procession for the Solemnity of Corpus Christi, which every year passes from the Basilica of St. John Lateran, along Rome's Via Merulana, to the Basilica of St. Mary Major. It is, said the Holy Father, "an occasion that expresses the faith and love of the Christian community for their Lord present in the Eucharist."

Will the real Vatican II please stand up?

2006-06-12T09:30:00.000-04:00

The Second Vatican Council (1962-1966), 40 years after its conclusion, remains for many Catholics a source of both joy and tension. What was the Holy Spirit calling us to think and to do? For some, the Council itself was the work of the Spirit, but its implementation has been hijacked by left-wing or right-wing ideologues, depending upon one’s choice of enemies. For others, the Council itself was flawed because its documents are ambiguous or even inconsistent with apostolic tradition. The extremists in this line made tradition another word for museum and lose the sense of a living Body of Christ. Some even believe that Pope John XXIII and all his successors are anti-Popes and that the Church has been without a Bishop of Rome since the death of Pius XII in 1958. Read the Rest.

Cardinal clears up comments

2006-06-12T09:22:00.000-04:00

Some remarks by Cardinal Theodore E. McCarrick, former Archbishop of Washington, that were made during an interview with Wolf Blitzer of CNN (air date June 7, 2006) were not clear and have been misinterpreted by some individuals. To prevent further confusion, the Cardinal issued the following clarification:“I’m afraid that I misspoke last Wednesday when I was being interviewed on CNN. Read the rest.

Church "Could be forced to bless gay marriages' in England

2006-06-12T09:20:00.000-04:00

New Government proposals on equality could require clergy to bless homosexual "weddings" or face prosecution, the Church of England said yesterday. Read the Rest.

Pray for Our Bishops

2006-06-05T09:53:00.000-04:00

Our Bishops, successors of the Apostles, Fathers of the Church, will be meeting to discuss how to best govern the Church they have been entrusted with, under the Pope. Below is the schedule for their open secessions.

Bishops to meet in Los Angeles June 15-17

WASHINGTON (CNS) -- The biggest church issue the U.S. bishops will face when they meet this June is a new English translation of the Order of Mass. They will also be asked to approve a 10-year extension of the annual collection for retired religious and a plan to write a message to teenagers on stewardship. They will be asked to approve a no-increase 2007 assessment on dioceses for support of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. They will discuss -- but not vote on -- plans for a major restructuring of the way the USCCB operates. The main focus of the discussion in June will be a reconfiguring of USCCB committees, with a major reduction in their number. The bishops are to meet June 15-17 at the Millennium Biltmore Hotel in Los Angeles. The meeting will give Archbishop Pietro Sambi, who just arrived in February as apostolic nuncio to the United States, his first opportunity to address the entire U.S. hierarchy.

In India, Catholic nurses are under pressure to assist in abortions

2006-05-19T15:15:00.000-04:00

"When 1,400 young Catholic nurses gathered for the first time at a nationalCatholic convention in India, they found strength in numbers to standagainst abortion and any other practices against Catholic ethics.

'Called to be His Healing Hands' was the theme of the three-day conventionthat ended May 14 in Bangalore, capital of Karnataka state, 2,060kilometers south of New Delhi.

Jesus Youth, a movement that promotes a Catholic lifestyle among youths inthe face of modern-day challenges, brought together the youngprofessionals, who mostly work in secular institutions.

In hospitals, nurses are forced to assist in abortions, according to Siji K. Mathew, Karnataka coordinator of the movement among nurses, who said theconvention focused on the 'strong pro-life stand' Catholic nurses should take in such situations.

'Some of us had to resign our jobs when we were pressured by the managementto assist in abortion procedures,' Mathew told UCA News, emphasizing theneed for 'spiritual strength' to withstand such pressure."

Read more (search down the page)

"we the people..."

2006-05-17T11:15:00.000-04:00

Things that deal with Natural Law should never be allowed to change due to a popular vote. However, when judges and legislators try to destroy the Natural Law by enacting unjust laws, such as the "right" to kill a baby and the "right" for two men or two women "marry" it is laudable for the average American to uphold common sense and good morality.

This is what happened when the good peo0ple of Georgia voted to ban all homosexual marriages in 2004, along with 11 other states. However, a judge struck down the ban saying that it was "unconstitutional."

Along with the right to kill babies, I do not think our founding fathers had buggery in mind when they drafted the constitution- not even in the shadows of the shadows.

Read the article.

Congratulations!

2006-05-17T11:11:00.000-04:00

Washington DC, May. 16, 2006 (CNA) - Today, Pope Benedict named bishop Donald W. Wuerl, bishop of Pittsburgh, as the new Archbishop of Washington. He will be installed on June 22, 2006. He has served as 11th bishop of Pittsburgh since February 12, 1988. Read the rest.

Debunking the DaVinci Code

2006-05-15T18:08:00.000-04:00

Here are some things to keep in mind when reading the DaVinci Code. There are more, but this is all that I got in an e-mail:

The divinity of Christ The Da Vinci Code says...
Jesus is a great man or prophet in the earliest historical sources but was later proclaimed divine at the Council of Nicaea.
The Da Vinci Code overlooks...
Jesus is called "God" (theos) 7 times in the New Testament. He is called "Lord" (kyrios) in the divine sense numerous times. No serious historian argues that these texts postdate the Council of Nicaea.

The Council in fact was held to confront the heresy of Arius that affirmed that Jesus was not God

Christianity and the Dead Sea Scrolls The Da Vinci Code says...
The Dead Sea Scrolls along with the Nag Hammadi documents are the earliest Christian records.
History Says...
The Dead Sea Scrolls are purely Jewish documents; there is nothing Christian about them. There is also no evidence that any of the Nag Hammadi documents existed before the late second century A.D., with the possible exception of the Gospel of Thomas.

Jesus and Mary Magdalene The Da Vinci Code says...
"One particularly troubling theme kept recurring in the [Gnostic] gospels. Mary Magdalene. . . More specifically, her marriage to Jesus Christ" (p. 244).
History Says...
The Gnostic Gospels, a collection of anonymous writings that blended pseudo-Christian ideas with esoteric spirituality, say nothing about Mary and Jesus being married.
Furthermore, the four gospels and early Christian literature say nothing of Jesus being married. The best conclusion is that he simply was not.

How the Bible was collated The Da Vinci Code says...
"The Bible, as we know it today, was collated by the pagan Roman Emperor Constantine" (p. 231).
History Says...
The Bible was not collated by Constantine, who died in 337 A.D. The Old Testament existed prior to even Jesus' day. And the New Testament, although it started coming together by the end of the first century (about 90-100 A.D.), was not formalized until about 393-397 A.D. (after Constantine's death).

The alleged "new" Bible commissioned by Constantine The Da Vinci Code says...
Constantine "commissioned and financed a new Bible, which omitted those gospels that spoke of Christ's human traits and embellished those gospels that made him godlike. The earlier gospels were outlawed, gathered up and burned" (p. 234).
History Says...
First, there was no "new" Bible commissioned by Constantine. The emperor simply requested that Eusebius (the Bishop of Carthage) make fifty copies of the already existing and widely accepted scriptures. Second, no evidence suggests that Constantine or anyone else "embellished" Matthew, Mark, Luke, or John. Third, there were no gospels burned by Constantine. Although some texts written by Arius were burned, none of them were gospels. Fourth, there were no gospels "earlier" than Matthew, Mark, Luke or John. Finally, as previously noted, the gospels in our Bible clearly depict Christ's "human traits," which is consistent with the Christian teaching that Jesus was 100% deity as well as 100% human.

Sources about Jesus used in the Da Vinci Code The Da Vinci Code says...
"The royal bloodline of Jesus Christ has been chronicled in exhaustive detail by scores of historians" (p. 253).
The Facts Say...
Following this comment about "historians," Dan Brown lists four books written by various authors: Margaret Starbird, Michael Baigent, Richard Leigh, Henry Lincoln, Lynn Picknett and Clive Prince. But none of them are historians. Starbird has an M.A. in comparative literature and German. Baigent holds an undergraduate degree in psychology and is pursuing an M.A. in mysticism. Leigh is a novelist and short story writer. Lincoln gained notoriety as a BBC television personality and scriptwriter. And Picknett, along with Prince, is involved in occultism, the paranormal, and UFO studies.

The Jewish name for God The Da Vinci Code says...
"The Jewish Tetragrammaton YHWH-the sacred name for God-is, in fact, derived from Jehovah, an androgynous physical union between the masculine Jah and the pre-Hebraic name for Eve, Havah (p. 309).
History Says...
YHWH was not derived from "JEHOVAH." The term actually predates "JEHOVAH" by thousands of years. Brown, in fact, has it backwards-i.e., "JEHOVAH" was derived from YHWH. It is merely the sixteenth century Latinized form of YHWH with "a," "o" and "a" (the vowels from adonai, "my Lord") inserted between each consonant (Latinizing the word changed the "Y" and "W" to "J" and "V."). As for the word Havah, there is nothing "pre-Hebraic" about it. This is simply "Eve" in Hebrew and it appears in the Old Testament.

The Church's teaching on sex The Da Vinci Code says...
Sexual union between man and woman through which each became spiritually whole had been recast as a shameful act by the Church to 'reeducate' the pagan and feminine-worshipping religions.
The Church teaches...
The marriage bed is treasured and honored as pure (Heb. 13:4). Sexual activities and pleasure are normal, expected, and encouraged within a marriage. Sexual union is a divine moment for a husband and a wife -- a representation of the image of God that defines us. God established boundaries around sex to protect it and maximize its joy.

Celibacy in the times of Jesus The Da Vinci Code says...
Celibacy did not exist in those times.
History says.
John the Baptist was celibate and so were those belonging to the group of the Essenes. St. Paul lived and advocated it.

Anti-feminism and the Catholic Church The Da Vinci Code says...
The Catholic Church has been patriarchal and anti-feminist
The Church teaches.
It's surprising that the author does not know how much the Church honours Mary, the Mother of Jesus. The Catholic Catechism explains that man and woman are radically equal in dignity as human persons and at the same time complementary to each other insofar as they are masculine and feminine (cf. CCC 369).

The human side of Jesus The Da Vinci Code says...
"[A]ny gospels that described earthly aspects of Jesus' life had to be omitted from the Bible" (p. 244).
The Bible Says...
The gospels in the New Testament present many "earthly aspects" of Christ's life such as his physical frailties (hunger, fatigue, death); emotions (anguish, outrage, love); and relational interactions (with his mother, friends, and followers).

Feminism The Da Vinci Code says...
Leonardo's worship of the goddess and the feminine can be seen in his Mona Lisa painting. That name comes from two Egyptian deities: the god Amon and the goddess Isis, whose "ancient pictogram was once called L'ISA. The title Mona Lisa, then, is really "an anagram of the divine union of male and female (p. 121).
History Says...
Leonardo Da Vinci did not even name this particular painting. None of his works, in fact, were titled by him. The Mona Lisa was catalogued by author Giorgio Vasari in his book Lives of the Artists (1550). It was he who first called it the Monna Lisa, which in English was shortened to Mona Lisa. It simply means Madame Lisa, and refers to the likely subject: Lisa Gherardini del Giocondo, the wife of Francesco del Giocondo.

Opus Dei The Da Vinci Code says...
Opus Dei is a secret organization with members who are monks
The facts say.
Opus Dei (Latin for "work of God") is not a secret organization. It is an official Roman Catholic institution founded in 1928 by St. Josemaria Escriva, a Spanish priest. Its purpose is to help ordinary lay people seek holiness through daily work and their ordinary duties. Opus Dei members are mostly lay people. Only a small percentage is clergy. Opus Dei members have great appreciation for the religious vocation, but in fact there are neither monks nor monasteries in Opus Dei.

Adapted from Differences between book and Bible, (http://www.cbn.com/specia/DaVinciCode/)

The responses are in most part from The Truth Behind The Da Vinci Code
(http://www.parable.com/cbn/item_0736914390.htm) by Richard Abanes

Cardinal to pro-aborts: shape up or ship out!

2006-05-15T10:14:00.000-04:00

BOGOTÁ, May 11 (IPS) - Twenty-seven years after Congresswoman Consuelo Lleras unsuccessfully submitted a bill to legalise abortion in Colombia, the country’s Constitutional Court has recognised the right to terminate a pregnancy in case of rape, a threat to the woman’s life or health, or if the foetus has a deformity that would prevent survival outside the womb. read the rest.

Polish Nuns are two steps ahead

2006-05-12T09:27:00.000-04:00

WARSAW, Poland (CNS) -- Polish nuns, anticipating an increase in human trafficking and prostitution during the World Cup in Germany, have issued anti-prostitution leaflets in multiple languages for circulation during the competition."Our resources are extremely limited, but we're doing what we can," said Ursuline Sister Jolanta Olech, president of Poland's Conference of Superiors of Female Religious Orders. "We're deeply concerned at reports that men's lives are to be made nicer by importing 100,000 young women from Europe's poorest countries." Read the Rest.

This story is great! It looks like the spirit of Pope John Paul the Great is just taking over and flowing into the streets all over the world!

Christ is present through Apostolic Succession

2006-05-11T14:07:00.000-04:00

Read what the Pope had to say about Apostolic Succession during his last Weds. audience.

Sticking it to Heresy

2006-05-11T10:00:00.000-04:00

Be sure to send a message to Hollywood next weekend- "we will not tolerate blashphemy and heresy!" It is more than a boycott, it is an "othercott". Go see another movie, Over the Hedge by Dreamworks seems to be pretty good. Read more.

The Condom Anti-Pope

2006-05-09T08:51:00.000-04:00

by Fr. Tom Euteneuer, HLI

The 79-year-old "progressive" Jesuit Italian Cardinal Carlo Martini, former Archbishop of Milan, recently in an interview with L'Espresso magazine pronounced his infallible statement on condom use for married couples: "Certainly the use of prophylactics can, in some situations, constitute a lesser evil. There is the particular situation of spouses, one of whom is affected by AIDS. It is the obligation of this spouse to protect the other partner and they must be able to protect themselves." Read the rest.

West vs. Islam by Cardinal Pell

2006-05-08T10:09:00.000-04:00

September 11 was a wake-up call for me personally.

I recognised that I had to know more about Islam.

In the aftermath of the attack one thing was perplexing. Many commentators and apparently the governments of the “Coalition of the Willing” were claiming that Islam was essentially peaceful, and that the terrorist attacks were an aberration. On the other hand one or two people I met, who had lived in Pakistan and suffered there, claimed to me that the Koran legitimised the killings of non-Muslims.

Read the rest.

Sexuality and relationship info you can trust from Planned Parenthood ...

2006-04-27T10:09:00.000-04:00

Though South Dakota and Louisiana have been very successful in sending Planned Parenthood a very clear message that abortion is no longer [and never was] something women "need," Planned Parenthood continues to send incredibly skewed news letter [note the April 2006 newsletter "Stopping Crisis Pregnancy Centers"] and run sites that purposely send horrible messages to our youth.

For example, this morning, after receiving a Planned Parenthood newsletter, I thought it might be interesting to check the most dreaded and awful Planned Parenhood website on the web ... TeenWire.

For those of you who are unaware, TeenWire "educates" youth by toting the tag line, sexuality and relationship info you can trust from Planned Parenthood. Instead of drawing teens in, that tag line should send them running in the opposite direction ... unfortunately, it does not.

Today's banner [the picture abov is an example of the type of information that TeenWire deems appropriate for teens and visitors to their site. They also feel that it is appropriate to place clitoris tests, animations on how to put on a condom, how to use birth control, a movie called "what's behind the fig leaf and a plethora [by plethora I mean about 90%] of rabidly pro-homosexual information that forces our teens to question their own sanity.

There are over 3, 500 CPC's in America to your 1, 800 abortion mills. Consecrated women sit in adoration for hours in South Dakota for the success of their abortion ban. Thousands of pro-lifers across the country pray day in and day out on front of your killing centers, though rain, wind and snow. But the number one reason why you will ultimately fail is that your message is based on a lie and our generation isn't listening anymore.

Louisiana defends Life

2006-04-27T08:55:00.000-04:00

Common Sense

I was talking with someone who described themselves as "pro-choice." More fittingly, however, they were "pro-popular." This particular person's moral dip-stick was nearly bone dry. They presumably held this opinion because it is the dominant theme in the secular media and culture. On a tangent, I find it amusing how the pop-culture preaches individuality and being your own person, but at the same time everyone has to be the same- everyone is the same collective MTV, GAP, etc. Poster-child.

Anyway, we were talking about the bill in South Dakota. The knee-jerk reaction was "it's too extreme". To which the response came, "how? To say that life begins at conception and demands protection under the law, that is common sense." The conclusion for this person was, "Well, I don't agree that babies should be protected under law, but I respect this law in South Dakota because at least it is consistent."

From the story in Louisiana, it seems that other people want consistency and common sense. If pro-life legislatures and lobbyist hold that life begins at conception and is sacred, how can they at the same breath say certain babies excluded or are an exception? It seems a revolution of common sense is about to sweep the nation.

BATON ROUGE, La. The Senate today approved a strict ban on abortion for Louisiana, rejecting a move to add any exceptions except to save the life of the mother.

Thanks to the Bishops, again

2006-04-26T10:05:00.000-04:00

The Bishops have spoken.

From the Culture of Life foundation:

Broad Group of Religious Leaders Unite in Support of Marriage Amendment

By Mark Adams

An unprecedented coalition of religious leaders, including 16 Catholic bishops, have joined together in calling for a Constitutional amendment defining marriage as the union of one man and one woman. A letter released this week calling for such an amendment was signed by 50 religious leaders and included clerics from the Catholic Church, seven Protestant denominations, the Eastern Orthodox Church, Judaism and the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

The letter was produced by the recently formed Religious Coalition for Marriage which describes itself as an “ad hoc, interfaith committee of America’s religious leaders who share a common concern for the well-being of marriage in our nation.” The committee was formed in the hopes of encouraging religious leaders to mobilize grassroots support for the Marriage Protection Amendment which is scheduled for a vote in the Senate on June 6.

The coalition is notable for the theological diversity of its participants. In describing its mission the coalition notes that “although we do not share full unity on a host of important theological beliefs, we all agree and affirm – with a united voice – the definition, nature and purpose of marriage”. Among the 16 Catholic bishops who were signatories to the letter, seven are Cardinals. They are Cardinal Edward Egan of New York; Cardinal Francis George of Chicago; Cardinal William Keeler of Baltimore; Cardinal Roger Mahony of Los Angeles; Cardinal Theodore McCarrick of Washington; Cardinal Sean Patrick O'Malley of Boston; and Cardinal Justin Rigali of Philadelphia.

During a media conference call held on Tuesday, Cardinal Rigali acknowledged that with regard to politics the Catholic Church generally prefers for its bishops to teach broad, foundational principles and leave it to the laity to develop specific public policy. But he told Culture & Cosmos that the threat against marriage is so real and immanent that he believed it necessary to advocate the proposed Constitutional amendment. “We are at rock bottom,” he said. “The Church sees this as the only practical way that marriage can be safeguarded and protected.”

In order to advance its grassroots strategy, the coalition set up a website, www.rcm.org, which provides action items, statements of various religious bodies, sample sermons, and other resources for clergy. One of the coalition’s principle goals is to start a postcard campaign in support of the amendment. The Knights of Columbus have already announced that in conjunction with the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops they will be distributing 10 million such postcards. The postcards include a brief statement of support for the marriage amendment and provide a place for people to sign their name, write their address and write the address of their senator. According to a statement from the Knights of Columbus the distribution of the postcards is to be a “major project of the Knights o! f Columbus, and all councils and assemblies are asked to make it a high priority during the next two months.” USCCB president Bishop William Skylsted sent a letter to all US bishops asking them to encourage their local pastors to cooperate in the campaign when", they are contacted by local Knights.

The coalition was formed as the fruit of a series of scholars conferences organized over the past two years at Princeton University and Washington DC. Along with a small number of other groups, the Culture of life Foundation sponsored or hosted each of the three meetings.

Loyola College sinks to new low

2006-04-26T10:02:00.000-04:00

From Defend Life:

Loyola College of Maryland has shot itself in the foot once again.

Co-habitation is being allowed in the Loyola dorms according to Dr. Vigen>Guorian, a professor of Theology and Moral Ethics at Loyola College of Maryland.

"Hooking up" has replaced traditional courtship and dating among today's college students says Guorian.

"Hooking up" wrote one of his female students who acts as a dormitory resident adviser, " is basically dating without romance" in which young adults "simply cut to the chase, the sexual part of the relationship."

At Loyola the hook-up is accomodated with what this young woman calls the "booty room."

"We have a designated booty room," she wrote, where a coed can be alone with the young man she picked up in a bar and not disturb her roommate.

Please call Father Brian Linnane, SJ, president of Loyola, and tell him that him that you are apalled that Loyola is not only tolerating but fostering this sexual abomination. His number is 410-617-2201. His fax is 410-617-5196. If you care to write a letter, send it to:

Loyola College
4501 North Charles Street
Baltimore, MD 21210

Give it up!

2006-04-25T08:32:00.000-04:00

The Church will not change! The world dumps millions of condoms into Africa- AIDS is still on the rise. Who is to blame? The Catholic Church of course! Duh! What is it going to take? Are they going to saturate the continent with BILLIONS of condoms, continue teach everyone how to act like animals, and remain scratching their heads? Well, they can continue to be baffeled at their tragic failure- but how much longer can they blame the Church?

Below is a good article from CNA, about how the Church will never change- She has received her teachings from Jesus Christ who can neither decieve nor be deceived.

Vatican City, Apr. 24, 2006 (CNA) - An official from the Pontifical Council for Health and Pastoral Care, presided by Cardinal Javier Lozano Barragán, made it clear today that the recent interview given by the Mexican prelate to the Italian daily La Reppublica, doesn’t hint at any change in the doctrine of the Church on the use of condoms to fight Aids. Read the rest.

Suing the Church

2006-04-24T09:15:00.000-04:00

by Archbishop Chaput

Last summer, attorneys in Colorado filed the first sex-abuse lawsuits against the archdiocese of Denver since the national clergy abuse scandal began four years ago. All of the suits involved two men: one, a laicized former priest who left active ministry more than a decade ago, and the other, a priest dead for more than a decade. Several of the suits have since named individual parishes as targets along with the diocese. Every claimed incident of abuse occurred more than twenty-five years ago. Nearly all occurred in the 1960s and 1970s. Read the Rest.

Early Porn Exposure has lasting effects

2006-04-24T09:02:00.000-04:00

Recent studies confirming the corruptive impact of pornography on people revealed a growing concern among both secularists and Christians regarding its effect on children, especially if they are exposed at an early age. Read the rest.

Resurrexit sicut dixit!

2006-04-16T16:41:00.000-04:00

Take that sin and death! Eat some meat and jellies, and drink some wine!

Have a Solemn Good Friday

2006-04-14T08:14:00.000-04:00

Virginia Abortionist Hands are Tied

2006-04-13T10:09:00.000-04:00

Richmond, VA (LifeNews.com) -- The Virginia state medical board voted to suspend the license of abortion practitioner Reffat Kamel Abofreka of Annandale saying he failed to provide proper are to women having abortions. The suspension is in effect until the Virginia Board of Medicine has a more formal hearing on May 19. Read the rest.

Full Communion!

2006-04-12T08:45:00.000-04:00

Apr. 10 (CWNews.com) - Pope Benedict XVI has confirmed the full ecclesiastical communion between the Holy See and the new Coptic Catholic Patriarch, Antonios Naguib. Read the rest.

Happy Birthday Saint Peters!

2006-04-12T08:41:00.000-04:00

VATICAN CITY, APR 11, 2006 (VIS) - In the Holy See Press Office at 11.30 a.m. on Thursday, April 20, a press conference will be held to present the celebrations being organized to mark the fifth centenary of St. Peter's Basilica.

Maryland Bishops Step Up Again!

2006-04-05T23:15:00.000-04:00

Gov. Erlich, of Maryland, is planning on signing a bill that would allow funding for embryonic stem cell research in the state. The three MD bishops, Cardinal Keeler (Baltimore), Cardinal McCarrick (Washington), and Bishop Saltarelli (Wilmington) all signed a joint letter condeming the action:

"Enactment of this legislation means that tax dollars will be used to pay for the destruction of innocent human life," says a letter signed by the three clerics. "Human life is not to be treated as a commodity, as a raw material in science experiments. Taking innocent human life is always a great evil, regardless of whether society as a whole stands to benefit."

Thank you your Eminences and your Excellency.

2006-03-31T09:58:00.000-05:00

National Group Questions Campaign Affiliations

By Laura Muir
KDLT-TV

March 30

Missionaries of the Eucharist, a pro-life group based in Washington DC, says Planned Parenthood is behind the new group. The South Dakota Campaign for Healthy Families calls themselves a coalition of community leaders from all over South Dakota. Read the rest.

Indian Doctor Sentenced for Ultrasounds

2006-03-31T09:28:00.000-05:00

"An Indian court sentenced a doctor to two years in prison for using ultrasound tests to determine the sex of fetuses, the first physician convicted for flouting a law designed to end an epidemic of parents aborting female fetuses, officials said Wednesday.

After the 2001 census revealed the toll of female abortions, women's rights groups launched a campaign to pressure authorities to act against doctors breaking the ultrasound law.

'In 12 years of the law being in force, this is the first time the government has taken action,' said Ranjana Kumari, an activist with the New Delhi-based Center for Social Research."

Read more here.

Pontiff Spells out Role of Politicians

2006-03-31T09:25:00.000-05:00

So B16 made it clear, really clear. Politicians need to do three things: protect life, recognize the family, and establish freedom of education.

How much clearer can you get?

Read the article here.

And in another article: B16 made it very clear, "As far as the Catholic Church is concerned, the principal focus of her interventions in the public arena is the protection and promotion of the dignity of the person."

Read that article here.

North Korean defector says disabled newborns are killed

2006-03-23T12:19:00.000-05:00

SEOUL (Reuters) - North Korea has no people with physical disabilities because they are killed almost as soon as they are born, a physician who defected from the communist state said on Wednesday.

Ri Kwang-chol, who fled to the South last year, told a forum of rights activists that the practice of killing newborns was widespread but denied he himself took part in it.

"There are no people with physical defects in North Korea," Ri told members of the New Right Union, which groups local activists and North Korean refugees.

He said babies born with physical disabilities were killed in infancy in hospitals or in homes and were quickly buried.

The practice is encouraged by the state, Ri said, as a way of purifying the masses and eliminating people who might be considered "different."

The group urged the South Korean government to change course away from "silent diplomacy" and immediately begin taking action to pressure the North to improve its human rights record.

The South Korean government has refused to join international condemnation of human rights abuses in the North out of concern that such a move could rattle ties with Pyongyang, which considers any criticism of its human rights as deeply offensive.

"The government should stop trying to avoid upsetting Kim Jong-il," said another defector, Kim Young-sun, 67, referring to the North Korean leader. "It should try to upset Kim Jong-il," she said, adding it would be the best way to change the North.

Kim Young-sun is a survivor of the North's Yodok prison camp, notorious for its forced labor and life-sentences for people charged with conspiring against the Kim Jong-il leadership.

Mun Hyon-ok said women from her hometown in the northern region of North Korea bordering China were taken by a ring of human traffickers and probably ended up in China.

"And there are women who are selling themselves for a handful of rice," she told the forum.

North Korea has called itself a people's paradise and said criticism of its human rights was motivated by a goal of toppling the leadership of Kim Jong-il.

South Korea has come under fire from human rights groups and some countries for abstaining in votes on U.N. measures to condemn the North's human rights record.

Seoul has also avoided the subject in bilateral talks with the North. South Korean officials have said the best way to improve the situation is through quiet diplomacy and encouraging the North to improve its food situation and open up to the international community.

2006-03-22T09:26:00.000-05:00

Man faces death for converting.

Papa B and the Holy Mass

2006-03-22T09:12:00.000-05:00

It seems that the Papal Master of Ceremony can't get away with all the innovations he did with JPII.

Archbishop Piero Marini said rather candidly that JPII was not a liturgist, so he could get away with more. While Papa B is a expert of the Mass, so that cramps his style.

Praise God! No more naked ladies at Mass and more Gregorian Chant!!

2006-03-21T09:24:00.000-05:00

My pastor brought a Polish priest in for the Lented Mission. He is great. He mentioned in passing, that in May Pope John Paul II will be canonzied for sure. I am not sure what inside track he is on. Either way, I found the offical website for the cause of beatification:
http://www.vicariatusurbis.org/Beatificazione/HomePageen.asp

The secular world seems to be talking about it too.

The 2005 True Stella Awards Winners

2006-03-21T09:19:00.000-05:00

WE ARE JUST TOO LITIGIOUS!...

#7: Bob Dougherty. A prankster smeared glue on the toilet seat at the Home Depot store in Louisville, Colo., causing Dougherty to stick to it when he sat down. "This is not Home Depot's fault," he proclaimed, yet the store graciously offered him $2,000 anyway. Dougherty complained the offer is "insulting" and filed suit demanding $3 million.

#6: Barbara Connors of Medfield, Mass. Connors was riding in a car driven by her 70-year-old(!) son-in-law when they crashed into the Connecticut River, and Connors sank with the car. Rescue divers arrived within minutes and got her out alive, but Connors suffered brain damage from her near-drowning. Sue the driver? Sure, we guess that's reasonable. But she also sued the brave rescue workers who risked their lives to save hers.

#5: Michelle Knepper of Vancouver, Wash. Knepper picked a doctor out of the phone book to do her liposuction, and went ahead with the procedure even though the doctor was only a dermatologist, not a plastic surgeon. After having complications, she complained she never would have chosen that doctor had she known he wasn't Board Certified in the procedure. (She relied on the phonebook listing over asking the doctor, or looking for a certificate on his wall?!) So she sued ...the phone company! She won $1.2 million plus $375,000 for her husband for "loss of spousal services and companionship."

#4: Rhonda Nichols. She says a wild bird "attacked" her outside a home improvement store in Fairview Heights, Ill., causing head injuries. That's right: outside the store. Yet Nichols still held the Lowe's store responsible for "allowing" wild birds to fly around free in the air. She never reported the incident to the store, but still sued for "at least" $100,000 in damages. In January 2006, the case was thrown out of court.

#3: Barnard Lorence of Stuart, Fla. Lorence managed to overdraw his own bank account. When the bank charged him a service fee for the overdraft, he filed suit over his "stress and pain" and loss of sleep over the fee. A few hundred thousand bucks, he says, will only amount to a "slap on the wrist", whereas the $2 million he's suing for is more like being "paddled". Kinky!

#2: Wanita "Renea" Young of Durango, Colo. Two neighborhood teens baked cookies for their neighbors as an anonymous gesture of good will, but Young got scared when she heard them on her front porch. They apologized, in writing, but Young sued them anyway for causing her distress, demanding $3,000. When she won(!!) $900, she crowed about it in the newspaper and on national TV. Now, she's shocked (shocked!) that everyone in town hates her for her spite, and is afraid she may have to move. But hey: she won.

And the winner of the 2005 True Stella Award: Christopher Roller of Burnsville, Minn. Roller is mystified by professional magicians, so he sued David Blaine and David Copperfield to demand they reveal their secrets to him -- or else pay him 10 percent of their lifelong earnings, which he figures amounts to $50 million for Copperfield and $2 million for Blaine. The basis for his suit: Roller claims that the magicians defy the laws of physics, and thus must be using "godly powers" -- and since Roller is god (according to him), they're "somehow" stealing that power from him.

'G.O.D.' alleged at center of child porn chat room

2006-03-18T10:23:00.000-05:00

And his mother defended him.

Praise God that they caught this man and other perverts. Continue to pray for their souls, but especially for the children exploited by pornography.

NASHVILLE - A Tennessee man used the screen name G.O.D. to host an Internet chat room, where he scolded participants for using explicitly sexual language.

But his concern for decorum was only an attempt to keep investigators off his trail while he helped disseminate thousands of child pornography files, some showing children as young as 18 months being molested, prosecutors said.

[...]

Officials say the participants in the chat room transmitted live images of children being molested and swapped pictures of child pornography.

When Weller was not logged on as G.O.D., he used an alternate screen name, Devil666, to share more than 1,000 child porn files of his own, authorities said. He was among 27 people arrested in the U.S. and abroad in the case.

FULL STORY

RU 486 claims two more moms

2006-03-17T13:49:00.000-05:00

What would happen if asprin directly killed at the rate of the abortion pill? Do you think it would be pulled? Why is it that the media and the feminist lobby want this pill that kills babies and women over the counter? Doesn't that seem counter-productive to the women's movement?

Read the story.

2006-03-14T08:44:00.000-05:00

courtesy of www.renewamerica.us in speaking of the 55 Democrats who hold their own conscience (or may I venture to say their lobby) to be the supreme lord.

SD Bishops Hail Ban

2006-03-14T08:29:00.000-05:00

S.D. (CNS) -- Two Catholic bishops hailed South Dakota's new law banning nearly all abortions, but they also urged efforts to transform people's hearts and minds to reject abortion and build a culture that respects all life from the moment of conception to natural death. Read the rest.

Bishops Defend Christ

2006-03-14T08:15:00.000-05:00

Washington DC, Mar. 13, 2006 (CNA) - The Da Vinci Code is “a museum of errors,” says Elizabeth Lev. The art history professor at Duquesne University’s Italian campus is only one of several experts who have contributed to the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ new Web site, Jesus Decoded. Vist website. Read the rest of the article.

Statement on Responsibilities of Catholics in Public Life

2006-03-13T23:59:00.000-05:00

March 10, 2006
Cardinal William H. Keeler - Chairman, USCCB Committee on Pro Life Activities

Cardinal Theodore E. McCarrick - Chairman, USCCB Task Force on Catholic Bishops and Catholic Politicians

Bishop Nicholas DiMarzio - Chairman, USCCB Committee on Domestic Policy

A recent public statement by 55 Catholic and Democratic members of the House
of Representatives offers an opportunity to address several important points about the responsibilities of Catholics in public life. We welcome this and other efforts that seek to examine how Catholic legislators bring together their faith and their policy choices. As the Catholic bishops of the United States said in our June 2004 statement, "Catholics in Political Life":

"We need to do more to persuade all people that human life is precious and human dignity must be defended. This requires more effective dialogue and engagement with all public officials, especially Catholic public officials. We welcome conversation initiated by political leaders themselves."

Therefore, we welcome the Representatives' recognition that Catholics in public life must act seriously and responsibly on many important moral issues. Our faith has an integral unity that calls Catholics to defend human life and human dignity whenever they are threatened. A priority for the poor, the protection of family life, the pursuit of justice and the promotion of peace are fundamental priorities of the Catholic moral tradition which cannot be ignored or neglected. We encourage and will continue to work with those in both parties who seek to act on these essential principles in defense of the poor and vulnerable.

At the same time, we also need to reaffirm the Catholic Church's constant teaching that abortion is a grave violation of the most fundamental human right * the right to life that is inherent in all human beings, and that grounds every other right we possess. Pope John Paul II's apostolic exhortation on the vocation and mission of the laity, Christifideles Laici, which the Representatives' statement cites, declares:

"The inviolability of the person which is a reflection of the absolute inviolability of God fínds its primary and fundamental expression in the inviolability of human life. Above all, the common outcry, which is justly made on behalf of human rights -- for example, the right to health, to home, to work, to family, to culture -- is false and illusory if the right to life, the most basic and fundamental right and the condition for all other personal rights, is not defended with maximum determination*. The human being is entitled to such rights, in every phase of development, from conception until natural death; and in every condition, whether healthy or sick, whole or handicapped, rich or poor" (# 38).

While it is always necessary to work to reduce the number of abortions by providing alternatives and help to vulnerable parents and children, Catholic teaching calls all Catholics to work actively to restrain, restrict and bring to an end the destruction of unborn human life.

As the Church carries out its central responsibility to teach clearly and help form consciences, and as Catholic legislators seek to act in accord with their own consciences, it is essential to remember that conscience must be consistent with fundamental moral principles. As members of the Church, all Catholics are obliged to shape our consciences in accord with the moral teaching of the Church.

As bishops, we too are bound by our own consciences to teach faithfully and to recommit ourselves to continued reflection and discussion on how Catholic faith and public service can work together to promote human life and dignity and advance the common good. Through dialogue, especially the irreplaceable dialogue between Catholic political leaders and their own bishops, we hope to promote a better understanding of how the Church's teaching on human life and dignity challenges us all.

Good work bishops!

The Wal-Mart Saga Continues

2006-03-13T23:40:00.000-05:00

So, I e-mailed Wal-Mart complaining that they should take the Morning After Pill off their shelves, and this was their response:

Thank you for contacting us at Walmart.com. Your comments and concerns are very important to us as we strive to meet your needs.

Until recently, Wal-Mart and SAM'S CLUB pharmacies sold emergency contraception only in Illinois, where state law required us to do so.

In February, a ruling by the state Board of Pharmacy required all of our pharmacies in Massachusetts to stock and dispense the product.

Pressure to introduce similar requirements is building in Connecticut and New York, and we expect other states to follow suit.

In light of these developments, all Wal-Mart and SAM'S CLUB pharmacies will immediately begin carrying Plan B emergency contraception.

By Monday, March 20, all of our pharmacies should have received an initial stock.

The company is maintaining its conscientious objection policy, which is consistent with the tenets of the American Pharmaceutical Association. This policy, except where prohibited by law, allows any Wal-Mart or SAM'S CLUB pharmacy Associate who does not feel comfortable dispensing a prescription for certain medications [those which are not considered core to the practice of pharmacy], including Plan B emergency
contraception, to refer customers to another pharmacist or pharmacy as spelled out in our policy. We do require that these Associates fulfill their obligation to help customers by referring them to another pharmacy that stocks the product.

These decisions have been made after very careful consideration. We believe that we are doing what is best for the business, while respecting our individual associates.

Again, we thank you for your comments and / or questions regarding this issue.

Sincerely,

Denice
Customer Service at Walmart.com

They are an odd organization.

Great news from Massachusetts

2006-03-13T10:53:00.000-05:00

Bishop McDonnell of Springfield, MA, has refused to give an award to a pro-abort. I got to meet this bishop last summer, and he is a nice old guy. It's great that he's had the fortitude to stick up for the truth. Read more here.

The Pro-Life Directory You've Been Waiting for!

2006-03-12T18:18:00.000-05:00

"...The connections are already there, they're just not all neatly arranged in an accessible online list for the world to see and share. That's what ProlifePages.com is for."

"Prolife America has long needed a mechanism that could help bring them together on the local and national level," said ProlifePages president, Steve Sanborn. "A great way to begin that process is by focusing on what we already do as consumers and product and service providers,.

Listed businesses pay a modest annual fee for local and national exposure to markets that Sanborn says are largely made up of prolife consumers.

ProlifePages offers pregnancy centers and other prolife charities different ways to work with the organization. The centers can help promote the site in ways that fit their programs and also raise funds.

Revenue generated by ProlifePages.com will be distributed via the ProlifePages Charitable Fund to prolife charities, particularly those that counsel expectant mothers, provide or wish to provide ultrasound
services and work with adoption.

Inquiries & correspondence
Email: info@prolifepages.com
Local Telephone: 816-479-2828
Toll-Free: 800-858-1957
Facsimile: 816-753-3560

Tragedy in Boston

2006-03-12T17:16:00.000-05:00

So it has turned out that Massachusetts won't change its stance on homosexual couples adopting children, meaning that they favor it. After a long hard fight, the Archbishop of Boston has announced that Catholic Charities in the diocese will not support adoption anymore. This seems like a drastic move, but read below for more info to see why.

Catholic Charities stuns state, ends adoptions: Gay issue stirred move by agency

By Patricia Wen, Globe Staff March 11, 2006

In a stunning turn of events, Archbishop Sean P. O'Malley and leaders of Catholic Charities of Boston announced yesterday that the agency will end its adoption work, deciding to abandon its founding mission, rather than comply with state law requiring that gays be allowed to adopt children.
The Rev. J. Bryan Hehir, president of Catholic Charities of Boston, and Jeffrey Kaneb, chairman of the board, said that after much reflection and analysis, they could not reconcile church teaching that placement of children in gay homes is ''immoral" with Massachusetts law prohibiting discrimination against gays. ''This is a difficult and sad day for Catholic Charities," Hehir said. ''We have been doing adoptions for more than 100 years."
Catholic Charities of Boston began in 1903 as an adoption agency primarily serving Catholic children left by parents who died or abandoned them. Officials in government, social services, and gay-rights groups expressed disappointment about the decision. Catholic Charities is widely respected among adoption providers and has handled more adoptions of foster children than any other private agency in the state.
Harry Spence, the state's commissioner of social services, said he was ''deeply saddened" to hear of Catholic Charities' withdrawal.
Lee Swislow, executive director of Gay & Lesbian Advocates Defenders, said the outcome was ''very unfortunate."
Almost immediately after the announcement, Governor Mitt Romney, who was in Tennessee speaking to a Republican group, issued a statement saying he would file legislation to exempt religious organizations that provide adoption services from the state's antidiscrimination laws. ''I ask the Legislature to work with me on a bill that I will file to ensure that religious institutions are able to participate in the important work of adoption in a way that always respects and never forces them to compromise their firmly held beliefs," Romney said.
Lawmakers have said that Romney's bill has little chance of passage, and some Democrats derided it as a presidential election ploy by the governor. State officials and other adoption agencies were still absorbing the news yesterday, but said they would work to fill the gap left by Catholic Charities. The agency was especially adept at finding homes for so-called ''special needs" adoptions, which include children who are older or who have significant physical or emotional disabilities.
Catholic Charities, the social services arm of the archdiocese, will shut down its adoption operation June 30, Hehir said. Adoptions underway will be completed, he said. Hehir said he hoped the decision will end the tumult surrounding the gay adoption issue. The controversy began in October when the Globe reported that Catholic Charities had been quietly processing a small number of gay adoptions, despite Vatican statements condemning the practice. Over the last decades, the Globe reported, approximately 13 children had been placed by Catholic Charities in gay households, a fraction of the 720 children placed by the agency during that period. Agency officials said they had been permitting gay adoptions to comply with the state's antidiscrimination laws. But after the story was published, the state's four bishops announced they would appoint a panel to examine whether the practice should continue. In December, the Catholic Charities board, which is dominated by lay people, voted unanimously to continue gay adoptions. But, on Feb. 28, the four bishops announced a plan to seek an exemption from the antidiscrimination laws. Eight of the 42 board members quit in protest, saying the agency should welcome gays as adoptive parents. That day, Hehir and O'Malley met with Romney in his State House office to make their case for an exemption, but Romney said he lacked the authority to do so. Hehir and O'Malley left the State House feeling that nothing could be done soon for their cause. The bishops had considered launching a court challenge, but Hehir said he and O'Malley realized it would cost ''too much time and energy" -- without any certainty of victory. ''It became clear our options were narrow," Hehir said.
In recent weeks, Hehir said, he had become increasingly concerned that the struggle over gay adoption would detract from other important work done by Catholic Charities. Since its founding, the agency had branched out significantly, helping 200,000 people in about 130 programs, including food pantries, day-care services, immigration legal clinics, and substance abuse programs. Only $1.3 million, or less than 4 percent of total revenues, is dedicated to adoption work now, Hehir said. Some board members said another concern was the potential impact on financing. The United Way of Massachusetts Bay, which provided $1.2 million to Catholic Charities last year and is the largest private funder of the agency, planned to review its funding if the agency discriminated against gays and lesbians in its adoption work. By late last week, Hehir said, it became clear that the simplest approach would be to withdraw from adoption services altogether. He convened a meeting with the board yesterday morning, in which members voted unanimously to pull out. After that, Hehir said he visited two of the agency's offices in Boston and Lawrence to tell adoption staff that its services would be over by the end of the fiscal year. Currently, the agency has 15 full-time adoption workers who will need to find new jobs. He said workers were tearful, but understood the anguishing decision that Hehir faced. Board members of Catholic Charities said they were also deeply saddened by the news. Some members, however, expressed some relief that they no longer had to wrestle with the painful clash between gay rights and religious freedom. James Brett, a board member, said the withdrawal was approved ''with a heavy heart," but it is preferable to a protracted battle over an exemption. ''This is a better resolution," he said. ''It's more straightforward."
Despite the board's sentiment, the decision upset some Catholics yesterday. Some were angry at Catholic Charities for giving up the fight for an exemption on religious grounds. The bishops have said that a 2003 Vatican document says children are best raised by a mother and father and described gay adoptions as ''gravely immoral."
''It's a defeat for religious freedom," said C.J. Doyle, executive director of the Catholic Action League, a conservative Catholic advocacy group. ''Not only does the church and society suffer, but the church is allowing itself to be marginalized."

parental notification laws result in decreased abortion-rate among minors

2006-03-11T00:26:00.000-05:00

WEDNESDAY, March 8 (HealthDay News) -- Since January 2000, Texas state law has mandated that doctors notify the parents of any girl under the age of 18 seeking an abortion at least 48 hours before the procedure.

Similar laws, all hotly contested, exist in one form or another in 34 states.

Now, one of the most rigorously conducted studies to date on the issue of parental notification finds that the rate of teen abortions in Texas dropped by 11 percent among 15-year-olds, 20 percent among 16-year-olds, and 16 percent among 17-year-olds in the first two years after the bill was enacted.

GET THE STORY

They've sold out

2006-03-07T08:33:00.000-05:00

because, after taking a strong stand for common sense and humanity, they have fallen into the pressure of the culture of death.

Wal-Mart will now sell kits to kill tiny babies.

If you would like to voice your complaints to Wal-Mart, please do so here. Feel free to give them as much info as possible.

AMEN !!!!

2006-03-06T13:38:00.000-05:00

Great news on two fronts:

SOUTH DAKOTA GOVERNOR SIGNS BILL!!!!!!!!!!!!!

(Read the bill here.)

Mississippi governor will most likely sign the bill to ban abortions too.

Culture Clash

2006-03-06T08:53:00.000-05:00

Read about how the Health and Human Services Department's Administration for Children and Families (ACF) is seeking to promote monogomous and pure marriage. This is clashing head on with the folks who have been running our nations sex ed for the last 40 years, Sexuality Information and Education Council of the United States (SIECUS). SIECUS maintains that teens cannot control themselves, should not be defined by their gender, condoms protect you from everything, and marriage is too high an ideal to ever attain.

As they say, the proof is in the pudding. SIECUS has been in our classrooms for the last several decades and STDs are the highest they have ever been, babies are being murdered by the millions, divorce is common place, and the laurndry list goes on...

Give 'em hell ACF!

Give 'em the one two punch

2006-03-06T08:35:00.000-05:00

A friend and I were talking about the recent statements made by Cardinal Mahony about immigration. For one of the first times, we both surprisingly happy with his daringly bold statements. In fact, His Eminence told all of his priests in LA to break the law if it meant doing the right thing. Praise God! It seemed that all of our prayers for his renewal and increase in courage and conviction have paid off. Then my friend said, I bet there is a catch. I mean, who would disagree with that? I am sure it made a lot of neo-cons upset. At the same time, I bet he really made a lot of "liberals" happy.

Well, sure enough, both the LA Times and the NY Times are both singing Cardinal Mahony's praises. I hope that was not the intent of such courageous statements.

It would be great if he could make similar statements that would not be so popular.

Continue to pray for this prince of the Church and the souls entrusted to his care.

USCCB Pro-Life Office to Planned Parenthood: you're dumb!

2006-03-03T11:33:00.000-05:00

Congratulations for Deirdre McQuade, a pro-life secretariat for the USCCB, for calling out Planned Parenthood for their blatant lies and propaganda.

Read the story here.

Commies put out hit on JPII

2006-03-03T11:12:00.000-05:00

Italian newsources assert that the USSR put the hit on JPII in the 80's.

What were they affraid of?!

WHAT?!

THEY JUST COULDN'T HANDLE THIS!!

Why are you pro-life...

2006-03-03T10:09:00.000-05:00

...because otherwise, this would happen - a lot:

"Police: Woman shot self to induce an abortion

SUFFOLK -- A Suffolk woman who lost her unborn baby after suffering a bullet wound to the abdomen was arrested yesterday and charged with shooting herself to "illegally induce an abortion."

Read more.

Unfortunately, they got one piece of evidence wrong. She should be charged for murder.

If you ever doubted....

2006-03-02T09:03:00.000-05:00

That President Bush is pro-abortion, read this article.

He opposses the bills in South Dakota, and presumably Mississippi, because they ban abortion. Apparently, he is in favor of murdering innocent children who happen to be convieved with deformities or by a crime of their father.

100th Post is a Good One - More Abortions Likely to be Banned

2006-03-01T16:48:00.000-05:00

So to honor the 100th post of this blog, I'd like to share some good news:

Mississippi advances bill to ban most abortions!

Following suit with South Dakota, another Democrat decided to stop attacking parts of abortion laws and just decided to attack almost the whole thing. Just like South Dakota, there will be the exception clause for the life of the mother, but again, that is really not an issue since that pratically never happens, and with the development of science, it won't be an issue long.

Let's pray that hearts begin to change. It's good that the law is reflecting a better understanding of the human person, but we still need to pray that people start to reflect a better understanding of the human person, through their thoughts, words, and actions.

Remember you are dust, and unto dust you shall return!

Pope: prepare for spiritual combat

2006-03-01T14:21:00.000-05:00

Mar. 01 (CWNews.com) - Christians have a duty to "oppose evil with good, lies with the truth, and hatred with love," Pope Benedict XVI said in an Ash Wednesday homily. Read the Rest.

Articles in School Papers

2006-03-01T10:16:00.000-05:00

Here are some articles written by Crusaders (and the related ones) in the University of Maryland school paper, the Diamondback:

The original article that Jess responded to (on emergency contraception),
Jess' article (third one down),
Yesterday's reply to Jess's article (by the head lady of PP in the DC area),

The original article that Pat responded to (on how tough abortion can be),
Pat's article

Chastity Article

2006-03-01T09:31:00.000-05:00

Check out this article on chastity. I haven't read the whole thing, but it seems interesting.

Sign the Petition to help South Dakota

2006-03-01T09:11:00.000-05:00

Sign the petition to urge South Dakota's governor to sign the bill to stop abortions.

Supreme Court rules against abortion clinics

2006-02-28T17:25:00.000-05:00

(HT:Daniel at UK Students for Life)

from the Associated Press:

Justices rule anti-abortion protests may not be banned using extortion laws

WASHINGTON - The Supreme Court dealt a setback Tuesday to abortion clinics in a two-decade-old legal fight over anti-abortion protests, ruling that federal extortion and racketeering laws cannot be used to ban demonstrations.

Anti-abortion groups brought the appeal after the 7th Circuit had asked a trial judge to determine whether a nationwide injunction could be supported by charges that protesters had made threats of violence absent a connection with robbery or extortion.

The 8-0 decision ends a case that the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals had kept alive despite a 2003 decision by the high court that lifted a nationwide injunction on anti-abortion groups led by Joseph Scheidler and others.

FULL STORY

READ COVERAGE FROM LIFESITE NEWS HERE.

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Quote from Joseph Scheidler on the SCOTUS decision:

“It’s going to open up the floodgates of activism. People have been afraid they would face the RICO and the huge triple damages. People are going to feel free to get involved now."

Pope to Terrorists:

2006-02-28T10:04:00.000-05:00

"God, the Creator and Father of all, will be severe in his judgment of those who shed their brothers' blood invoking His name." Read the rest.

Bad News

2006-02-26T23:08:00.000-05:00

This is kinda disgusting but, it seems that they've developed spray on birth control that seems to have become marketable within the last two or three weeks. Nasty. This can only be bad.

Read a short article.

Read a long article.

South Dakota Bill Passes

2006-02-26T16:31:00.000-05:00

The bill to ban nearly all abortions passed in South Dakota.

All that needs to happen now is for the Governor to sign it into law, and abortion is almost completely illegal in South Dakota. The state is currently trying to set up a fund to finance the court battle that will likely ensue from Planned Parenthood (and most likely the ACLU - isn't that ironic - being that 1) they're probably not many African Americans in SD, and 2) the ACLU should be fighting abortion since the black population is one of its main targets). Pray for the success of this bill.

Read more.

Vatican to Islam: Practice what you preach

2006-02-24T09:04:00.000-05:00

"If we tell our people they have no right to offend, we have to tell the others they have no right to destroy us," Cardinal Angelo Sodano, the Vatican's Secretary of State (prime minister), told journalists in Rome. Read the rest.

USCCB Secretariat: Pregnancy is not a disease!

2006-02-24T08:53:00.000-05:00

Read the commentary on how morally bankrupt the FDA has become. It is about how RU-486 is 10 times more dangerous for women than surgical abortion, and just as dangerous for the baby [kills her every time], but the FDA turns a blind eye to that.

"Congressman Roscoe Bartlett and 79 co-sponsors are seeking action on H.R. 1079 (“Holly’s Law”), which would temporarily suspend RU-486 approval pending review of the FDA’s conduct in approving the drug. Please ask your representatives to support this life-saving measure."

In the second to last paragraph, Susan Wills, Assistant Director for Education of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities, says that PREGNANCY IS NOT A DISEASE, RU486 HAS NO THERAPUTIC BENEFIT.

South Dakota bill set to ban nearly all abortions

2006-02-23T17:57:00.000-05:00

The South Dakota state Senate approved a bill to ban all abortions, except in the dire need to save the life of the mother. Being that with the progression of science, that is pretty much never going to happen, this bill will practically ban all abortions. It was sent to the state House today. Hopefully there will be a vote in the affirmative.

Just an interesting note. The main sponsor of the bill is a female Democrat. That seems to go against everything that the pro-choice says is true. So we'll see what this means for the future.

Read more here.

Pro-Choice Catholicism is a Heresy

2006-02-22T15:45:00.000-05:00

So says Bishop Vasa of Baker, OR.

Here is an excerpt from the article on LifeSiteNews.com:

"Robert Vasa, the Catholic bishop of the Oregon diocese of Baker, has written a letter to his diocesan newspaper clearly identifying the so-called 'pro-choice' position among Catholics as a 'heresy'. For decades, many Catholics have argued that 'primacy of conscience' allows them to dissent from basic Church teaching, including the right to life, and still consider themselves 'good Catholics.'

He said he does not seek to justify 'vigilante theology,' and that the word needs to be applied with care, 'but we do need strong words to combat erroneous and fallacious teaching.'

'There is a very strong word, which still exists in our Church, which most of us are too 'gentle' to use. The word is ‘heresy.''''

Here is a link to Bishop Vasa's speech.

Why the Pill is anti-Human

2006-02-22T10:01:00.000-05:00

The West has a powerful tradition of not only making inventions, but also of making them work to its advantage, whether it’s gunpowder or airplanes, television sets or nuclear power.....

Read this insightful commentary on how the West has led the charge with advancing the world. That is, until the West invented the Pill, and we have been going down hill ever since.

Congratulations Cardinal O'Malley

2006-02-22T09:54:00.000-05:00

The shepherd of the flock in Massachusetts has just been elevated to the title of Cardinal.
Congratulations Cardinal O'Malley! Read about the other 14 Cardinals named by Papa B.

"The Morning-After Pill Conspiracy"

2006-02-21T21:32:00.000-05:00

My friend sent me this an e-mail with this link today about "The Morning-After Pill Conspiracy." Totally crazy ideas sometimes do actually run through people's heads. I think we should have one of the Crusade Days actually concentrate on praying for everyone on the list. There are 1300 of them so it would be a great day of prayer and fasting. Enjoy the link if you really want to read it.

Three Cheers for Bishop Loverde!!

2006-02-21T20:37:00.000-05:00

Seperation of Church and State?

2006-02-21T08:42:00.000-05:00

The State of Massachusetts is forcing the Catholic Church to give children who are in the Catholic adoption agency over to homosexual and lesbian couples. Read the rest.

Good news at home though

2006-02-20T08:41:00.000-05:00

The New York State mid level court has struck down gay "marriage," three times in one case (I believe that's how it went). Great news from such a rough state.

Sad News from Australia

2006-02-20T08:38:00.000-05:00

Unfortunately, "Australian Leading Democrat on RU-486 – Some May Die But It’s Worth the Risk". What has the world come to? Read more here.

Pray for French Bishop

2006-02-20T08:36:00.000-05:00

I just found this article about a French bishop who wants the Church to change its stance on contraception. Please pray for him as he leads his flock.

Wal-Mart will hopefully fight the good fight

2006-02-10T11:28:00.000-05:00

This is from NARAL (pray for their conversion):

"Wal-Mart - the nation's largest retail pharmacy - has been denying millions of American women the opportunity to prevent unintended pregnancy. The store refuses to stock the "morning-after" pill, a back-up birth control option that prevents pregnancy after sex.

With your help, NARAL Pro-Choice America has been fighting this policy from every angle:

:: In the past year, our activists have generated 75,000 messages to Wal-Mart headquarters, asking the retail giant to reverse its policy.
:: Our affiliate, NARAL Pro-Choice Massachusetts, recently joined three women plaintiffs who announced a suit against Wal-Mart for not stocking the morning-after pill.
:: And just last week, we signed onto a letter with Planned Parenthood Federation of America, the National Organization for Women, the National Council of Women's Organizations, and WakeUpWalMart.com, urging Wal-Mart to change its policy (click here to read the statement http://prochoiceaction.org/ct/td17H951BmpI/).

Our efforts are starting to pay off. On Friday, a Wal-Mart spokesperson told the Associated Press, "Women's health is a high priority for Wal-Mart, so clearly there are broader considerations and we are giving this a lot of thought." [Associated Press, 2/3/06]

We have to continue to push Wal-Mart to end its discriminatory policy once and for all. Help us convince Wal-Mart that they can only make women's health a priority by stocking the morning-after pill."

This is their sample script for a telephone call:

"I ask that Wal-Mart reverse its policy on denying emergency contraception, also known as the "morning-after" pill, to women across the country. I hope you will reconsider your policy and make your customers' health - and rights - your top priority. Thank you.""

Meet the new Nuncio

2006-02-08T09:43:00.000-05:00

Archbishop Pietro Sambi now represents the Pope to the United States. Read the story.

Vernon Evans execution stayed

2006-02-07T09:11:00.000-05:00

BALTIMORE, Md. (Catholic Online) – Within days after two U.S. cardinals and a bishop, the Vatican’s envoy to the United States and a U.S. bishops’ conference official appealed to Maryland’s governor to spare the life of a condemned inmate, the state’s high court issued a stay in the execution. Read rest.

Papa B and the TOB

2006-02-07T09:06:00.000-05:00

Vatican City, Feb. 06, 2006 (CNA) - During Sunday’s weekly Angelus prayer, Pope Benedict told thousands of pilgrims gathered in St. Peter’s Square that a true “culture of life” must be focused on care for others and defense of the weak--not hedonism and pleasure-seeking self-service. Read more.

It appears that he is picking up his pontificate where John Paul the Great picked up his. Praise God! Yet another affirmation we are on the right track.

Finally!!

2006-02-07T08:42:00.000-05:00

coutner-protester at the West Cost Walk for Life

Madrid, Feb. 06, 2006 (CNA) - In his most recent pastoral letter, Archbishop Francisco Gil Hellin of Burgos said it was hypocritical to be shocked by the Iraq war and yet support legal abortion in Spain, where 85,000 unborn are killed each year. Read the rest.

Our experience certinally confirmed Archbishops concerns when we went to the anit-war rally in DC last fall. As Catholics, we all oppose war on general principal. It is never a good thing to kill people. Period. We also wanted to help people understand the war in the womb, which has killed more people since 1970 than all the wars of the world in all of human history- combined! So we had sings that said, "stop the war in the womb" "taxes for babies not bombs" and lastly [my favorite] "make love, not war". I really was not expecting as much hostility as we got. We stayed in one area as hundreds of people walked by. I do not remember one positive comment. We got plenty of choice fingers and the choicest of words. I was even told by a granda "F#$% YOU, BECAUSE NO ONE ELSE WILL!!" No lie, she must have been like 75.

In a strange twist of fate, I was walking and talking with a polite woman who disagreed fundamentally with my repsect for life position, but then a rabid person came up to us and started yelling and screaming in my face. The woman quietly stepped in and informed him that I have a right to my opinion and our differences should not be handelded with such anger. He left in his anger. Later in our conversation, the peaceful woman said that she was a former abortionist. It appeared that she had pain in her eyes, and a bit of amazement that I did not condemn her or start acting like the fellow we just encoutered.

Founder of NOW and NARAL dies

2006-02-05T15:27:00.000-05:00

Feminist author, icon Betty Friedan dies at 85

WASHINGTON (AP) — Betty Friedan, whose manifesto The Feminine Mystique became a best seller in the 1960s and laid the groundwork for the modern feminist movement, died Saturday, her birthday. She was 85.

FULL STORY

Don't kill this one, Michael!

2006-02-03T08:37:00.000-05:00

As Gudrun Schultz reported on Life Site News, “Michael Schiavo, who had his disabled wife Terri killed last March by refusing her food and water, was re-married last Saturday in the Roman Catholic Church of Espiritu Santo in Florida. Schiavo married Jodi Centonze. He had two children with her during the years he worked towards achieving Terri’s death.” Read the rest.

Foe Feminists vs. the Family

2006-02-03T08:29:00.000-05:00

Read the great article by James Fitzpatrick about how many "feminists" are now coming right out and saying that real women do not have [at least more than one] children, and they certinaly don't raise them- that is the job of the state or the man. On the flip-side, Fitzpatrick said, is the dignifying and refreshing view of the woman that the Church, most notably John Paul the Great, has to offer. Let's spread that vision around- the world obviously needs it.

Papa B on Papa B

2006-02-02T09:44:00.000-05:00

Here is a link to the Holy Father's commentary on his own Encylical.