Did You Say London?

O.K. I totally understand why they are 'integrating' Sharia law.....they're terrified! What is Brown thinking???

(What do you call someone who 'terrifies'?)

Don't Worry, Be Happy !

Mark Steyn at 'The Corner':

...if Aunt Zeituni had settled in Wasilla — say, in lodgings across the way from Bristol Palin's boyfriend's ex-girlfriend's uncle's sled dog's veterinarian's ammunition dealer — the fact that she's an "illegal immigrant" might have come out a lot sooner, even if only from the Atlantic Monthly investigative unit driving by and asking her whether Joe the Plumber had ever serviced Trig's real mother's double-wide.

On the other hand, what could be more American than an Undocumented First Family? If I'd known it was this easy, I'd have run myself.

I was away for much of the summer and, when I returned, the entire campaign felt like an absurd satire I wasn't quite up to speed on. But truly, in a world in which the many illegal foreign contributions to the leading candidate's unprecedented fundraising include his own deportation-ordered aunt, satire is dead.

By the way, one thing you can say for certain is that Aunt Zeituni's deportation order will never be enforced. Demanding proof of identity at polling stations, requiring address verification for credit-card contributions, getting hung up on foreigners donating to candidates, enforcing deportation orders . . . To raise such footling technicalities as "the law" is racist and so, in a squeamish politically correct culture, we let it slide, even as it corrupts the integrity of the democratic process and the defining act of a free society...

They just don't care....yet.

National Black Pro-Life Union

Day Gardner:

Obama says he is a "Christian" yet, he supports abortion--all abortion! He says women have a right to kill their own children if they choose to do so. But GOD says that is a lie!

GOD says children are a gift. Psalm 127:3, says: Lo, children are a heritage of the Lord, and the fruit of the womb is His reward. In Jeremiah 1:5, GOD says "Before I formed thee in the belly I knew thee; and before thou came forth out of the womb I sanctified thee..."

Psalm 139:13-16 - For thou hast possessed my reins: thou hast covered me in my mother's womb. I will praise thee for I am fearfully and wonderfully made... my substance was not hid from thee, when I was made in secret... Thine eyes did see my substance, yet being unperfect; and in thy book all my members were written...

Regarding abortionists and those who kill unborn children, Exodus 21:22-25 states: If men strive, and hurt a woman with child, so that her fruit depart from her, and yet no mischief follow: he shall be surely punished... and goes on to say: And if any mischief follow, then thou shalt give life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burning for burning, wound for wound, stripe for stripe.

Here's what God also says if anyone kills a fatherless child. Exodus 22:22-24 – If thou afflict them in any wise and they cry at all unto me, I will surely hear their cry; and my wrath shall wax hot...

So what God does Obama worship?...

"Just One Judge"

(h/t prowoman prolife)

Some of us know who the JUDGE is, and He's rooting for the babies.

Obama's Legacy

Jamaica's future? Pain on pain?

Morose Musings

(Anton Casta via e-mail)


"And now, a lighter topic to take people's minds off the U.S. elections -- cannibalism. The issue came up today over brunch with the kids. Don't ask. Okay, ask. Discussion flowed from a historical work on the Templars, to the novel Alive (both penned by the steady hand of Piers Paul Reid), to the Church's teaching on cannibalism.

I managed to find this pithy and clear argument within an American Life League document on Medical Cannibals: the moral implications of fetal tissue vaccines:

Neither analysis considers a more closely-related example: enforced cannibalism. The use of tissue to generate vaccines which may save other's lives is a kind of cannibalism. On October 13, 1972, a plane with 40 people aboard, all Catholic, crashed in the Andes. Due to the total lack of food in the snowy wasteland, the survivors of the crash were forced to eat the bodies of those who had died in order to maintain their own life. The Church ruled the cannibalism to be acceptable in this instance, because the bodies of the slain were treated with great reverence and the need for sustenance was life-threatening. While it is true that most of those whose bodies were eaten had not given their consent, it is also true that none were murdered; their deaths were unforeseen and unpreventable. By removing the issue of will, this example better corresponds to the abortion event, while simultaneously highlighting the moral problem: the manner of death and the reverence due the human body in death must be considered.

'If I were a healthy Argentine soccer player frozen in the Andean snow and you were starving , (dear wife), I argued, 'I'd like you to eat my legs. They'd be my best part'. She winced and after a brief pause replied, 'I'd rather die'.

So much for self sacrificial agape love, I thought. So much for chivalry and steel toed armour. It's time to go jogging and work on those calves and quads :-)

If you're a United Statesian teetering on the precipice of exercising the pinnacle of your freedom in a liberal democracy -- putting card stock into a wooden box, the morality of cannibalism and the surrounding issues touched on by the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA), and Mr. Obama's promise as executive to sign it wholeheartedly, is very much an "alive" topic. As a friend in Wyoming said recently, "as a Catholic, one simply cannot vote for Obama...Now, a debatable question is whether one is morally permitted not to vote for McCain. I think one is. One may vote for McCain or not, or not even vote (at this point, it does seem prudent to vote for McCain, but I am still uncomfortable about it).

Mea culpa. That political vortex drew me in again."

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


(Those Canadians!)

.

United Church in Jamaica Supports Legal Abortion

In a disappointing move, the United Church in Jamaica and The Cayman Islands has decided to support the law to legalize abortion .

Jamaica Gleaner:

"What we are pointing out is that all Christians do not have the same view. We have, for example, a difference even on the question of contraception. The Roman Catholics do not sanction contraception, we do," said Lewis.

She said her church had no problem with abortion in instances where a woman was raped or where incest was committed.

The reverend also said there was not a problem in a case where medical opinion pointed to severe disability and where the potential mother or child was at risk.

However, Lewis argued that unwanted pregnancies should be avoided and abstinence should be considered and pursued.

She also encouraged the responsible use of contraceptives.

Attempting to strike a compromise, the church leader said the society should raise the debate to another level.

Lewis said it might be justified that a pro-life stance does not prevent one from embracing the concept of pro-choice.

While supporting the draft legislation to legalise abortion, she called for two amendments to the bill.

Under Section Five of the legislation, dealing with 'termination of pregnancy in special categories', the church group wants an amendment to indicate that parents' consent was not necessary in all cases for minors over the age of 16 years. This, however, should be subject to professional counselling.

The church group also wants the bill to be modified to allow for the training of other persons for counselling, such as members of the clergy, who do not oppose abortion.

Hilary Nicholson, head of Women's Media Watch, said it was unfortunate that the ongoing debate on abortion had attracted the labels pro-life and pro-abortion.

She said her organisation was pro-choice and pro-life...

There IS NO SUCH COMMON GROUND between 'pro-life' and 'pro-abortion'. Either you agree that LIFE is sacred, and inherently valuable, worthy of protection, or you don't. The United Church has decided that LIFE is not sacred. They are pro-abortion.

That the 'Women's Media Watch' is suggesting that there are people more interested in a young girl's welfare than her parents, is indicative of a UN approach to women's health. One might be suspicious, considering the world wide effort expended by the UN the last couple of years, to provide open access to abortion everywhere. Have incentives been offered to groups supporting abortion in Jamaica?

God help Jamaica if they seek to end the despair in their country by putting all the responsibility on pregnant women. Fathers are shirking already. As any western country can testify, abortion access DECREASES paternal interest. Killing black Jamaican babies will not help Jamaica repair the damamge to their once lovng and caring society.

RESPECT FOR LIFE is needed desperately in Jamaica. Those advocating abortion are not caring for women. They are not caring for children. They do not care for THE CREATOR< or honour HIM as Lord.

WHO DO THEY CARE FOR?

441 Babies Saved

(LIFENEWS):

..."Even after praying and fasting for 40 days - and being involved in vigils that in many cities went round the clock, seven days a week -many of the people who are participating in this campaign simply don't want to see it end," David Bereit says.

"Tens of thousands of people have prayed in front of abortion facilities, many for the first time," the campaign director explained. "They see the impact of that peaceful presence, and they yearn to keep going."

Beginning September 24, intensive 40 Days for Life campaigns have been conducted in more than 175 communities in 47 states, the District of Columbia, American Samoa and two Canadian provinces.

Bereit said the biggest success of the campaign may have been jumpstarting efforts by existing groups to do more in their community and taking existing efforts that had grown stale and given them new life...

..."People across the country have expressed an interest in getting involved in the effort to end abortion," said Bereit, "but far too often, they didn't know where to start. 40 Days for Life provided a starting point. Now they've seen what can happen; and now that they've taken that first step, they're eagerly anticipating additional opportunities for continuing their pro-life outreach."

"We know of at least 441 lives that were saved from abortion as a result of the 40 Days for Life effort thus far," said Bereit. "But those are not the only lives that have been changed."

"We hear every day about people seeking help who have been dealing with abortion experiences - some of them have been hurting for more than 30 years," he added. "There are people in the abortion industry who have been touched by this effort. They, too, are witnessing the power of prayer at work first hand."

ArchBishop Visits Kettering To Share Final Vigil Day

Dayton Daily:

Archbishop Daniel Pilarczyk will make a special appearance during a pro-life rally in front of the Women's Med Center, 1401 E. Stroop Road, on Sunday, Nov. 2, according to Mary Britt, committee member for the 40 Days for Life campaign.

The rally marks the end of the 40 Days for Life campaign, which is a national campaign that focuses on 40 days of prayer, fasting, peaceful vigil at abortion facilities and 40 days of grassroots educational outreach.

Rally events begin at 1 p.m. with Pilarczyk leading the rosary — using a beaded necklace to count out loud a series of prayers. Chandra White-Cummings of the Dayton Right to Life's Black Americans for Life will also speak at the event.

Day 39

Intention:

Pray that volunteers will replace exhaustion or discouragement with rejoicing over the miracles we have seen thus far, and enthusiastic service as God takes us on to victory!

Scripture:

In this you greatly rejoice, though now for a little while, if need be, you have been grieved by various trials, that the genuineness of your faith, being much more precious than gold that perishes, though it is tested by fire, may be found to praise, honor, and glory at the revelation of Jesus Christ.

-- 1 Peter 1:6-7

Reflection:

We have reason to rejoice when we consider the many babies whose lives have been saved during the 40 Days for Life campaign. Add to those lives, the women and men who have been spared from a devastating decision and now have opportunity to make a plan for their baby that is both life affirming and God honoring.

Whether directly, or indirectly, you have contributed to these testimonies of praise with your sacrificial service. Perhaps you have been grieved by various trials during your commitment to 40 days. The attacks of the enemy come in many forms -- difficulties in relationships, finances, health. Or maybe you are physically and mentally exhausted and have been marking off the days on your calendar, eagerly waiting for March 16.

Consider these trials in light of God's plan for you. The Apostle Paul understood the big picture when he said in Romans 8:18, "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory which shall be revealed in us." This is our Hope and our victory. Let us rejoice in the opportunity to give that Hope to others in our path.

Prayer:

Dear Heavenly Father, We sing to You a new song, for You have done marvelous things. Forgive us when we allow circumstances to defeat us. You give power to the faint and You increase strength in those who have no might. We rest in You dear Lord, and ask You to empower us again for Your service as You work out Your plan for us and through us. May You receive glory through our victory in Christ, in whose name we pray, amen.

Carmen Pate
Co-host, "Point of View" Talk Show

40 Days For Life

Harper's New Cabinet

(lifted from Western Standard)

New Positions:

* Jim Prentice, Minister of the Environment
* Lawrence Cannon, Minister of Foreign Affairs
* John Baird, Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities
* Tony Clement, Minister of Industry
* Stockwell Day, Minister of International Trade and Minister for the Asia-Pacific Gateway
* Jean-Pierre Blackburn, Minister of National Revenue and Minister of State (Agriculture)
* Rona Ambrose, Minister of Labour
* James Moore, Minister of Canadian Heritage and Official Languages
* Diane Finley, Minister of Human Resources and Skills Development
* Josée Verner, Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs, President of the Queen's Privy Council for Canada and Minister for La Francophonie
* Jay Hill, Leader of the Government in the House of Commons
* Peter Van Loan, Minister of Public Safety
* Jason Kenney, Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism
* Gary Lunn, Minister of State (Sport)
* Gordon O'Connor, Minister of State and Chief Government Whip
* Helena Guergis, Minister of State (Status of Women)

Same Positions:

* Jim Flaherty, Minister of Finance
* Peter MacKay, Minister of National Defence and Minister for the Atlantic Gateway
* Rob Nicholson, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada
* Greg Thompson, Minister of Veterans Affairs
* Chuck Strahl, Northern Development and Federal Interlocutor for Métis and Non-Status Indians
* Vic Toews, President of the Treasury Board
* Marjory LeBreton, Leader of the Government in the Senate and Minister of State (Seniors)
* Bev Oda, Minister of International Cooperation
* Gerry Ritz, Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food and Minister for the Canadian Wheat Board
* Christian Paradis, Minister of Public Works and Government Services
* Diane Ablonczy, Minister of State (Small Business and Tourism)

"The Mac Is Back"

I wouldn't call him a conservative, and I don't support many of his actions as Governor , but he can give a speech. From "Our Democracy is Not For Sale" to 'pumping up' advice to help Obama's 'skinny legs' and 'scrawny arms'. and his rallying cry "The Mac Is Back", Schwarzenegger did a great job for McCain in Ohio!

Why Homeschool? ( reason 3407)

Why Indeed?

This young group of homeschooled filmmakers has produced something that is impressive...Advent Film Grouppresents "Come What May".

Discussing HRC's

An interesting forum on HRC's was reported on by Scott Gilbreath:

As promised , I took copious notes last night at the Canadian Centre for Ethics in Public Affairs (CCEPA) debate on human rights and free speech. Rather than pronounce my verdict on the evening, I’ve decided initially to share my notes online so everyone can draw their own conclusions.

This post will cover only the opening remarks of the four speakers. This portion occupied about 30 minutes of a two-hour meeting, so there will be more to come.

NB: These are my notes, not an official transcript. I stand by the accuracy of these notes as an honest reflection of what was said, but what appears below should not taken as a verbatim record of the proceedings. (I have speakers using the pronoun “I” for convenience, not to suggest direct quotation.)

CCEPA will make available a DVD of the evening’s discussion in about three weeks.

I estimate that 80-100 people came to the hall at St Mary’s University, which has a capacity of approximately 300.

The four panelists spoke in this order:
Dan Leger, Director of News Content, Halifax Chronicle Herald
Krista Daley, Director and CEO, Nova Scotia Human Rights Commission (NSHRC)
Mark Mercer, Professor of Philosophy, Saint Mary’s University.
Pearl Eliadis, Montreal Human Rights Lawyer

The moderator was Kevin Kindred, Lawyer and Chair of the Nova Scotia Rainbow Action Project.

The presentation began with Chris Stover, General Manager, Canadian Centre for Ethics in Public Affairs, who welcomed us to the evening’s event and introduced the moderator.

Kevin Kindred Opening Remarks

He welcomed us to a debate on an issue that is important but sometimes volatile. He will try to be as impartial moderator. He himself is a lawyer and human rights activist on behalf of homosexual rights, but will put that aside this evening. He will try to ensure that we hear from all four panelists equally.

The human rights vs free speech controversy has been called the perfect storm of public policy issues.

He mentioned three legal cases that, in his view, exemplify the issues:
1. Stephen Boissoin, complaint brought by Darren Lund
-case decided in Alberta
2. Craig Harrison, complaint brought by Richard Warman
-case heard by Canadian HRC
3. Macleans, complaint brought by three Muslim students
-complaint considered by three jurisdictions, none of which sustained the complaint: Canada, Ontario, BC

Each speaker will make an opening statement. Then I will ask questions of the speakers, then members of the audience will be able to ask questions.

Dan Leger Opening Statement

I’m not an expert in human rights; I’m a journalist. I receive complaints and special pleadings about newspaper articles every day; people insist on a right to rebut or dispute.

We live in a marketplace of ideas. Some people don’t like that. I am a small-l liberal....

(I'm happy to see Scott is back in business at his (post-retirement) blog Nova Scotia Scott. Hope he likes the new digs! Nova Scotians are well known for their hospitality! )

"Obama And The Law"

Thomas Sowell:

One of the biggest and most long-lasting "changes" to expect if Barack Obama becomes president will be the kinds of federal judges he appoints. These include Supreme Court justices, as well as other federal justices across the country, all with lifetime tenure.

Mr. Obama has stated very clearly what kinds of Supreme Court justices he wants - those with "the empathy to understand what it's like to be poor, or African-American, or gay, or disabled, or old."

Like so many things Mr. Obama says, it may sound nice if you don't stop and think - and chilling if you do stop and think. Do we really want judges who decide cases based on who you are rather than on the facts and the law? If the case involves a white man versus a black woman, should the judge decide that case differently than if both litigants are of the same race or sex? The kind of criteria Barack Obama promotes could have gotten three young men at Duke University sent to prison for a crime neither they nor anybody else committed.

Didn't we spend decades in America, and centuries in Western civilization, trying to get away from the idea that who you are determines your legal rights? What kind of judges are we talking about? ....

(h/t blackkettle)


As a result of The Washington TIMES free use of editorial space, The Washington Times Has Been Kicked Off The OBAMA Plane!.

I doubt that's going to help...""This feels like the journalistic equivalent of redistributing the wealth, we spent hundreds of thousands of dollars covering Senator Obama's campaign, traveling on his plane, and taking our turn in the reporter's pool, only to have our seat given away to someone else in the last days of the campaign," said Washington Times Executive Editor John Solomon.

"I hope the candidate that promises to unite America isn't using a litmus test to determine who gets to cover his campaign."


Just a little lick of what's to come with 'the unifier' as President.


.

"Hallowe'en Without The Ghouls"

NCRegister:

This Friday is Halloween, so now is a good time to highlight a Catholic way to celebrate the ancient Christian feast of All Saints.

The tenth annual All Hallows’ Eve Celebration will take place at the Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception at the Dominican House of Studies in Washington, D.C., beginning at 7:30 p.m. Friday evening.

Organizers expect a crowd of 400 young Catholic adults to attend the event, making it the most popular event of the year at the Dominican House of Studies.

Basically, the idea is to mark the occasion with a vigil that reflects the authentic Christian meaning of Halloween, by focusing on the saints who have born witness to the faith since the earliest days of the Church. The event features readings from the lives of the saints, a homily, and the singing of Compline night prayers by the house’s Dominican friars.

After the service, the young people will have the opportunity to mingle with the friars in their refectory.

“The popularity of this event among the young is a testament to the fact that these holy men and women from ages past continue to have the power to captivate,” Dominican Father Steven Boguslawski, president of the Pontifical Faculty of the Immaculate Conception, said in an Oct. 27 press release. “These saints, long removed from the world, continue to draw us to God.”...

*COSTUMES*

Obama Would Fund Abortions With Tax Dollars

(LIFENEWS):

A leading pro-life group has uncovered a questionnaire the campaign of Barack Obama filed with a pro-abortion web site. The survey makes it clear that Obama's national health care plan would include abortions and that they would likely be funded at taxpayer expense.

The Obama campaign responded to a question about health care from the pro-abortion RH Reality Check web site.

"Senator Obama believes that reproductive health care is basic health care," the campaign said, using the phrase that abortion advocates employ to refer to abortion.

"His health care plan will create a new public plan, which will provide coverage of all essential medical services. Reproductive health care is an essential service," the Obama campaign added.

The Obama camp also made it clear that any private insurance companies wanting to participate would also be required to provide abortion coverage.

"And private insurers that want to participate will have to treat reproductive care in the same way," the Obama campaign responded...

I'd like Doug Kmiec to explain how this DECREASES abortions. Or taxes!!

.

Pope To Canada "There Is Hope"

(LIFESITE) Today Pope Benedict XVI addressed Canadians as he greeted the new Canadian Ambassador to the Holy See, Anne Leahy.

In his address, the Holy Father noted his concern for Canada's growing lack of respect for life and family, despite the fact that Canadian culture has Catholicism as one of its cornerstones and has been recognized as a champion of human rights and dignity.

"Nevertheless, profound changes can be noticed today, which are seen in different sectors and at times cause concern to the point of asking ourselves if it does not mean a regression in the understanding of the human being," he said. "These changes mainly concern the areas of defense and the promotion of life and the family based on natural marriage."

"In this context," said the Pope, "I would like to encourage all Canadians to reflect deeply on the path that Christ calls us to follow." That path, he said "is bright and full of truth." Speaking of turning to a culture of life, Benedict XVI said, "I know it is possible and that your country is capable." He said, "A culture of life can nourish anew the personal and social existence of Canada as a whole."

"To help," said the Holy Father, "it seems necessary to redefine the meaning of freedom of expression too often invoked to justify certain excesses." He noted that freedom is often wrongly perceived as an absolute value, disregarding its divine origin and its communal dimension. In such an interpretation of freedom, he suggested, "only the individual can decide and choose the form, characteristics, and ends of life, death, and marriage."

"True freedom," he observed, "is ultimately based on and develops in God." He added: "It is a gift that can be accepted as the seed from which the person and society can grow responsibly and be enriched. The exercise of this freedom implies reference to a natural moral law that is universal, which precedes and unifies all rights and duties. In this perspective, I would like to show my support to all the Canadian Bishops' initiatives in favor of family life and thus of the dignity of the human being."

( full address in French )

"Why This Election Is About Freedom Of Religion"

Fr. Richard John Neuhaus:

One can argue that every presidential election is a “historic” election. But some are more historic than others. Daniel Henninger had a provocative column yesterday making a strong case that this one is a “tipping point” between America continuing as an entrepreneurial society or going the way of the European “social democracies.” He cites the late Senator Pat Moynihan who said the big difference between Europe and America is that the former gives priority to equality and the latter to liberty. I’m not sure that Henninger is right in saying there would be no turning back after four or eight years of President Obama and an overwhelmingly Democratic Congress imposing their passion for a government-directed program of redistribution and social coordination, but the future he depicts is both plausible and ominous.

There is another dimension of this ideological passion for the expansion of government control that is at least equally worrying. It has to do with the freedom of religion in the American constitutional order and the indispensable part that religion plays in checking the ambitions of the modern democratic state. Obama has said that he thinks it is “tragic” that the Supreme Court has declined to advance the cause of redistributive justice. That refers, of course, to economic redistribution. But the language of healing divisions and bringing us all together—under government auspices—applies also to the social dynamics of American society.

There are several issues, all closely related to religion, on which Obama, for all his undoubtedly sincere talk about his own faith and the importance of religion in public life, is manifestly hostile to the vibrant diversity of American life...

READ THE WHOLE THING!!

Cork to Allow Embryonic Stem Cell Research

IrishTimes:

THE CASE made by University College Cork for authourising embryonic stem-cell research was akin to a defense by someone found in possession of child pornography, Jim Walsh (FF) said.

The college governors' decision was strongly attacked by some Government members and defended with equal vehemence.

Ronan Mullen described the decision as astonishing and warned that it could have "queered the pitch for the Lisbon Treaty".

Mr Walsh said that while he would acknowledge there had been a failure to legislate, he was not persuaded by the UCC spokesman who had argued that it was an acceptable procedure because the embryo was destroyed prior to the removal of the stem-cell strips.

"I see that as analogous to a situation where somebody who is caught with child pornography would claim that they were not instrumental in the abuse of the children, as they only subsequently came into possession of the actual pornography itself."

Why New Orders Flourish

And the 'old' Nuns are well, dying out. Its the difference between Faithful exuberance and bitter self absorbtion.

From the DenverPost Letters:

As Catholics and supporters of Sen. Barack Obama’s candidacy, we appreciate Archbishop Charles Chaput’s clarification in Sunday’s Post that he is speaking as a private citizen when he takes issue with Sen. Obama and his supporters.

We had supposed that since the official archdiocesan newspaper last week included a voter guide supporting John McCain from a group calling itself Colorado Family Institute (different from the guide promoted by the U.S. bishops), the archbishop might, perhaps, be attempting to influence the choices of Catholic voters.

We honor the archbishop’s right to support the candidates and issues he believes best represent his deepest values, and applaud his recognition that not all Catholics will make his choices their own.

We also appreciate the respect for primacy of conscience in our decision-making, as enunciated by Josef Ratzinger, now our current pope, Benedict XVI, who wrote: “Over the pope, as the expression of the binding claim of ecclesiastical authority, there still stands one’s own conscience, which must be obeyed before all else — if necessary, even against the requirement of ecclesiastical authority.”

We are making our ballot choices as adults and as faithful citizens who have weighed the issues in light of the gospels and the justice teachings of our church. We encourage all Catholics to do likewise.

Sister Mary A. Coyle, Denver
Sister Mary Ann Cunningham, Denver

(h/t american papist)

Talking out both sides of their mouths, these fine examples of liberal rot have chosen to create their own catecheses. Good for them. Its obviously serving them well.

Thank God for ArchBishop Charles Chaput, standing up for truth and guiding his flock, as he should. Not forcing, but instructing. There aren't two kinds of Catholics. You either believe and love, or you don't. The rest are pretenders. This doesn't mean everybody agrees. It means all Catholics have the same Truth as the centre of their lives, and puts their love of God above all else .

Sorry 'Sisters', there's a good reason the young women aren't flocking to you!!
.

Day 38

Intention:

Pray that we become vessels of hope to all around us, especially to those who minister in the pro-life movement.

Scripture:

On the first day of the week, very early in the morning, the women took the spices they had prepared and went to the tomb. They found the stone rolled away from the tomb, but when they entered, they did not find the body of the Lord Jesus. "Why do you look for the living among the dead? He is not here; he has risen!"

-- Luke 24:1-5

Reflection:

This meditation, based on a sermon I once heard, is adapted for pro-life concerns.

It's Friday. Jesus is on the cross. He has been killed by his enemies; he is off the scene. But that's because it's Friday. Sunday's comin'!

It's Friday. Abortionists continue their work 3,300 times a day, tearing off the arms and legs of little babies and crushing their heads. But that's because it's Friday. Sunday's comin'! It's Friday. Pro-abortion groups receive blood money from billionaires who are as deceived as they are. But that's because it's Friday. Sunday's comin'!

It's Friday. Liars attempt to speak for all women and hide the pain of abortion, and ignore the evidence of how it harms women, and call abortion a blessing. But that's because it's Friday. Sunday's comin'! It's Friday. People of hardened hearts guard the clinics and usher desperate women in to have their abortions, while keeping them from the pro-life people who want to give them hope. But that's because it's Friday. Sunday's comin'!

Hope does not mean that we ignore or minimize the evils around us. It means, rather, that we see the whole picture, which is that evil is conquered because of what happened one Sunday morning. The power of sin and death has been broken by the Resurrection of Christ. We are called to proclaim, celebrate, and serve that victory, waiting in joyful hope for Christ's return and the full flowering of the Culture of Life! Indeed, Sunday's comin'!

Prayer:

Lord, fill your people with new hope. Make us vessels of hope to all around us, especially to those who minister in the pro-life movement, that as we engage in the difficult work ahead, we may experience the peace and joy that come only from you and that nobody can take away from us. We ask this through Christ our Lord, amen.

Fr. Frank Pavone
National Director, Priests for Life and President, National Pro-life Religious Council

40 Days For Life

TRICKERS

(h/t Jill Stanek)

As Expected...Harper Not Moving Mountains

Kathy Shaidle posts this uninspiring Q + A with Harper:

...(Reporter)the issue of the human rights commission, we have seen both federal and provincial human rights commissions taking media organizations, journalists before them to justify what they have written and I was wondering if your government will be touching that topic?

....(Harper)In terms of the free speech issues and some of the activities of human rights commissions, I think that everyone has had some concerns about this. This is a complicated area of law, balancing what most people understand to mean by free speech with obvious desire to not have speech that would be intended to incite hatred towards particular groups or individuals. I think some of the most egregious cases, if you actually look at this, are in provincial human rights commission and obviously, you know I can't control or comment on that. I think there has been some - I think the Canadian human rights commission has been moderating some of what - some of its practices a little bit recently to respond to some of these concerns and I hope that will continue.

Uh, yeah....we're 'hoping' that too!

Day 37

Intention:

Pray that we will each submit ourselves this day as a living sacrifice to God, giving all that we have in us for those being sacrificed on the altar of convenience.

Scripture:

-- Romans 12:1

Reflection:

Since all things are for His glory, we are to offer ourselves for that purpose. This of course is in sharp contrast to those who are being swayed by the enemy to sacrifice their babies on the altar of convenience, rather than choosing to surrender their all, including their unborn child, to the Lord for His purposes.

A career, education goals, or even a boyfriend can unknowingly become an idol for some young women. In their minds, abortion is a convenient way to "rid themselves" of an obstacle in the way of their "worship."

In light of the sacrifice Christ made on our behalf, and the fruit of God's mercies on our lives, we owe God our highest form of praise and worship. Presenting our bodies as living sacrifices is therefore reasonable service.

We were made to worship God and God alone. The enemy who seeks worship for himself distorts God's truth regarding worship, sacrifice, idols, and children.

As you have given of yourself to rescue those who are perishing -- the young woman and her child -- you are worshiping God in the truest sense of the word.

May your example lead an abortion minded client to turn from her idols to worship the one true God, sparing her child from the altar of convenience, and sparing herself from a lifetime of regret.

Prayer:

God Almighty, You alone are worthy of our praise and worship. Having accepted Your Son's sacrifice on my behalf, I in turn present my body to you as a living sacrifice. Thank you for deeming me holy and acceptable because of Christ's shed blood for me. I pray that you would use me as your vessel to rescue others who are perishing. Through Christ who is Our Glory, Amen.

Carmen Pate
Co-host, "Point of View" Talk Show

40 Days For Life

Day 36

Intention:

We are the defenders of true freedom. May our witness unveil the deception of the "pro-choice" slogan.

Scripture:

Now the Lord is the Spirit; and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty.

--2 Corinthians 3:17

Reflection:

Norma McCorvey (the former Jane Roe of Roe v. Wade) used to work at an abortion mill named "A Choice for Women." She now realizes what a cruel irony that title was. She saw first hand, just as pregnancy resource center counselors see, that women don't get abortions because of freedom of choice, but rather because they feel they have no freedom and no choice. They feel trapped, abandoned, desperate and afraid, and have been led to believe that abortion is their only option.

As Frederica Mathewes-Green has written, no one wants an abortion like she wants a Porsche or an ice cream; rather, she wants it like an animal caught in a trap wants to gnaw off its own leg.

"Where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty." That doesn't mean that the Spirit allows us to do whatever we want or to decide for ourselves what's right and wrong.

Rather, it means that the Spirit gives us the freedom to do what is right, the power to choose what is good, when we see it before us and yet feel pulled in the opposite direction. Liberty means that we no longer have to feel doomed to do what we know is wrong.

We are the people of the Spirit of the Lord, and when we take action on behalf of life, especially by being present at abortion mills, we are acting on behalf of true freedom, and imparting to those who are in bondage the power to do what is right.

Prayer:

Come, Holy Spirit. You are the Spirit of freedom, the source of all that is good, the power to do what is right. Fill us, and fill those who are in bondage today, feeling doomed to do what is wrong. Set them free, and help us to hasten them on the road to freedom, where your grace overcomes every temptation. We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen.

Fr. Frank Pavone
National Director, Priests for Life and President, National Pro-life Religious Council

40 Days For Life

San Diego Has New 'Latin Mass' Parish

California Catholic:

..On Oct. 7, the Feast of Our Lady of the Rosary, San Diego Bishop Robert Brom officially erected St. Anne Church at 621 Sicard St. as a “personal parish” for Catholics in the diocese who prefer the extraordinary form of the Mass in Latin. A “personal parish” has no geographical boundaries, which means any Catholic living in the diocese may join.

Bishop Brom turned over the parish to the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter (FSSP), a society of apostolic life approved in 1988 by Pope John Paul II specifically dedicated to continued use of the extraordinary form of the Roman Rite – also known as the Latin or Tridentine Mass...

Oh Joy!

Fox News reports this IMPORTANT NEWS:

According the Sun-Times, the tension between hosts Joy Behar and Elizabeth Hasselbeck has become so thick that the two women refuse to speak to one another off camera in contrast to their usual habit of screaming at one another on camera.

The beef between the two began as the presidential election heated up. Hasselbeck is die-hard McCain-Palin supporter, while the more left-leaning Behar favors the Obama-Biden ticket.

But last week, following Hasselbeck’s campaigning for Palin, Behar apparently made a joke at Hasselbeck’s expense, angering the staunch conservative, the Sun-Times said.

According to the Sun-Times, Behar pulled out a ratty green coat to mimic the outfit Hasselbeck wore at the rally. Mocking Hasselbeck’s statement on the now-infamous $150,000 shopping spree for Palin paid for by the Republican National Committee, Behar quipped that Hasselbeck “spends that much in a month!”

Hasselbeck, for her part, took a stab at her co-hosts on the campaign trail, noting that she was happy to be at the rally so she could speak without being interrupted...

What? Someone doesn't get along with 'Joy'? HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!

Not Everyone is Showin' the Love...

GP links to report that Sarkozy finds Obama's view of Iran 'utterly immature'. So cross France off the list.

Bottom Line on Conservatives Frightened by Palin

Regular Guy:

A lot of alleged, self-proclaimed, so-called "conservatives" have been abandoning John McCain to support Barack Obama, and many of them have cited McCain's choice as his running mate of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.

I've been thinking about what I'd have to believe in order to make a jump like that:

10. That two years as the chief executive of a state is less relevant experience for the presidency than two years as a back-bench senator with no major legislative accomplishments.

9. That a man who is revered as a "maverick" because he pisses off social conservatives is never allowed to do anything that pisses me off.

8. That the man who included his time in elementary school and his undergraduate degree in international relations among his presidential qualifications knows more about foreign policy than a war hero with two and a half decades in the Senate, or even more than a woman who for two years has received intelligence briefings on Russian incursions into Alaskan airspace...

(h/t ProEcclesia)

I get the 'I'm for baby-killing, Obama's my man' defectors , or the 'I'm for baby-killing but not war'(because war kills tall children) defectors, but Palin as a reason? Economics? McCain may not be 'conservative' but um...NEITHER IS B.O.!!

On the other hand, I totally understand voting for Ron.

"Dying Of Hopelessness"

Ottawa Citizen:

... a non-religious case to be made against assisted suicide, and it gets stronger the closer one looks at the Oregon experiment, as a team of Oregon psychiatrists recently did. Beginning in 2006, the psychiatrists started interviewing patients who wanted to make use of the assisted suicide legislation. They discovered that one in four patients had undiagnosed clinical depression.

In most places, people who express a desire to die are evaluated for depression, and receive treatment for it. In places where assisted suicide is practised, such patients might instead receive a fatal dose of barbiturates. The researchers discovered that in 2007, not one "of the people who died by lethal ingestion in Oregon had been evaluated by a psychiatrist or a psychologist."

This secular case against assisted suicide is that assisted suicide discriminates against the sick and disabled. If an able-bodied woman tells her family that she's suicidal, they will surely intervene with psychiatric help. But if a wheelchair-bound woman with Lou Gehrig's disease tells her family the same thing, they might assume, based on social prejudices about disabilities, that the request was a sensible one...

"Death Wish"

The Impending Suicide of a Once Great Nationby Rev. John A. Corapi


video format part 1




video format part 2

"Suicide Is A Human Right"

Along with the right to kill a child, the right to shelter, the right to food, the right to an honest wage, the right to extra rights if we're gay or female, the right to own property (do we still have that one?) and the right to life itself. Wait a minute, cross out LIFE. We don't have the right to LIFE.

If we don't have the right to LIFE itself, I guess the other 'human rights' aren't going to cause any self-concerned, secular humanist too much grief. Fewer people, fewer demands on our humanity. More time for myself. Progress.

In the name of 'progress' we are telling people who aren't up to scratch, that we don't mind if they 'off' themselves. Its a 'win-win'. They don't have to 'suffer' through their problems towards a solution or a dignified death in God's reconciliatory time, and we don't have to care about them after they're dead. 'Win-win'. In fact, they have a 'human right'(read OBLIGATION) to kill themselves. They don't have the 'right' to be born, but they have a 'right' to kill themselves. We're consistent. We go for death at both ends. Since that's our goal, it only makes sense that we should make it as easy as possible for those selfishly demanding defectives to 'choose' to employ their right of self-annihilation. Let's give them drugs. We don't want to have to clean up anything, do we.

(Note to self: Do not seek medical care in Europe!)

The truth is, we don't have the right to create or destroy life. LIFE is God's domain. Entirely. Today's society will reap the rewards of ignoring lessons from past
degenerates. We're going down. Sounds apocalyptic, and what could be more apocalyptic than the murder of 45,000,000 + Americans in the last 35 years? (OOOOOOOBama....15,000,000 of those were black!)

Election PS - If you're with Obama, don't like babies or Americans anyway, please go to Europe for the very best of socialist healthcare. They are your kind of people. (Maybe you could go now....?)

Day 35

Intention:

Pray for post-abortive women who cannot forgive themselves; may they understand that there is no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus.

Scripture:

Blessed are those whose lawless deeds are forgiven, and whose sin is covered. Blessed is the one to whom the Lord shall not impute sin.

-- Romans 4:7-8

Reflection:

In the passage above, the Apostle Paul making a point about justification by faith, refers back to David's words in Psalm 32:1-2. In spite of the enormity of David's sin -- adultery with Bathsheba and his murder of her husband -- and the utter absence of any personal merit, David in his brokenness, understood the imputed righteousness of God. David's response was not continued guilt over his sins, but praise for his freedom from guilt, and God's power to live life differently.

Once your relationship with God has been restored, your guilt has served its purpose and should no longer be given place in your life. This is true regardless of the sin, including the sin of abortion. As a post-abortive woman, I too struggled with this issue until I realized that punishing and hating myself after receiving God's forgiveness was an insult to God.

It was as though I were minimizing Christ's work on the cross as insufficient to cover my sin. I was denying Him the opportunity to bring glory to His name for the healing and restoration He wanted to do in my life. I was giving victory to the enemy who having lost the battle for my soul, was bent on destroying my testimony as I accepted the continual guilt he heaped on my mind.

It is my joy to continually sing of God's grace rather than give the devil a foothold in my life. Don't waste God's mercy! Accept His forgiveness and forgive yourself as testimony of His amazing grace.

Prayer:

Our Most Gracious Heavenly Father, thank you for your amazing grace that saved a wretch like me. I come against the enemy of my soul who would have me feel cast down and dejected. Lord, keep your children from falling prey to the accusations of the father of lies. Turn our mourning into dancing and may we bring praise to you as we give testimony of Your healing and restoration in our lives. For by His grace we are saved, amen.

Carmen Pate
Co-host, "Point of View" Talk Show

40 Days For Life

National 'Catholic' Reporter OUTS Itself

National 'Catholic' Reporter has chastised the Bishops for their laudable efforts at catechizing American Catholic voters in what may turn out to be the most disastrous election for the unborn.

Nevermind that the Bishops have not backed a particular candidate and have been speaking on point about the Church's teachings on the value of life. N'C'R accuses the Bishops of being partisan. They are themselves using Democrat 'talking points' to try and DISCREDIT their own Bishops !

Its long past the time that any remaining 'authentic' Catholics on staff should find someone authentically Catholic to write for. Dioceses need to start canceling subscriptions immediately.

Bad enough that the Obamamaniacs are threatening to censor the secular media for actually asking questions of their candidates, but now the 'Catholic' media is going to censor Catholic Bishops on Obama's behalf? Are they nuts?

Too bad the Church doesn't have a copyright on 'Catholic'. I sick of the 'anti' squad wearing Catholic badges. Time to rout them all!!

Apparantly the road to Hell contains a lot of paper boxes.



(Maybe the National 'Catholic' Reporter will be the Obama nation's propaganda machine for the new 'American''Catholic''Church'! I suppose they have a list of 'good' Bishops ready to go....)

Day 34

Intention:

May we come to know that divine life, in relationship, creates human life.

Scripture:

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him nothing was made that was made.

--John 1:1-3

Reflection:

"In the beginning" was God. Always, before all times, there was God. This particular God -- the God of the Bible, the God of St. John's Gospel -- is different from all other gods. This God is alive and full of life. This God is not the picture of deadness and death, aloneness and isolation. This God is the picture of life, relationship, and unity. For within this God, within this one God, there are three divine persons who live, who love, and who work -- together. This is the glorious mystery of the Trinity. The Trinity means divine life. The Trinity means three, living Persons -- Father, Son, and Holy Spirit -- who relate to each other. The Trinity means mutual love and service among three Persons.

The Word was always with God the Father. This Word was, is, and will be the Trinity's second person. The Word is also the Son of God or, as revealed in time, Jesus Christ. God the Father and God the Son live, love, and work for each other. As one, they create "all things" together: the Father creates all things, including all human life, through the Son.

So the Father, through the Son, creates all human lives. The little one swimming in his mother's womb, the infant smiling in his father's arms, the child crying in pain in a hospital bed, the energetic teen running another mile, the old man gasping for his last breath -- all were created, at their beginning, by the Father through the Son. No exceptions. Divine life creates human life.

Prayer:

O God, may we always be quick to call you Father. And when we call you father, let your Spirit remind us that we, and all people, from their beginning to their last day, are your children. We praise you, Father, that you sent your Son to reveal to the world that all people are His brothers and sisters, that all people are your children. Through Jesus Christ we pray. Amen.

Rev. Paul Stallsworth
President, Lifewatch (United Methodist Church)

40 Days For Life

Real Catholic

Former Marxist-feminist-post modernist-ideologue, Fr. Philip Neri Powell explains:

Many of my friends from my days as a Marxist-feminist-postmodernist ideologue have been asking me lately how I can resist supporting an Obama presidency.

My answer--much to their horror--has been simple: "Because I used to be a Marxist-feminist-postmodernist ideologue, and I understand the party-line of the movement:

-- destroy the notion of objective truth with appeals to diversity, difference, and multi-cultism;
-- eliminate the possibility of rational discourse by elevating the affective above the rational;
-- convert all public political discourse into emotive appeals to race, gender, class, and sexuality;
-- define "freedom" as "freedom from constraint" and never as "freedom to do what is right;"
-- attack all secular opposition as "oppressive, self-centered, and fearful;"
-- attack all religious opposition as "superstitious, fundamentalist, and ignorant;"
-- use "white liberal guilt" to attack economic growth and prosperity;
-- feed over-educated narcissism with the prospect of ruling, finally, and ruling more than the meager resources of an English/women's studies department at a state university."

Why do I oppose Obama? Simple. His political positions are evil. This man believes that it is morally acceptable to kill children. He believes that it is morally permissible to attempt to kill a child in the womb, fail, and then leave the child to die once delivered alive. This man believes that all Americans should participate in his evil by being forced to pay for the genocide of abortion with federal tax dollars. That the overwhelming majority of children murdered in the womb are black seems not to concern him at all. He has promised to eliminate all democratically enacted laws against the murder of children by signed the so-called "Freedom of Choice Act" if elected. This will enshrine the Supreme Court's 1973 decision, Roe v. Wade into federal law.

That the MSM has chosen again and again to ignore, obfuscate, distort, and lie about his connections to domestic terrorists, international Marxists, local communists in Chicago, and his involvement with other radical left-wing groups like the vote-stealing ACORN cadre only adds to my deep suspicison and unease. Though these are more strictly political concerns and do not rise to the level of his promotion of child murder, they are nonetheless deeply distrubing to this American citizen.

Now, before you pop off in the comboxes about Catholic priests not being political, let me say this: at no time during my solemn profession as a Dominican friar in 2003 or during my priestly ordination in 2005 did I EVER renounce my U.S. citizenship; my right to free speech; my right to the free practice of my religion; or the free expression of my opinions in a public milieu. Nor should you take my opposition to the evil of the possibility of an Obama presidency as an endorsement of a John McCain presidency.

If you want me to support Obama you will need to demonstrate to me one thing and one thing only: how does the actual murder of 1.7 million children every year in the U.S. (and the inevitable increase in that number if B.O. is elected) outweigh any possible good that B.O. might do as a Marxist-feminist chief executive officer of the U.S.

All I can say at this point is: thank you God for constitutional term limits.

(h/t curt jester)

Thank-you Fr. Powell, and the 50 Bishops who have also spoken out. Where is everybody else?

God Help Cayman

And save us from our British Overlords. Please don't let them force their society down our throats (so to speak).

Fresh from the country that now allows parents to 'create' children for the expressed purpose of 'harvesting' cells , is comtemplating mandatory organ donation, forcing Catholic orphanages to close down to avoid giving children to homosexual couples, fines and chastizes an Anglican Bishop for preaching God's word with compassion, has legalized experimentation and development of human hybrids ....

UK government officials announced yesterday that by the year 2010, 5-year-old children will enter the first stages of a comprehensive, explicit sex education program, mandatory for schools nationwide, including faith schools.

The compulsory Sex and Relationships Education (SRE) program will begin in kindergarten where Schools Minister Jim Knight says children will learn about "their differences, their friendships, and how to manage their feelings." Knight insisted that the earliest curriculum will not be "sexually explicit," saying "we are not talking about five-year olds having sex."

The earliest stage of the program, for ages five through seven, will focus on relationships but also include lessons on body part names and animal reproduction. In the 8 to 11 age bracket, more biological aspects of sex are to be introduced, and after age 12, children will learn about contraception and sexually transmitted diseases.

The program was designed to combat the teen pregnancy rate in the UK, currently the highest in Europe. A 2005 survey estimated that one in five British girls have sex by the age of 14. Sex education lobbyists, like the Sex Education Forum, blamed the problem on inadequate sex education, and have called upon the government to institute mandatory "sex and relationships education" for years...

“When parents fail to educate their kids properly, the government has every right to step in,” said Gayla Coil, a Londoner and mother to two kids ages 13 and 10. “Me, I welcome the help.”

But Norman Wells, director of Family and Youth Concern, insisted that undermining the authority and primary teaching role of parents can only exacerbate the problem.

"You're removing discretion from schools. You're undermining parents," he said, according to ABC Australia.

"And effectively what you're doing is taking parents out of the driving seat and putting the state in their place."

Proponents of the new program argue that teaching the biology of sex at a young age will prevent children from falling victim to the “playground rumor or the mixed messages from the media about sex," in the words of Jim Knight.

"Talking about body parts is often easier for children when they are younger as they are less self-conscious and less sensitive about their bodies," said Julie Bentley, chief executive of the FPA, formerly the Family Planning Association, in a BBC article.

Wells answers that such efforts to tear aside the veil are "all part of an exercise to break down children's inhibitions and natural sense of modesty.

"Most parents would be very concerned if they knew that their children were being given literature at school produced by an organisation that doesn't put sexual intimacy in a clear moral context and that fails to respect the role of parents."

Although statistics for teenage pregnancies and abortions have risen in proportion to the increase in 'sex ed' the gov't is determined to continue along the road to societal ruin.

Godless people with no morals wreaking havoc in Great Britain. Look for the backlash in the next election. Have they been in power long enough to guarantee themselves a docile , supportive population? We'll see.

Day 33

Intention:

May we absorb the truth that God is paying attention to us, and to each human life, personally and individually.

Scripture:

When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained, what is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that You visit him? For You have made him a little lower than the angels, and You have crowned him with glory and honor.

-- Psalm 8:3-9

Reflection:

How often we ignore the phrase, "stop and smell the roses" and instead submit to the all too "urgent" task at hand. Is this tendency what keeps us, at least in part, from acknowledging that God's care for His sacred creation is paramount in His own mind?

The Psalmist speaks of God's handiwork: the heavens, the work of his "fingers," and then points to God's masterpiece - human life. He declares to us that God is mindful of us. God keeps His masterpiece in His thoughts.

God, the creator of the awe-inspiring heavens, is not distracted by the tasks before Him. He is not pulled away, as we might be, by thoughts of something "more important." God is paying attention to and attending to His crowning glory, His masterpiece of creation, which cannot be duplicated or replaced, which surpasses the beauty of all other created things - the human being.

There is no way to adequately describe how God feels about us as human beings. There are no words to fully portray His love, compassion or desire to be in communion with us. Perhaps, the closest we can come, is to contemplate the thoughts of a mother as she gazes for the first time at her newborn child. God cares for Life. We, as His followers, should take time to consider the life He has created and called upon us to love and protect.

Prayer:

Lord, you are the creator of all things. Guide my thoughts to consider your creation in all of its majesty, beauty and holiness. Guide my heart especially to your creation of precious human life. Help me to comprehend how essential life is in your own heart. Teach me to appreciate, love and protect all human life through your son, Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.

Fr. Terry Gensemer
National Director, Charismatic Episcopal Church for Life

40 Days For Life