December Newsletter, 1999

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December Newsletter, 1999

Samuel Has Joined Us

By Katherine Sabelko

In the article by Dr. Frank Joseph, Miracle Photo, CoR November issue, we showed you the tiny hand of a child reaching across the world to each of us:

"One of the most amazing photographs, that you'll ever see, is that of Samuel, a 21 week old baby boy, whose tiny hand reaches out of the womb to grab the finger of the surgeon, who was operating on him -- as if to say, "Thanks, Doc! You did a wonderful job."

With all that open space, instead of just reaching for air, the baby's hand, actually grabbed the doctor's finger. In my book, this 21-week-old precious creation of God is more sentient than those, who advocate the proposition that a woman should have the right to kill her unborn baby, if she so chooses. It was almost, as if Samuel was shaking the finger of the hand of the man who was trying to save his live -- to thank him for his compassion.

Amazing photo of a 21-week old child, Samuel

The birth of each child truly is a miracle. God was just generous to us to show us this time a miracle in progress.

Earlier this month Samuel was born. His parents have written the following:

"Dear friends and family,
Samuel arrived on Thursday, Dec. 2 at 6:25 pm at Northside Hospital weighing 5 lbs. 11 oz and 20 1/2" long. He was born at 36 weeks but came into the world screaming his head off! He did not have to spend any time in a neonatal unit, and came home with us on Monday Dec. 6. After viewing an an ultrasound of his brain, Samuel's neurosurgeon was very optimistic as he does not have any hydrocephalus and the brain malformation has resolved. He is moving his legs very well from the hips and some from the knees. He was frank breech (folded in half)in the womb and the orthopedist feels that he has a good chance for walking. He will begin physical therapy next week in order to work out some of the stiffness in his legs that was a result of his being folded in half in the womb. He is also nursing very well.

Thank you all for your prayers and support. We are happier than we ever dreamed possible.

All our love,
Julie, Alex and Samuel Armas"

ABORTING SELF RESPECT

By Alan Keyes

President Clinton signed a waiver lifting a restriction on U.S. funds for international family planning organizations that promote abortion. The waiver "allows us to pay our U.N. dues finally, and fund international family planning at 97 percent until the new fiscal year," one administration official said. The waiver is one of a series of moves negotiated with congressional Republicans that will make the United States a member in good standing of the clique of post-civilized First World nations taking responsibility to ensure that the rest of the world is as corrupt as Clinton's America.

Is it a good thing that we are paying our U.N. dues? I don't think so. In fact, I was one of the people in the Reagan administration who crafted the policy that withheld our contributions from the United Nations. The U. N. is an organization that reaches into the pockets of the working people of this country in order to put our money into the pockets of the rich people in developing countries. The policy we developed in the Reagan years in response to this corrupt waste was to withhold those dollars until the United Nations reformed its corrupt practices and ceased its opposition to the free enterprise approaches that could actually help poor countries around the world achieve economic well being.

I think we should continue to withhold our dues today because the organization has not responded and has not reformed. Until it does, we ought to stand firm in our position that we won't take the hard-earned money of the American people and toss it away to international bureaucrats who are generally interested in doing nothing but maintaining their own comfort and security.

But while the material waste and corruption that go on at the U.N. are reason enough to withhold our support, the Clinton green light for American funding of international abortionist activism epitomizes the real evil that the U.N. too often represents. I have called Bill Clinton a moral thermonuclear bomb because of the profound damage he has done to the moral character of the American people, and particularly to our children, by the example he sets of moral degradation and self-disrespect. The return of America to the U.N. fold means that the Clinton bomb is going global.

Much of the world still languishes in conditions of extreme material deprivation and suffering. But the global, if still economic liberty - that is culminating in our lifetime -- will dramatically improve the material condition especially of the poor. In fact, there has never been a time when the substantial alleviation of physical human suffering and want in the world was more immediately attainable. The WTO demonstrators in the streets of Seattle are right to suspect the anti-democratic and tyrannical ambitions of the global managers in the international bureaucracy. The World Trade Organization is the bid for power of global socialism, not economic liberty. But the demonstrators are wrong in failing to see that a truly free global marketplace will benefit precisely the billions of people who will raise themselves to lives of material dignity as soon as they are given the chance to do so. The material prosperity possible in the next century will arise not from "managed" global trade, but from the decline of government interference with the efforts of people all over the world to build better lives through economic initiatives over which they retain control and responsibility.

But the opportunity offered by real economic liberty cannot be recognized or seized by people who have lost the respect for themselves that is the true foundation of economic striving. Sustainable material prosperity will come only to people who seek it for the right reasons, and who understand that justice and moral dignity are the ultimate goods of this life. At this critical moment of economic opportunity for the people of the world, the resumption of full American funding of the global abortion project means that the lesson of self-disrespect is about to ramp up around the world.

Under slavery in America, black Americans got no respect unless they gave it to themselves - and so they did. They retained self-respect because they looked first to be respected in the eyes of God. They knew that as long as they kept that faith, the lash that might snuff out their lives could never take away their dignity. Recent research has shown that, contrary to the myth that slavery destroyed the black family and black moral identity, the true story of the period is one of heroic striving to maintain precisely these things. The result was a people that understood that dignity came from God and from within, and not from material circumstances. So when freedom came, the restoration of families and the development of education and economic initiative occurred faster than anyone could have predicted who did not understand the underlying moral integrity of the black community.

The moral catastrophe in much of the American black community today is not the result of material deprivation, but of the abandonment of the vision of moral integrity that sustained first the slaves and then the freedmen. The gospel of licentiousness, of selfishness, of blaming all the difficulties of life on external factors - these are the things that are killing people today in ways that the slave whips and the overseers couldn't. Because if you really want to kill people, you've got to kill their spirit. And as the slaves proved, and as hundreds of millions of heroic and anonymous people around the world prove every day, if the moral heart is still beating, material deprivations will not triumph over the dignity of the human person.

A popular pro-life bumper-sticker says that only half of the patients entering abortion clinics come out alive. But actually, none do. Because abortion is the most insidious, the most stealthy, the most cunning kind of assault on the moral heart. Every time a young woman walks in to an abortion clinic and asks to take the life of her baby, she is saying that for the sake of her body she will kill her living soul.

The mother's belief that she has a worth beyond the whim of human choice must ultimately depend on her faith -vague or explicit - that her worth comes from God. But if she accepts the view that the baby in her womb is a life deserving of respect only if she decides to grant that respect, and that otherwise it can just be disposed of, she is setting herself up to accept the same conclusion about herself. For the sake of the material convenience of getting rid of the child, she is accepting the doctrine that her own worth is not beyond human choice, but is determined by the whim of who ever happens to have physical power over her.

The last time this logic prevailed in America was when slaves were told they had no worth except what they fetched on the auction block. As long as slaves were useful instruments, they were worth a few hundred dollars. And when they were not useful instruments they could simply be disposed of, because their worth came from the decision of the master race.

The abortion doctrine invites us to set ourselves up to judge the life of our unborn children, and thus to put ourselves in God's place. But what we're really doing is resurrecting that old principle that says that the worth of all human life doesn't come from God, but from human will.

And a person who accepts this principle has nothing left to say when his own efforts to assert his own dignity, or the dignity of those he loves, are roughly rejected by anyone or anything that has acquired sufficient power to assert its will against him. Accepting the abortion doctrine is the boot camp of human self-disrespect, and it is a thorough training indeed.

And this is the aid and comfort that the U.N. will now bring with renewed energy to a world of suffering people, many of whom face conditions not so different from those that American blacks historically faced. It is a world of material deprivation and attempted denial of equal human dignity. It is a world that seeks in many ways to convince the poor and downtrodden that their hope for better things is presumptuous, and the poor deserve only what they have, if that, and only as long as those in power deign to grant it. And it is a world in which, relentlessly and nobly, the spirit of God-given human dignity in the souls of those people is at work to lead them to keep asserting their hope of better things and their right to pursue them in fraternal equality with the rest of God's children.

To humble souls filled with this noble striving the globalist "master race" will now offer the poison pill of the abortion doctrine. These U.N. population planners are fanning out, with American dollars and the blessing of the high priest of self-disrespect, to convince the people of the world that human life is contemptible, and its strivings for justice and dignity the uppity illusion of human trash.

If the people of America permit their government to teach this lesson to the world, we will owe much more than a billion dollars in back dues, and to a much higher authority.

A Pro-Life Alert

Press release from Call

Dear Friends of CALL:

There has been much debate in the pro-life community over the Genocide Awareness Project (GAP), created by Gregg Cunningham. The project consists of tri-fold pictures depicting three genocides: that of the Jewish people, Black lynchings and the genocide of the preborn. A fantastic idea, it's raising awareness quite well on the college campuses it has visited.

Mr. Cunningham called Collegiate Activists Liberating Life (CALL) in 1997-1998, asking us to promote among our network students a new video, "The Harder Truth," which came from the same source as the GAP project. Mr. Cunningham explained to Laura Carroll, then Network Director of CALL, that he had paid a European abortion clinic administrator to allow a photographer into the operating room to film and photograph an abortion on the mother of a child only 8-10 weeks old --- on the condition that the photographer would not interfere with the killing.

Mr. Cunningham supports his decision to bribe the administrator of a killing center in order to film the murder. In addition, he maintains that the photographer "couldn't" have stopped the killing;

1) because he had agreed to stand by and watch,
2) because he would have then been unable to continue filming the poor little baby being dismembered.

CALL would like to reiterate once again in this writing that it is unquestionably immoral and sinful to have taken those pictures in such a fashion. We would ask that no college pro-life organization let GAP's presence at their campus.

It is very important to send the firm message to Mr. Cunningham that it is NEVER licit to stand by and watch a baby being killed, let alone to PAY someone to watch them die.

Please pray that Mr. Cunningham, the Center for Bioethical Reform and GAP come to an understanding of the moral aspects of this problem, and repent of their actions. Please also take any interaction with Mr. Cunningham and/or GAP as a chance to lovingly, firmly and gently remind them that each and every abortion involves the death of a unique person made in God's image -- and that we cannot condone even one such murder.

In support of this position is Fr. Hardon, a widely respected and loved Catholic priest who is the former spiritual director of Mother Teresa. Laura Carroll (former CALL director), asked Fr. Mike Pennoc, who is in contact with Father Hardon, to put forth the question of using pictures of an aborted child which were obtained in the way described.

Father responded, "My God, there is so much crime in the world that even well intentioned people can't recognize it. No, the film cannot be shown." And, my opinion now is that the person who took the film should go to confession as to standing by and watching another human being die without attempting to stop it. tions in our Network invite GAP to their campus or condone

It is very important to send the firm message to Mr. Cunningham that it is NEVER licit to stand by and watch a baby being killed, let alone to PAY someone to watch them die.

GLOBAL

French Schools to Prescribe Morning-After Pills

Education officials in France have decided to allow school nurses to prescribe the morning-after pill which doesn't allow a new embryo to implant in the uterine lining. Each year in France, more than 10,000 girls under 18 years become pregnant and 6,000 have abortions. The morning-after pill has been available on the market in France since last June. [Associated Press]

White Ribbon Campaign

Dr, W. A. Krotoski (M.D., Ph.D.), President of the Louisiana Right to Life Federation, announced that the Federation's 22 member chapters are promoting a WHITE RIBBON CAMPAIGN FOR LIFE during all of January, to usher in the millennium. Krotoski said, "In analogy with yellow ribbons in support of U.S. hostages, or pink ribbons against breast cancer, the wearing of white ribbons is in support of the sanctity of human life, and in memory of the millions of innocent lives destroyed by abortion since the tragic legalization of abortion on demand by the Supreme Court's Roe vs. Wade decision on January 22, 1973."

Louisiana Right to Life is promoting this state and nationwide project by asking individuals and businesses to wear white lapel ribbons, to tie white ribbons on lampposts, trees, bushes, car antennas and personal mailboxes, etc., and to place them on front doors of their homes and businesses. The color white symbolizes both the innocence of all aborted babies and the huge spiritual need to end abortion in the United States.

Dr. Krotoski also stated that "Our hope for the new millennium is for a world where innocent life is truly respected; where our world's most precious resources, our children, are not only safe at home, in church, in school and on the street, but, first of all, in their mother's wombs. We look forward to a world where women will never again be pressured to choose abortion as an alternative to childbirth." For more information on how you can get involved, please call (504) 834-5433 or write to P.O. Box 8807, Metairie, LA 70011.

Florida License Plate Battle

A new license plate design which received final approval Tuesday in Florida shows a crayon drawing of two children with the message "choose life." The new tag is expected to go on sale in 2-3 months. Though abortion advocates filed a federal lawsuit to stop the plate from being distributed, the case was thrown out by the court.

Planned Parenthood Loses

Cole County Circuit Court Judge Byron Kinder has taken all future state funding away from two of Missouri's Planned Parenthood affiliates and ordered them to return the state money ($105,750 plus interest) they already used this year for family planning. Judge Kinder ruled on Tuesday that the Planned Parenthood family planning affiliates in St. Louis and Kansas City violated Missouri state law by using the same facilities for both family planning services and abortions. [LifeWire]

Venezuelan President to Exclude Abortion from Constitution

Hugo Chavez, former President of Venezuela, proposed in December, that controversial articles of the new Constitution, such as that on abortion, be excluded because their debate is retarding the process of approval. During a press conference, the chief executive said, "that it shouldn't be included in the Constitutional text, because otherwise we'll spend a year debating this."

"I, Hugo Chavez, am against abortion, but I cannot impose this on a country. We shall discuss the topic and give expression to all opinions."

Looking straight at Archbishop Ignacio Velasco of Caracas, Chavez said "I am even more radical, I say that life must be protected even before conception. I propose to those sectors that are increasingly radical in their positions, that we set aside these topics such as. . .the right to life for later," the Venezuelan President said.

Speaking in a tone of voice for which he is famous, Chavez continued:

"Many who rend their garments over abortion, have hidden not just abortions but also killings. . .they see hunger before them, poor children, and they are incapable of moving a straw, because the lives of children who are wandering on the streets, and of those without schools, must also be defended."

He read the part in Canon Law relating to abortion, which punishes with excommunication whoever practices it. He supported it, "but I don't think you can excommunicate the whole world." He then read the preamble, which invokes God's protection. I call the people to vote at last for this Constitution.

Archbishop Ignacio Velasco of Caracas

For his part, Archbishop Ignacio Chavez of Caracas, said that it is false to say that the Church is promoting the campaign in favor of a "no" vote against the new Constitution, should it not defend the existence of the human being. "We are defending the human, ethical principle, which is something very different. We want this principle included; if it does not appear in the new Constitution, we shall continue arguing," the Archbishop said.

The Catholic Church mobilized the faithful in a mass protest to reject the approval of an article on "the right to life" that would be included in the new Constitution currently being written by a National Assembly.

Some members of the Assembly have threatened to resign,because they consider the system to be "a farce." However,the Constitutional Assembly is controlled by 92% of those favoring the radical reforms of President Hugo Chavez. So,the dissenting voices will carry little weight.

NRCC Plays Fast and Loose With Pro-Life Donors

By Colleen Parro

RNC/Life FaxNotes

On November 11, I received a fund-raising call from the National Republican Congressional Committee. A woman's voice asked me to hold the line for a brief message from Majority Whip Tom DeLay. Then followed a recorded message from Rep. DeLay in which he reminded me of how hard Republicans have worked to pass the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act and protect the sanctity of life. His pitch for money, apparently targeted to a pro-life donor list, hinges on his assurance that the Republicans in Congress intend to stop partial birth abortion.

Many naive pro-lifers, unfamiliar with how the NRCC works, might fall for this gimmick and send them a check. The checks will go into the coffers of the Congressional Committee where it will be used to help fund congressional campaigns without regard to whether the candidates are pro-life. In fact, the NRCC spends millions of dollars every congressional cycle on pro-abortion incumbent Republicans. Often these incumbents will have a pro-life challenger in the primary and the NRCC will pour so much money into their campaigns that the challenger can't possibly compete, thereby assuring the reelection of a pro-abortion activist to the House of Representatives.

On July 23, 1998, the Partial Birth Abortion Ban Act was voted on in the House. It passed by a vote of 296-132. Eight Republicans voted against it. They are: Reps. Sherwood Boehlert (NY-23), Tom Campbell (CA-15), Benjamin Gilman (NY-20), Jim Greenwood (PA-8), Steve Horn (CA-38), Nancy Johnson (CT-6), Jim Kolbe (AZ-5), and Connie Morella (MD-8).

According to Federal Election Commission Reports (FEC), the NRC made the following contributions to these pro-abortion incumbents: in 1996 Rep. Boehlert received at least $25,395 and in 1998, $33,000; Rep. Campbell received $59,614 in 1996 and $45,000 in 1998; Rep. Gilman was given $22,592 in 1998; Rep. Greenwood appears to have received very little given the fact that he had no opposition to speak of; Rep. Horn got $18, 900 in 1996 and another $13,000 in 1998; Rep. Johnson's coffers were increased by $15,000 in 1996 and $13,000 in 1998; Rep. Kolbe was the recipient of $10,860 in 1996 and $38,000 in 1998; and Rep. Morella was given $2,500 in 1996 and $9,998 in 1998. These figures represent contributions from the National Republican Congressional Committee alone and do not include donations from the Republican National Committee or other Party or Leadership PACs.

Follow The Money

By Colleen Parro

Majority Leader Trent Lott established a non-federal state political committee in Virginia, allowing him to accept contributions in unlimited amounts. The move has allowed him to do an end-run around federal campaign finance laws that limit individuals to $2,000 per candidate per election, according to an AP story on 8/13/99. Sen. Lott reported a total of $197, 393 at summer's end. He spent $188,130 including $30,000 to the pro-abortion group started by N.J. Gov. Christine Todd Whitman, the Foundation for Responsible Government.

In light of this evidence, it appears to be the height of hypocrisy for the NRCC to use the hideous practice of partial birth abortion to raise money, some of which will end up in the pockets of the very Republicans who fight so hard against banning it. Lesson learned: When you get a call from the NRCC, hold on to your wallets!

NOTE: For those who wish to contribute toward the election or reelection of Republican candidates who are pro-life without discrimination against any babies based on the circumstances of their conception, handicapping condition or genetic defect you can mail your donations to: RNC/Life Political Action Committee - P.O. Box 618 Alton, Illinois 62002. Contributions are not tax-deductible.

Visual Aids

Along with many of our other projects this year, Children of the Rosary has decided to purchase 15 sets of baby models to be available at the abortuaries while we are praying the rosary. These precious models of the pre-born child instantly show any woman walking into an abortuary what her baby really looks like.

The cost of $1,700 spent on this project will be well worth it if even one mother changes her mind after seeing what her baby looks like.

Another Project Your Donations Go Toward

This is an update from Virtue Media, a project Children of the Rosary has committed your specified donations to each month. This message shows how many ways we can reach out to needy mothers. Please help us continue to support this work!

"Friends of VirtueMedia:
During this time of year, we are reminded how truly blessed we are to be living in such a nice area with wonderful friends, family, and faith. It's also a time of year that we are called to share our resources and blessing with others in need.
All of you know of the non-profit organization that my family began this past year, to help save babies and reach out with love to young mothers in need. Over the past six months, we've witnessed many miracles as a result of our involvement with VirtueMedia.
Thanks to your generosity, over 1,500 television commercials aired in Phoenix in August and September, reaching 81.2% of the households an average of 12.6 times. During the Holidays (November 27-January 29), about 400 television commercials will be seen on local TV channels 3, 5, 10, 12, 15, 45, and 61 and hundreds on cable. About 100 radio commercials will also air on KZZP, the number one radio station for young women 18-34 years old. (Unfortunately, most of our free commercials ended, due to political advertising rules during this election year).
During these ad campaigns, hope and healing is offered to millions of families suffering the after-effects of abortion. Hundreds of women needing pregnancy counseling call to discuss life affirming abortion alternatives, with an estimated 250 babies' lives possibly saved to date. Other noteworthy milestones include:
1. Television commercials began airing in Tucson; Yuma; Flagstaff, Salt Lake City; Anchorage, and Denver; and radio commercials began airing in Phoenix, Los Angeles, San Francisco, Kansas City, Milwaukee, Minneapolis, Chicago, Philadelphia, and Baltimore.
2. The Life Issues Office of the Diocese of Phoenix sent out a press release to parishes, and The Catholic Sun will feature a small media note about this ministry.

Each year through your donations and generosity, Children of the Rosary has made tremendous strides in keeping the battle to end abortion going, not only in Phoenix, but in cities around the country. Every dollar you send us goes directly to fight in defense of our smallest brothers and sisters. No one in Children of the Rosary receives any benefits nor is paid. This organization uses every cent to directly fight abortion.

Letters To the Editor

On the subject of babies born deformed I must say this: I am the mother of three daughters. When the oldest was born 24 years ago it was a terrible shock to find out that she had a serious birth defect (spina bifida).

If we had known about it during my pregnancy, abortion would have never been a choice; neither was institutionalizing her. When I looked at her I saw a helpless baby who did not ask to be born that way; I saw my own flesh and blood and I saw a human being, a child of God. The bible says that God never gives us more than we can handle and I figured if God thought I could handle it then I could. I must admit it has been hard at times but well worth it. She leads a quality life just a little more limited then most and I am at peace with myself and God because I know that I did what was right is His eyes.

We are all disabled; just some disabilities are more obvious then others.

Maggie
Catholicity Online

I think that no matter how hard you fight against abortion, your group, nor any other, will succeed until the Catholic Church stands up loudly against it.

Perhaps money is the core of all evil because I think if the Catholic Church had the courage to stand against the politicians and government and not worry about their tax-exempt status, we could have turned Roe vs. Wade around!

You're doing great work and I know each and every child you save is worth it. Let us just pray the Church will join us in the battle!

Eileen Stillman
Portland, OR

Thank you for publishing the article about the baby reaching out for the doctor's hand! The parents and the doctor, though showing great courage, did the only decent thing they could - give this child a chance!

Are we in a position to say that a baby born deformed - in ANY way whatsoever - would be better off not being born? Are they less lovable, less able to love, than "normal" babies? Did Jesus die only for those born whole and intact? One more question: if this were in the very least bit true, why did He keep St. Margaret of Costello's body incorrupt? She is far from anyone's idea of "pretty", and she is most definitely deformed!
To Jesus through Mary

Kimberly Tacket
Oklahoma City, OK

A year ago we had a long-awaited little girl...but she was born with severe congenital anomalies and died in our arms 2 1/2 hours after her birth. Pre-natal testing (which I always refuse) would have revealed her doomed-to-die status. Still, abortion is not the answer. Fr. came and baptized and chrismated little Claire Marie. As the Sacraments were being administered the child became progressively more peaceful. About 20 minutes after Father had left she died in our arms. This child lived all her life knowing that she was very much wanted. Very much loved. She died in purity and in love. What more could we want for any of our children?

I take great consolation in knowing that we have our Saints in heaven. At Christmas Father spoke of our all having to face Jesus one day. For a very brief moment I saw myself on my death bed. Around me were the four children of ours who are in heaven. They were praying for me, giving me their strength as my soul prepared to leave this world. I could feel their presence. (I've had two miscarriages, one child died at five months into the pregnancy and Claire who died after birth). Their love surrounded me quite tangibly in that brief moment of time. It never would have been so if we had "terminated" the life of the "defective one." God give us strength to handle what He allows us to suffer.

Pray for us now as we deal with an adopted son who has totally rejected us (feels like a divorce or another death) and is in the custody of CPS in foster care. We are not even allowed to visit because he doesn't want anything to do with us. The newest insult it that Family Support services (the DA's office) is demanding we pay child support $300 plus per month that we don't have.

Alice Gilbertson
Houston, TX

Steve Forbes

Republican presidential hopeful Steve Forbes made the argument that abortion and assisted suicide are wrong because only God decides who lives or dies.

"Life is not a state-endowed right. Life comes from God and God only," he said to loud applause.

Forbes criticized rivals Bush and McCain for refusing to promise to require judicial appointments or a running mate to be against abortion.

Forbes' campaign fliers also were handed out that had a photo of a baby and read, "If you don't respect this child, you won't wear this robe," also showing a photo of a judge. "It's that simple. And it's a pledge even his pro-life opponents won't make," it said.

Forbes said the special education school, Hidden Treasure, illustrates why abortion is wrong. "Many of those kids would not be here if there wasn't a belief in the sanctity of life," he said.