40 Days for Life - Day 19 Devotional

We are nearly at the half-way point of Lent and 40 Days for Life! If you haven't been keeping up with the devotional's, here is today's in a PDF format:

http://40daysforlife.com/docs/spring2009day19print.pdf

Obama's Latest Attack on Human Life

As I don't have time to write my own dissertation on President Obama's latest, permitting tax-payer-funded embryonic stem cell research, I will recommend some reading on this subject. In short, adult stem cell therapies have been 100% more effective than embryonic stem cells, with treatments for numerous diseases. This is a very hopeful thing, as my younger brother has Type 1 diabetes - which is presently incurable - and adult stem cells are a good hope for him and other people with diabetes.

Life Site News: http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/mar/09030910.html

CNN: http://www.cnn.com/2009/POLITICS/03/08/obama.stem.cells/index.html

Information about stem cell research: http://www.stemcellresearch.org

My new favorite pro-life website, the Life Issues Institute: http://www.lifeissues.org

Pelosi and the Pope

**This post refers to an event that happened a couple weeks ago, so my apologies for the late notice!**

Nancy Pelosi, Speaker of the House, has always been a controversial Catholic subject. She professes to be a Catholic believer, but is an ardent support of abortion and contraception. Last month, she stated that promoting contraception (i.e. preventing children from being conceived and/or born) would stimulate the economy...a completely bogus idea!

Now, just a couple weeks ago, Mrs. Pelosi had a private audience with Pope Benedict XVI. I first read about this meeting on the Fox News Channel website (copy and paste into your browser):

http://www.foxnews.com/politics/2009/02/18/pelosi-pope-meeting-minds/

I also read an article in "The Hill" newspaper, which I picked up for free in D.C. on my way to the MARC train. (For reference, it was in Volume 16, No. 19 on Wednesday, Feb. 18, 2009). The article was entitled, "Concerns, Hopes as Pelosi Meets Pope at the Vatican" by Mike Soraghan. Depending on how Mrs. Pelosi portrayed it afterwards, this meeting could confirm the idea in American Catholics that it's okay to be "pro-choice" and Catholic. As quoted in the article: "Donohue, president of the Catholic League and a strong public voice for adherence to Catholic doctrine, worries that Pelosi will exploit the visit to downplay Church teachings that abortion is 'intrinsically evil.' "

However, Jon O'Brien, president of "Catholics for a Choice," --a choice for what?? --was also quoted in the article, and it is quite disturbing to see the error of his ways. Mr. Soraghan writes:

"...he [Mr. O'Brien] sees Wednesday's visit between the Speaker and Pope Benedict as a chance to highlight that you can be pro-choice and Catholic..."

Oh, that is SUCH a misleading and erroneous statement! To be pro-choice, which really means pro-abortion, goes completely against the basis of our Christian faith! I do not understand why he would stand with the opinion of Nancy Pelosi, a lay person, over the teaching of the Catholic Church, which Pope Benedict faithfully proclaims. I also don't understand how Mrs. Pelosi lives with herslf, knowing she is going directly against Church doctrine AND the scientific fact that life begins at conception. She must do quite a lot of justifying in her head, and I pity her and the people she misleads.

No Common Ground with Obama

Here is a short interview with Rep. Chris Smith. The topic is "common ground" on the issue of abortion. Read and see for yourself...but basically if President Obama wants to start having common ground with pro-lifers, then he needs to stop using our tax money to paying for abortions. If he doesn't, there is no way he is "reducing abortions" as he claims.

http://www.cbn.com/cbnnews/551013.aspx

40 Days for Life - Spring 2009

Today is the fifth day of the fourth nationally-coordinated 40 Days for Life campaign. The first one was in the fall of 2007, followed by last spring and this fall. It focuses on prayer and fasting, constant vigil outside abortion facilities, and grassroots outreach in the communities.

If you are blessed enough to have a constant prayer vigil in your community, join in at least a few times! If not, the least we can do is read the daily e-mail from the 40 Days for Life coordinator (this year Shawn Carney) and pray. This is a great thing to add to your Lenten devotions.

Here is today's devotional:

http://40daysforlife.com/docs/spring2009day05print.pdf