The Radical Notion That All Life Should Be Valued & That Truth Will Prevail

Friday, January 28, 2011

Horror of Abortion ~What We Can't Not Know

Here is an article from Chuck Colson, thought I'd share.

"The statistic has everyone reeling: According to a recent survey, forty-one percent of pregnancies in New York City end in abortion. Forty-one percent. Nearly half.

As you might expect, pro-lifers are deeply concerned, and already trying to find ways to bring that number down. Archbishop Timothy Dolan to name one, called a news conference to say that the church would be stepping up its efforts to encourage and help women in crisis pregnancies.

But pro-choicers weren't too excited about this news either. The New York Times--hardly a pro-life bastion-reported, "No one is exactly celebrating. . . . Even abortion rights advocates expressed some concern about the numbers, trying to change the conversation to a broader one on reproductive health."

The Times noted that the easy access to abortion makes the city a "magnet . . . for doctors who wish to practice without restrictions [and] for women who want to live in an atmosphere of sexual self-determination."

Those are, of course, noble and laudable desires according to the pro-choice folks. And yet the tone of the article is distinctly uneasy. It quotes late-term abortionist Dr. Robert Berg, who says his patients tend to be "hostile" to him, treating him like "a punching bag" even though he's providing a service that they've asked for.

If abortion is a morally neutral medical procedure, as the pro-choicers would have us believe, why all the angst coming from people who are getting abortions? I think it all comes back to what J. Budziszewski calls "what we can't not know."

Why would a woman be angry at an abortionist? Because he is about to kill her child, and any woman knows that is wrong. She can't help but know it. None of us can. It's one of the deepest truths written on our hearts-that human life is sacred, and destroying an innocent life in the womb is one of the most violent acts imaginable.

The recent arrest of Dr. Kermit Gosnell in Philadelphia dragged that ugly truth into the spotlight. Gosnell ran a "house of horrors" where babies were slaughtered with scissors, where some of their mothers died as well, and where some of the babies' body parts were kept in jars.

The nation was horrified-but why? Late-term abortions often involve killing babies with scissors-the only difference is that it's usually done as the baby is still emerging from the birth canal, not after it's all the way out. Some difference.

But when Gosnell made the news, we were all reminded of what we can't not know-that it's wrong to kill babies in this way, or in any other way.

Eric Metaxas, author of Bonhoeffer, has written that the grand jury report on Gosnell may become the Uncle Tom's Cabin of the pro-life movement. I hope he's right. It's tragic that it takes something as drastic as a baby's foot in a jar, or a 41 percent abortion rate in a major city, to remind everybody that abortion is an unjustifiable travesty.

But when we see even pro-choicers getting upset about these things, then we know that the truth is written on their hearts just as it is on ours.

May the day quickly come when they can no longer ignore it." ~Chuck Colson

Saturday, January 22, 2011

Driving & Snow

Straying from the topic I've been writing about for the last seven posts, I'm going to say that I love snow. Usually. It figures this winter in my area we get more snow than we have in the past few. Last year it was pretty decent, a few good, heavy snow falls which I adored.

But this year, I work about 35-40 minutes from home, and it seems like it only snows before I hafta go to work, so I'm stuck driving on terrible roads because it snowed all day and the plow trucks can't keep up.

I don't mind too bad really. I'm not exactly scared to drive in the snow. But you see, I have a Camaro and they slide pretty easily. I'm not afraid to slide, that's rather fun (more on that in a bit) but I am worried I'll wreck my car. Totally crush me because she's my baby.

So far so good, and we only slid off the road once, last month due to the roads being covered in ice and I foolishly didn't realize how slick they were. I'm not gonna lie, it was exhilarating. I was on the interstate (and surprisingly nobody else was around) and my car slid into the other lane, back into my lane, over into the other lane, spun around backwards and through the ditch. Cool part? I didn't freak out. As most of you probably know, hitting your brakes when sliding doesn't help. Neither does jerking on the steering wheel. I tried to keep some control of the wheel, but I knew I couldn't jerk it because that wouldn't help.

We flew through that ditch too. The dusting of snow we had the day or two before went flying into the air so we were surrounded by white. We stopped at the edge of the interstate and spun the tires to get back out there on the interstate.

Yeah, it was fun and exciting. Can't say I wanna do it again though. I was blessed to have a clear road when my car slid. I was blessed no damage was done to my car- and me.

So yes, if you look out my window you'll see a buncha snow. It snowed for awhile yesterday too, but I am off for the weekend so I didn't mind. In fact my sister and I walked down to the post office.

One of my favorite parts about winter is being outside when it's snowing. I love having the snow dust onto my hat and coat. It makes me smile.

Friday, January 21, 2011

Birth Control

Alright, so this post is by Abby Johnson on birth control. Birth control is ok, I guess but the hormonal birth control can cause early abortions. Personally, I think Christian couples should just leave birth control alone and trust God on the amount of children they have but I hear Christians shouting "we all will be like the Dugger family!" Yeah right; look back in the Bible. They didn't use birth control and not all them had 10+ kids. But if you're going to use birth control (and you're prolife) please keep in mind certain forms of birth control can cause early abortions.

"Not all birth control causes abortions. Some do. Hormonal birth control and the Paragard IUD can cause abortions. Those all have abortifacient properties. These birth control options work in a couple different ways. One way is to prevent ovulation. But if that fails (and it often does) and “breakthrough ovulation” occurs, then conception can occur. Conception is when the egg and sperm meet. DNA is formed and life begins. Another way hormonal methods work is by irritating the uterine lining to the point that a fertilized egg (a human person) would not be able to implant on the uterine wall and begin to grow. So, the woman passes the fertilized egg (human person) with her cycle and miscarries without even knowing it. It is sad, but that happens MANY times while women are on hormonal methods.

Studies show that contraception DOESN’T actually reduce the number of abortions. A recent study actually showed the opposite. The higher the contraception rate, the higher the abortion rate. Interesting, huh?? Guttmacher Institute (Planned Parenthood’s hired research firm) actually showed similar statistics. On their website, www.guttmacher.com, they show that 60% of abortive women state that they were using a contraceptive method at the time they got pregnant. Hmmm. I thought the “typical” (failure) rate of hormonal and barrier methods was around 5-10%. Guess someone got that wrong!! And here’s the truth from my experience. I rarely counseled a women who was having an abortion that wasn’t using a method when she got pregnant. That is the truth. Yes, there are some women who say…well, I just wasn’t using anything! But most were using something; condoms, the pill (most common), depo, IUD, SOMETHING!

And OF COURSE they would be on a method! Our society today makes women feel like it is riskier NOT to be on a hormonal method. Totally ridiculous. It is risky TO BE pumping artificial hormones into your body!! These hormones have been linked to reproductive cancers, strokes, heart disease, osteoporosis, nerve disorders, future infertility, food allergies, metabolic disorders, and many other things!! But we think it is riskier NOT to take them?? We think getting pregnant is riskier than those diseases I listed above?? Really? And you know what makes this even better? All of those risks are listed in the package insert. But no one takes the time to read them…and your doctor sure doesn’t take the time to go over them with you. Doctors give out birth control pills like they are handing out M&M’s. They treat women like we are too stupid to understand our bodies. Like we are second class citizens when it comes to health care. And, honestly, we are partially to blame to for that. We have allowed it happen.

Birth control enslaves women to their fertility. It puts all of the responsibility on them. And that is exactly what it was intended to do. Birth control was created so that people could have sex without consequences. What has happened since then? Women are turned into sexual objects for men to yearn for…and we allow ourselves to be lusted after. All for a society of sex without consequences. That is not what sex was intended for. That is not what fertility was intended for. Fertility was meant to be a shared partnership between a husband and wife. A partnership that is open to life. Not one where women feel like failures when they see that positive pregnancy test. Not one where men blame their wives for getting pregnant. That is not how this is supposed to work." ~Abby Johnson

Friday, January 14, 2011

Insults and Name-Calling

"You are such an idiot."

Really? Are they? Is someone really an idiot for believing in abortion? Is someone really an idiot being against abortion? No, I don't think so. Your beliefs do not make you an idiot. Maybe you believe something entirely wacked out, but c'mon, seriously? Insulting someone's intelligence or calling them a name doesn't help your argument.

Obviously, I'm not in favor of abortion. But I do not believe those who support abortion are idiots. I believe they are (1) willfully ignorant of what abortion truly is or (2) could really careless because it's just a "fetus" and not really a human (which, btw, humans only beget humans, so obviously it's a living baby inside a woman just as living puppies are inside a momma dog). They believe the woman is more important than the unborn child. At one point, that woman carrying the baby was once inside her mother's womb, making her also unimportant. Why are the unborn less important? I've never been given an satisfactory answer.

Insults and name-calling do not get you anywhere. Can't we all just be grown up and maintain an adult debate? I encourage others to refrain from it. If the one you're talking to insults you, ignore the barb and stay polite.

The former also only hardens them and blocks out what you have to say. And this goes to any and all arguments, not just abortion debates. In debating, stay respectful. After all, you're representing everyone who believes what you believe and if you're being a jerk, they'll label us all jerks. Not cool.

If you're getting heated, back off. Take some deep breaths and rethink your words. Don't say something you'll regret.

Saturday, January 8, 2011

In Case of Rape

"What if she's raped? Should she be forced to carry the baby, the reminder of the rape every day?"

First off, even if raped, does it make the baby any less a baby? No, of course not. It's a baby conceived through unthinkable circumstances. You can't look at a baby conceived through love and one through rape and be able to spot a difference. Because there is none! They are both humans, same as you and I.

"We must approach this with great compassion. The woman has been subjected to an ugly trauma, and she needs love, support and help. But she has been the victim of one violent act. Should we now ask her to be a party to a second violent act -that of abortion? Unquestionably, many would return the violence of killing an innocent baby for the violence of rape. But, before making this decision, remember that most of the trauma has already occurred. She has been raped. That trauma will live with her all her life." (abortionfacts.com)

Should she really top it off with abortion? It will not take away the rape, it will not take away the memories. It won't even help her deal with what happened.

But...the baby is part his! Yes, the baby is half his, but it's still half hers. And should we kill the baby for his or her father's crimes? Do we kill another child because their father's crimes? No. We punish the one who committed the crime. The child conceived doesn't deserve the death penalty.

Maybe she can't deal with raising the baby; maybe it would be too difficult. But she can find an adopting family.

When debating with someone for abortion, they'll more than likely pull the rape card. Remember, abortions from rape are only 1%, and it still doesn't justify the murder of an unborn child.

Rape is hard enough to deal with. Abortion is hard enough to deal with. One was an act of violence committed against her- she had no control over it. The other is her committing an act of violence toward an unborn baby- and she chose to do it. Neither is justifiable.

"Why should a woman who was the victim of rape or incest have to bear a child?

When pregnancy occurs as a result of rape or incest, the baby is not only the child of the rapist but of the woman as well. Today, it is not unusual for rape victims who aborted their children to say they have come to grips with having been the victim of someone else’s violence, but cannot accept that they inflicted violence on their own baby. On the other hand, you never hear a rape victim who did not have an abortion later say she wished she had. In fact, they often see the baby as the only good thing that came from the situation.

There are those who argue that this baby would be a constant reminder of the rape. When adoption is suggested, the response is that many women are not emotionally able to carry a child for nine months and then give it to someone else to raise. In other words, we’re asked to believe that the kind of woman who would be traumatized by placing her child with a loving family, would be happier if her baby was brutally ripped to shreds, thrown in a dumpster and hauled off to a landfill.

Even if we bought into that, let’s imagine that a woman was kidnapped and held for two years during which time she gave birth to her captor’s son. When rescued, the woman says the baby is a constant reminder of her ordeal but that she could not stand to give him up to someone else to raise. Would we allow her to have him killed? After all, the dynamics used to justify abortion also exist in this situation.
Other people rationalize abortion for rape and incest because the pregnancy was beyond the woman’s control. That too is illogical. Allowing a victim of violence and brutality to inflict violence and brutality upon her own child will not return the control that the rapist stole from her, nor will it address the physical or psychological damage that was done to her.

Finally, we must never forget that the unborn child created through an act of violence is no less a living human being than the one created through an act of love. And just as we would not discriminate against a five-year-old who was conceived in rape or incest, neither should we discriminate against an unborn child who was so conceived."  http://www.deathroe.com/Pro-life_Answers/Answers.cfm?ID=31

Wednesday, January 5, 2011

Dear Pro-Life, Love, Pro-Choice

"Dear Pro-Life crazies, I know this may come as a shock to you so you may want to go grab a bible for some support... as long a women have been getting pregnant, they've been having abortions. You're fighting a pointless battle. No matter if you out law it and bomb every clinic in the world, abortion will still happen. ...Always has always will. Period. So really stop bitching over something that will never change. Please, use all that effort and fix something that can change, like world hunger, or the economy.
Love, Pro-Choice." ~Jessica G.


When I read that I instantly had so many words to say in response. But...I said nothing. Why? Because it's on a Facebook page I never hit 'like' on and of course, without that, I'm not allowed to write anything on that page. So, I thought I'd address that letter here.

"Pro-life crazies." First off, I am not a crazy person for being pro-life. Yes, some can be kinda nuts. But um, so are some pro-choicers. You got some crazies pretty much on every side of anything, ya know?

Secondly "grab a bible for support", some pro-lifers are not Christian, Catholic or of any religion really. While yes, most pro-lifers do believe in God, not every single one does. And some even get annoyed when God is brought up.

Thirdly, it's not a "pointless battle". Every life saved is a win. It may be a never-ending battle, but we have small victories. Never give up in fighting for the unborn.

Granted, abortion even before being legal was happening. Much less though. And if we ban it, it will still happen. But much less. Yeah, there will still be abortions, but it won't be abortion-on-demand.

As for "use all that effort and fix something that can change, like world hunger" I can only say world hunger will always be around. We can try to fix it, but we can't. It's a fallen world, and we can try to feed everyone, but we really can't. It's sad, I know. It hurts thinking of all those starving children. We can try and feed them all, but we'll never reach every single one. I guess you could call that a "pointless battle" as well. But we're still gunna keep trying. Every child fed is a small victory.

"Or the economy". Huh...I thought our president Obama promised that for us.

Tuesday, January 4, 2011

Too Young

"What if the girl is too young to have a baby? Isn't abortion the best option?"

If you're too young to have a baby, maybe you're too young to have sex. With sex pregnancy is always a possibility, and even if you're not having sex to get pregnant, you still can.

If she's too young to be having a baby because she's still a teen-kid herself, if she doesn't realize it then, she will later that she aborted her baby, not just simply a clump of cells. Abortion brings a tremendous amount of guilt. So really, abortion isn't the best "option".

For parents, if their daughter comes to them, saying she's pregnant and wants to keep the baby encouraging abortion is not cool. She needs your support throughout the pregnancy. Don't ask her to abort your grandchild. Don't ask her to willingly step into something that will give her a lifetime of regret and guilt.

And if you honestly don't want her to raise the baby, suggest adopting the baby out. But if you tell her to adopt the baby, she will probably pull away from the idea- more than likely she already thought of it. Just ask her if she's considered adoption. She can pick out the family, and even do an open adoption. But if she wants to keep the baby, support her. It is her baby, and maybe she doesn't want to let someone else raise her child. If she's willing to be the mother she needs to be, she shouldn't be forced to give away her baby.

I don't see how abortion is the best option. Maybe it may feel like it, but remember, it's not a kidney you're having removed. It's a living little human, with a heart beating just as yours.

Remember, every abortion is: one more heart that was stopped, two more eyes that will never see, two more hands that will never touch, two more legs that will never run, one more mouth that will never speak. And that is for every single baby, including if you're too young to be pregnant.

Monday, January 3, 2011

My Choice

Ofttimes you’ll hear a woman cry “It’s my body!”

Truthfully, while the baby lives and grows in the mother’s womb for about nine months, he or she is a distinct individual with his or her own unique abilities and experiences. The child’s blood is often a different blood type and never mixes with the mother’s. He or she has his or her own unique genetic identity and has innate abilities and talents the mother may not have. (taken from nrlc.org)

It is her body carrying a baby. Within the first week the baby’s limbs appear and the face and head take shape. By three weeks there is a heartbeat, before most women even know they’re pregnant. Brainwaves have been measured as early as six weeks.

By the time a woman even has an abortion she is at least six weeks pregnant and her baby has a heartbeat, brainwaves, his or her own blood type…By eight weeks all organs are in place and present. At eight weeks the baby has intermittent breathing motions (though there is no air present in the uterus) occur. Yet it’s still cried “what about her dreams?” Killing your unborn baby to achieve your goals is not the right to choose; it’s the “right” to avoid even the minimum of responsibility.

Your goals do not become out of reach when you’re pregnant. I’ve read true stories of women who have finished their education while pregnant. No, it wasn’t their ideal situation but they recognized taking a life to finish their goal is selfish.

I’m not saying it’s easy. But I am saying think…abortion is killing your child. It’s not just a blob of tissue; a clump of cells. It is a live little human with a beating heart just as yours.

Your baby is developing and your womb is her or his home. Some pro-choicers I’ve talked with have said abortion is fine because the baby isn’t fully developed. Neither is a two-year toddler. Neither is a teenager. But is it right to kill them? No, you’ll be charged with murder (as you should be). An unborn baby is just at a different stage of development and we all were at the very same stage ourselves. It does not make it right to abort the baby because it is at the developmental stage s/he is suppose to be at.

"It's just a clump of cells," a pro-choicer said. My answer was "look in the mirror. We are all just a clump of cells." An unborn baby is equal to a newborn: both have a heartbeat, brainwaves, their own DNA, fingerprints, organs, limbs, a mind and a life purpose.

So is it truly her choice to kill someone else? Is it my choice to kill my newborn because I suddenly no longer want the baby?

Sunday, January 2, 2011

Life

I am pro-life. I was recently in a discussion about pro-life verses pro-choice when someone brought up the fact there are two sides to the pro-life movement. At first I was apt to disagree until upon further thinking, I realized that was true. She believes that if you’re pro-life you should have no sympathy for the women who have been hurt by their decision to abort; she also stated that even if they regret their decision, they shouldn’t enjoy life because their baby is now dead.

Are you kidding me? The last thing these women need is our judgement and cold words! I know that there are the occasional few (so I’ve been told) women who absolutely do not regret their abortion, but most women do. And by yelling at them, calling them baby killers, is mean. Yes, they killed their baby (it is also legal here in the U.S. so honestly, there is no punishment for it except the guilt the woman feels), but they regret it.

When I told her they regret their decision she basically said “so what?! they killed their baby! They shouldn't even be alive!” Ok yes, I get that she killed her baby…the girl gets that. But what are you doing with those harsh words? Are you helping her? Are you helping the pro-life movement? In my opinion, no, you’re not. Someone who had an abortion may read her words, and be silenced forever. When she could have spoken up, and made a difference, sharing her story. Who else better to speak up for life than one who has been hurt by abortion?

Yes, your baby is dead. It’s horrible. It’s tragically sad. But to say that because you killed your baby you shouldn’t be alive either, is well, not pro-life.

I am pro-life. I am for all life. If you are discussing abortion with someone who is pro-choice and say the mother should be killed as well, they’re going to laugh at you. I’ve seen it happen, time and again. Because there you are, claiming to be pro-life yet wishing someone dead.

So when I say I’m pro-life, I’m not just referring to abortion; I am literally for all life. Of course I've been told I am not for the pregnant woman's life if I take away her 'right' to abort.

And those on the pro-choice side may say, have said, I am forcing my beliefs and opinions on them by trying to make abortion illegal and all I say in response is this: are not you forcing your beliefs and opinions on me by keeping it legal?