So many times we hear of dire pre-natal diagnoses that are wrong. But what about the ones that are correct? If we simply aborted all babies with problems we would make no efforts to solve those problems. You will be so heartened by this story from LifeNews. The fact that this wonderful mother is a Congresswoman will also warm your Massachusetts heart.
Have a great day! Anne PS I am sending the link rather than a copy of the story so that you can see the beautiful picture http://www.lifenews.com/2013/07/29/miracle-baby-congresswomans-daughter-defies-doctors-predictions-she-would-die/ |
Monday, July 29, 2013
I Want to Share a Miracle With You
Friday, July 26, 2013
By 2-1 Margin, Americans Favor Restricting Abortions After 20 Weeks - Washington Post, ABC News Poll
This is very exciting! The only reason for restrictions at 20 weeks rather than the Supreme Court-defined "viability" is that babies at 20 weeks feel pain - BABIES! BABIES FEEL! All those people are acting on their belief that these are babies and, therefore, need to be protected. Short step to 18 week babies,12 week babies, etc. Again, the law is a teacher and we must use it to the fullest. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/post-politics/wp/2013/07/25/majority-of-americans-favor-restricting-abortion-at-20-weeks-according-to-new-post-abc-poll/
"Parents don't want to change the essence of who their child is," added Tolleson. "But like any parent, if you could ease some of the challenges your child might have in life, you would certainly be interested in doing that."
Anne PS, Anne H. just sent this along. It is definitely worth sharing. "Nonsense," said Twin One. "There is no life after delivery. What would that life be?" "I don't know," replied Twin Two "but there will be more light than here. Maybe we will walk with our legs and eat from our mouths." Twin One said "This is absurd! Walking is impossible. And eat with our mouths? Ridiculous! The umbilical cord supplies nutrition. Life after delivery is to be excluded. The umbilical cord is too short." Twin Two replied, "I think there is something and maybe it's different than it is here." Twin One replied, "No one has ever come back from there. Delivery is the end of life, and in the after-delivery it is nothing but darkness and anxiety and it takes us nowhere." "Well, I don't know," said Twin Two, "but certainly we will see mother and she will take care of us." "Mother??" said Twin One. "You believe in mother? Where is she now?" Twin Two replied, "She is all around us. It is in her that we live. Without her there would not be this world." Twin One said, "I don't see her, so it's only logical that she doesn't exist," to which Twin Two replied, "Sometimes when you're in silence you can hear her; you can perceive her. I believe there is a reality after delivery and we are here to prepare ourselves for that reality...."
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Wednesday, July 24, 2013
901 Heroes and One Super-Hero
Father of priest behind Down syndrome adoption story died while saving Down syndrome son by John Stonestreet
Tue Jul 23 11:20 AM EST July 23, 2013 (Breakpoint) - Fr. Thomas Vander Woude, pastor at Holy Trinity Catholic Church in Gainesville, Virginia, has a special place in his heart for children born with Down syndrome. His recent parish campaign to save one such life grabbed headlines. But to understand this story, and why these children are so special to Fr. Vander Woude, you need to know another story. This one blew me away. Earlier this month, Fr. Vander Woude got wind of a young couple in another state whose unborn child had been diagnosed with Down syndrome. The couple made the decision close to ninety percent of parents in their shoes make—to abort their special needs baby. Because the pregnancy was almost six months along, they had just days before the legal cutoff for abortions in their state. But Father Vander Woude had other ideas. He contacted the parents and convinced them to hold off just a little longer, while he and a volunteer sent messages via the church's social network accounts, pleading for a family willing to adopt the baby and save its life. The next morning, the calls and emails began—over 900, in fact—some from as far away as England and The Netherlands, ready to make the life-changing decision to adopt a special needs child. As the torrent subsided, three of the families were placed in contact with the expectant parents and an adoption agency for interviews. You would think this outpouring of love and acceptance for a child nine out of ten American couples consider unworthy of life would impress pro-choicers—especially those who repeat the tired accusation that pro-lifers care only about children in the womb, not after they're born. Well, I'm sad to say pro-abortion activists at the blog Jezebel wasted no time in heaping scorn on Father Vander Woude and the hundreds who responded to his call. One Jezebel blogger accused him of pressuring this woman to carry an unwanted pregnancy by "crowdsourcing an adoptive family." "[A]nti-abortion folks," she cedes, "care more about fetuses with fairytale narratives than actual babies." Folks, these charges are simply ridiculous, especially now that pregnancy care centers designed to offer help and create options for women and children in crisis outnumber abortion clinics in the United States almost 2-to-1, and with so many families lining up to adopt. But this particular accusation that Father Vander Woude and his Twitter followers care nothing about older children with Down syndrome rings especially hollow. You see, this priest isn't the first person in his own family to snatch a victim of Down syndrome from certain death. His father, Thomas, Sr., died in 2008 after leaping into a septic tank to save his youngest son, Joseph, who had fallen in. According to sources at the time, Thomas, 66, allowed himself to sink beneath the sewage while holding 20-year-old Joseph above his head until rescuers arrived. Joseph has Down syndrome. His father died so that his special needs son would live. It seems Fr. Vander Woude, who officiated his dad's funeral, inherited a pro-life view that is not just intellectually true, but one of action. His father would be proud. The groundswell of families who responded to this plea for adoption are putting feet to their pro-life views, while at the same time showing how wildly out-of-touch with reality abortion apologists have become. This story also reveals how we might hope to return what Pope Benedict called a "culture of death" to a "culture of life." It requires doing and saying. As Dietrich Bonhoeffer once wrote to his former seminarians, "Not in the flight of ideas, but only in action is freedom. Make up your mind and come out into the tempest of the living." Fr. Vander Woude and his father have both given some of those with "fairy tale narratives" a chance at a real happy ending Reprinted by LifeSiteNews with permission from Breakpoint.
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Monday, July 22, 2013
Summer Academy and Gabriella, Andrew and ...
The baby being born in London is marvelous and special, just like every other baby. Last week, my friends Pat and Jeff welcomed Andrew, their first grandchild. The week before, friends Leigh and Bill welcomed their umteenth grandchild, Gabriella, whose mother was one of the best Teens for Life speakers we have ever had. Nobody could be happier. The world claims to be pro-abortion but it is the truth that most people do love babies. |
Wednesday, July 17, 2013
Follow-up
There is so much going on! Here are some of the current items of pro-life importance. Anne Some people have asked about status of Buffer Zone at SCOTUS. They will hear arguments late fall, early winter. There will be publicity for a day or two and then quiet until decision comes down sometime before end of June, 2014. The Rhode Island legislature voted to have Choose Life license plates. The fact that we have them helped to convince legislators. Governor vetoed. http://news.providencejournal.com/breaking-news/2013/07/gov-chafee-vetoes-anti-abortion-choose-life-license-plate-billready.html Aren't you glad politicians could not get in the way of our plates as long as the Choose Life Foundation and the Nordeens did the work? If you don't have your plate, please go to your local Registry right away! We haven't talked about O-care recently. Every dire prediction we made is coming through in spades. There is no joy in being right because people already are suffering and it will get much worse. The Heritage Foundation has a dozen implementation failures of O-care, http://blog.heritage.org/2013/07/08/morning-bell-obamacares-dirty-dozen-implementation-failures/?roi=echo3-16277241832-13715678-8581bc4227b62d79c499c74f429af70a&utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=Email&utm_campaign=Morning%2BBell O-care death panels seem to be based on the Liverpool Care Pathways. They are working with such cruelty to patients that they are being phased out, http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/liverpool-care-pathway-to-be-phased-out-after-claims-that-patients-were-drugged-and-deprived-of-liquids-8709878.html Great success with state legislatures in 2013, http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/high-levels-of-pro-life-state-legislation-passed-so-far-this-year/ The best news of all, http://www.washingtontimes.com/news/2013/jul/9/hundreds-call-to-adopt-down-syndrome-baby-save-it-/ And, duh! The New York times says abortion is not like other issues, http://www.nytimes.com/2013/07/14/sunday-review/why-abortion-is-not-like-other-issues.html?ref=opinion&_r=0 |
Lila Rose Named One of the Most Influential Women Under 35 in Washington
This is so exciting! Lila certainly deserves the honor. Join us to hear her speak at the MCFL Banquet on Oct 10th at Sheraton Four Points in Norwood. |
Saturday, July 13, 2013
MCFL Banquet: Save the Date
MCFL Banquet: Thursday, October 10, 2013 featuring Lila Rose. We are so fortunate to have Lila Rose (for the second time) and look forward to hearing what pro-abortion scandal she will be outing. |
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
ONE MORE DAY FOR SUMMER ACADEMY REGISTRATION!
Massachusetts Citizens for Life Summer Academy, 2013 Rising 9th – 12th Grade Students – West Warren The goal of the sessions is to form and engage high school students as workers in the pro-life movement. More specifically and immediately, we intend these students to become Ambassadors of MCFL in their respective schools, churches, or homeschooling communities during the 2013-2014 school year, as both a leaven and liaison in their respective pro-life clubs.
In order to present a thorough overview of the main life issues, the pro-life movement, and the various ways that these students can and should get involved, we will hold eight weekly sessions. With the exception of the first and last, sessions will normally consist of a 45 minute expert presentation of content, and a 45 minute interactive workshop, with 30 minutes allotted at the beginning for informal fraternizing over pizza and soft drinks. Place: St Stanislaus Hall, 2270 Main St., West Warren, MA Time: 6:00 p.m. to 8 p.m. Tuition: Free for pro-life high school students
WEEK 1: Wednesday, July 10 Topic: Prenatal Development and Abortion – how to share this information with your friends Linda Thayer, MCFL Vice-President of Education WEEK 2: Wednesday, July 17 Topic: Legislative Process and specific legislation in Massachusetts, meet local legislators Eva Murphy, MCFL Legislative Director, State Representatives Todd Smola and Peter Durant Topic: How to start and maintain a Pro-Life Youth Group in your school or church Matt Hanafin, MCFL Director of Outreach WEEK 3: Wednesday, July 24 Topic: Consequences of Abortion – personal testimony. Pro-life counseling and Pregnancy Resource Centers Cori Connor-Morse and local pregnancy counselors WEEK 4: Wednesday, July 31 Topic: End of Life Issues and Euthanasia, Cyril Shea, MD Topic: Doctor-Prescribed Suicide, Jamie Brunault, Regional Coordinator, MCFL WEEK 5: Wednesday, August 8 Topic: Moral questions in the areas of life and reproduction, Katie Elrod, Educator Topic: Ethical Questions at the end of life, Margaret Bradford, Educator WEEK 6: Wednesday, August 14 Call to Ambassadorship: Conferral of Awards and Commissioning as Ambassadors and to |
Urgent Request from National Right to Life
As you know, the Texas State Legislature continues to battle to pass a pro-life bill to ban abortion after the unborn child is capable of feeling pain. After recent events with the Wendy Davis filibuster, we need to make sure that pro-lifers are well represented in this battle. National Right to Life has sent 5 people from our office to help in Austin. People from across the nation have traveled to Austin to #stand4life! The pro-aborts are creating a heavy presence in social media and we need to top that. Just as the media reports on the number of bodies representing each side, they will use social media traffic to guage the relative strength of each side. This is where your help is needed, even if you are not in or from Texas. Tomorrow, at 10 am; 12 noon; 2 pm and 4 pm (all Eastern Daylight Time) we need you to get on Twitter and participate in a Twitter Bomb in support of HB2, the Texas Pain Capable Unborn Child Protection Act. Please put the following hashtag into all of your tweets -- #stand4life If you notice that there are particular trending hashtags relating to this issue, use that in addition to #stand4life. We are asking each of you to prepare and tweet 10 tweets during each of the time slots above, with all ten being as close to the 'top of the hour' as possible. This will give us the most standing. Feel free to "Retweet" what other pro-lifers are saying as well. You can remodify your tweets so that you don't have to start from scratch each time and there are suggestions below to help you get started. Similar to doing various media interviews, you have the same message, just packaged slightly different. You should also retweet NRLC, Texas Right to Life, and other tweets on this topic that you feel make a good point. Remember a Tweet is limited to 140 characters. You can use this as an opportunity to not only support Texas Right to Life and unborn children, but for your own educational purposes as well. This is a very important request and I hope you will not only plan to do it yourself, but also forward to all of your pro-life lists. If you do not have a Twitter Account, it is very easy and fast to create one. Go to www.twitter.com and follow the very simple instructions and you will be all set. If you have questions or need help, please email or call Jonathan Rogers at 469-417-8905 or 202-626-8809 or email Jonathan@nrlc.org Suggested topics: Stand with pro-life Texans (encourage Texans to take action and add their voice to the mix, announce solidarity with them, etc.) They feel pain (common-sense nature of the legislation, science behind unborn pain, late-term abortions, D/E procedures, etc.) Commonsense clinic regulations (prevent another Gosnell, the same as other Ambulatory Surgical Centers, etc.) Protecting both women and unborn babies Support the Texas Legislature! (Thank Governor Perry, Lt. Governor Dewhurst, etc.) Call out pro-abortion bullies (the "Hail Satan" chanting, foul language, the original mob that derailed the Senate, etc.) Polling (62% of Texans support prohibiting abortions when the baby is capable of feeling pain, good to push back against the ridiculous majority rhetoric the pro-aborts are trying to claim) PS ~ You can also assist by going on Facebook and sharing posts by NRLC and Texas Right to Life. |
Monday, July 8, 2013
State House Tomorrow: Your Testimony in Person or by Email
Testimony on Laura's Law, Partial Birth Abortion Ban, Sex Selection Abortion Ban, and unborn baby as second victim will be heard TOMORROW, July 9th in Room A-1 at 1:00 pm. These are our most important bills, ones that should be acceptable to all. Information about the bills is listed below. 1) Please plan to attend, testify, and leave a copy of your testimony. 2) If you know you will not be able to attend, please send you testimony (email is best) to the Chairs asking them to distribute. House Chair, Gene.O'Flaherty@mahouse.gov Senate Chair, Katherine.Clark@masenate.gov 3) If you live in the district of any of the committee members please contact him or her. Senate Members: William Brownsberger, Gale Candaras, Patricia Jehlen, John Keenan, Richard Ross Further contact info for Senators, https://malegislature.gov/People/Senate House Members: Christopher Markey, Colleen Garry, Kevin Murphy, Bruce Ayers, Sean Curran, Carlos Henriquez, Claire Cronin, Jeffrey Roy, Daniel Winslow, Sheila Harrington. Further contact info for Representatives, https://malegislature.gov/People/House Hope to see you tomorrow! Thanks, Anne The Woman's Right to Know Act–Bill Number: H1565 Primary Sponsor: Rep. Elizabeth A. Poirier "An Act relative to a woman's right to know." The bill would offer women more complete information about abortion and fetal development. A women seeking abortions would also be given a chance to see a sonogram of her child. A 24 hour waiting period would be imposed The Massachusetts Sex-Selected Abortion Ban–Bill Number: H1567 Primary Sponsor: Rep. Elizabeth A. Porier "An Act relative to sex selection in Pregnancy." This bill would ban abortions for the purposes of selecting the sex of a child. The Massachusetts Partial Birth Abortion Ban–Bill Number: H1452 Primary Sponsors: Rep. Kevin J. Kuros and Rep. Elizabeth A. Poirier "An Act banning partial birth abortions." This bill would impose a state ban to compliment the Federal Ban on partial birth abortions. It would allow for more complete enforcement. Massachusetts Second Victim Act–Bill Number: H1404 Primary Sponsor: Rep. Bradley H. Jones, Jr. "An Act relative to fetal homicide." This bill would alter the General Law to ensure that unborn children killed in the commission of a murder are legally treated as a second victim of the crime. |
Saturday, July 6, 2013
Abandonment
At "Get Real" the MCFL Convention, Mary Girard of Pregnancy Help spoke about helping women who are abortion-minded. She spoke about the importance of the attitude of the woman's mother. She spoke about the trust the woman needs to have in someone. She spoke about abandonment of these women - a major theme. Her presentation was extremely moving, as were all of the presentations in the morning. We'll have the videos on the web site shortly. After the Convention, I saw that the words "abortion" and "abandonment" are virtually the same when signed. Now the National Right to Life News has published the following letter by a 20-year-old to a half sibling. This young writer talks of abandonment in thinking of the baby. This letter is another "get real" moment, showing what we know - that aborted babies have brothers and sisters who are deeply affected. If you do the math as you read, you will see the 15-year-old girl was impregnated by a 23-year-old predator - just what we have been telling the press when they call about selling Plan B to girls of any age and to legislators when they want to lower the age of consent for abortion - just abortion, no other procedure. If you have not read this letter, please take a moment. The hurt abortion has caused is limitless! Anne http://www.nationalrighttolifenews.org/news/2013/07/abortion-and-future-children-a-letter-to-my-aborted-half-sibling/#.UdiPZdiP2jM |
Thursday, July 4, 2013
MCFL Major Bills - Testimony, Tuesday, State House
Testimony on Laura's Law, Partial Birth Abortion Ban, Sex Selection Abortion Ban, and Unborn Baby as Second Victim will be heard next Tuesday, July 9th, in Room A-1 at 1:00 pm. These are our most important bills, ones that should be acceptable to all. Information about the bills is listed below.
The Woman's Right to Know Act–Bill Number: H1565 Primary Sponsor: Rep. Elizabeth A. Poirier . The Massachusetts Sex-Selected Abortion Ban–Bill Number: H1567
The Massachusetts Partial Birth Abortion Ban–Bill Number: H1452 Massachusetts Second Victim Act–Bill Number: H1404
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Summer Academy for High School Students Starts on July 10th! Register Now!
Massachusetts Citizens for Life Summer Academy, 2013 Rising 9th – 12th Grade Students – West Warren The goal of the sessions is to form and engage high school students as workers in the pro-life movement. More specifically and immediately, we intend these students to become Ambassadors of MCFL in their respective schools, churches, or homeschooling communities during the 2013-2014 school year, as both a leaven and liaison in their respective pro-life clubs.
In order to present a thorough overview of the main life issues, the pro-life movement, and the various ways that these students can and should get involved, we will hold eight weekly sessions. With the exception of the first and last, sessions will normally consist of a 45 minute expert presentation of content, and a 45 minute interactive workshop, with 30 minutes allotted at the beginning for informal fraternizing over pizza and soft drinks. Dates: Wednesdays, July 10– Aug 14
Place: St Stanislaus Hall, 2270 Main St., West Warren, MA Time: 6:00 p.m. to 8 p.m. Tuition: Free for pro-life high school students
WEEK 1: Wednesday, July 10 Topic: Prenatal Development and Abortion – how to share this information with your friends Linda Thayer, MCFL Vice-President of Education WEEK 2: Wednesday, July 17 Topic: Legislative Process and specific legislation in Massachusetts, meet local legislators Eva Murphy, MCFL Legislative Director, State Representatives Todd Smola and Peter Durant Topic: How to start and maintain a Pro-Life Youth Group in your school or church Matt Hanafin, MCFL Director of Outreach WEEK 3: Wednesday, July 24 Topic: Consequences of Abortion – personal testimony. Pro-life counseling and Pregnancy Resource Centers Cori Connor-Morse and local pregnancy counselors WEEK 4: Wednesday, July 31 Topic: End of Life Issues and Euthanasia, Cyril Shea, MD Topic: Doctor-Prescribed Suicide, Jamie Brunault, Regional Coordinator, MCFL WEEK 5: Wednesday, August 8Topic: Moral questions in the areas of life and reproduction, Katie Elrod, Educator Topic: Ethical Questions at the end of life, Margaret Bradford, Educator WEEK 6: Wednesday, August 14 Call to Ambassadorship: Conferral of Awards and Commissioning as Ambassadors and to
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Pictures From "Get Real", MCFL Convention
Our Convention last Saturday was amazing. All the speakers were local. The attendees were so proud to be in the pro-life movement with them. We'll be sending out more and posting videos on the website. |