The tale of two, I mean three Popes

This was initially written when Francis was elected, but I never got around to finishing it. I am not updating the first paragraph as I am lazy. The last update comes after an interesting comment was made a parish meeting I was at.  

 I wanted to write/type this shortly after Benedict abdicated from office, but never got around to it and today with the election of Pope Francis I can't help but think of all three of them, because I can't not think of JP2 when I think of pope.  One of my co-workers is wondering when my next trip to Rome is, because as you know I have to go see the Pope.

I am the JP2 generation, people forget that Pope Francis is only the third pope I have ever known and the conclave that elected him is only the second of my lifetime.  There were marked differences between my reaction to the last papal election and this one.  When John Paul the second died, I didn't know what to do or think.  The man that had been Pope for 28 years was gone, the only Pope I had known was gone.  The man I had been to three World Youth Days with and seen on a trip to Rome was gone.  There would be nothing that could compare to him or take his place.  Then along came Pope Benedict and I cried tears of joy when I heard Joseph Cardinal.... I knew my Church was save and that nothing would change.

When I head  "Annuntio vobis gaudium magnum; habemus Papam: Eminentissimum ac Reverendissimum Dominum, Dominum Georgium Marium Sanctae Romanae Ecclesiae Cardinalem Bergoglio qui sibi nomen imposuit Franciscum" and while translating the Latin in my head I thought, who, who did they elect.  At first I thought oh Francis, they elected a Franciscan and I thought, no I would have heard "Ioannes" and known it was O'Malley, so until EWTN said who it was I was still wondering who the heck is our Pope.  I didn't have tears of joy in eyes as I watched this at work, later that night when the sound was on and I could hear and see everything I cried just like I did when Benedict was elected. Why, because now I know that my Church will always be the same, because God's in charge.

Fr. Derek, whom I met on my last trip to Rome and who has quickly become one of my favorite priests spoke of his reaction to being in Rome for Benedict's election and how he didn't know what to do with out John Paul the Second, but all of a sudden it hit him, that this is Jesus' Church, that God is in charge, and that He will take care of it.  Thanks to this homily from Fr. Derek and the grace of God, I can now say the same thing.  What, Fr. Derek does have a few years and an extra degree on me, lol.

The above picture is from my second trip to Rome and it is one of my favorite JP2 memories because it was here that I felt the love and peace that came from this man. Nothing seemed to stop him especially when it came to the youth and for that I will forever be grateful as I was one of those youths that he brought closer into the Church.  My favorite JP2 memories have to do with me seeing him and the overwhelming feeling of joy that came over me when I saw him.  



This picture is from my favorite Pope Benedict memory.  I consider myself a papal event veteran aka a snob, I know what I'm doing and I know how to do it.  There was something about this Mass that just spoke to my heart.  It was a Sunday Mass in the den of the devil,  I mean Yankee Stadium (I'm a Mets fan in cause you couldn't tell) and it felt like a Sunday Mass it didn't feel like the crazy massively large World Youth Day Masses.  I guess this was were my love of Pope Benedict was fostered, see I never saw the man as this hard hitting teacher, just a man who loved his church and the liturgy that went with it.  I admit that I am a liturgy snob and if the slightest thing is off it irks me, yes I am a traditionalist aka a don't mess with the Roman Missal type Catholic.  I saw Benedict when I was in Rome  as you can see below.  In Rome I looked for the same feelings I got with JP2 and didn't get them and I wondered why; what was  different.  See in Rome this time I did something I have never done before I put my camera down and away in my bag and watched Pope Benedict drive within touching distance of me.  While the felling of "stupid Asian woman with the damn flag" was the most present thought it wasn't until later that I realized what a blessing this trip was.  Seeing Benedict many not have given the same feelings as when I saw JP2, but now looking back on both events that took place in the Eternal City, well technically it was the Vatican, the same ear to ear grin comes to my face and a sense of peace comes over me and a few tears come to my eyes too.  



I love both of these men, JP2 make the Church young and friendly to me, ok the priests I met and got to know along the way have helped with that too.  Benedict helped to love the traditions of the Church and kept the liturgist and traditionalist in me happy.  

I've watched with joy and trepidation what Pope Francis is doing.  I know that he's teachings are what the Church teaches, but I can't help but wonder as my pastor put it, does he know what he's doing.  There are so many aspects of Pope Francis that I love, but there are aspects that I don't like as well.  The media seems to love him like they have loved no Pope before and that scares me because I don't trust the media. 

 Everything that Pope Francis says and I mean everything is being published via the internet or some other thing. The most recent comment directed towards the pro-life movement or the heavy focus on abortion; bothers me.  I don't like hearing people say "abortion is not a litmus test to being Catholic."  They are right it's not a litmus test but I can not comprehend how someone can say they are Catholic and support anything that claims killing an innocent child is ok.  I get that we need to think about the teaching of the Church and we are allowed to question them but I can't help but wonder what is Francis' plan here.  I am in a country that is now forcing me to pay taxes under the guise of universal healthcare where I have to pay for something that I am morally opposed to.  I am called a hater and a bigot because I believe that marriage is between a man and a woman.  I am now hearing the media say that my Pope is telling me to stop focusing on abortion, and marriage, but I can't as those are my issues.  I am Catholic and I have no other church to run to because I am not leaving the Eucharist or the Church that Jesus Himself started but I can't help but wonder what will happen the moment the leader of said Church finally says something ex-cathedra.

My bishop puts it this way, "He is reforming the way the world sees Catholicism." For everyone's sake I hope my bishop is correct.  Francis is reforming the way the media sees Catholicism, but I can't help but wonder if that's a bad thing.  Fulton Sheen said something along these lines, "There are not a hundred people in America who hate the Catholic Church. There are millions of people who hate what they wrongly believeto be the Catholic Church — which is, of course, quite a different thing."  As I thought before, the Church does not kick people out or turn people away; those that leave the Catholic Church have done so on their own because there is something that they don't agree with it.  Those doors are always open as they always have been.  Our first vocation is to love one another and maybe that is what Francis is getting at.  God has a plan and I know everything will work out but I am left here wondering what is the plan.  

Is there really a "choice"

As a way to start blogging again, I decided to partake in Ask Them What They Mean by Choice Day. It seems the pro-abortion side while trying to move away from using the work choice is laying claim to it today. I guess the pro-lifers have gotten to them over the past 40 years. I mean nothing, nothing stops the pro-life side from marching on DC even if it means moving the March for Life to another day because of the Presidential Inraguation.

Before I get into the whole why am I pro-life story, I want to share the wisdom of my 8 year old nephew and 10 year neice. They happened to stay over a few days ago and when it was time to go to bed they asked me to pray with them as is our little tradition. So I lead them, well my niece joined in, in the traditional prayers of the Our Father, Hail Mary, Glory Be, and Angel of God. I follow those up with the "who do we want to pray for question and my niece responds with "everyone and everything, that should cover everybody." I said, "ok, and added in "for safe travels for those going to DC this week." Of course that illicted the "What's in DC this week?" question. They knew about the inraguation or I just skipped over it and I said the March for Life. Of course "what's that?" was asked. I explained it as "that is when thousands of people who think abortion is wrong get together in DC." Yes, "what's abortion?" was asked and I said "the killing of an innocent pre-born child." Both my niece and nephew were confused by this and I tried to explain that sometimes someone doesn't want a baby. Then came the words of wisdom from the 8 year old, "who wouldn't want a baby?"

I took the lazy way out and said I'll explain what it is when you are older, but I realize that they both understood what I meant and that it was the idea of someone not wanting a baby that confused them. Granted I said "well mommy and I made it, others didin't it." They asked why are we here, I answered with because your mom chose life and because we love you.

What I don't understand is how a young child can get it, "who wouldn't want a baby" and a grown adult claims there is a choice in the matter. Well yes, there's a choice to have sex, there is no choice in killing your child.

I will chose to march on DC this Friday, along with two teens and two adults from my parish. The two teens have become my pride and joy this year. Both are so strongly Catholic and pro-life that it makes me burst and I can't wait to experieine the March with them.


We are chosing to be a voice for the voiceless, we are chosing to take a trip to DC. Those are choices, killing your child is not a "choice."


I continue to pray for those affected and tramuatized by abortion. I will also contine to pray for an end to abortion and a respect of life in all stages.

March for life 2013, here we come.

March for Life 2009

Pics are forthcoming, but over all it was great day. The warmest I have seen in my 11 years of going (granted I missed one maybe 2 in there) and from what I heard the largest crowd they have had. They, the march organizers, has those of us with cell phones send a text saying "march" to a number so I'm interested to see what the actual number was. It was quite funny as we were staring to march they asked those under 30 to make some noise, and then asked us to take out our cell phones and then asked us to send a text. I did as did my friends around me, so we're all interested to see what the number is. As usually the only media coverage was EWTN and someone mentioned a Fox News camera.

Oh well I should get back to actually watching the kids I babysit for, as one of them is "yelling" at me for taking the computer out of it's "spot" They just got a macbook so I have it on my lap so I can type and watch them, and the oldest (who'll be 5 in March) looked at me and said "Mary the brand new computer doesn't come out here." I said I'm an adult, I don't think you're mother is going to be worried about me and the computer.

Pictures to come later.

Apparently Pres. Obama waited a extra day to lift the ban on our money being sent overseas to fun abortions.

President Obama's first action

The first thing he does is this

Americans have no money, but let's send money overseas to help kill babies. We can't cry being poor and then send money out to murder people. ARGH!

Inauguration 2009

"The American Heart will stir this day with pride and home as the powers of the presidency of the United States, magnificent in their promise, terrible in their burdens, are vested in a man of groundbreaking heritage and grand aspirations. At noon today, Barack Hussein Obama will become he 444th leader of the Republic, sworn to preserve, protect and defend the Constitution, as were Washington and Jefferson and Lincoln before him and others great and obscure. May he prove to be great in these troubled times."

That is what is on the cover of the New York Daily News, my response to the first comment of the American Heart stirring is this, yes my heart is stirred with pity and sorrow, for the lack of respect of life in this country.

I did watch some of the coverage, but I turned it off just before Obama's speech. I know myself and listening to it would just aggravate me. I decided to start praying the Rosary as Joe Biden was sworn in, seemed appropriate to me. I said a full Rosary, mainly because I had some catching up to do on my Rosaries for the FOCA novena. I half listened to the oaths and couldn't help but think of all the defenseless babies that being ignored.

Joe Biden's oath reads "I, Joseph Robinette Biden, do solemnly swear that I will support and defend the Constitution of the United States against all enemies, foreign and domestic; that I will bear true faith and allegiance to the same; that I take this obligation freely, without any mental reservation or purpose of evasion; and that I will well and faithfully discharge the duties of the office on which I am about to enter. So help me God." I remember thinking as he said "enemies foreign and domestic" that he himself is one of those enemies. I do not understand how someone can stand up there and say he will defend us, when he doesn't defend the most defenseless in the country.

Barack Obama's oath reads "I, Barack Hussein, do solemnly swear that I will faithfully execute the office of President of the United States, and will to the best of my ability, preserve, protect and defend the Constitution of the United States, so help me God." I was laughing at the fact that is seems Obama had his oath memorized, and really it's not that hard, but he did accidentally cut off Chief Justice Roberts at the beginning. Again, I don't understand how a man can get up and say I'll protect and defend the Constitution while ignoring and out and out promising more deaths via abortion.

I do find it greatly amusing that Chief Justice Roberts was the one swearing Obama in, as Obama voted against him. Alas Obama is the President, while I do respect the Office of President, I am fully aware that I do not have to respect the man in that office. Obama scares me, even Bill Clinton didn't scare me as much as Obama does. The idea that Obama promised to sign FOCA is just frightening. There is no choice in that Act, no what so ever, there is just a lack of laws to keep you from killing your baby.

Mary, patroness of the US, pray for us. Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the unborn and the Americas, pray for us.

Cardinal O'Connor, Archbishop Sheen, Mother Theresa, St. Therese, Dorothy Day, and the many other pro-life activists up in Heaven pray for us. I miss Cardinal O'Connor and his ability to say what needed to be said.

Some old posts from 2 years ago.

2 years ago while I worked at a local Catholic high school I went to Rock For Life's training and activism weekend. Being in DC for a few days surrounding the March for Life offered some interesting things for me for to do and see. I originally posted these on my myspace blog and decided to post part of them here. In particular I want to post my reactions to the Silent No More talks I heard, to this day these talks have stayed with me and I try to use them when speaking about abortion and how it hurts woman. This weekend rekindled the fire inside me for defending the babies. I know I've been slacking, but I have said more Hail Marys and Rosaries in this past year than I ever have. It still disturbs and disheartens me that some Catholic schools don't get it, they don't get that you need to teach what the Church teaches and that you need teachers who actually believe and uphold and live out what the Church teaches. I won't get into that topic as that just opens a wound I'm not ready to re-open yet.

Anyway, my thoughts from two years ago with my comments from today as well. Let me preface the following with this: a major part of the weekend was the activism aspect of the weekend, most of it was done before the March but a fair bit of it was done after the March too. We were asked to be a sort of "security force" at the Silent No More Vigil and then we moved over to our protest of a PP fundraiser. Which was after the NOW ladies left the Silent No More Vigil, yet the Vigil still continued and it was still going when we returned.

Eventually the time came for our group to venture over to a bar a few streets away for the protest of the Planned Parenthood fundraiser that was there. We walked the few blocks over while carrying our signs and laughing and getting to know each other. Along the way randomly resting up against a tree was a bamboo pole, Phill, just picked it up and kept walking. When we got to the bar we realized that the fundraiser was on the second floor so we quickly amid many a laugh stuck one of our Justice for All, Face it Abortion Kills signs on the stick and Phill held it up for the PP (lol, their abbreviation just makes me laugh) people to see. There were about 15 of us and just about as many cops, the cops just laughed because we did everything we were supposed to, we kept the door way clear and left a path for people to pass by on the sidewalk.

I was holding a total of 4 signs, I had my Justice for all one, down by my feet, along with the KofC Defend Life one resting against me, as Phil pawned that sign off on me. I ended up with the other 2 as the Irish ladies went in to drink aka infiltrate so I had their signs as well. I was decked out in pro-life-ness. During one of the talks at the workshops ALL and RFL had set up, someone mentioned how different the 2 sides were, how the pro-lifers usually had smiles in their faces and were laughing, and how the pro-abortion/pro-choice side usually was gruff and seemed angry.

I noticed how true that was at the Silent No More Vigil. The NOW women just seemed angry. I guess I would be too if someone was exposing the lies my organization was spouting. The majority of the ladies who gave their testimony spoke of how they were a part of NOW and fell for it's lies about how "safe" abortion is and how it wouldn't affect them. This women, years later, some 30 years after their abortion still remember the pain it caused, and the torment it caused them. I remember 2 testimonies in particular one was of a couple, a husband and wife, and one was an older African American lady. The husband and wife struck me as, as they said, they were the "first to give their testimony together". The wife spoke of how she was 18 when she got pregnant and her mom basically told her, that can't happen, you need an abortion. The husband spoke of how he just sat there and didn't say anything since he was 17 when it happened. Despite what happened they remained a couple and got married, they have helped each other through many of the things that have affected them such as depression as a result of the abortion.

The other lady, the African American threw me for a loop when she said "my uncle Martin Luther King Jr." At that point I think I actually did the whole WHAT! head shake and turn. She spoke of how "Daddy King" Martin Luther King Sr. when she mentioned aborting a baby said "no one in this family kills their child" or something like that. The child she had inside her at the time is now 31 years, and seeing her tell her story and relive it in my mind still brings tears to my eyes. I honestly can not put into words what these men and women spoke about. Fr. Pavone asked us to be moved by their testimonies and I'd say it is safe to say that anyone in attendance was moved by their testimonies.

I remember listening to one lady give her testimony and at the end when everyone starts clapping, these 2 kids next to me start jumping up and down screaming "great job mom, we love you mom" I can't even type the story with out crying. I happened to read the Rock for Life blog that comes to me via e-mail and I had almost forgotten about this testimony. There was a young lady who spoke of her experience, of how she could feel her baby move up until that last moment when it just stopped. She spoke of how the abortion was almost an assembly line how they moved from one room to the next, to one bed to the next. She was stuck with a needle in her stomach and whatever was in the needle poisoned the fluid the baby was in. She spoke how she felt her child move like never before and then it just stopped. Once this needle was stuck in and taken out she was left on a bed to rest and to let whatever was to happen happen. She then told of how she woke up the next morning and was sent to a room with what looked like a toilet and told to sit over it and push. "I pushed my dead baby into a toilet." was what she told us amid tears. She then told us how the nurse or whatever title this lady had said "oh, look at how skinny you are now."

Those words are what Planned Parenthood and NOW don't want you to hear, they want you to believe the lies that abortion is safe and that it doesn't harm the woman. That is why Silent No More was started to combat those lies, to expose the truth. That is why I will stand outside an abortion mill and pray for everyone inside it. That is why I will not sit idly by while my generation is killed. 47,000,000 have been taken from our generation... what are you going to do?

Something needs to be done and it needs to start in the trenches aka the churches. The Catholic Church needs to step it up, well not the Church, the Church, Herself is unwavering on this topic, Her princes, the Cardinals need to step it up, the Bishops need to step it up, they need to say something, they need to actually acknowledge that people like John Kerry and Nancy aka "Madam Speaker" have excommunicated themselves by saying YES to any form of abortion. It's not that hard, and we all know our Church is a forgiving Church and will take you back in a heartbeat, so even if you make a mistake you are always welcome. Just stop calling yourself Catholic and pro-abortion, there is no such thing. A Catholic is pro-life otherwise they are not Catholic.

Since that posting you can make the total babies killed via abortion to 50 million and you can see that I still don't like "Madam Speaker Pelosi" and other "catholic" politicians. I have uploaded pictures as well, I was hoping to find the one of myself with my four signs but I can't find it, so I will post one of the two story protest, the NOW bitches, I can't call them anything else other than bitches. I will never forget one of those "ladies" pushing herself up against me (all the time I was thinking get your nasty pro-abortion self away from me) telling me to move politely by saying "excuse me" as she pushed herself up against me. You'll see that the pro-life movement pushed its way in as well. We were nice and quiet and polite, they were not, they were there shouting their stupid cheers and being all nasty. The other picture is one of myself and part of my pro-life gear with the Capitol Building behind me. The other is of me during the actual March.

A priest with a backbone.

As Fr. Z and Fr. Longenecker had this linked I think it's good to post here too. This priest isn't afraid to say what needs to be said from the pulpit

Well done good and faithful servant

I have yet to read the actual articles that are mentioned, they are printed out and waiting for me, but this needs to be shared.

Archbishop Chaput is awesome, he has been quite outspoken in the lines of abortion and the election and certain "Catholic" politicians. The Gospel from Sunday was the "give unto Caesar what is Caesar's and give unto God what is God's" A perfect gospel to show that politics and religion do sometimes mix as they should. I couldn't help but think of the Archbishop's book Render Unto Caesar today during Mass. I'm actually going to buy a copy of it tomorrow on my way to work, there happens to be a Barnes and Noble on my way to work.

Alas, now that I have finally gotten my fingers to warm up, they were cold with the fall weather here in New Jersey, I've taken to searching Barnes and Noble for books that I want and that could work for work too. :) Oh well, off to figure out what to talk about on Sunday for Confirmation.

I've been waiting for this

Finally, Pappa Arty aka Bishop Serratelli has said something involving politicans and abortion. I first met Fr. Serratelli on the bus ride down to the March for Life, he was rector of the minor seminary at the time, and Seton Hall United for Life, the organization I was a part of, was in charge of the bus. I know he's a very busy man, between changing the English translation, and other trips he took over the summer, so I gave him til now to say something and he did, because he's always been a strong voice for the unborn. While this "letter" aka column in the weekly diocesian paper, The Beacon, is not in direct responce to Pelosi or Biden, we all know which politican the Bishop is talking about. As I am at work, (It's all good, I work for the Church, they can't get mad at me for reading a Bishop's letter), I will just paste the article. Later on I will add my comments to/about it.

What follows is Bishop Serratelli's article, feel free to read it here or as I'm giving you the direct link to it on the Paterson Diocese webpage,

A Politician's Promise: No Right to Life! No Freedom!
After committing a murder in Rome, the famous 17th century Italian painter Caravaggio went to Malta to avoid the death penalty. While there, the Great Master of the Order of the Knights of Malta commissioned him to do a painting for the chapel of the Co-Cathedral of St. John in Valletta. Caravaggio chose as his theme the martyrdom of John the Baptist. He produced The Beheading of St. John, his largest work, the only one he ever signed. No doubt the scene touched him personally.

Herod was married to Herodias, his brother Philip’s wife. Because John the Baptist preached against this sin, he incurred the hatred of Herod’s wife. The day her daughter Salome delighted Herod with her seductive dance, Herodias had her make Herod promise to kill John the Baptist. Within the severe architecture of a 16th century prison, Caravaggio vividly depicts the grisly moment when Herod kept his promise.

Caravaggio’s work, considered his greatest masterpiece, immortalizes the misguided fidelity of a ruler to his gruesome promise. With the stroke of the soldier’s sword, John dies and so does freedom. Freedom is based on the truth of the human person as created by God and protected by his law.
When a ruler can decide against God’s law, true freedom is sentenced to death.

Recently, a politician made a promise. Politicians usually do. If this politician fulfills his promise, not only will many of our freedoms as Americans be taken from us, but the innocent and vulnerable will spill their blood.

On April 18, 2007, in Gonzales v. Carhart, The Supreme Court upheldthe Partial-Birth Abortion Ban. The very next day prominent Democratic members of Congress reintroduced the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA). The bill is misleadingly packaged as a freedom bill. It is not! It is a clear act of unreasoned bias to end abruptly and brutally the debate on the pressing and fundamental moral issue of the right to life.

For thirty-five years, Americans have been wrestling with The Supreme Court’s decision legalizing abortion in Roe v. Wade. Most Americans now favor some kind of a ban on abortion. Most who allow abortion would do so only in very rare cases. In fact, in January, 2008, the Guttmacher Institute published its 14th census of abortion providers in the country. Its statistics showed that the abortion rate continues to decline. Abortions have reached their lowest level since 1974. There is truly a deep sensitivity to life in the soul of America.

The Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA) would mortally wound this sensitivity. In effect, it would dismantle the freedom of choice to do all that is necessary to respect and protect human life at its most vulnerable stage. FOCA goes far beyond guaranteeing the right to an abortion throughout the nine months of pregnancy. It arrogantly prohibits any law or policy interfering with that right. While advocates trumpet this law as the triumph of the freedom of choice, they hide the dark reality that the law would actually inhibit choice.

Laws protecting the rights of nurses, doctors and hospitals with moral objections to abortion would no longer stand. Health and safety regulations for abortion clinics would also vanish. Gone the freedom of health care professionals to be faithful to the Hippocratic Oath “to prescribe regimens for the good of …patients…and never do harm to anyone, to please no one [by prescribing] a deadly drug nor [by giving] advice which may cause his death.” Gone the freedom of conscience so essential for a civil society!

If a minority of avid abortionists succeed to impose this law because of the ignorance or apathy of the majority, the law would force taxpayers to fund abortions. Gone the freedom of taxation with representation!

In its 1992 Casey decision, The Supreme Court ruled as constitutional state laws requiring that women and young girls who seek an abortion receive information on the development of the child in the womb as well as alternatives to abortion. The ruling also determined that a period of waiting, usually 24 or 48 hours before making a decision about an abortion is not an undue burden. The Freedom of Choice Act would nullify these laws immediately. Gone the freedom of women and young girls to have all the information they need to make their own choices!

In about half of the States, there are parental notification or consent laws in effect for minors seeking an abortion. The Supreme Court has ruled that these laws are permitted under Roe v. Wade. With the stroke of a pen, these laws would be abolished. Gone the freedom of parents to care for and protect their children and grandchildren!

Advocates of FOCA redefine a woman’s “health” so as to expressly permit post-viability abortions. Thus, a child who survives an abortion can be left to die for the health of the mother. No politically correct word can mask this reality for what it is. This is infanticide. Gone the freedom for a baby, once born, to live!

Science does not dispute that the child in the womb already has all the characteristics that he or she will develop after birth. Notwithstanding, abortionists obstinately refuse the right of the child within the womb to live as a fundamental human right. They are not happy that Americans have not swallowed their distorted propaganda that denies the dignity of the human person from the first moment of conception.

Pro-abortion advocates close their eyes to the fact that abortion even hurts women as it undermines the very fabric of our society. Their zeal for the Freedom of Choice Act sounds the alarm for decent Americans to wake up! The more the right to life is denied, the more we lose our freedoms. The “pro-choice” movement is not pro-choice. It stands against the freedom to choose what is right according to the truth of the human person.

In 2002, as an Illinois legislator, the present democratic candidate voted against the Induced Infant Liability Act. This law was meant to protect a baby that survived a late-term abortion. When the same legislation came up in the Judiciary Committee on which he served, he held to his opposition. First, he voted “present.” Next, he voted “no.”

Along with 108 members of Congress, the present democratic candidate for President continues his strong support for the Freedom of Choice Act. In aspeech before the Planned Parenthood Action Fund last year, he made the promise that the first thing he would do as President would be to sign the Freedom of Choice Act. What a choice for a new President!

At the time when Herod murdered John the Baptist because of his promise, Rome practiced the principle "one man, one vote." Whoever the emperor in Rome placed in authority over a subject people, ruled. Today we live in a democracy. We choose our leaders who make our laws. Every vote counts. Today, either we choose to respect and protect life, especially the life of the child in the womb of the mother or we sanction the loss of our most basic freedoms. At this point, we are still free to choose!

a pro-life woman as VP

Now this is exciting. Seriously, I feel like running around screaming like a little kid! McCain picks Sarah Palin aka the pro-life governor of Alaska as his running mate. The stories abound that Hillary supporters are now voting for McCain as he has picked a woman.

Fox News' breaking story

Catholic.org's breaking news

More on Mrs. Palin via foxnews

What I like is that she gave birth to down syndrome baby in April. After she was told you know there's a chance there could be something wrong with the baby, she went ahead and had the baby anyway. Her oldest boy who's 19 enlisted and is being shipped out to Iraq on Sept. 11th. (I got that tidbit from Catholic.org and I'm trying to find that link.)

This is really exciting!

Pelosi steps in it big time!

So on Sunday Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi was asked about abortion more specifically when does life begin and she sent herself down a certain river without a paddle.

Tom Brokaw on Meet the Press posed the question "If Senator Obama were to come to you and say 'Help me out here, Madame Speaker. When does life begin?' what would you tell him?" Pelosi did her best to answer the question, but she up and died and showed that she knows nothing about the teachings of the faith she practices. There's to much to actually post their conversation, but I will give a link to it, better than that I'll just post the you tube video.




As you can hear she thinks she is prepared and knows what she is talking about. However she has received more coverage in the last two days than she probably expected or wanted, considering that most of the coverage has been via Catholic blogs and from Bishops and some of her fellow Catholics responding with how wrong she is on the subject.

I believe the first to respond was Archbishop Chaput from Denver. Over on the Archdiocese of Denver's web page you will find this .
I am assuming that the good Bishop was quick to answer for a few reasons. One, the Democratic National Convention is in his city, second, he just wrote a book on "Serving the Nation by Living our Catholic Beliefs in Political Life", and thirdly because he is the type of bishop to come and stand up for the Church and Her teaching.

I have mainly been doing my reading of this story on two sitesAmerican Papist and Fr. Z's What Does The Prayer Really Say. American Papist points out that ten of Pelosi's fellow Representatives wrote a letter responding to her and asking her to apologize for what she has done to help reduce the scandal it has caused. Even the Bishops came out as a group and said something on their web page, it's actually on the main page.

I am sure there will be more on this story, but I needed a place to put all the links that I found about this story. I'm glad the Bishops and other Catholics are standing up to defend when life begins, which is at conception scientifically and theologically. Animation of the fetus (Latin for little one) is what St. Augustine and others were debating and saying was 3 months not when live begins. I am sure that I will be blogging more on this issue later too.

With a name like Planned Parenthood, you'd think they cared....

I got these numbers from Rock for Life, I trust them, and they are asking people to blog about it, so here I go. Planned Parenthood, PP, has sent out their numbers for the year...

Planned Parenthood releases Annual Report

Planned Parenthood Federation of America has just released its 2006-2007 Annual Report. The report reveals the following about PP:

· It killed 289,750 preborn babies (24,807 more than last year).

· Its total revenue was $1.12 billion and its total profit was $114.8 million:

o $356.9 million in clinic income (an increase of $11.8 million)

o $258.7 million from private donations (an increase of $46.5 million)

o $336.7 million from taxpayers (an increase of $31.4 million)

· It made only 2,410 adoption referrals – a decrease of three from last year and a ratio of one adoption to every 120 abortions.

In effect, $114 million of taxpayer money went right into PP’s savings account. It is clear that PP does not need all of this money. Taxpayer money represents 33 percent of PP’s income. We must stop the flow of government money into the hands of this baby-killing business. Sign the petition at StopPlannedParenthoodTaxFunding.com to demand that PP does not receive any more money from our pockets.

Action! Action!

We encourage you to spread the truth about Planned Parenthood, whether through a letter to the editor of your local newspaper, a blog posting or a MySpace bulletin/Facebook note. Feel free to use any information from the archive of STOPP Reports, but make sure to hit on the following talking points:

· One out of every four abortions is committed in a PP facility.

· PP refers one baby for adoption for every 120 babies it murders.

· PP has total assets of $1.12 billion.

· Taxpayers gave PP $336.7 million in 2006 (an increase of $31.4 million from 2005).

· PP put $114 million of taxpayer money right into its savings account.

· Taxpayer money represents 33 percent of PP’s income.

· PP’s total profit doubled from 2005 to 2006. In 2006, it had a profit of $114.8 million.

My church's youth group is having a garage sale on Sunday, and I'll be wearing my Rock for Life sweatshirt with my PP Kills Babies shirt underneath. I have Confirmation students who keep trying to tell me that PP is a pregnancy center, I told one girl no they make millions by providing abortions, they don't care about pregnancy. A pregnancy resource center cares about the woman who is pregnant and tries to help her. Last week my Confirmation students walked diapers over to the local pregnancy recourse center in town and the director and I had a nice discussion about what the parish can do for them.