in this issue:
abortion: MICHIGAN / SURVIVORS OF ROE
activism: MOTHER’S DAY
catholic bishops: BRUSKEWITZ
catholic colleges: GUIDE
culture of death: EUGENICS
euthanasia: HOUSTON
morning-after abortion pill: BARR SAYS
personhood: RIGHT TO LIFE ACT
planned parenthood: PETITION
stem cell research / ethical: ALZHEIMER’S / BREAST CANCER / HEART ATTACK / KIDNEY DISEASE / PRIMITIVE ADULTS STEM CELLS
stem cell research / unethical: ALTERED NUCLEAR TRANSFER
reflection for prayer: OUR MISSION
abortion
MICHIGAN: The Prenatal Child Protection Amendment petition drive continues to pick up steam; to learn more see Michigan Citizens for Life.
SURVIVORS OF ROE: Life Dynamics, Inc., has launched a new web site focused at young people who survived Roe v. Wade.
activism
MOTHER’S DAY: Take time on Saturday, May 13, to pray at an abortion facility; pray that the mothers entering that place will make the right choice and choose life. We thank pro-life leaders at MarchTogether.com, an American Life League associate group, for this wonderful project.
catholic bishops
BRUSKEWITZ: Bishop Fabian Bruskewitz writes: “Some woman named Patricia O’Donnell Ewers, who is the chair of something called ‘A National Review Board for the Protection of Children and Young People,’ has said that her board ‘calls for strong fraternal correction of the Diocese of Lincoln.’ The Diocese of Lincoln has nothing to be corrected for, since the Diocese of Lincoln is and has always been in full compliance with all laws of the Catholic Church and with all civil laws. Furthermore, Ewers and her board have no authority in the Catholic Church and the Diocese of Lincoln does not recognize them as having any significance.” Ewers’ board contains some people who are supporters of partial-birth abortion.
(Reading: “Bishop Bruskewitz shoots back at the national review board,” Catholic World News, 3/31/06)
catholic colleges
GUIDE: The Cardinal Newman Society is preparing to issue its first “Guide to U.S. Catholic Colleges and Universities.” The organization is currently seeking contributions for this book, including insights, praise, complaints and/or factual information on the 224 Catholic institutions in America. Please send information to “>Marc Perrington.
culture of death
EUGENICS: Dr. Robert Sinsheimer, initiator of the Human Genome Project, is quoted as saying: “The horizons of the new eugenics are, in principle, boundless. For the first time in all time, a living creature understands its origin and can undertake to design its future.”
(Reading: “Making a brave new world,” Science and Technology news, 12/1/00)
euthanasia
HOUSTON: On April 30, Andrea Clark was scheduled to be removed from all care because of a Texas law that allows a hospital ethics committee to choose death for a patient. Andrea’s family has worked hard to find another facility to take over caring for her, and just yesterday reported that Andrea will be moved to Illinois where she will receive proper treatment.
(Reading: “Andrea Clark is safe, moving to Chicago,” Pro-life Blogs, 4/27/06)
morning-after abortion pill
BARR SAYS: Pro-abortion commentator and author William Saletan writes that Barr Pharmaceuticals claims the drug “may also prevent the fertilization of an egg” or prevent a fertilized egg “from attaching to the uterus.” He also points out that the National Right to Life Committee is not sure whether or not this constitutes an abortion.
(Reading: “The birds and the Plan B’s,” Washington Post, 4/2/06)
personhood
RIGHT TO LIFE ACT: This bill (HR 552) states, “The terms ‘human person’ and ‘human being’ include each and every member of the species homo sapiens at all stages of life, including, but not limited to, the moment of fertilization, cloning, or other moment at which an individual member of the human species comes into being.” See Right To Life Act for details.
COMMENT: Is your member of Congress a co-sponsor? If not, ask!
planned parenthood
PETITION: American Life League is leading a major petition effort designed to cut all tax funding directed to Planned Parenthood. In its most recent fiscal year, Planned Parenthood received more than $265 million from federal, state and local government sources. Petitions may be signed online.
stem cell research / ethical
ALZHEIMER’S: Researchers have found that the drug Posiphen can enhance the ability of transplanted human neuronal stem cells to differentiate. This would be a possible breakthrough in the use of transplanted stem cells in the treatment of Alzheimer’s disease.
(Reading: “Posiphen helps stem cells fight AD,” United Press International, 4/24/06)
BREAST CANCER: In the human breast, up to 20 percent of all tumors are now suspected to originate in stem cells. Icelandic researchers are now looking into ways of getting at these stem cells and thus eliminating the breast cancer at its source.
(Reading: “Clues to breast cancer hidden inside stem cells,” European Science Foundation news release, 4/24/06)
HEART ATTACK: Illinois cardiologists are hopeful that stem cells taken from adult bone marrow may be helpful in treating heart attack victims.
(Reading: “Stem cell study for patients with heart attack damage seeks to regenerate heart muscle,” PharmaLive.com, 4/18/06)
KIDNEY DISEASE: A recent discovery that bone-marrow derived stem cells can regenerate damaged renal cells in an animal model provide some encouragement that such cells could, in the future, provide treatment for kidney disease.
(Reading: “New research demonstrates bone-marrow derived stem cells can reverse genetic kidney disease,” Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center news release, 4/25/06)
PRIMITIVE ADULT STEM CELLS: Research at Moraga Biotechnology indicates that primitive adult stem cells which circulate in the blood of mammals differentiate into most tissues and organs of the body.
(Reading: “Primitive adult stem cells found in peripheral blood,” Moraga Biotechnology Corp. news release, 4/27/06)
stem cell research / unethical
ALTERED NUCLEAR TRANSFER: The Catholic journal, Communio, published a series of articles on this procedure, first introduced by William Hurlbut, a member of the President’s Council for Bioethics.
(Reading: “Critiques of altered nuclear transfer (ANT) and oocyte assisted reprogramming (OAR),” Communio)
reflection for prayer
OUR MISSION: “There is a great lukewarmness and darkness in the world and the Christian’s apostolic mission is a continuation of Jesus’ mission in the lives of the people around him.”
(Reading: “In Conversation with God,” Vol. 2, p. 316)