in this issue:
hot button issues: PRO-LIFE MEMORIAL DAY
abortion: TILLER
planned parenthood: ANTI-CATHOLIC / COLORADO / ILLINOIS / MISSOURI
ru-486: SAFE?
stem cell politics: MICHIGAN
stem cell research / unethical: SPARE PARTS
reminders: 40 DAYS FOR LIFE / LIFE CHAIN / SAVING THOSE DAMNED CATHOLICS / ULTRASOUND VIDEO
reflection for prayer: PSALM 145:17-19
hot button issues
PRO-LIFE MEMORIAL DAY: The first Monday in October, the day the U.S. Supreme Court begins its new session, marks American Life League’s annual event honoring the memory of the babies lost to abortion. This year’s date is October 1.
Reading: “Pro-life Memorial Day honors abortion victims,” American Life League news release, 8/10/07
TO ORDER: The official T-shirt of ALL’s Pro-life Memorial Day 2007 is available online.
abortion
TILLER: There’s been a slight delay in the trial of notorious Kansas abortionist George Tiller as a new judge has been appointed for the case. The first judge recused himself because of comments critical of Tiller that he’d made as a state legislator. Tiller is accused of violating state laws regulating late-term abortion.
Reading: “New judge assigned to hear case against George Tiller,” Wichita Eagle, 8/22/07
planned parenthood
ANTI-CATHOLIC: An entry on a Planned Parenthood blog takes issue with Ave Maria University president Nicholas Healy, who said, “We teach what the Catholic church teaches, and the Catholic church teaches that contraception is a grave moral evil and we accept that.” The blog writer, identified only as E. Lockwood, sneered in reply, “Last time I checked, improving the health and economic stability of women in this country doesn’t amount to a ‘grave moral evil.'”
Reading: “Birth control at Ave Maria University–grave moral evil?” Save Roe, 8/15/07
COLORADO: Following on the heels of similar projects in Illinois and Oregon, it has been reported that Planned Parenthood has been quietly been buying up property for a new $4 million headquarters and clinic in Denver. According to the Denver Post, “The organization initially intended to complete the whole project in secrecy in order to avoid the kind of protests and delays that Planned Parenthood’s building projects have ignited elsewhere.” Planned Parenthood now anticipates there will be protests. Local pro-lifers say they will indeed fight the effort.
Reading: “Faceoff looms at new Planned Parenthood,” Denver Post, 8/20/07
ILLINOIS: Pro-life efforts to derail the opening of a new Planned Parenthood abortion facility in the Chicago suburbs include a round-the-clock 40-day vigil outside the building, which is currently under construction. The center is scheduled to open this fall.
Reading: “Chicago pro-lifers launch massive effort to stop new abortion clinic from opening,” Life Site News, 8/18/07
MISSOURI: A Planned Parenthood lawsuit attacks the constitutionality of a new state law that would force its facilities to comply with regulations governing ambulatory surgical centers. The organization complains that it would either have to spend more than $1 million to renovate a Columbia clinic or stop performing abortions there. Of note was the statement offered by Patty Skain, executive director of Missouri Right to Life, who said the new law is not “about ending abortion. It’s not about making it harder to get abortions. It’s about safety.”
Reading: “Clinic rules called unfair in complaint,” Columbia Tribune, 8/21/07
ru-486
SAFE? In looking at recent headlines claiming the RU-486 abortion pill is “safe,” columnist Michelle Gress notes, “RU-486 was fraudulently approved; it has caused the deaths of at least eight women (that are known); and it is at least ten times deadlier than its surgical alternative.”
Reading: “‘Safe’ as a car accident,” National Review Online, 8/22/07
stem cell politics
MICHIGAN: Gov. Jennifer Granholm has backed down, following threats of legal action from the Thomas More Law Center. Granholm had permitted a state web site to be used to promote a petition in favor of human embryonic stem cell research. The law center says, however, that the battle is not yet over.
Reading: “Michigan governor removes stem cell research petition from web site following Thomas More Center lawsuit,” Thomas More Law Center news release, 8/20/07
stem cell research / unethical
SPARE PARTS: A firm called Stem Cell Life Line has found a point of convergence for the twin evils of in vitro fertilization and human embryonic stem cell research. It is telling parents of children conceived through in vitro fertilization that “We’ll turn your spare embryos into embryonic stem cell lines tailored to your child’s potential future medical needs.”
Reading: “California company: We’ll turn your child’s sibling embryos into extra body parts,” Life Site News, 8/22/07
reminders
40 DAYS FOR LIFE: Grassroots pro-lifers in more than 80 communities will participate in the first-ever national 40 Days for Life campaign this fall. The project is based on an event that began in Bryan/College Station, Texas in 2004 and has spread to a half dozen other communities in the three years since. It combines prayer and fasting, a round-the-clock vigil outside an abortion facility and community outreach. Learn more online.
LIFE CHAIN: Mark your calendars now and check online for a Life Chain in your area. The annual event is scheduled for October 7.
SAVING THOSE DAMNED CATHOLICS: Of Judie Brown’s latest book, one reader writes, “The good news is the Catholic Church remains consistent in defending life. The bad news is that many within the Church have co-opted with the culture of death by obfuscating the Truth. Your work reconfirms what we in the pews know to be right!”
TO ORDER: “Saving Those Damned Catholics” is available from ALL in hardcover or paperback. Call 866-LET-LIVE or purchase online.
ULTRASOUND VIDEO: “Baby Steps: Live from the womb, 16 stages of pre-birth development,” is an amazing new video from American Life League that many in the pregnancy center movement say is certain to save lives. The video features dramatic 4-D ultrasound images of preborn babies from 8 to 34 weeks development.
TO ORDER: The “Baby Steps” DVD is available from ALL for $9.95 plus shipping and handling. Call 866-LET-LIVE toll-free, or purchase online.
reflection for prayer
PSALM 145:17-19: You, Lord, are just in all your ways, faithful in all your works. You, Lord, are near to all who call upon you, to all who call upon you in truth. You satisfy the desire of those who fear you; you hear their cry and save them.