in this issue:
abortion: INDIANA / NONE DARE RISK MURDER / POST-ABORTION PROBLEMS / STATISTICS
activism: FEMINISTS FOR LIFE / NEW JERSEY I / NEW JERSEY II
contraceptive failure: UNACCEPTED PREGNANCIES
hospice: PROTECTING THE VULNERABLE
ru-486 (mifeprex): DANCO
reflection for prayer: ARCHBISHOP CHARLES J. CHAPUT
afterthought: POPE PAUL VI
abortion
INDIANA: The Porter Memorial Hospital board voted 4-3 to continue doing abortions, defeating a proposal initiated by Porter County Right to Life (see Communique, 9/13/02). The Valparaiso area group says it will continue to fight to eliminate abortions at the medical center. A local Planned Parenthood representative called the vote “a courageous step on behalf of choice.”
(Reading: “PMH to continue abortions,” The Times, 9/26/02)
NONE DARE RISK MURDER: St. Jerome (AD 340-420) knew that abortion was murder. He wrote, “You may see many women widows before wedded, who try to conceal their miserable fall by a lying garb. Unless they are betrayed by swelling wombs or by the crying of their infants…Some go so far as to take potions, that they may insure barrenness …Some, when they find themselves with child through their sin, use drugs to procure abortion, and when (as often happens) they die with their offspring, they enter the lower world laden with the guilt not only of adultery against Christ but also of suicide and child murder…Yet it is these who say: “…my conscience is sufficient guide for me.”
(Reading: “The early church fathers and abortion“)
POST-ABORTION PROBLEMS: A recent study points out that “children whose mothers have a history of abortion tend to have less emotional support at home and more behavioral problems than children whose mothers have not had abortions.” David Reardon, Ph.D., says these studies underscore the importance of educating the public about post-abortion reactions and the availability of post-abortion counseling programs. “Ignorance of the problem — or the fear of addressing it — deprives women of that interior sense of peace we all need. But by working through the forbidden grief over past abortions, women are more free to become the best parents they can be.”
(Reading: “Abortion may affect mothering and development of later children,” Eliott Institute news release, 9/18/02)
(Contact: for information on post-abortion healing and retreat weekends, see Rachel’s Vineyard)
STATISTICS: An analysis of 47 abortion-reporting states and legal requirements for that reporting can be viewed on the CDC web site
(Reading: “Legal induced abortion reporting in the United States,” Centers for Disease Control and Prevention)
activism
FEMINISTS FOR LIFE: It is estimated that the audience for a new national ad campaign will be millions of college students.
(Reading: “College outreach program,” Feminists for Life)
NEW JERSEY I: The Catholic Diocese of Metuchen, N.J., is hosting a life issues conference on Oct. 19. Wesley J. Smith is one of the featured speakers. CME credits are available.
(Reading: “Critical life issues conference,” Diocese of Metuchen)
NEW JERSEY II: The Archdiocese of Newark is hosting a pro-life seminar on Oct. 19 at St. John the Apostle Church Auditorium in Linden, N.J. Speakers include Damon and Melanie Owens, Leonie Watson, M.D., and Father Benedict Groeschel. For details call 732-388-8211 or e-mail the .
contraceptive failure
UNACCEPTED PREGNANCIES: A Danish study involving 3,520 pregnant women analyzed contraceptive failure among the 315 of those women who admitted to getting pregnant because of such failures. Of those women, 52% aborted; 10% had spontaneous abortions, others either suffered ectopic pregnancy (3%) or carried their babies to term. Researchers say that women who “consider it of importance to be married/cohabitating, having finished their education, and being established in the labor market” are most likely to accept the baby and carry her to term.
(Reading: “Contraceptive failure — results from a study conducted among women with accepted and unaccepted pregnancies in Demark,” Contraception, 66 (2002), pp. 109-116)
hospice
PROTECTING THE VULNERABLE: The Hospice Patients Alliance has a weekly e-mail update service, and posts the most recent cases of abuse in hospice care as well as what patients must expect from hospice facilities on its web site. Specific information is available by .
ru-486 (mifeprex)
DANCO: The pharmaceutical firm distributing the abortion drug Mifeprex reports more than 100,000 American mothers have already used the chemical to abort their children. The majority of sales for this abortion cocktail come from groups aligned with Planned Parenthood Federation of American and the National Abortion Federation.
(Reading: “Drugmaker says abortion pill sales on the rise,” Reuters Health News, 9/24/02)
reflection for prayer
ARCHBISHOP CHARLES J. CHAPUT: We who belong to the Church are commissioned to be Jesus’ presence in the world. Because of that, the Church must continually carry out the threefold ministry of Jesus. He preached the Good News; he built up the community of believers; and he served those around him, especially those most in need. That’s what the Church should be today. Catholics are meant to be a reflection of Christ’s presence in the world, preaching the Gospel, spreading the kingdom of God, building up the community of the faithful, and then reaching out to those who are most in need. If we don’t do all these things, we’re not the full, clear presence of Christ in the world.
afterthought
POPE PAUL VI: Responsible men can become more deeply convinced of the truth of the doctrine laid down by the Church on this issue if they reflect on the consequences of methods and plans for artificial birth control. Let them first consider how easily this course of action could open wide the way for marital infidelity and a general lowering of moral standards. Not much experience is needed to be fully aware of human weakness and to understand that human beings — and especially the young, who are so exposed to temptation — need incentives to keep the moral law, and it is an evil thing to make it easy for them to break that law. Another effect that gives cause for alarm is that a man who grows accustomed to the use of contraceptive methods may forget the reverence due to a woman, and, disregarding her physical and emotional equilibrium, reduce her to being a mere instrument for the satisfaction of his own desires, no longer considering her as his partner whom he should surround with care and affection.
Finally, careful consideration should be given to the danger of this power passing into the hands of those public authorities who care little for the precepts of the moral law. Who will blame a government which in its attempt to resolve the problems affecting an entire country resorts to the same measures as are regarded as lawful by married people in the solution of a particular family difficulty? Who will prevent public authorities from favoring those contraceptive methods which they consider more effective? Should they regard this as necessary, they may even impose their use on everyone. It could well happen, therefore, that when people, either individually or in family or social life, experience the inherent difficulties of the divine law and are determined to avoid them, they may give into the hands of public authorities the power to intervene in the most personal and intimate responsibility of husband and wife.
(Reading: “Humanae Vitae,” section 17)