LifeNet

Denial of Treatment / euthanasia seminar, Saturday, Feb. 7th

This is sent to us from Alan Mehldau:

On next Saturday, February 7th, the NYS Right to Life Committee will co-host a seminar on Denial of end of life treatment.   

This seminar will provide critical information about bills in the New York State legislature that would undermine current law that protects against involuntary denial of life-saving treatment, food and fluids. All are invited to learn about this grave threat to the lives of your own family, and the pro-life response urgently needed to defeat the danger of involuntary euthanasia in New York before it is too late.  The seminar will be held at the John Barry KOC Hall at 45 Heitz Place in Hicksville, Long Island from 10am -1:30pm.  I intend to drive down that morning.  If anyone is interested in joining me, please give me a call at (914) 763-3651.  A free lunch is included for those who register before Feb 4th.

Sister with her Down Syndrome adopted brother

March for Life 2015 - a blockbuster

UPDATE: Media blackout of March for Life - From the Catholic League

More people then ever (Marchers were still streaming past the Supreme Court at 4 o'clock), even less coverage then ever. NY Times had a picture relating to some Congressional measures to restrict federal funding of abortion and that was it.

The Washington Post had the following article & in the accompanying picture, well, we have a very similar picture of the same little girl, same sign, on her father's shoulders. Our picture below the Washington Post link.

“This march is part of a longer one, and our destination is clear: to secure and protect the rights of every unborn child. When there is disagreement, we should pause and listen closely. When there is movement, we should rejoice, and the House’s vote to ban taxpayer funding of abortion is cause for doing so,” he said.

Here's our picture of the little girl -

 

Notre Dame had 700 hundred student participants, plus faculty and staff, plus the university president - and South Bend is 607 miles from Washington DC. Their Pro-life club is the largest club on the Notre Dame campus.

Here's an excellent article on the ND participation as well as a robust explanation of the right to life movement, and why it's THE civil rights/human rights movement of our time.

Here Come the Irish: Notre Dame Marches for Life

Their impressive banner was toward the end of the long March.

 

Certainly one of the striking features was the very impressive number of young vowed religious and seminarians.

Nashville Dominicans

St. Charles Borromeo Seminarians -they told us almost 130 are attending the Seminary.

 Washington DC Dominican Studies - about 80 students -

Sign tells the Order

Lots of Franciscans

Of course, the Sisters of Life

Mother Agnes, speaks with a member of Pro-bikers for Life

 

Signs -

And ... all 'Dem people!

The St. Augustine's bus, from Ossining, NY

 

The always great shot, looking back down Constitution Ave.

 

 

 

At the top and turning the corner

And last picture - Youth!

Part of a large contingent of Belmont Abbey College students - a Benedictine school - who'd come up from North Carolina.

 

 

AFA: "42 Years After Roe v. Wade, Abortion Wages True War on Women"

An American Family Association press release from several days ago, loaded with useful information. Hit the link for all the info; we are just posting an excerpt.

Many poeple will be traveking from the Hudson Valley for the March for Life, marking the infamous dat; if you cannot, then say a prayer.

42 Years After Roe v. Wade, Abortion Wages True War on Women

In the 42 years since the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion in America, the effects on families have been devastating, says the American Family Association (AFA, www.afa.net). National Right to Life estimates that since 1973, more than 56 million abortions have been performed in the U.S.

Two female leaders within divisions of AFA say that abortion has taken so much away, not only from women in America, but also from parents, families and the culture at large.

“Abortion is not a solution to a problem, cure to a disease, remedy to a burden, or a convenience to an inconvenience,” said Monica Cole, director of OneMillionMoms.com, a division of AFA. “It only creates more problems in the form of turmoil, heartache, regret, hurt and depression. Abortion is not only harmful and destructive to the baby but also to the mother (and father) as so many have shared who have made this painful life-changing decision during a weak or desperate moment that they would change if possible. Most wish this option were not even available. Abortion should never be legal. Life cannot be left in human hands. Only God Himself, the Creator of life, has this control.”

Meeke Addison, Director of Communications for Urban Family Communications, where she co-hosts “Airing the Addisons” with her husband, Wil, on Urban Family Talk, a division of American Family Radio (AFR, www.afr.net), added that particularly alarming is the abortion industry’s targeting of African-American and Hispanic communities.

“It’s no secret that abortion providers target communities with higher minority populations,” said Addison, who is a leader in the African-American community. “We hear the cry that ‘Black Lives Matter’, and this is true. But if we are truly concerned about black lives, the African-American community should be rising up united across the nation to denounce the targeted slaughter of African-American unborn babies?”

"Death with Dignity" to be introduced in NY State Senate.

As people who read this blog understand, this was very predictable. Assisted suicide & euthansia fit in with the general consistent ethic of death of these people. After all "whose body is it", "pro-choice", etc.

The verbal engineering is sickening. And here's a sad poll on this issue from this past October, which we posted. Rasmussen poll: By 2 to 1, Americans favor euthanasia/assisted suicide

"Death with Dignity" AKA assisted suicide/euthanasia will be introduced in the NY State Senate by two "progressive" Democrat State Senators. Eventually, the "right" will become an unspoken duty ... After all, caring for people at the end of life chews up vast amounts of medical resources. Death Panels, anyone?

“There are only five states in the country that allow for people to make end of life decisions similar to what Oregon does, and New York is not one of them,” State Senator Diane Savino told the Observer.

The senators are working with Compassion and Choices, the advocacy group that published a video of Maynard discussing her choice to move to Oregon and set a date for the end of her life that put her—and the issue of aid in dying legislation—in the spotlight late last year. The group is continuing to lobby on her behalf for similar laws nationwide, along with Maynard’s husband Dan Diaz, who this week gave his first interviews since his wife’s death. Compassion & Choices also lobbied on behalf of another priority of Ms. Savino’s—the medical marijuana law passed last year.

“Compassion & Choices, as Diane proved, is a terrific partner and has a lot of experience in the New York State legislature. That’s why I’m thrilled to partner with Sen. Savino on this issue,” Mr. Hoylman said, also noting Ms. Savino’s ties to leadership as a member of the Democratic Independent Conference.

Plenty more if you hit the link.

Children First Foundation honors two groups

The Children First Foundation annual Distinguished Service Award Ceremony was on December 28th in Yonkers.

Dr. Elizabeth Rex, co-founder of CFF in NY, along with her husband Charles, spoke briefly and reminded all of the glaring neglect of the issue of adoption. And of the long battle - still going on - to get the pro-adoption specialty license plate approved in NY. Where are the "war on women" voices on adoption?

The first honoree was The Human Life Foundation, founded in 1974 by J.P. McFadden. They are the publishers of the Human Life Review, the internationally known quarterly publication which has for forty years provided an intellectual backbone for the pro-life movement. Visit their website! Thay are gradually digitally archiving all forty years of their publications, which include Ronald Reagan's essay "Abortion and the Conscience of a Nation", which is now also available on amazon. 

Maria McFadden Mafucci is the editor of the Human Life Review and accepted the award.

Maria McFadden Maffucci and Dr. Elizabeth Rex

 

The second honoree was HVCL (the Hudson Valley Coalition for Life - that's us/you!). We thank the Children First Foundation for recognizing our efforts - which are truly the efforts of our subscribers, both hard copy newsletter and digital/online.

 

 

Lumina, post abortion healing Advent dinner

This year's Lumina Advent Dinner "Lighting the Way to Christ and Healing" took place Thursday, December 4th at the Hilton Westchester, in Rye Brook, NY. There were several wonderful talks, and Lumina Director Theresa Bonopartis laid out the past year's accomplishments and future goals. You can read it here.

And here are her last three sentences:

And so I will end where I began

“Mercy is love that suffers the evil of another to affirm his dignity so that he does not have to suffer alone.” Pope JP II

Christ did that for us, may we always by His grace do the same for others.

Below, from left to right, Brianna Timlin, Chris Bell, Bishop Peter Byrne, honoree Linda Cochrane, and Theresa Bonopartis.

Linda was the developer of the first post-abortion recovery program, "Forgiven and Set Free." She also co-authored "Healing a Father's heart," a post-abortion Bible Study for men.

 

 

The Catholic Leaague remarks on Mario Cuomo

A couple of days ago there was an interesting take by the Catholic League on the late governor, who was tragically the trailblazer for pro-abortion Catholic politicians, with his 1984 speech at Notre Dame.

 

The Catholic League:

MARIO CUOMO’S LESSONS ON LIFE

Bill Donohue comments on the passing of Mario Cuomo:

Mario Cuomo will be buried tomorrow. The former governor of New York is remembered for many things, but as a Catholic he is most remembered for his 1984 speech at the University of Notre Dame.

In his address, “Religious Belief and Public Morality: A Catholic Governor’s Perspective,” Cuomo explained why his personal opposition to abortion could not be his public position as governor. Invoking the principle of separation of church and state, he said that in order for  Catholic public officials “to assure our freedom we must allow others the same freedom, even if occasionally it produces conduct by them which we would hold to be sinful.”

While most of Cuomo’s remarks framed abortion as a religious issue, he also recognized the humanity of the unborn child. “For me life or fetal life in the womb should be protected, even if five of nine Justices of the Supreme Court and my neighbor disagree with me.” Indeed, he said it demanded “reverence.” However, he noted that “not everyone in our society agrees with me and Matilda [his wife].”

In his lengthy speech, Cuomo made only one passing reference to the death penalty. On that subject, which Catholic teaching presumptively opposes, he had no problem adopting the Church’s position: he strongly opposed the death penalty and as governor he consistently vetoed legislation that allowed for it. In 2011, he defended his position by saying, “Capital punishment raises important questions about how, as a society, we view human beings.”

Cuomo never explained why abortion did not raise the same societal questions about how we treat human beings that capital punishment does. Nor did he explain why it was okay for him to “impose” his Catholic teachings on others when it came to capital punishment but not abortion. Nor did he say why the intentional killing of innocent children should not summon the same legal safeguards that are extended to convicted serial murderers. But these were his lessons on life.

The Catholic League extends its condolences to the Cuomo family.

 

Governor Cuomo vetoes help for adoption

Pathetic. Like father, like son?

An "Albany Update" press release. See if you can follow Cuomo's logic.

Governor Steals Christmas From Foster Care Kids

Albany, NY –The Adoption Tax Deduction Bill (S.3382-A – Hassell-Thompson/A.2378-B – Crespo), which would provide a personal income tax deduction for all fees and expenses incurred in connection with the adoption of a child in New York’s foster care system during a given tax year, has been vetoed by Gov. Andrew Cuomo. Rev. Jason J. McGuire, Executive Director of New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms, made the following remarks:

“Gov. Andrew Cuomo has failed thousands of adoption-eligible foster children across New York by vetoing the Adoption Tax Deduction Bill. This bill would encourage adults to adopt children from the foster care system, and would mitigate financial concerns that might otherwise prevent families from considering adoption. While the Governor claims that cost concerns make it advisable for this bill to be considered within the budget process, his argument does not hold water. First, the slight amount of tax revenue that the state might lose due to adoption tax deductions would likely be more than offset by the savings realized due to decreased foster care costs. Second, the Department of Health has proposed to provide Medicaid funding for elective surgeries for transgendered persons, and plans to make this change not through budget negotiations or legislation, but through a rulemaking process. If so-called ‘sex reassignment’ surgeries can receive taxpayer funding outside of the budget process (and without any action by the Legislature), adoptive parents should be able to receive tax deductions outside of the budget process. Better yet, the Governor ought to jettison the taxpayer-funded surgeries and use those funds to provide tax deductions for adoptive parents. Where are the Governor’s priorities?”

“Gov. Cuomo should remember that his decision regarding the Adoption Tax Deduction Bill has made it more difficult for foster children in New York to be united with ‘forever families.’ We were hoping to encourage these kids with an early Christmas gift, but the State of New York has a Grinch for governor.”

The Holy Father speaks out on euthanasia

Or the mis-appropriately named "right to die."

“How great a lie,” he wrote, “lurks behind certain phrases which so insist on the importance of ‘quality of life’ that they make people think that lives affected by grave illness are not worth living.”

Pope Francis invited people to see the world and those who are sick or in need of care with “the wisdom of the heart”, which is pure, peaceable, gentle, open to reason, merciful, certain and sincere.

“It is a way of seeing things infused by the Holy Spirit in the minds and the hearts of those who are sensitive to the sufferings of their brothers and sisters and who can see in them the image of God,” he wrote.

Having “wisdom of the heart” means going out of oneself and serving others with compassion and without judgment – unlike those who, in the biblical story of Job, who thought Job’s misfortune “was a punishment from God for his sins”, the Pope said in his message.

“True charity is a sharing which does not judge, which does not demand the conversion of others; it is free of that false humility which, deep down, seeks praise and is self-satisfied about whatever good it does,” he wrote.

 

New Year reminder: Pope Francis on abortion

Since most of the media likes some of what Pope Francis says, while ignoring his abortion statements, here's a good refresher. From Christianity Today, back in April.

In the headline the Holy Father is quoting Vatican II

Abortion and infanticide are 'unspeakable crimes', says Pope

He described the right to life as "first and most fundamental right" upon which all other civil rights are based on.

"It is therefore necessary to reiterate the strongest opposition to any direct attack on life, especially innocent and defenceless."

Quoting the Second Vatican Council, Pope Francis said: "From the moment of its conception, life must be guarded with the greatest care while abortion and infanticide are unspeakable crimes."

Taking the pro-life message in a different direction to many other pontiffs, Pope Francis linked the cause of fighting abortion to the establishment of global social and economic justice.

LifeSiteNews.com quoted the Pope as saying: "This economy kills. It considers the human being in himself as a commodity; a commodity that you can use and then throw away."

He described one of modernity's "most serious risks" as being "the divorce between economics and morality".

Sharing his view of the world, Pope Francis said he saw on the one hand "a market equipped with every technological innovation" and on the other "elementary ethical standards of human nature more and more neglected".

All human life, the Pope said, is "a gift from God" and that those who understand it as such see life as "a valuable and intangible asset, to be protected by all means and not to be discarded".

And more from the article -

he also urged those attending to not become so focused on the unborn child that care for the mother is forgotten.

Speaking about how to engage with women considering abortion, Pope Francis said: "I encourage you to always act with a style of nearness, of closeness: that every woman feels regarded as a person who is heard, accepted, and accompanied."

In this direction, he praised the work of the 'Gemma Project' which helps women facing crisis pregnancies, and helps facilitate long distance adoptions.