Sign the Petition to Educate Expectant Parents about Down Syndrome

Noelle proud mother of Jaden, her son with Down syndrome, and author of the blog, Jaden's Journal, asks us to sign this petition to urge action on the bill to educate parents about the true nature of Down syndrome and the reality of life with Downs. For some reason, there are forces in our Congress who oppose this, but we can unite to overcome them.

cause of our joy: Jaden's Journal author has a mission to lower the abortion rate of Down syndrome children

cause of our joy: Jaden's Journal author has a mission to lower the abortion rate of Down syndrome children

The media rolls out the red carpet for Dr. Death

"Assisted suicide crusader Jack Kevorkian gets out of prison on Friday and the event has sparked a slew of media stories focusing on his release."

LifeNews

Dr Death suffers from a number of health problems, none of which have caused him to consider euthanizing himself however, he wants to stay alive till he can push pro-death legislation, collect $100K a speech, have his book published, and see Ben Kingsley, who won an Oscar in 1982 for a noble portrayal of Ghandi, portray him in a biopic.

The media want to make a hero of this twisted man. What kind of a sick society celebrates a monster like Kevorkian? Don't buy his book, see his speeches,read his book or see the movie.

The electorate have rejected his sick views on death and dying, according to Barbara Lister, head of Michigan's Right to Life.

"In 1998, the people of Michigan soundly defeated a proposal to legalize assisted suicide in Michigan by a margin of 71 percent to 29 percent. Assisted suicide has been rejected by 49 of 50 states. (Every state except Oregon.) Kevorkian and his radical agenda have failed as our society recognizes that killing is not a solution to suffering,” Listing told LifeNews.com

As usual, the media is out in left field, using it's influence to drag the culture down to it's level of depravity. Abort the unfit, or unwelcome child, and snuff out the infirm elderly, avoid any mention of your own death while you live a comfortable immoral life. As long as you're slim, young-looking, and have money to spend, life is worth living, right?

Adoro te Devote: Centering Prayer vs. Contemplative Prayer

Adoro te Devote: Centering Prayer vs. Contemplative Prayer

Youth attracted to Tradition

Rod Dreher makes the point that far from seeking the 'happy-clappy' relevant services which middle-aged youth ministers design for them, today's youth are increasingly seeking out traditional forms of worship. This cannot be assigned to nostalgia, as they haven't grown up with tradition, yet they instinctively seek it, as they sense it's authenticity, and transcendence.
Dreher states,

"The imminent return of the Latin Mass offers a tremendous opportunity for Catholic traditionalists to appeal to those unsatisfied by happy-clappy
modernism within contemporary Catholicism. The media attention that will be given to the Latin Mass moment is also a chance for other forms of religious traditionalism to step out of the incense-clouded shadows and show the world what they have to offer. Much to the astonishment of the baby boomer generation, who thought such things had been relegated to an irrecoverable past, everything old really is new again. "

Not this baby boomer! I was born at the tail end of that generation, and just vaguely remember the Latin Mass, but I long for the solemnity, the silence, and the ethereal hymns which I can enjoy once a month, forty minutes from home. I take my girls and expose them to the glory of Catholicism fully lived, and then ask them to compare that with the 'youth Mass' at home. They sing in the schola at the Traditional Mass, and know more Latin than their mother, thanks to homeschool co-ops. I think tradition is coming full circle.

HT Spirit Daily

V for Victory!: Remember

V for Victory!: Remember

Solemnity of Pentecost

Next to Easter Sunday, this is the most important feast of the Church as it commemorates the birth of the Church in the upper room, or cenacle. Pope John Paul II, in his general audience on July 8, 1998, said,

Today we would like to reflect on the mystery of Christ’s Body which is the
Church, inasmuch as she is enlivened and animated by the Holy Spirit.
After the Pentecost event, the group that gave rise to the Church profoundly changes: at first it was a closed, static group of “about a hundred and twenty” (Acts
1:15); later it was an open, dynamic group to which, after Peter’s address,
“were added about three thousand souls” (Acts 2:41). The true newness did not
consist so much in this numerical growth, however extraordinary, but in the
presence of the Holy Spirit. A group of people is not enough to form a Christian
community. The Holy Spirit brings the Church to birth. She appears — to use a happy phrase of the late Cardinal Congar — “entirely suspended from heaven."

If one sings the Veni Creator Spritus on Pentecost, a plenary indulgence is granted IF, besides singing the hymn:
1. sacramental confession is received close to this day
2. Holy Communion is received today
3. Prayers such as the Our Father and Hail Mary are offered for the Holy Father
Source: Catholic CultureINDEX

VENI CREATOR SPIRITUS
Please click here to start MIDI(this is the musical accompaniment that will help you sing the hymn in Latin)
1
Veni Creátor Spíritus,Méntes tuórum vísita:
Imple supérna grátia,Quæ tu creásti péctora.
Come, Holy Spirit, Creator come,From Thy bright heavenly throne!
Come, take posession of our souls,And make them all Thine own!
2
Qui díceris Paráclitus,Altíssimi dónum Déi,
Fons vivus, ignis, cáritas,Et spiritális únctio.
Thou who art called the Paraclete,Best Gift of God above,
The Living Spring, the Living Fire,Sweet Unction, and True Love!
3
Tu septifórmis múnere,Dígitus Patérnæ déxteræ,
Tu rite promíssum Pátris,Sermóne ditans gúttura.
Thou who art seven-fold in Thy grace,Finger of God's right Hand,
His promise, teaching little onesTo speak and understand!
4
Accénde lúmen sénsibus,Infúnde amórem córdibus,
Infírma nóstri córporisVirtúte fírmans pérpeti.
O guide our minds with Thy blest light,With love our hearts inflame,
And with Thy strength which ne'er decaysConfirm our mortal frame.
5
Hóstem repéllas lóngius,Pacémque dónes prótinus:
Ductóre sic te prævio,Vitémus ómne nóxium.
Far from us drive our hellish foe,True peace unto us bring,
And through all perils guide us safeBeneath Thy sacred wing.
6
Per te sciámus da Pátrem,Noscámus atque Fílium,
Téque utriúsque SpíritumCredámus ómni témpore.
Through Thee may we the Father know,Through Thee the Eternal Son,
And Thee the Spirit of them BothThrice-blessed Three in One.
7
Déo Pátri sit glória,Et Fílio, qui a mórtuisSurréxit,
ac Paráclito,In sæculórum sæcula.
All glory to the Father be,And to the risen Son;The same to Thee,
O Paraclete,While endless ages run.
Amen.

Book Meme

How many books do you own?
At least 20 boxes last time I moved, which was 8 years ago. I don't have the energy to count them!

What books are you reading now?
1. The Trivium: The Liberal Arts of Logic, Grammar, and Rhetoric by Sr. Miriam Joseph
2. The Confessions of St. Patrick

Books I've read recently:
1. Noise by Teresa Tomeo
2.Mom to Mom, Day to Day by Danielle Bean

Five Books That Mean a Lot to Me:
1.Pregnancy Diary by Mary Arnold
2. All Creatures Great and Small by James Herriot
3. The Hiding Place by Corrie Ten Boom
4. The Holy Bible
5. The Story of the Trapp Family Singers by Maria Von Trapp
I tag anyone who wants to play.
Anita at V for Victory and Jean at Catholic Fire have taken up the meme and they are quite well-read. I could tell, however, from reading their insightful, thought provoking posts!

Papal Plays in Karol Wojtyla Festival Off-Broadway

“I don’t know if anyone has attempted this sort of festival before in New York City,” says Michelle Kafel, associate producer. “Who would ever imagine John Paul II off-Broadway?”
Peter Dobbins, the theater’s co-founder, did.
Dobbins found a translation of the pope’s plays in a Texas bookshop 20 years ago, and was taken with them while he was a young performer. “If you sat and read it in your room, you would think this was kind of deep and heady,” Dobbins says. “But when actors say it, it becomes a different experience, it becomes light and beautiful.”
The theater group at the Storm Theatre- which has produced everything from Shakespeare’s “The Tempest” to “Linnea,” a retelling of Dostoevsky’s “The Idiot” - had been talking about putting on the plays for years, but only recently secured the rights from Pope John Paul II’s translator Boleslaw Taborski. Taborski, via e-mail, says the pope actually wrote one other play, “David,” which has never been found.
“It’s an exciting and welcome prospect that an off-Broadway group attempts a venture no one has done before anywhere in the world - to put on all [of the pope’s] available plays. Plays that are not ‘easy’ entertainment,” says Taborski. “They are complex in their structure and require concentration on the part of spectators. But to follow them, and take in their contents is, I would say, a unique and rewarding experience.”
HT NY POST
I have a film of John Paul's play, The Jeweler's Shop, made in the late 80's featuring the ever young Olivia Hussey, and Ben Cross in lead roles. It reveals an insight into marriage relationships which, considering the author's lifestyle, is amazing. There is a Christ figure in the Jeweler, played by Burt Lancaster, who uses the weight of the couple's wedding rings to diagnose the state of their marriage.
From my online search, I gather that this video is no longer available. If I get to the festival, you'll hear about it here. Here is some information about showtimes for the play Jeremiah in the New York Times. For more showtimes, contact The Storm Theatre. Tickets are a modest $ 20.

Update, I'm trying to plan a youth trip to see "Our God's Brother" on Saturday June 2nd at 2PM, followed by a modestly priced dinner, and the Catholic Underground at Our Lady of Good Counsel on E 90th Street. If you park at the lot across from the Church, and attend the Underground, you can get parking for only $10 for the entire day. What a deal, the best of Catholic Culture, the JPII generation coming with us, and $10 parking, who says there's no heaven on earth?!
If you live near New York City (we're 1 1/2 hours away on Long Island)come join us!

Pagan societies embraced abortion and infanticide; Christians abolished the practice; until recently

"Unless we learn from history, we are doomed to repeat it" is a quote I often put on the blackboard when teaching high school history. It seems that some Christians Churches have trouble remembering that what set Christianity apart from brutal pagan Rome was a respect for life and abhorrance for abortion, human sacrifice, and infantacide. Until recently.
It seems we're back to the days of the Roman Circus bloodbaths in our movies, and actualy killing in our medical centers. May God have mercy on this society.

Jordin Sparks, the new American Idol, wears a purity ring!

I haven't been watching American Idol this year, but it's been on in the next room so I could monitor my girls who were glued to the TV.
I was touched, however, when I heard that she was asked by the hosts of Fox and Friends this morning what kind of ring was on her left finger, and she answered it's her pledge that True Love Waits, or that she will remain pure for her husband on their wedding night. That is AWESOME!

NOW I'm into American Idol! Good for you, Jordin, please don't let success change your innocence. You are a role model for millions of young people around the world.
You are also a good example for the Democrats in Congress who are de-funding abstinence programs.

They think what you are doing is impossible.
Jordin, you go girl!
UPDATE:
Michelle just informed us that not only is she pro-life, but she was HOMESCHOOLED too! So I did some digging on her past involvements, and look what I've found.
Here's a photo of Jordin, who has long been active in pro-life movement, she recently sang at the Arizona Right to Life Conference. Naturally this has become a controversy, but I say, you can't argue with a talent like hers, especially when she gives glory to God with it.
Lifenews says,
"the Internet has been full of talk in recent days about a photo that appeared on Sparks' personal Myspace page with her holding a sign from National Right to Life saying Stop Abortion Now.
In fact, those gigs at pro-life rallies are credited with getting a buzz about her and catching the eye of well-known Christian singer Michael W. Smith, with whom she performed.
Her singing in contemporary Christian circles won her enough praise that she won the Gospel Music Association Spotlight Award in 2004."

Norma McCorvey of Roe v Wade endorses Sam Brownback for President

Catholic convert and convert to the pro-life movement, Norma McCorvey said,
“As the lead plaintiff in one of the most tragic Supreme Court decisions in U.S. history resulting in abortion-on-demand, I can appreciate as much as anyone the importance of the pro-life movement accepting converts. However, it should give us great concern when certain politicians join the pro-life movement just prior to announcing a run for president in the Republican primary. Conversions are critical, but so is sincerity. Sam Brownback is a candidate that we can trust to fight for life, because he’s already done so for many, many years.”

A Special Fireman wins award for his department

Chickahominy Volunteer Fire Department in Ashland, VA has had Mark, a man with Down Syndrome in their department for years. Now they have a big prize to spend because of an essay written about them by his mother, Winnie Southworth. This type of story warms the heart of a mother with a Down Syndrome child; it gives her hope for her child's future.
Watch the film here.

Read the essay by Winnie Southworth
It is hard to put into words how the men at Hanover Station 10 became my heroes. The feelings I have about them have developed through many experiences. One definition of a hero is someone who is distinguished by exceptional courage and nobility and strength. Most people automatically define firefighters as all of these things. So why is it that I find Station 10 exemplary in their brotherhood? Let me explain….
Many years ago my Down syndrome son Mark saw a program on TV that showed another individual with Down syndrome who got to go with his brother to the firehouse and rode in the ambulance when he went out on calls. Mark got excited and said he could do that, too. My husband was a police officer, my daughter a paramedic. But Mark was adamant about being a firefighter. When I said I didn’t think he would be able to do that, he simply said he would pray. It’s hard to tell your child that they can’t follow their dreams — even when you’re sure they won’t come true. So I let him hope, knowing life would teach whatever lessons needed to be taught.

C'mon, excommunicate me!

Frances Kissling, the now retired President of Catholics for a Free Choice taunts bishops who have failed to inform her of her excommunication for her outspoken support of abortion all these years, along with Kennedy, Cuomo et al. Is there no bishop out there to comply with her request?!

May is the month of Mary

Have you been to a May crowning yet? Share it with us in the comments.
Yesterday I had my 19 First Holy Communion students and their families participate in a May crowning in my backyard Mary garden, processing around the yard singing in Spanish,
"Es Maria la blanca paloma,
Es Maria la blanca paloma,
Que ha venido a America
Que ha venido a America
Que ha venido a America
Traer la paz. "
Translation: "It's Mary, the white dove, who has come to America to bring peace."
We then knelt and prayed a decade of the rosary together with the parents in Spanish. Next year, while they are preparing for receiving the Holy Eucharist, they'll learn the rosary in English.
(Maria Von Trapp said, "you will always count and pray in your mother tongue.")
Sorry, I was leading the procession, so there aren't any photos. Here is Isabella offering good example.

Update on Immigration Debate

Thank you, Alicia for stating so eloquently what I have always felt about this issue. It gives me great pain when fellow Catholics speak about all illegals as if they were hardened criminals seeking to do us harm. I have worked with Hispanic immigrants for twenty years, and they are usually humble, Christian parents who love God and are trying to help their families, both here and in their country; often at great personal cost. We should welcome them to out churches, and help them, not revile them. Their Marian devotions are unique and vibrant, reviving our sanitzed churches with color and song. Their love for children is infectious, just look at the Holy Father in Brazil!
Speaking of illegal immigrants, my Italian ancestors were often called WOPS. Besides being a racial slur, did you know it's origin? It means WithOut Passport. Someone must have been jumping ship!
My Irish grandma lied about her age to Immigration authories to come here and help feed her many siblings, and her sister came here illegally from Canada, a common practice in the 20's. How quickly we forget our own roots!

US Bishops fire back at pro-abort Catholic politicians

Sister Mary Ann Walsh, media director for the USCCB stated“The Catholic Church proclaims that human life is sacred and that the dignity of the human person is the foundation of a moral vision of society," Walsh said. "Consequently, every Catholic is obliged to respect human life, from conception until natural death."
"To suggest that the Church should not clearly voice its teaching and apply it in a pluralistic society is to attack freedom of speech and freedom of religion," she contended.
She warned the pro-abortion lawmakers that the Catholic Church will never stop speaking out against the destruction of human life via abortion.
HT:Life News

Normally I abhor violent means to solve injustice

However, after reading horror stories for years on the Chinese one child policy's terrorist tactics, it sorta warmed my heart to hear about this village where thousands have had enough.

The one-child policy has become a symbol of the wealth gap in China.
Earlier this month, government officials admitted that many rich families
violated the rules because they could afford the fines.
Inequality, land grabs and pollution fears have prompted a wave of unrest in the provinces.
According to the ministry of public security, there were 87,000 protests,
officially termed "mass incidents," reported in 2005, up 6.6% on 2004 and 50%
from 2003. HT: Guardian Unlimited

The one-child policy is an excuse for thugs to rob, destroy property, and terrorize Chinese peasants. Remember who supports this thuggery; the UN Population Fund, which President Bush has voted to de-fund, precisely because of this injustice.

Rush is right AGAIN! Revisted.

Musings from a Catholic Bookstore has a great post about the inevitable conclusion the green machine will come to when allowed unfettered access to the media, and our children via the educational system. Children equal pollution, and must be eliminated.
Did anyone out there doubt that this is where they were heading?
Rush Limbaugh discussing one of his favorite subjects, the anthropomorphizing of primates, said, that Jane Goodall is fighting for human rights for apes in the Eurotrash court system. He then pointed out, the same thing I was shouting at the radio, that unborn babies aren't considered human, yet apes are. He argued that the next logical step is to give them the vote."
Here's their unbelievable agenda:

In order to achieve the goal of establishing a “community of equals,” the Great
Ape Project lists three rights or principles that must be achieved. They
are:
“1. The Right to Life [in which] the lives of members of the community
of equals are to be protected. Members of the community of equals may not be
killed except in very strictly defined circumstances, for example, self-defense.
2. The Protection of Individual Liberty [in which] members of the community
of equals are not to be arbitrarily deprived of their liberty. . . ..
3. The
Prohibition of Torture [in which] the deliberate infliction of severe pain on a
member of the community of equals, either wantonly or for an alleged benefit to
others, is regarded as torture, and is wrong.. . . ...”
As tempting as it is
to dismiss the group as part of a fringe element, the Great Ape Project has been
supported by such influential individuals as primate expert Jane Goodall and
Princeton’s infamous bioethicist Peter Singer. If Singer’s name seems familiar,
he has authored a number of works, including Practical Ethics, in which the
professor wrote:
"Therefore, if killing the hemophiliac infant has no
adverse affects on the others, it would, according to the total view [of
utilitarianism], be right to kill him. The main point is clear: killing a
disabled infant is not morally equivalent to killing a person. Very often it is not wrong at all."
And in that same book he wrote:
"The only difference between killing a normal infant and a defective one is the attitude of the parents."

Dr Singer, here are some moms of disabled childen with ATTITUDE! The authors of GIFTS proudly announce that their book has gone into a second printing before hitting the shelves at Barnes and Noble!
Do you think they should send a copy to Dr. Singer?

Illegal Immigrants get ripped off by our Social Security System

Before you pile on me, please know that I didn't come up with this on my own. Fr. Benedict Groeschel, no great liberal, yet faithful to Church teaching and to the truth, said it. On his live call in show Sunday evening, he said the following about sin, "we are guilty of robbing the poor in ways that we aren't aware, and this is a sin which the Old Testament says 'cries out to heaven for vengance'. "
He continued, "every year, illegal immigrants with fake Social Security cards pay BILLIONS of dollars into the system which they will never collect; they help keep that failing system going". The USCCB confirms this fact. So does my husband Francisco, who, as an illegal fleeing the terrible civil war in El Salvador, paid six months of Social Security he will never collect. Here is an article in USA Today confirming this fact.
So, next time a Catholic pundit (Sean Hannity, Bill O'Reilly, are you listening?) tells you that illegals do nothing but rob this country, mention this fact. Yes, their kids go to school and get medical care. They are most likely citizens, and, even if they aren't, would you have them wandering the streets or die of preventable diseases right here in the USA?
Let me set the record straight, in my day job, I have worked with the poor for nearly 25 years. Illegal immigrants are NOT eligible for welfare. Do they still mangage to exploit the system sometimes? Sure. Did you ever file a homeowner's claim, or a tax deduction that was shaky? Let's be honest with ourselves,as Catholics, can't we afford to allow some of the poorest people in the world just get a job to feed their families? We who are overweight, whose homes are completely oversized for the 2.1 children we have, whose cars are big enough to climb the Rocky Mountains, yet never will, and whose cruise vacations rival those of the rich and famous. Why do we think it's moral to live like this, while children in the Southern Hemisphere die of hunger by the minute? Watch those World Vision Infomercials next time.
If your children lived where the water carried disease, and they had to scrape through garbage to eat, what would you be willing to do, to help them survive?
American Catholics are some of the richest people in the history of the world, yet we give a paltry 1% to our collection baskets in church, far less than Protestants. Yet our Church is involved in so many worthy projects to help the poor provide for themselves. Evangelization, education, health care, housing, there is so much your money can provide for the poor.

Mother Teresa told the story of a young Indian couple who, instead of the extravagant wedding which Indian couples celebrate, donated all the money to her. She asked them why they would sacrifice their wedding celebration, and they answered, "we want to share the joy of loving". I had a nice wedding, but since I've been married, I have supported several of my husbands' relatives through college. Was I always a willing and cheerful giver? Nope. God has blessed even my reluctant generosity, and He will certainly bless yours.

Here are some 100% reliable places to donate money.
Missionaries of Charity
Food for the Poor
Christian Foundation for Children and Aging
Franciscan Friars of the Renewal
Catholic World Mission
Servants of the Lord and the Virgin of Matara

Lighthouse Media teaches the faith

I keep a bag of CD's in my car from Lighthouse Catholic Media to listen to, and to give away. How can I afford to give away great teaching CDs?

Read at this amusing testimony from my friend Tracey, who is a Brooklyn girl, by the way!
"I would like to share with you what happened to me today. The Holy Spirit and I out-talked two Jehovah Witnesses!!! They kept trying to get away from me by saying, "We don't want to take up any more of your time." and I kept saying, "Oh I don't mind." (he, he, he!) They asked me if I was Catholic referring to our Blessed Mother statue and I immediately said that I know Jehovah witnesses don't believe that Jesus is God. I proceeded to use the Bible to prove that He in fact is God. One of the Jehovah's witnesses, guy #2, told me he used to be a Catholic and started asking me questions. That's when J.W. guy #1 started looking for the door. They both said they were very surprised that I knew my faith and said they would be back to talk to my husband. I can't wait for them to come back because I have now taken the offense instead of defense.I owe almost everything I know to EWTN's Father Corapi and Dr. Scott Hahn. I also love the CD's I have been receiving from Lighthouse Catholic Media. They are only $3 each and they are talks about the faith, the pope, the dogmas, the BVM, the sacraments, Sacred Scripture, ect. from top speakers around the country. A lot of this information we know already but the speakers bring it to life with their own experiences and humor and articulate what we believe in our hearts but can't always find the right words when we need to.If you are interested in trying any of them out, just call Theresa Piekut at 631-886-1280 or email her at tpiekut@yahoo.com and she will send you a list of titles from the talks on each CD. Or, I will bring some with me at our next gathering and you can try them out before ordering.I joined the CD of the month club. They mail you a new CD every month to your house and charge your credit card. When I'm in the car we listen to the talks and my kids ask questions. I love it because it brings up topics that I can discuss with the children and prepare them to know their faith."

Stop the Gang of 18

Rep. Rosa DeLauro (D-CT)issued this press release in response to Pope Benedict XVI's instruction that pro-abortion Catholic politicians refrain from receiving Communion. She stated:

“The fact is that religious sanction in the political arena directly conflicts with our fundamental beliefs about the role and responsibility of democratic representatives in a pluralistic America – it also clashes with freedoms guaranteed in our Constitution. Such notions offend the very nature of the American experiment and do a great disservice to the centuries of good work the church has done.”
Here's what our local CINOs (Catholic in Name Only) or CODs(Culture of Death) have to say for themselves:

Tim Bishop (D-Southampton) said the pope's remarks "saddened" him enough to speak publicly. "To be threatened with excommunication, denied the sacraments ... for exercising my judgment ... as an elected official in a secular role ... I think is very unfortunate."

Carolyn McCarthy (D-Mineola) said that while she agreed with the church's beliefs on abortion, "I just respectfully disagree that I am not going to be pushing my faith on someone who is in a situation that I know nothing about."

Heres the entire Gang of 18:
Representatives
Rosa L. DeLauro (CT-3)
Joe Baca (CA-43)
Tim Bishop (NY-1)
Joe Courtney (CT-2)
Anna Eshoo (CA-14)
Maurice Hinchey, (NY-22)
Patrick Kennedy (RI-1)
James Langevin (RI-2)
John Larson (CT-1)
Carolyn McCarthy (NY-4)
Betty McCollum (MN-4)
Jim Moran (VA-8)
Bill Pascrell (NJ-8)
Tim Ryan (OH-17)
Linda Sanchez (CA-39)
José Serrano (NY -16)
Hilda Solis (CA-32),
Mike Thompson (CA-1)

Here's some thoughts from Fr. Tom Euteneuer of Human Life International:
The truth is,” Father Euteneuer said, “nothing threatens the American experiment more than the legal but unjust killing of human beings by abortion which stands in stark contrast to the very first right enumerated by our Declaration of Independence: The Right to Life. The humanity of the unborn child is no longer even debated. It is a scientific fact. Abortion is murder, and murder is against the law. Like Dred Scott before it, which violated certain citizens’ Right to Liberty, Roe v. Wade is bad, dishonest law and will eventually fall.”
“Excommunication is a pastoral and medicinal penalty, not a political one. The Pope is well within his free expression of religion guaranteed by the US Constitution—and his pastoral duty—to warn any Catholic when their eternal salvation is jeopardized by their actions” Father Euteneuer said. “This is what the Catholic Church teaches and what Catholics believe. If the Gang of 18 believes otherwise, honesty and integrity requires they find another church that tells them what they want to hear. If they have that much of a problem being Catholic, no one is forcing them to stay. We certainly don’t need their hypocrisy.”

Judy Brown, President of American Life League says: "We welcome his statements with a great feeling of appreciation," said Mrs. Brown, "particularly his explanation that those who vote in favor of abortion have 'doubts about the value of life and the beauty of life and even a doubt about the future.' These expressions certainly apply to those in political life in the United States as well.”
Pope Benedict reiterated that life is a gift from God. "It is not a commodity," Mrs. Brown said. "It is not a burden. It is not a negative. Every human being from his beginning is a sign of God’s love for mankind. We thank the Holy Father for his leadership and wish him every success during his visit to Brazil, another country whose preborn citizens are under attack by politicians who claim to be faithful Catholics."
Well said, Mrs. Brown!

Manhattan Premiere of "Mr Blue Sky"

May 11th the HBO theatre was the New York Premiere of "Mr Blue Sky" by producer Tom Paddy Lee, starring Cheney Kley, Richard Karn, and mother-daughter team, Nancy Rita and Ashley Wolfe.
Guests included HBO and CBS exectutivesas well as Robin Roach, the co-author of "Gifts"(seen with me in this photo) Gail Williamson, of The Down Syndrome Association of Los Angeles, and a representative of Best Buddies New York, who sponsored the gala event, were also in attendance.
We had a lively discussion after the film about how important having role models of individuals with Down Syndrome in the media are to parents of young children with Downs, and to medical professionals who are too young to remember Chris Burke in "Life Goes On". Gail mentioned that the termination rate for Down syndrome babies is 90%, mostly due to outdated ideas of what living with Down syndrome is like. We parents of children with Down syndrome must speak up like Robin, and share the joy our children bring into our lives.
I was wary about bringing Christina (age 5)into Manhattan to sit through a film with no animals in it. The only other film she sat through was Charlotte's Web. To my surprise, once she saw the lovely face of Lauren Potter who plays Andra as a girl, frolicking on the beach in the opening scene, she was fascinated, and watched the entire film! Do even small children with Down syndrome know when they are being included and treated with dignity? Of course they do! I truly hope that we can obtain a distributor for this moving and important film.
The photos are, in order:

1. Robin Roach (center) and me

2. My mother and Isabella,

3. Gail Williamson of DSLA

4. Ashley Wolfe and Sarah Gurfield, director

5. My mother and Gabbi in Times Square

6. film producer, and screenwriter, Tom 'Paddy' Lee

7.the view from the HBO theatre of the Empire State Building

8. Robin Roach with Nancy Rita Wolfe, who plays Andra's mother in the film and is the real mother of actress Ashley Wolfe.

For God, For Country, For Yale Stephen is on Life on the Rock this week!

I've just finished watching Stephen, a fellow blogger, on For God, For Country, For Yale on the re-run of Life on the Rock, and was impressed by his eloquence in discussing his faith, his involvement in CLAY(Choose Life at Yale), and most of all by his description of his authentic Catholic lifestyle in the midst of what can be a hostile academic environment. His friends Stephen and David were there, making me believe that yes, something Godly is going on at Yale! Watch the show here.
I forsee great futures for you three, besides the NFL! Thanks so much for your outstanding Catholic witness. You have no idea how many lives you have touched, starting with my teenage daughter's.

Prominent Evangelical Reverts to Catholicism

Shellie at Profound Gratitude has the post I've been meaning to write about Dr. Francis Beckwith, Baylor University professor and president of the Evangelical Theology Society who has just come home to Rome.
I can't wait to see this program on The Journey Home!

Honduran Cardinal Retracts Time Magazine Statement

Cardinal Oscar Maradiaga has retracted his statement to Time magazine where he expressed reluctance to deny communion to pro-abortion politicians. Christine Schult has the scoop.

Last year, at the multi-cultural Eucharistic Congress for the Diocese of Rockville Centre, I stood with my children in the rain outside the church where the Cardinal gave a great homily about Our Lady and the Blessed Sacrament. I was only a few feet away from the Cardinal, peering in the side door, and was impressed with his faithfulness to Church teaching, so naturally, I am delighted that he reconsidered his remarks in the light of Worthiness to Recieve Communion.

Bravo, Cardinal Rodriguez!

Italians celebrate "La Famiglia" in Rome

Do you carry the outmoded stereotype of the large, happy Italian family? This is no longer true, Pat Buchanan outlines in his frightening book, The Death of the West, most Europeans are having one child, which means they are becoming extinct. Soon the nations of Europe will be completely Muslim, as immigrants take the place of Catholics in Italy, Spain, Germany and France who refuse to have more than one child. The outlook Buchanan gave is bleak, he describes the Mediterranean Sea as a lake in the midst of Islam.
Another book which touches on this is Mark Steyn's America Alone, discussed in Genevieve's post in Real Clear Religion.

The Holy Father has repeatedly begged Italians to have babies, and yesterday, over a million Italians gathered in Rome to show their support of the traditional family.
"Catholic ministers and lawmakers have not been loyal to us," Azzola said. "But family values are the core of Catholic values. If Christians in government sacrifice these, the very basis of what got them votes has crumbled."More importantly, Family Day was evidence to many parents that they "do not stand alone.""The people who came to Family Day are not the kind of people who typically demonstrate," he said. "These are people striving to build the future through their children."In addition to the high cost of living and socialist-style tax structures that make it difficult to make ends meet, Azzola said that the psychological pressure from popular culture and social policies causes many families to feel isolated. A father of three, Azzola said that he and his wife are used to comments and questions about their unusually large family: "Society as seen on television, media and advertising glorifies adultery, betrayal and Hollywood-style living. It is easy for parents to feel like they are the only ones struggling and making sacrifices for their children."
ZENIT

Catholic Fire: Yesterday's GOP Debate More Lively and Eye-Opening

Catholic Fire: Yesterday's GOP Debate More Lively and Eye-Opening

Another Motu Proprio Sighting?!

Fox News reports that Chairman of the Ecclesia Dei Commission, Cardinal Castrillon Hoyos has confirmed the Holy Father' intention of relaxing restrictions on the Tridentine Mass, in fact the Cardinal went so far as to say that the so=called "old Mass" was never abrogated.
When?
He's not saying.
"Castrillon Hoyos gave no date of when the pope's document would be released. It remains unclear whether Benedict will remove the requirement that bishops must approve each celebration."
OK, and I read a rumor on a Catholic forum that Dr. Alice Von Hildrebrand said it's coming out this month. I'll be at the Immaculate Heart of Mary Conference in Virginia with her on June 8th, so if she lets me down, she'll hear about it!

The Reason I Homeschool My Children

I once heard Fr. Joseph Fessio at an EWTN rally on Long Island, about ten years ago. He said that, "Catholic homeschooling will be the salvation of the Chruch". Although I had planned to homeschool my then toddler Gabriela, I thought that this statement was a bit over the top.
Now I know it's true. Read on.

cause of our joy: Find the courage within yourself to achieve greatness

cause of our joy: Find the courage within yourself to achieve greatness

Pentecost Novena

Please join my writing partners and me as we pray for the inspiration of the Holy Spirit in our work this summer. We decided to begin with a Novena to the Holy Spirit, the origin of the novena, as it was prayed by Our Lady and the disciples in the upper room between the Ascension of Our Lord and Pentecost.
Veni Creator Spiritus
Veni Creátor Spíritus,
Méntes tuórum vísita:
Imple supérna grátia,
Quæ tu creásti péctora.

Image: Pentecost by El Greco,

La Prada, Madrid

I was right! Tony Blair to swim the Tiber!

Some time ago, I heard rumors that British Prime Minister Tony Blair, whose wife is Catholic, was considering a conversion to Catholicism. I thought to myself, "he'll wait till he's no longer PM to avoid controversy". England has a long-standing entrenched anti-Catholicism, thanks to Henry VIII. The monarchs can marry someone of any faith, but if they marry a Catholic, they must abdicate the throne.


"He is widely considered to have remained an Anglican because of the potential complexities of conversion while in office.
Some lawyers believe the 1829 Emancipation Act, which gave Roman Catholics full civil rights, may still prevent a Catholic from becoming Prime Minister.
Clauses in the Act state that no Catholic adviser to the monarch can hold civil or military office.
Despite his apparent commitment to the faith, Mr Blair has also frequently clashed with Roman Catholic leaders, particularly over his liberal policies on gay rights and abortion"
Source: This is London

I was right! Welcome home to Rome, Tony Blair!
Now can we talk about some of your anti-family decisions as PM?

This video will be banned from You Tube Tomorrow

By order of Planned Parenthood of Los Angles, who is persecuting Lila Rose the journalism student who operated a sting operation of them to expose their practice of concealing the age of minor girls with overage boyfriends who come in for abortions. This practice of encouraging the girl to conceal statutory rape is nothing new. This has even happened in cases of incest, where the girl is being assaulted by a relative, whose identity is concealed by Planned Parenthood, the nation's largest abortion business, which you fund by your federal tax dollars.
This flagrant violation of the law must stop! Be sure your school district isn't sponsoring Planned Parenthood conferences, as they could become liable for fostering this type of lawlessness.

Planned Parenthood Exposed: Lila Rose Footage (subtitled)

My dealings with the dark side

Adoro Te Devote has an incredible story of her dealing with demonic possession and Tarot cards, followed by dozens of testimonies in the comments section. Another post is at The Recovering Dissident Catholic.

I have decided to share my youthful dabbling in the occult to help enlighten those of who think it is harmless. It's NOT. I was raised in a good Catholic home, never missing nightly prayers or Mass on Sunday. My parents were exemplary, comfortable college-educated professionals, therefore there is no reason I should have needed to dabble in the occult, right?
When I was nine years old in public school, we were shocked to hear of the Kasso murder of a classmate from Northport Junior High, in which he mutilated the victim's body, and emblazoned the words "Satin rules"(sic) and "666" all over the local playground. I'm not sure why, but it heightened already keen interest in the occult in a town, Northport, which already had a coven and a local New Age store in the village. Short stories from Poe and other masters of the occult were quite popular in my English classes in public school, and my recreation class showed a creepy video of Poe's "The Telltale Heart" repeatedly.
I had a best friend Noelle, a wealthy, well-loved daughter of a commodities trader, with an unhealthy interest in witchcraft. At my 10th birthday party, she made us close our eyes while she levitated items on the table(a hoax). But Noelle had incited my curiousity.

On a visit to my home, we dressed up in my mother's 1950's bridesmaid gowns for fun, and Noelle told me "I can make you a witch like me". I couldn't resist, since I had already followed occult practices such as horoscopes, Ouija boards, levitation, and seances, mostly at girls' sleepover parties. I was mostly curious, and anxious to see if I could perform any magic.
We began to say the Lord's Prayer backwards. I have no idea if we were doing it correctly, but our intention was to say it backwards to make something spiritual happen. Then, out of the blue, the glass top to a tea cart by the window was split right down the middle!
We ran screaming out of there, and didn't try any more witchcraft until. . .we performed levitation of one of our classmates on the 8th grade field trip in Salem Massachusetts' House of Seven Gables with six girls using two fingers each. It worked. We raised her over our heads.
Later, I had my Tarot cards read twice. Both times a horrible death was predicted for a family member. Both predictions came true. My great uncle died painfully of a heart attack in a hospital corridor in Haiti, completely unattended by doctors. My Dad's cousin, a saxophone player and high school music teacher, was shot by an unstable next door neighbor after he tried to wash off some eggs th children had thrown at his home. He died in front of them.
I was never corrected for any of these practices, in fact our Girl Scout leaders watched us do a seance at camp. My aunts went to fortune tellers and bought me Jean Dixon horoscope books. We were victims of 1970's ignorance of our Catholic faith, and fascination with ESP and the occult. I was always a practicing Catholic, but struggled with the same sins which all singles in this society struggle with, without realizing how my involvement with the occult had weakened my resistance to temptation
In 1983, while still in college, I was 'Baptized in the Holy Spirit' after a Life in the Spirit Seminar at St. Anthony's Church. The week before the 'Baptism' a long prayer of exorcism was prayed over me by laymen, who asked me which occult practices I had been involved in. I was 21, and this was the first time I had heard from anyone that they were dangerous. I gladly renounced them, received the 'Baptism' and a warning that Satan would be angry at the change in me. I was given a binding prayer which I still use, "Satan, I bind you away from me, to the foot of the cross for Jesus to deal with , and I plead the precious blood of Jesus over me to protect me. "
That night, as I slept, I had the most terrifying nightmare of my life, where abnormal long-legged black spiders were closing in on me to kill me. I ran downstairs, still asleep, and somehow fell over the bannister into the living room. My parents, terrified, wondered why this had happened, as I have never been a sleepwalker.
I share all this not to titilate, but to inform. If a good girl from a devout Catholic home could get this involved with the occult, anyone can. Don't let well-meaning ignorant friends, or clergy convince you that they do Reiki while praying to Jesus and Mary, or that Yoga isn't rooted in worhip of Hindu gods, or that the Ouija Board and Tarot are just parlor games. Don't wear crystals or any kind good luck charms like the Greek evil eye, or Italian horn. These are portals which Satan uses to infiltrate your eternal soul.
Don't let your children read books like Harry Potter, which arouse the curiousity about the occult. Is is a coincidence that those books are surrounded by books on witchcraft at Barnes and Nobles? That's why when police see kids involved in violent crime, the first place they look is the kids' library card activity to find these kinds of books.
Read this excerpt from an article in the British paper The Independant,

Record numbers of young women are dabbling in witchcraft, fuelling a boom in
sales of spell books and other pagan paraphernalia, according to new research.
A study of teenagers and their consumption of books, magazines, kits, film
and other media found that there are some 700,000 internet sites for teenage
witches. The Pagan Federation claims to have several hundred inquiries a week
from young people, and has set up a network for those under 18.
"There has
been a noticeable rise in the number of young people identifying themselves as
witches," saidDenise Cush, professor of religious studies at Bath Spa
University.

Read experts like Fr. Gabriel Amworth's book An Exorcist Tells His Story, The Vatican Exorcists or watch shows like The Abundant Life which has just run several shows on New Age and the Occult. Buy Johnette's book, The New Age Counterfeit.
Pray with me:
St. Michael the Archangel, defend us in battle,
Be our protection against the wickedness and snares of the Devil.
May God rebuke him, we humbly pray,
and do thou, O Prince of the Heavenly Host, by the power of God,
Cast into hell, Satan, and all evil spirits who prowl about the world,
Seeking the ruin of souls. Amen

More About Dr.Jerome LeJeune, future saint

The Curt Jester posted about this wonderful article in MercatorNet on Dr. LeJeune. His cause for canonization has been introduced by Parisian Bishop Andre Vignt-Trois. I posted about him here.

The Pope Woos Brazilians

"One big reason the evangelical sects have attracted Catholics, he told Brazilian bishops, is that many Catholics are insufficiently evangelized and their faith is weak, confused and easily shaken. In a country where televangelists have had great success with simplistic religious messages, the pope did not hold out any easy solutions.
Instead, he said, the church should conduct “a methodical evangelization aimed at personal and communal fidelity to Christ.” Firm doctrinal content is essential to faith formation, he said, and at nearly every stop he suggested wider use of the Catechism of the Catholic Church."CNS

I have always said that, no one who knows their Catholic faith ever leaves it. Solid catechesis is the key to retaining the Latin American faithful.

That's why I squeeze a bilingual First Communion Class into my busy schedule. Many of the children's parents stay for the class, and I am happy they want to learn as well. I always enjoy Monday nights, and it revives my own faith. I hope they will retain the love for rosary, the Scripture, the Church, and the sacraments I try to instill in them during my class.

Governor Spitzer to Force Catholic Institutions to Perform Abortions in New York State

From the Catholic Conference of New York State, one of the most heavily Catholic states in the nation comes this terrible news:

Governor Eliot Spitzer has put forth a radical abortion proposal that would go far beyond Roe vs. Wade. The Governor’s bill would:
• Force Catholic hospitals to allow abortions;• Force all insurance plans, including those of Catholic employers, to cover abortion; • Legalize abortion through all nine months of pregnancy, for virtually any reason;• Make abortion immune from any reasonable state regulation such as parental notification, informed consent, or restrictions on taxpayer funding;• Repeal current law that requires doctors to perform abortions and allow any "health care practitioner" to provide it.
Take action now and tell your lawmakers to oppose this extreme bill! For the sake of pregnant women and their unborn children, please take a minute to communicate your opposition to your state Senate and Assembly representatives.
Click here to send a pre-written editable e-mail message now. Simply add your contact information under the pre-written message and click “Send Message” to make your voice heard. If this link does not work, please go to http://capwiz.com/nyscatholicconference/utr/1/ILXAHDRWPD/LVVSHDSATQ/1196666481 and click "Take Action."
Thank you and God bless you.

Pope Benedict's Message to Brazilian Youth

St. Peter's Helpers has a series of posts highlighting the Holy Father's trip to Brazil, featuring his comments to the youth of the world's largest Catholic nation. Enjoy the enthusiasm!

Rudy's trying to pull the pro-life plank from the Republican Platform

According to Time magazine, Giuliani has "decided that the reign of social conservatives is coming to an end. 'He understands that there are a lot of Republicans out there who are sick of everyone kowtowing to the single-issue extremists,' said one veteran Republican observer in Washington. 'He's breaking from the pack.'"
Read the rest of Jill Stanek's article at World Net Daily

I would be one of those single-issue extremists. I would have been a single-issue extremist if I was in Germany in the time of the Nazis,when priests, Jews, Gypsies, the retarded, Polish, homosexuals, and the handicapped were deemed, "life unworthy of life".

I would be a singel issue extremist if I lived during the mid 1800's when the Supreme Court handed down the Dred Scott Decision stating that blacks were property.

It's called respect for human life, Rudy. It's called Catholicism.
Cardinal Egan, we still consider him a New Yorker, can we make a Cardinal O'Connor-ish move and tell him not to approach the sacrament of Communion? I was in St. Patrick's Cathedral in New York, and I heard you homily when you installed the Sisters of Life in the archdiocese. You said you wanted to pay tribute to the beloved late Cardinal O'Connor's memory. Now that you are about to retire, here's your chance to leave an enduring legacy on the world.
Warn Rudy not to receive Communion in your archdiocese!

Hoax or Miraculous Protest of Mexico's legalization of abortion?

"While many of the faithful were taking photographs of the [tilma] of Tepeyac, exposed and venerated in the Basilica and at the foot of which the crowd of pilgrims filed past on a moving carpet, the image of the Virgin began to erase itself, to give place to an intense light which emanated from her abdomen, constituting a brilliant halo having the form of an embryo. With a centering and an important enlargement it is possible to appreciate the position of the light which truly comes from the stomach of the Holy Virgin and is not a reflection, nor an artifact." We offer it for your discernment. The image materialized on the cactus or "agave" cloak of a Mexican peasant in 1531 and was responsible for the conversion of twelve million Indians. It is now largely used as a symbol of "pro-life" causes in the Americas because Mary appears pregnant in the image, which has been proven miraculous. "An engineer, Luis Girault, who has studied the picture thus produced, has confirmed the authenticity of the negative, and has been able to specify that it had not been either modified nor altered, by superimposition of another image for example," stated the priest. "He discovered that the image (the picture produced) does not come from any reflection, but literally comes from the inside of the image of the Virgin. The produced light is very white, pure and intense, different from habitual photographic lights produced by flashes. This light is encircled with a halo and appears to float inside the abdomen of the Virgin. This halo has the form and measurements of an embryo. In effect if we again examine more precisely this picture by making it turn in a sagittal plan, we perceive inside the halo some areas of shade that have the characteristics of a human embryo in the maternal womb." [ACIM Press Release - May 1, 2007 - FRANCE]

Bella needs our help

Director Alejandro Monteverde's new film, Bella is a movie that is going to be much talked about in pro-life, pro-family circles. This film has swept even the secular film world off its feet. Major producers however, are still hesitant to support anything that is not "mainstream." Please do what you can to promote this film and its pro-life message.
Steven W. MosherPresident

Bella: Almost too Good to Be True
by Colin Mason
“If you want to make God laugh, tell him your plans.” This line, spoken by Mexican actor Eduardo Verstegui, opens the movie Bella, one of the most phenomenal films I have ever had the privilege to experience. The film is touring colleges right now to work up interest in its theatrical run, and I was able to screen it with about 200 students from Christendom College. The experience was deeply rewarding to me, not only as a long-time film buff, but as a pro-life Catholic as well. Back in August 2006, I was attended a private screening the film’s rough cut, and even then was floored by its grace, beauty, and simple depth. Apparently the audiences at the Toronto Film Festival were, too.
In September 2006, that same unfinished cut moved audiences of every political and religious persuasion, and went on to win Toronto’s coveted People’s Choice Award. To give an example of what an accomplishment this is, two of the many other films premiering at this festival were Babel and The Last King of Scotland, both of

Director Alejandro Monteverde knows only too well thatif you want to make God laugh, you tell Him your plans.
which were highly acclaimed works that went on to win Oscars. Thus, to see the film’s vastly improved final cut at Christendom College was an experience to remember.
Bella tells the story of a young single waitress in New York City who becomes pregnant, loses her job, and struggles with the decision of whether or not to keep her child. In the meantime, she encounters a mysteriously compassionate Latino chef, who has suffered a tragedy in his past, and is perhaps the only person in her life who really cares about her. During the course of the film, a decision is reached that will change both of their lives.
Bella is not only an artistic triumph, but a moral and spiritual one as well. Metanoia films, the small production company responsible for the movie, states its mission as “to use film to make a positive difference in the culture and in peoples’ lives.” The film contains none of the titillative sensuality or violence of many of its cinematic counterparts. There is no blasphemy. It depicts the family: intact, loving, and responsible, and contrasts it with the empty loneliness of individualism and promiscuity. And it depicts abortion for the frightening, devastating, futile choice that it actually is.
How did a crowd of some of the world’s most left-leaning elitists vote Bella the winner of the People’s Choice Award?
How did a film like this do so well in Toronto? How did a crowd of some of the world’s most left-leaning elitists vote it the winner of the People’s Choice Award?
It would be an insult to the artistic integrity of Bella to call it a film with an agenda. The movie refuses to put forward any of the tiresome socio-political mores that plague so many “serious” films today. Simply put, there is nothing to argue with in Bella. Without pontificating or moralizing, the movie is artistically direct, viscerally powerful, and steadfastly pro-life. There is no pretentious posturing, no hyper-aware political overtones. It’s just simple, and powerful, stirring basic emotions that are fundamental to the human experience. So fundamental, in fact, that audiences of all political persuasions have fallen for the film.
In the words of producer Leo Severino: “You can’t argue with life.” At the end of the day, there is no argument to be made against the image of the child, the idea of the tiny human being growing within a mother’s body. Life is universal, no matter how many people try to reduce it to a science or a math formula. The film capitalizes on that fact, and gracefully but directly pulls us toward the inevitable truth.
But Bella needs help. American theater companies have only agreed to carry the film in a limited distribution, and only as far east as the Midwest. If they can raise enough interest in other places, interest to the point where seats in theaters are sold out, Bella can reach a much wider distribution. Similar to The Passion of The Christ before it, whether or not the film will go to more theaters will all depend upon how well it does, and how much interest there is.Call Metanoia films. E-mail them. Let them know how important this film is to you. Organize church groups and youth groups, and get families to go see the film and promote it to their friends. Interest and excitement about this movie is key. If the response is mediocre, theaters will drop Bella quickly, before it has really had the chance to shine. It is up to us not to let that happen.Metanoia films can be reached by phone at (310) 500-5097, or email at contact@metanoiafilms.com
Colin Mason is the Media Director at PRI.

PRIP.O. Box 1559Front Royal, VA 22630USAPhone: (540) 622-5240 Fax: (540) 622-2728Email: colin@pop.orgMedia Contact: Colin Mason(540) 622-5240, ext. 209_________(c) 2007 Population Research Institute. Permission to reprint granted.Redistribute widely.

Fidelis Protests Hillary Campaign's Use of Mother Teresa's image in video

Fidelis President Joseph Cella commented, “It is wholly inappropriate, disrespectful and disturbing that Hillary Clinton is using an image of Blessed Mother Teresa as a political tool, especially given their radically different views on abortion. Mother Teresa tirelessly fought to protect unborn children, while Hillary Clinton staunchly supports abortion on demand in all nine months of pregnancy, including partial birth abortion and taxpayer funding of abortion. Out of respect to Mother Teresa, and the Missionaries of Charity strict guidelines for the use of Mother’s image, we call on the Hillary Clinton campaign to immediately remove her image from their campaign video.”
The video ad can be viewed on YouTube by clicking here. At approximate 2:26 into the video, the former President says, “Hillary in effect, was the face of America…in India” with a photo of Hillary waving alongside Blessed Teresa. The video then goes directly to a clip of the former First Lady’s address at the 1995 Beijing Conference, where a push was made to declare abortion a fundamental “human right.”
In 1999, Hillary Clinton addressed a UN forum at the Hague aimed at increasing funding and protecting the right to abortion worldwide saying, “Government has no place in personal decisions about whether to bring a child into the world.”
Mother Teresa by contrast, abhorred the international abortion policies of the UN, and sent a letter to the 1995 Beijing Conference in which she wrote, “That special power of loving that belongs to a woman is seen most clearly when she becomes a mother. Motherhood is the gift of God to women…Yet we can destroy this gift of motherhood, especially by the evil of abortion …. No job, no plans, no possessions, no idea of "freedom" can take the place of love.”
Cella stated: “As a courtesy, I have faxed a letter to Sister Nirmala, the Superior General of the Missionaries of Charity, and suggested she may wish to look into this matter and request that the party cease and desist in its unauthorized use of Mother’s image.”

Now, HERE'S someone who deserves to be featured in a photo with Mother Teresa. Isn't it wonderful to have so many photos of these soon-to-be-saints? Isn't it great to see their rapport firsthand?

Hillary uses photo with Mother Teresa in Campaign Video on You Tube!

Fidelis asks Catholics to protest this outrageous use of Mother Teresa for the campaign of a woman she once reprimanded for her pro-abortion stance!

Today is the 90th Anniversary of Our Lady of Fatima

Have we heeded Our Lady's message yet?

Fast, pray, repent;

save the world from war,

and save souls from hell.

See my post at Mount Carmel Bloggers on the Holy Father's remarks for this occasion.

More great info on the apparitions here.

Dear Congressman Tim Bishop,

Here's the text of the email I sent to my Catholic Congressman, Tim Bishop, who votes 100% pro-abortion. He's probably receiving Communion as I send this at Sacred Hearts of Jesus and Mary in Southampton. This greeting from the Holy Father will be waiting for him on Monday.
Pontiff's Comments on Pro-abortion Politicians ClarifiedAide: They Exclude Selves From Communion ROME, MAY 9, 2007 (Zenit.org)- The Vatican clarified that Benedict XVI has not excommunicated Mexican politicians who supported the legalization of abortion in the country's capital -- rather, they have excluded themselves from Communion.Jesuit Father Federico Lombardi, director of the Vatican press office, said this today in a statement he issued in wake of comments made by the Pope aboard his flight from Rome to São Paulo.Reporters asked Benedict XVI if the Church had excommunicated the politicians of Mexico City who had voted to legalize abortion in the first trimester.The Holy Father said that the excommunication for those promoting abortion is "nothing new, it's normal, it wasn't arbitrary. It is what is foreseen by the Church's doctrine."The Pontiff also underlined that Christian politicians need to be consistent with their beliefs, and confirmed that the Church announces the Gospel of Life."The death of an innocent, of a newly born baby is inconceivable," the Pope added. "It is not something arbitrary and the Church expresses value for life and for the individual character of life from the moment of conception."Father Lombardi, who was with Benedict XVI on the plane, clarified that neither the Pope nor the Mexican bishops had declared those politicians excommunicated.The press office director explained that the Church teaches that the promotion of abortion is not compatible with the reception of Communion.The journalists then asked the spokesman: "So, are they excommunicated"?"No," Father Lombardi responded. "They excluded themselves from Communion."

It's not the first time he's heard from me. Right after the Partial-Birth Abortion Ban vote (he voted against the ban) I showed up a packed meeting he had with the wealthy senior citizens of Westhampton.I brought Christina, a toddler at that time, and they were vociferously detailing their worries about Social Security when we entered the room. What do they use their checks for, to pay their fees at the country club? I wondered. I thought they would never calm down enough for me to speak to the Congressman about abortion. Then, Christina did an interesting thing, she began to giggle. A wave of attention, none of it positive, was focused on us, and angry eyes bored into us. I seized my advantage, and burst into the conversation,
"Congressman Bishop, your consituents here seem to be upset by my daughter's laughter, so let me speak my piece, and I'll be out of your way."
Congressman Bishop nodded, and I brought Christina with me to the front of the room, partially out of fear of the other people in the room, and as a helpful prop for my talk.
"This week, you voted against a ban on Partial Birth Abortion, and I wanted to let you know that 90% of unborn babies with Down Syndrome are aborted, many late term as it takes a while to see the amnio results and schedule the abortion. This means each year, thousands of children like my daughter here, are cruelly killed in this procedure. Don't you think that my daughter here deserves a chance to live like the rest of us did?"
The Congressman was dumbfounded, and fumbled for words, while an irate constituent screamed, "why don't you shut up and sit down?!"
I turned to Congressman Bishop and asked him,
"is that your opinion as well, that I should shut up and sit down?"
Naturally, he denied this, and I went on,
"I see what my daughter is capable of, and the joy she has brought into my family's life, and I want to urge you to vote pro-life next time, and give these children a chance to live their parents' lives."
Another bitter old man, couldn't take it any more, and challenged me,
"You Catholics always say that, but are you willing to pay for these children once they're born?"
"I never said I was a Catholic, but I'm glad it shows! " I replied cheerily, "to answer your question, my husband and I support about 25 of his family members back in El Salvador, and we're convinced that's enough".
Congressman Bishop had barely uttered a sound and the crowd was getting outright hostile, so I took my cue, and wrapped it up saying,
"I am a teacher, and look out on classrooms with 30% fewer students thanks to legalized abortion for the last 30 years. If you're worried about your Social Security checks, thank abortion.You've aborted the young workers who would be contributing to this bankrupt system." By now the crowd was dangerously riled, and I sent out my parting shot over my shoulder, as I left the room,
"you are all uncomfortable, because in your heart of hearts, you know I'm right!"
Blog reactions are mounting to my fiery interchange:
Utter Muttering, Driving Out the Snakes, Postscripts from the Spitfire Grill