To Live is Christ, To Die is Gain

Life Training Institute Blog: What's Victory? [Scott]

2011-02-17T11:09:00.000-08:00

Life Training Institute Blog: What's Victory? [Scott]: "That’s one of the questions for an interview later today. I’m glad, because no social reform movement succeeds without a clear definition o..."

Children, Corpses, Cigarettes, Cancer & “Choice”

2010-11-11T06:54:00.001-08:00

Originally posted at: http://studentsforlife.org/blogroll/children-corpses-cigarettes-cancer-choice/

Cigarettes cause death. Sometimes it’s self-inflicted death. Sometimes it’s 2^nd hand smoke that kills a non-smoker. This is the reasoning behind the FDA putting graphic pictures of corpses and other horrifying things on cigarette packaging – to warn smokers about the risks of cigarette smoke to themselves and others.

Why does the government care? Because life should be cherished and maybe the pictures will cause a smoker to second guess taking that next puff of poison.

Without getting into the politics of the government telling companies what they must put on their packaging, let’s just assume it’s a good thing to warn people about risks and side effects, especially the grisly and deadly ones.

According to the Associated Press, “The images are part of a new push announced by the Food and Drug Administration and the Department of Health and Human Services on Wednesday to reduce tobacco use, which is responsible for about 443,000 deaths per year.”

Well, according to Guttmacher Institute, Planned Parenthood and other facilities are responsible for 1,200,000 abortions per year. Using this logic, when is the FDA going to announce their “push” to “reduce” abortions by mandating images of preborn genocide victims be placed on Planned Parenthood killing centers? It would certainly be an accurate warning of the fate that awaits a preborn person whose mother enters an abortion facility.

Smokers choose to smoke, and in the process, they sometimes kill themselves or others. But the government wants to warn them about the deadly effects. Mothers choose to procure abortions, and in the process a child is always killed and families are always scarred. Sometimes women are killed by abortions. Oftentimes they are rendered infertile. Always, the risk of breast cancerskyrockets after abortion.

Maybe we could put large pictures of cancer infested breast tissue on the walls inside abortion facility waiting rooms? What about ella, the newly FDA-approved pill, labeled as a contraceptive, that actually causes abortions and increases cancer risk. Where are the warning labels?

Hormonal birth control pills are labeled as Group A carcinogens (same label as cigarettes) by the World Health Organization, did you know that? It seems that more people know of the cancerous effects of cigarettes, than they do about the detrimental chemicals in birth control. So, why aren’t there pictures of cervical cancer patients on the packages of birth control?

Shouldn’t a government that seems to care so deeply for the lives of adult smokers and other non-smoking adults and children impacted by cigarettes, warn of the devastating consequences of abortion on women, children and men? When will our society and government choose truth over politics and stop suppressing the toxic side effects of abortion on human beings?

Bible Study Methods Class - $100 OFF!

2010-08-27T06:22:00.001-07:00

My dad is the director of Apologia Academy and they are offering a class on Monday nights on Bible Study Methods. See the attachment for details. It will be taught by author, teacher and apologist, Doug Beaumont. The class is normally $225 + $25 to register, but my dad will waive the registration fee and discount it to $150 total for the entire semester (that's $100 less than normal). The class starts on Sept 13, so sign up soon.

To get the discount, you need to register and pay full price as usual, but then my dad will refund the $100 back to your credit card. This is a great opportunity and I encourage you to: 1. Take the class yourself; and/or 2. Spread the news about the class to anyone you think would be interested! All ages are welcome. Forward this email to all your Christian friends and family.

To register:

1. Create an account here: https://www.apologiaonline.com/aareg/index.asp?iFlag=720

2. Click on "Add a student" and list yourself and whoever else in your family will be taking the class.

3. Go to list of classes and register for Bible Study Methods - Evening Adult Class : https://www.apologiaonline.com/aareg/index.asp

4. Complete registration and pay.

5. Email Larry@apologia.com and let him know you need the refund.

Purpose of the class: According to 2 Timothy 3:16, the Scriptures are important means by which a

Christian is to discern God's will, and the Bible serves as the only inspired authority in the life of a Christian.

Proper Bible study, therefore, is of utmost importance in the life of every believer. This one-semester class will

not just reiterate the importance of studying the Bible, but will focus on the principles involved in proper

interpretation of the Bible, laying stress on the historical–grammatical method of deriving the author's meaning

as expressed in the biblical text.

Thanks!

-Kortney

WHAT PRO-LIFERS CAN LEARN FROM HOLOCAUST HEROES

2010-05-24T10:34:00.000-07:00

I recently visited the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum in Washington, D.C. Of course, as an abortion abolitionist, I thought of the subject often as I viewed each display. But certain areas of the museum sparked stronger parallels to the abortion battle.

Many Hollywood movies have been made chronicling the stories of Holocaust survivors. Some have even documented the rescuers and heroes during this time (Schindler’s List, Defiance). A scarce few, however, highlighted the impact that the church—both Protestant and Catholic—had on the rescue efforts.

As I perused the “Rescue and Resistance” section of the museum, I couldn’t help but notice a pattern. Many of the prominent rescuers were priests, pastors, nuns and religious people with strong convictions for the sanctity of human life.

If you’ve never heard of Sophie Scholl and The White Rose, look it up or rent the movie Sophie Scholl: The Final Days. Sophie and her brother, Hans, were college students compelled by their Christian faith to speak out against Hitler and the Nazi agenda through non-violent means. Their leaflets influenced thousands, and they were martyred for their courage. They quoted extensively from The Bible and unequivocally challenged people to wake up from their indifferent slumber.

When I visited the Holocaust museum’s web site, I found further evidence of the church’s impact during the Holocaust (emphasis mine):

Some European churches, orphanages, and families provided hiding places for Jews, and in some cases, individuals aided Jews already in hiding … In France, the Protestant population of the small village of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon sheltered between 3,000 and 5,000 refugees, most of them Jews. In France, Belgium and Italy, underground networks run by Catholic clergy and lay Catholics saved thousands of Jews.

Two ministers led the residents of Le Chambon-sur-Lignon in the effort to hide Jews, provide forged I.D. cards and help them escape to safety, even though some residents were arrested and one murdered by the Gestapo. The Yad Vashem, a Holocaust remembrance organization, recognized the town with the title, “Righteous Among the Nations.” The gratitude Yad Vashem feels towards recipients of this award is best summed up this way:

Attitudes towards the Jews during the Holocaust mostly ranged from indifference to hostility. The mainstream watched as their former neighbors were rounded up and killed; some collaborated with the perpetrators; many benefited from the expropriation of the Jews property. But in this world of moral collapse there was a small minority who mustered extraordinary courage to uphold human values.

At the end of the museum tour is a section called “From Memory to Action: Meeting the Challenge of Genocide.” Its purpose is to direct the righteous anger and indignation (elicited from viewing the horrors of the Holocaust throughout the museum) from emotions to action. Thus, the display encourages visitors to fight modern genocides in the world.

As you might’ve guessed, abortion is never mentioned.

In the feedback notebook provided for guests, I implored the museum to include abortion in its genocide display. In my note, I referenced Deuteronomy 30:19, which is prominently displayed on a wall in the museum. It reads, “I call heaven and earth to witness against you today, that I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse. Therefore choose life, that you and your offspring may live.”

Choose life that your offspring may live.

As I exited the museum, the heroes section lingered in my mind; specifically, the overwhelming presence of the church in the rescue efforts. I thought of the slavery abolitionist movement. It was Christians who ran underground railroads, preached anti-slavery sermons that shifted the culture and infiltrated the government with pro-personhood legislation.

I said to my mom, “If the churches in America stood united against abortion, we would see an end to it.”

Instead, the Episcopal, Presbyterian (USA) and United Methodist denominations have official pro-abortion stances. The Catholic Campaign for Human Development undermines Catholic teaching by supporting pro-abortion organizations. Groups such as the YWCA and the Salvation Army have distanced themselves from their Christian heritage and shifted their positions on the plight of the preborn.

As for the majority of American churches, abortion is a taboo subject. There may be one or two pro-life activists in a congregation, but they are just the token radicals.

Many Christians have become apathetic and indifferent, letting a few passionate individuals do the work that all Christians should be doing. Jesus is supposed to be our example, and he was radical. His message of caring for the “least of these” is for all Christians. He didn’t proclaim ear-tickling messages. He made people uncomfortable in their complacency. He never backed down from the Truth, and eventually, he was crucified.

William Wilberforce, one of the most influential slavery abolitionists in England, whose story was captured in the film Amazing Grace, said, "If to be feelingly alive to the sufferings of my fellow-creatures is to be a fanatic, I am one of the most incurable fanatics ever permitted to be at large."

Most church leaders do not hesitate when asked to collect food for the homeless or fill shoeboxes for Christmas. But when they’re asked to pray outside an abortion mill or allow a pro-life speaker to make a presentation, it’s a whole different story. No one gets upset when a church collects a special offering for Haiti, but bring up abortion and you may very well have controversy. So be it. The 50 million children dead from abortion deserve our passion.

In the past, when the body of Christ, the Church, rose up in opposition to an injustice, earth-shaking things happened. Slaves were freed, rights were restored and killings ended.

The first leaflet of the White Rose asked something that Christians in a country with decriminalized abortion should ask themselves every day: "Who among us has any conception of the dimensions of shame that will befall us and our children when one day the veil has fallen from our eyes and the most horrible of crimes—crimes that infinitely outdistance every human measure—reach the light of day?”

May the Christian churches remove the veil from its eyes and expose the horrible crime against humanity that is abortion. Only then will it end.

PLANNED PARENTHOOD'S 'PLANS' LEAD TO DEATH

2010-05-24T10:30:00.000-07:00

I've said it before, and I'll say it again: The only "plans" that come out of Planned Parenthood involve death, destruction and immorality.

Plan A: Hormonal birth control

All hormonal forms of contraception can kill (thepillkills.com). "Kill what?" You ask. For one, they can kill young human persons trying to implant in their mothers' wombs. In addition, young women taking hormonal birth control have died of strokes, pulmonary embolisms, cancer and the list goes on. (I'm sure you've seen the advertisements for attorneys just salivating to take your case “if you've been injured by Yaz.”) And thirdly, the pill kills the environment. Do you really want to put into your body the same chemicals that create deformed, sexless fish?

Plan B: Emergency contraception (EC) a.k.a. the morning-after pill

Recently, I've seen TV commercials for this detestable product. They try to convince consumers that Plan B does not cause an abortion. The ad says, "Plan B is not the abortion pill; it does not work if you're already pregnant, and it won't terminate an existing pregnancy." This is a lie. If a woman has released an oocyte (ovulated), which has been fertilized by a sperm, forming a new human person, then Plan B can prevent the new human from implanting into the uterine lining where he/she would continue the growth process and receive nourishment.

Then, there's this lovely motto in the commercial: "Sometimes the unexpected happens, if it does, there's Plan B."

Unexpected? Because women don't know that having sex can lead to pregnancy? I thought schools were teaching such things these days?

The National Institute for Reproductive Health has deemed today, March 24, "Back Up Your Birth Control Campaign Day of Action (BUYBC).”

This so-called national campaign is attempting to remove any restrictions that still remain in accessing EC (age limits, in particular). The people behind this day would like to see EC in the hands of women of every age. In fact, they'd like to see EC sold next to and purchased with the same frequency as mints and gum in the local pharmacy.

To promote BUYBC, the web site instructs students to spread the word about EC on campus by "hosting a party, film screening, 'battle of the bands' or sporting event” where they can “distribute BUYBC materials on what EC is and where teens can get it."

An EC party? EC battle of the bands? EC sporting event? Riiiiiight. Let's celebrate that sinking, panicky, shameful feeling one has after a night of wickedness and self-indulgence that would prompt one to frantically seek out EC.

Plan C: Medical or surgical abortion

If Plan A (abortive contraception) fails or you skip over Plan A completely, then go to Plan B (higher-dose abortive contraception). If both fail, Plan C is abortion, which, unlike A and B, always results in the death of a child.

The term "family planning" and thus, Planned Parenthood, cannot be divorced from abortion. Even pro-abortion groups admit this. The addition of "family" or "parenthood" to the names only veils the deadliness of the “plans” involved and exposes the hypocrisy and delusion of the death peddlers.

Instead of having a variety of “plans” to cover up one’s sin (plans that damage you and your offspring), plan to be chaste. Plan to practice self-control. Plan to obey God. And execute those plans. That kind of planning and action results in joy and peace.

Today, while some are celebrating “Back Up Your Birth Control Day,” remind yourself and others that purity, self-control and chastity don’t need a back-up plan.

CHARLOTTE 40 DAYS FOR LIFE RECAP

2010-05-24T10:19:00.000-07:00

On March 27, 2010, I attended the closing event for Charlotte, NC 40 Days for Life Spring Campaign.

Lisa Twigg, a regular Rock for Life volunteer, accompanied me on the trip. Thank you, Lisa, for taking great photos, helping man the table and being a great traveling partner on the drive down to Charlotte.

The Charlotte 40 Days for Life event was called “Get Plugged In" and combined outreach to get more people involved in the pro-life movement and a celebration of the success of the Spring campaign! It was especially designed for teens and young adults, but there was something for everyone!

Dr. Christopher Tollefsen, a devout Catholic, author and philosophy professor at University of South Carolina, spoke first on personhood and defending the pro-life position.

Then, I shared stories from the front lines of the abortion battle. I encouraged Christians to step up and fight the injustice of abortion just as they would've during slavery or the Holocaust.

I explained what sets Rock for Life and American Life League apart from other pro-life organizations, namely personhood with no compromise.

The audience was excited to hear about annual Rock for Life projects and events like National Pro-life T-shirt Week and Training and Activism Weekend. In fact, nearly twenty people left the event with this year's NPLTW shirts.

There were around ten additional pro-life ministries from all over Charlotte present with tables. This gave those in attendance a chance to find a ministry to serve all year long, whether it be a crisis pregnancy center, adoption agency, post-abortion recovery ministry, maternity home or Rock for Life.

In between the two main speakers, a video with photos from the 40 Days campaign and info about the 31 saves played, along with a clip from Horton Hears a Who. Many who stood outside the abortion mill shared their powerful experiences. It was a powerful presenation.

At the end of the evening, we indulged in a birthday cake, complete with 31 candles representing the number of children saved from abortion in Charlotte alone during the 40-day vigil. I encourage all people to get involved with your local 40 Days for Life or if there's not one, start one in your community. It is a life-changing, life-saving opportunity.

ABORTED 'FETUSES' OR BORN BABIES? AUTHORITIES CAN'T TELL THE DIFFERENCE, WHY SHOULD THE LAW?

2010-05-24T10:18:00.001-07:00

This morning I happened upon a horrific, but not altogether surprising news story. In eastern China, at least 21 dead babies were discovered washed up on the bank of a river. Given China's heinous one-child policy and their history of forced abortions and other blantant human rights violations, this story wouldn't normally have prompted a blog. However, this quote from the article got me thinking: "Authorities were quoted by Beijing News saying the corpses could have been those of aborted fetuses or babies who had died of illness."

If "authorities" cannot tell the difference between a born infant who has died of natural causes and a preborn child murdered by a "physician," then why should the law recognize a difference in which one is protected?

The media, police and hospitals involved are reacting to the discovery of at least 21 dead human beings and they aren't even sure how these little people died. This incident prompted the government to order health authorities to "launch a general overhaul of body treatment at all local hospitals." Body treatment, not the treatment of products of conception or the treatment of pregnancies or the treatment of fetal tissue.

If these babies were killed by intentional abortion, then they would be deemed (in both China and the U.S.) medical waste. In fact, one of the bodies was found wrapped in a plastic bag and marked "hospital waste."

After the discovery, two mortuary workers were fired and held in police custody, and two high-ranking hospital officials were suspended from their posts.

A city government spokesman said the incident exposed “a serious loophole in the hospital’s management and indicates a lack of ethics and legal awareness of some hospital staff. It exerts a very negative impact on society and teaches us a profound lesson.” And what lesson is that? He doesn't say.

But, instead of commenting on the complete and utter disregard for human dignity, the Xinhua news agency assured people that the river where the babies were found "was not a source of drinking water for the city" and "had not been contaminated." Oh, how comforting. Wouldn't want the blood of dead babies contaminating your water supply, now would we?

The river may not have been contaminated, but the hardened hearts and societal mores of China sure are.

Thankfully, the reporter mentioned how common abortion is in China, particularly because of the one-child policy. The article even discusses the preference for favoring male offspring and aborting female children.

This is not a lone incident. The treatment of patients (dead or alive) in Chinese hospitals is not a priority, the news story notes. In fact, last summer, two adults, six aborted babies and a bag of severed human limbs were dumped at a construction site when the hospital couldn't locate relatives.

Notice how the deceased were listed together. They were all human beings. The only difference between the born and preborn humans is their location. Every single human being on the planet differs from others by their varying levels of development, differing sizes and changing degrees of dependency.

Our country, like China, allows for mass genocide simply because preborn humans reside inside of their mother's wombs. Once outside the womb, whether these babies are dead or alive, no one questions their humanity. They are unequivocally little human persons.

The nonsensical contradictions and violations of human rights must stop! We must never stop fighting against the dehumanization of persons and the metamorphisis of wombs into bloody tombs.

NOTHING IS SACRED TO ABORTION PEDDLERS

2010-05-24T10:12:00.000-07:00

“Rise up, O God, and defend your cause; remember how fools mock you all day long.”
- Psalm 74:22

Abortion advocates hate peaceful, prayerful, Christ-centered pro-life activities. They especially hate the Christians who frequent abortion mill sidewalks all across the nation. How infuriating it must be for them when they can’t use their usual rhetoric (calling pro-lifers angry, violent, woman-haters) because the pro-lifers outside abortion mills display the complete opposite.

All their talk of tolerance and acceptance goes out the window when dealing with kind families love the women entering abortion mills by offering them alternatives.

Those in favor of abortion respond to these effective, life-saving campaigns in all sorts devious ways. One is Planned Parenthood’s pledge a protester. PP supporters pledge that for every pro-lifer present outside the abortion mill, they will give a donation. Of course, they think this will dissuade pro-lifers from coming to the mill, but no such luck.

One pro-abortion blogger, who chronicles her experience as an abortion worker at Morgentaler Clinic in New Brunswick, said, “So this week, even though it was crappy rainy cold weather, the protesters were out bright and early with their signs. WHAT IS THEIR GAME??”

Well, our game is protecting life. No amount of bad weather, scare tactics or persecution will stop us. You wouldn’t understand this because you’ve stereotyped pro-lifers as being uncaring, hateful misogynists.

Another tactic recently employed by pro-abortion activists is defacing the very tame, diplomatic posters put up in NY subways by Abortion Changes You. The posters have loving messages of hope, healing and understanding, yet are labeled “heinous” by abortion supporters.
It gets worse.

This past Good Friday in St. Paul, MN, pro-lifers and abortion peddlers showed up outside the local Planned Parenthood. This pro-abortion video documents some of the protest. Those supporting PP showed their hardened hearts, calling what PP does a “fabulous service” and singing in favor of child killing to the tune of “Amazing Grace.”

One person noted, “We have a much friendlier, peppy side than they [the pro-lifers] do over there.” Well, of course you do. You’re celebrating death; the pro-lifers are mourning the millions of aborted children and scarred mothers and fathers.

Psalm 73:4-8, 12 says of the arrogant:

They have no struggles; their bodies are healthy and strong. They are free from the burdens common to man; they are not plagued by human ills. Therefore pride is their necklace; they clothe themselves with violence. From their callous hearts comes iniquity; the evil conceits of their minds know no limits. They scoff, and speak with malice; in their arrogance they threaten oppression...This is what the wicked are like— always carefree, they increase in wealth.

“Reverend” Turner of Faith Aloud (a proudly pro-abortion “religious” organization which claims to “promote reproductive justice through the moral power of religious and ethical communities”) recently responded to 40 Days for Life spring campaign with his own “40 Days of Prayer to Keep Abortion Safe and Legal.” Not sure who they are praying to, but it’s definitely not the God of the Bible.

I won’t list all 40 of their “prayers,” but here are just a few, with my comments in parentheses and italics.

Day 6: Today we ask for blessings upon the women who pass through hostile protesters on their way into an abortion clinic. May they be shielded from physical and emotional harm from those who do not know them. (The real harm comes once they’re inside. Those “hostile” protesters are the ones attempting to shield the women and their babies from physical and emotional harm.)

Day 10: Today we pray for women who were joyfully expecting a child, but have learned that the pregnancy is not sustainable. (Pregnancy is not sustainable? You mean, the child is not 'normal' by your standards? How did the "child" they're "joyfully expecting" suddenly lose humanity and become an unsustainable "pregnancy"?)

Day 13: Today we pray for the men in our lives, that they may offer their loving kindness and support for women's difficult decisions. (In other words, either ignore their protective instinct and passively accept their child being murdered or keep their mouths shut.)

Day 18: Today we pray for all the staff at abortion clinics around the nation. May they be daily confirmed in the sacred care that they offer women. (When dismembering children is called “sacred” there is something very wrong with our world.)

Day 28: Today we pray for the women who travel hundreds of miles to get an abortion. May their determination be rewarded with spiritual strength. (May their determination to kill their children be rewarded? Why do they need spiritual strength if there is nothing spiritually warped about abortion?)

Day 36: Today we pray for the families we've chosen. May they know the blessing of choice. (Families we’ve chosen!? What if a family chooses to eliminate one of their teenagers? Ah, the blessing of choice.)

Day 38: Today we pray for a cloud of gentleness to surround every abortion facility. May everyone feel calm and loving. (Yes, may everyone feel the calm and loving "cloud of gentleness" that accompanies babies being suctioned out of their mother’s wombs.)

They don’t stop at mocking God through pro-abortion prayers.

Another “Religious Institute” in favor of murdering the preborn released a special Mother’s Day handout for churches. They encourage churches do insert it into their bulletins and do the responsive reading.

Read the entire insert here.

After decrying women “needlessly” dying from pregnancy related complications, the handout promotes doubling the already $12 billion invested in “family planning.” Translation: more money for killing children.

The responsive reading is even more nauseating.

First they go through the obligatory thanking of mothers. Then their true agenda emerges: “We pray for a society in which pregnancy is freely chosen…We affirm the sanctity of life and the moral agency of women…We envision a world where…all children are wanted and loved…We celebrate the many ways that people create families and become mothers in our communities.”

There is so much wrong with these statements. First of all, we do live in a society where pregnancy is freely chosen. The choice is made when one decides to engage in sexual intercourse. Secondly, affirming the “sanctity of life” and “moral agency of women” should mean they are opposed to abortion. However, this is their deceptive attempt to mask an acceptance of abortion in church-friendly terms.

The worn argument about “a world where...all children are wanted and loved” has more recently decreased in usage, probably because abortion advocates realize that there are millions of loving families waiting to adopt. Thus, there are no unwanted, unloved children.

But, also, isn’t the answer to unwanted, unloved children to want them and love them? Don’t we go to Africa and care for the unwanted, unloved AIDS orphans? The solution is not to kill them.

What should our response be to all this sacrilege?

Press on in the fight. Urge our pastors to speak out in opposition to these wolves in sheep’s clothing. Pray without ceasing. And remember what David wrote in Psalm 73:16-19 about those who mock God and His righteousness:

When I tried to understand all this, it was oppressive to me till I entered the sanctuary of God; then I understood their final destiny. Surely you place them on slippery ground; you cast them down to ruin. How suddenly are they destroyed, completely swept away by terrors!

Galatians 6:7 says, “Do not be deceived: God cannot be mocked. A man reaps what he sows.”

Pray that all those who mock the upright will repent, turn from their ways and seek God and His offer of eternal life through Jesus Christ.

THE BACK-UP PLAN: PEOPLE IN 2010 HAVE CONTROL ISSUES

2010-05-24T10:08:00.000-07:00

A romantic comedy, The Back-Up Plan, starring Jennifer Lopez, came out this past weekend. The story centers on the main character, Zoe, who gets fed up with her nonexistent love life and lack of children. As a result, she uses artificial insemination and conceives twins. On the same day she undergoes the procedure, she meets a man and they proceed to “fall in love.”

The movie poster subtitle reads, “Fall in love.* Get married. Have a baby. *Not necessarily in that order.”

Well, at least they recognize the proper order. Unfortunately, the film depicts an all-too-familiar reality: Because of impatience, selfishness, loneliness and the prevailing on-demand attitude of our culture, more women are opting for the immoral act of using assisted reproductive technology (which includes artificial insemination and in-vitro fertilization) because, after years of “controlling” their fertility and “planning” their family, they realize it may be too late to have a child through natural, ethical means.

People in 2010 have control issues.

Interestingly, in her life off-screen, Lopez told Elle magazine that she wouldn’t use IVF. “I … believe in God and I have a lot of faith in that, so I just felt like you don’t mess with things like that. And I guess deep down I really felt like either this is not going to happen for me or it is. You know what I mean? And if it is, it will. And if it’s not, it’s not going to.”

Despite being 40 years old, when it is significantly more difficult to become pregnant, Lopez ended up naturally having fraternal twins.

While her statement is not well articulated, she has a good point. We shouldn’t “mess with” IVF. This so-called reproductive technology creates little people in test tubes. Then it determines which ones are suitable for survival. Those who don’t “make the cut” are destroyed. Of those who are deemed fit, some are frozen; others don’t survive the procedure.

One woman who underwent IVF took offense to Lopez’s statement:

She’s saying that if you deal with fertility issues then it’s because God doesn’t want you to have children and that’s offensive. In reality, if God didn’t want you to have kids, then he wouldn’t have these opportunities available. It’s not “messing” or intruding in God’s plan; you go after things in life that you want and don’t sit back and wait for things to happen. God helps those who help themselves.

What a telling statement! First, her final sentence is not at all biblical. Second, she put words in Lopez’s mouth. She never said it’s because God doesn’t want you to have kids. What about adoption and foster care? Third, note the self-absorbed nature of her response. “Go after things in life that you want.” Really? Despite the ethical ramifications? It sounds a lot like the justification used by those who research on little human embryos or any criminal who saw an opportunity to get what he wanted and took it.

Using her moral compass, there should be no ethical boundaries, no standards of right and wrong. As long as an opportunity is available to “go after” what you want, you should seize it.

One might expect this dog-eat-dog sort of worldview from a nonreligious person. However, another IVF-using couple made the preposterous claim that it strengthened their Catholic faith. “I am Catholic, but I believe in life; if you want something, you have to make it happen yourself, regardless of whether you believe in God. We had faith in what we were doing, and IVF was there to help us.”

IVF was there to help you? You had faith in what you were doing? Idolatry, anyone? Shouldn’t you be saying that God was there to help you through the sorrow of infertility? And you had faith in Christ?

People in 2010 have control issues.

I want this. There exists a way for me to have it. The way may be immoral and lead to death. But I want it.

Infertility is heartbreaking. But God is just and faithful. There are many things in life that may cause us pain, but we cannot sacrifice righteousness in order to do as we wish.

The same can be said about the use of hormonal birth control.

Yesterday, while doing a radio interview about National Pro-life T-Shirt Week, a man called in and asked about our position on the birth control pill. After explaining that we have a project called The Pill Kills, which highlights its effect on women, preborn persons and the environment, he berated me. He accused me of being a radical extremist for having the gall to oppose hormonal birth control and compare it to abortion.

I calmly told him to read the insert included with birth control pills in order to see the side effects. The radio host then moved on to another caller.

Despite the overwhelming evidence for the abortifacient nature of hormonal birth control, as well as its harmful and sometimes fatal effects on women, Christians continue to imbibe it at the same rate as the world. They cannot fathom letting God be in control.

People in 2010 have control issues.

The new movie, along with the article responding to Lopez’s IVF comments, demonstrate our culture’s lack of trust in God and the natural order He created. Instead of trusting in Him, we insist on planning everything out ourselves.

Just because we can do something doesn’t mean we should. No amount of fiddling with hormones, trying to thwart God or play God will ever create a world in which all goes as we plan.

American Idol, StayTeen.org & PP

2010-03-04T09:31:00.000-08:00

By Kortney Blythe

While watching American Idol, a commercial came on that caught my attention. An amateurish-looking home video showed two giddy, laughing teenage girls jumping on a trampoline, acting goofy. Then a voiceover said:

“I love my life. I’m not gonna mess it up with a pregnancy.”

And a web site flashed on the screen: Stayteen.org.

Being the abortion abolitionist I am, I immediately opened my laptop to check it out. At first, I was pleasantly surprised. The web site, which is funded by a grant from the Department of Health and Human Services Administration for Children and Families, strongly advised waiting to have sex.

Among the various messages were myths about sex, lists of compelling reasons why abstinence is best and even a mention of how TV and movies portray sex as having no repercussions. In addition, they impressively differentiated between lust and love, and recognized the physical and emotional consequences attached to sex.

According to their bullet points, not everybody is doing it. Nearly 70 percent of teens wish they had waited to have sex and 94 percent want a strong abstinence message.

But, as I expected, that was the end of the good news. After leaving the “abstinence” section and perusing the rest of the site, I came upon the “help and advice” section. Who took the top spot under the first three resource topics?

Planned Parenthood.

Yes, that bastion of abortion, libertine sex (for the young and old) and the undermining of parents and purity. To appease parents and the general public, PP occasionally uses the word abstinence in their propaganda. But when mentioned, it is nearly always followed with a “but” and some nonsense about realizing how unrealistic it is; thus undermining the whole purpose of promoting it.

It’s disturbingly contradictory for a web site that claims to want to prevent teen pregnancy and promote abstinence to send young people to PP for questions about “sex, protection, contraception…STDs…[and] emergency contraception.”

Once again, our government (and whoever else was involved in this site) fails to grasp the mixed messages they are sending to kids when they view such a web site.

A show like American Idol is watched by families with kids of varying ages. Many of them will visit StayTeen.org because of the captivating commercial. Unfortunately, the site perpetuates the false message that “abstinence is good, but since it’s probably not realistic, use contraception.” Until parents start consistently teaching their children and teens lifelong chastity, the rates of teen pregnancy, STDs and premarital sex at younger and younger ages will continue to rise.

No amount of confusing web sites will change the statistics.

Hypocrisy, 'Text4Baby' & Planned Parenthood

2010-02-25T14:56:00.000-08:00

Planned Parenthood’s Attempt at Distancing Itself from Abortion by Promoting ‘Text4Baby’ Only Exposes The Hypocrisy

By Kortney Blythe

I recently received a tweet that Planned Parenthood had partnered with the new Text4Baby program, “a free mobile information service designed to promote maternal and child health.” Anyone who signs up will receive tips and facts about the stages of pregnancy by text message each week.

So, of course, I signed up to see what kind of messages Planned Parenthood would approve of concerning prenatal development. To my surprise, after the introductory, congratulatory message, the following message was, “Your baby is growing a lot this week! Baby is now the size of a lime & can open its mouth & move its tiny hands.” The next message recommended prenatal vitamins. A few days later a message stressed the importance of avoiding drugs, alcohol and smoking, and referred to the child as a “she” instead of “it.”

Now, wait a minute. Why would Planned Parenthood partner with the National Healthy Mothers, Health Babies Coalition (HMHB) on a project, which admits that a preborn child has tiny hands, a mouth and a specific gender? According to PP’s own employees, a preborn person is not a baby.

If you’ve seen pictures of aborted babies, you know that the very abortions performed inside Planned Parenthood mills violently chop off limbs leaving those ‘tiny hands’ lifeless and bloody.

What about “my body, my choice”? Shouldn’t the pregnant women receiving the texts be able to imbibe whatever chemicals they want regardless of the effects on their children or mass of tissue (whatever it is they’re pregnant with)?

Sponsoring this Text4Baby project are groups such as The March of Dimes, Johnson & Johnson, MTV and the U.S. government. Unfortunately, The March of Dimes takes the cowardly and contradictory “neutral” position on abortion. Johnson & Johnson financially supports Planned Parenthood and their evil agenda. MTV is the largest corporate supporter of PP. Its TV shows and public service announcements push the same immoral sexual messages. Do I even need to explain how the U.S. government fits into this equation? I’ll list a few: Decriminalizing abortion, subsidizing abortion, birth control and ineffective, so-called comprehensive sex education with taxpayer money, working with population control groups that support one-child policies and forced sterilization, etc.

The Text4Baby service is a good idea. The problem is those involved in the project are hypocrites, and their hypocrisy is not just a character flaw, it’s a fatal flaw. Either the human being in the womb is a baby, who should be protected from harmful chemicals and given the best chance at a healthy life, or he/she is not, and it’s fine to rid one’s body of such a parasite. PP knows that its reputation is plummeting with the rising number of those opposed to abortion. This partnership is simply a public relations attempt to counterbalance the public’s perception and downplay its most lucrative baby-killing business. “Look,” PP can say, “we care about babies, too!”

If PP were to be honest, its version of the program would be called “Text4Termination,” and it would look something like this:

Welcome to Text4Termination! Planned Parenthood would be happy to remove the fetal tissue from your womb.

This is the right choice for you. We’ll get rid of the problem pregnancy for only $500! If you’re a minority, you get the Margaret Sanger special.

Underage and impregnated by a much older boyfriend/teacher/family member? Don’t worry, we cover up statutory rape or incest for free!

No amount of partnering with baby-friendly organizations will change the fact that PP is the number one performer of in-utero genocide. It is utter lies and hypocrisy to claim you care about the health of children while at the same time wiping them out by the thousands.

Interview with Pro-life American Idol Contestant

2010-02-25T14:54:00.001-08:00

We just posted the latest edition of the Rock for Life Netcast. Click here to listen

Interview with Maddy Curtis, American Idol contestant

Rock For Life Netcast

Feature: Maddy Curtis, 16, from a Virginia family of twelve,was one of the contestants who advanced to Hollywood on the current season of American Idol after singing Leonard Cohen’s "Hallelujah." Maddy is the ninth child in the family and has an older brother and three adopted brothers with Down’s syndrome. She's also the daughter of award-winning pro-life blogger Barbara Curtis, who writes the MommyLife blog, which won the American Life League's Best Overal Pro-Life Blog Award in 2009. Listen to our interview with this courageous warrior for life.

Featured Band: The Pledge

News & Commentary

Wanted on Charges of Illegal Abortions: Planned Parenthood

Baby born healthy after hospital advised abortion to avoid lawsuit

MTV Show 16 and Pregnant Criticized for Not Promoting Teen Abortions

Choice Cuts: Quotes from Pro-abortion Advocates

Sarah Seltzer of RH Reality 'Wreck' talks to Russia Today about "Bump+" Webisode series and why both sides are "offended"

Republican Utah Senator Urquhart explains why he's pushing a bill for more "comprehensive" sex-education; Planned Parenthood thrilled

To subscribe to the Rock for Life Podcast click on this iTunes icon

You can also find the Rock for Life Podcast on myspace by clicking here or on Podomatic by clicking here.

To ask us questions or to give us comments, ideas or suggestions write us at Podcast@RockForLife.org or call us at 866-552-3368.

Abortion on TV: Friday Night Lights

2010-02-11T14:20:00.000-08:00

Sarah Seltzer, a regular blogger on the rabidly pro-abortion web site RH Reality Check, just posted raving reviews about an episode of the TV show Friday Night Lights in which a character gets an abortion. I’ve previously discussed how more TV shows are depicting young people rejecting abortion in favor of adoption or raising the child. Meanwhile, abortion advocates grumble over what they see as a stigma surrounding abortion on TV. They just can’t stand to see characters actually make the right decision for their child.

Instead, Seltzer would rather a show “break that barrier” by “depicting a character having an abortion in a very nonpolitical, personal way … [one who] arrive[s] at this decision from an honest, intensely personal, non-ideological standpoint.”

First, abortion is not a political issue; it’s a human rights violation. Second, no amount of gushy words like “honest” or “personal” can cover up the brutal truth—they’re talking about dismembering a baby. And that barrier she wants broken is people’s natural tendency to feel—at the very least—discomfort, but more often disgust, over abortion. She wants to desensitize the majority of Americans who have conscionable objections to the slaughter of innocent people by portraying it as no big deal. This is a common tactic of godless secularists—shove immorality into people’s faces via television shows until they lose their aversion to it and start to embrace it.

On the episode, Becky, distraught over rejection by an older man, has a fling with another boy, Luke. She's pregnant and initially wants an abortion, but Luke causes her to think more about it. Her mother had her as a teenager, and this also causes her to pause.

When Becky tells her mother, she’s furious and in favor of the abortion. Apparently, in their fictitious world, the state law mandates that the doctor tell them about the age of the baby—which upsets them—just not enough to dissuade them from going forward with the killing.

Before the abortion, Becky tells an adult friend, Tami, that she feels “weird” about it. Tami says that’s because “it’s a hard decision.” But why is it hard? If it’s just a surgery to remove some sort of foreign invader from one’s body, what’s so hard or weird about it?

Becky gives reasons why the abortion seems best: no money, still young, in school and the overused excuse that having a baby will “throw my life away.” Her mother’s insistence that she have the abortion also leads her to think, “I was her mistake and she has just struggled and hurt and everyday she wanted better.” What a sad thing for a daughter to feel about her own existence.

In a moment of clarity, Becky considers, “Maybe I could take care of this baby and maybe I would be good at it and I could love it and I would be there for it.” Once again, when the possibility of not killing the “product of conception” is discussed, there’s all of a sudden a “baby” involved. But as soon as abortion is decided upon, that “baby” reverts to being a pregnancy, clump of cells, fetus, embryo or any number of dehumanizing euphemisms.

She tragically concludes, “I can't take care of a baby. I can't.” Wait, a woman can’t do something? But I thought “reproductive rights” empowered women to do anything they want? Shouldn’t the feminist response then be, “Yes, you can”? Aren’t all of your options attainable? Of course, even if it were the case that she couldn’t take care of a baby, there are millions of couples who want to and absolutely could take care of a baby. Why not give a couple the gift of a child?

In the end, she tells the father, Luke, “It was the right choice.” What a warped world we live in where murdering a tiny, helpless child is “right.”

Lie to Me Does Just That About Sex

2009-10-16T08:52:00.001-07:00

I’ve got to admit that I love Fox’s new TV show Lie to Me. On the show, Dr. Cal Lightman, the brilliant main character and walking lie-detector, and his team can watch a person, observe his body language and micro-expressions, and determine whether he’s telling the whole truth and nothing but the truth. They’re “experts in deception and witness veracity.” It’s fascinating — especially when they show pictures of well-known figures from current events exhibiting the same facial expressions when faced with similar predicaments (see picture below).

Another reason I enjoy the show is that, for the most part, it doesn’t push the envelope in terms of sexually explicit content. I was disappointed, however, in a recent episode.

The plot: A group of high school girls make a pact to lose their virginity to college boys because they think high school boys are “tools.” To attain their goal, they crash fraternity parties and pretend to be college-aged in order to assure that they won’t be rejected as jailbait.

During one such escapade, a girl sleeps with a college football star. After finishing “the deed,” she goes home upset and intoxicated and tells her father where she was (leaving out her part in the act). Fuming, the father has the college student charged with statutory rape. Cal and his team of psychologists use their expertise to discover that the girl purposely hid her age, and the rape charges are dropped.

The teenage girl’s father, a protective single parent, is furious that his precious daughter, who can do no wrong in his eyes, had her innocence stolen. In denial that it was of her own will, he wants someone to pay. He blames the justice system and murders the district attorney who dropped the rape charges. One big tragic mess, right?

Side plot: Dr. Lightman’s teenage daughter, Emily, happens to go to the same school as these sex-pact girls. When he finds birth control pills and a fake ID in her room and learns that she’s been going to college bars, he is furious. Holding the birth control, he wisely exclaims, “I hope for your sake these are just tic tacs! …Do you realize there are consequences for your actions?” and puts them in his pocket.

His ex-wife, however, nonchalantly responds, “There are consequences to not having those, too…She’s not on the pill yet…but I think it’s best that she have them for when she is ready.”

Now, this is typical “safe” sex propaganda (The faulty idea that we should give out birth control “just in case,” but hope that teens don’t use it until “they’re ready” — whatever that means), and I’ve dealt with it in other blogs. But, I still held out hope that Lightman would be the voice of reason and practice morally upright parenting.

At the end of the episode, in what is supposed to be a tender father/daughter moment, Emily laments the death of the DA and the fact that her young classmate’s only living parent will now spend the rest of his life in jail — all because of one act. “A man’s dead, Susan doesn’t have any family. How’d all this get so messed up?”

Her dad rightly uses it as a teachable moment, “See this is what I mean about consequences, you can’t predict them.” If only it had stopped there. Roll the credits. Lessons learned. Dad took his daughter’s birth control away; daughter realizes the complications and downright mayhem that can come from sexual sin. No such luck.

In the closing scene, Lightman reaches in his pocket and hands the birth control back to his 16-year-old daughter. They embrace and exchange “I love you’s.” The end.

So let me get the message straight: One girl’s need to feel accepted and have sex with an older boy leads to a distraught father who murders an innocent man, leaving a girl orphaned and traumatizing a careless college student, but “since they’re going to have sex anyways, let’s give them birth control pills”?

Apparently, no one really learned anything in the whole salacious ordeal.

The writers ignored the consequences of returning the pills. The truly loving thing would’ve been for him to throw the poisonous permission-slips-for-promiscuity pills away and protect his daughter from the physical, spiritual and mental repercussions of premarital sex by instilling in her the importance of chastity. Maybe that’s a bit much to ask from a secular TV show. But even a nice politically correct “you’re not old enough” speech, followed by pitching the pills in the trash, would’ve made more sense considering the devastation they’d just witnessed that was caused by one sexual act.

HEY YOU, BARBARIAN! LOVE CAREFULLY!

2009-09-10T06:46:00.000-07:00

While perusing a flea market booth comprised of old photos, news clippings and other vintage paraphernalia, I came upon a pre-Roe Planned Parenthood bumper sticker and promptly purchased it. Evidently, before PP ditched any effort to connect sex with love, they came out with this gem of a marketing scheme: “Love Carefully.”

In case you can’t see the picture well enough, I’ll describe it. On a bright pink background, a cave woman, holding a club, is deviously dragging an unconscious cave man with a flower in his mouth. Then in big letters, it says, “LOVE CAREFULLY! Planned Parenthood.”

Um, what? Not only is the picture perpetuating the now-pervasive theme of de-masculinized and feeble men, but it begs the question: What does an androgynous woman yielding a weapon and pulling along a lifeless man have to do with “love” or “being careful”? Should women hit men with sticks to avoid the “dangers” of sex? Is rendering another human unconscious an act of love? Okay, maybe I’m reading into a bumper sticker too much.

The barbarian theme, though, is strikingly appropriate. That’s what Planned Parenthood wants — a bunch of zombie-like, pleasure-seeking, responsibility-shirking Neanderthals mindlessly engaging in sexual acts. But, they expect these same hormone-crazed people who can’t control their natural impulses, to take certain “precautions.” I’ve always wondered how, on one hand, PP thinks that humans are too weak, animalistic or overwhelmed with hormones to practice chastity and yet they expect those same humans to be thoughtful, controlled and mature enough to take a pill at the same time every day or stop “in the heat of the moment” and use a condom?

Pick a side; do you believe we are highly evolved animals who should give in to our every desire? (This has far-reaching, frightful implications.) Or are we moral agents, made in the image of God, who should say ‘no’ to “ungodliness and worldly desires, and to live sensibly, righteously and godly in the present age” (Titus 2:12)?

Apparently, when this sticker was created, PP recognized that most people associate sex with love (a connection that they’ve now successfully severed). “Love Carefully” was an early rendition of the now ubiquitous phrase “safe sex.” And I’ve written plenty on the true meaning of that phrase.

If you truly want to know what it means to “love carefully,” read 1 Corinthians 13:4-8a: “Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. Love never fails.”

Netcast 55: Debunking Myths of ObamaCare; Jeff & Erik Return

2009-08-19T10:17:00.000-07:00

Netcast 55: Debunking ObamaCare Myths; Erik & Jeff Return!

RFL Netcast 055

Featured Band: Human Flight Committee

Stories from the road: Jeff and Erik share inspiring tour stories

News & Commentary

RH Reality Check Calls Judie Brown the "grandmother of the modern anti-choice movement" and lists ALL as top “anti-choice” crusader for personhood!

University of Louisville Pro-Life Student Group Wants Rick Pitino Dismissed

Choice Cuts

"While the anti-choice movement is motivated primarily by a desire to control sex and stomp out women’s liberation, they realize that this position isn’t going to fly over well with a public that enjoys sex and households that rely on female income. That’s why they came up with The Almighty Fetus as a way to spin it."
-Amanda Marcotte, RH Reality Check "Birthers and Anti-Choicers: One and the same"

"...I don't think there is any one right age, right time, or right kind of relationship for everyone when it comes to what makes sex right or best. That varies from person-to-person a lot, and isn't usually based on something as simple as only how old we are."
-RH Reality Check, Heather Corinna, Scarleteen

"When I counseled a Hindu woman who...wanted the abortion because...the fetus...was female...my feminism and pro-choice philosophies collided violently... But...ultimately, women do and should have the right to make what may be to others the wrong choice."
-"Selecting the Same Sex," Merle Hoffman, On the Issues Magazine “

Just because something is legal -- and should be legal -- does not mean it is always ethical."
-Frances Kissling (formerly of Catholics for Choice)

"The key thing is we don't want abortion to enter this debate and sabotage health care reform. Neither side should try to win political gains on abortion during the health care debate."
-Rev. Jim Wallis, Sojourners

FEATURE: Debunking the myths of Obamacare

Listen to Erik, Jeff and Kortney discuss:
-"But we already pay for abortions."
-"Christians should support Obamacare because it's helping the poor."
-"Why are you against reform?"

Listen now!

Rock for Life Calls on Christians to Unite in Opposition to Obamacare

2009-08-14T08:51:00.001-07:00

Obamacare is creating discord within the ranks of Christian social justice organizations, which are sponsoring competing advertisements and campaigns.

Rock for Life, American Life League’s youth outreach, called on all Christians Thursday to unite in condemning President Obama’s health care “reform” plan, which would mandate abortion coverage, among other evils.

The call is in response to an ad just released by the leftist Faithful America organization in support of the Obamacare. The ad was cosponsored by other leftist groups, including PICO National Network, Sojourners and the misnamed Catholics in Alliance for the Common Good. It features a number of “people of faith” calling on Congress to support Obamacare.

The ad counters American Life League and Family Research Council’s public opposition to the Obama plan, which would mandate tax-subsidized abortion, euthanasia and health care rationing.

Faithful America’s ad is part of the “40 Days for Health Reform” campaign, which, like the ad, is sponsored by a coalition of hard-core left-wing groups operating as religious organizations.

Kortney Blythe, Rock for Life’s chapter and street team coordinator, commented, “I find the fact that Faithful America co-opted the name of a pro-life campaign, ‘40 Days for Life,’ and replaced ‘life’ with ‘health reform’ reveals its true intentions. A more appropriate title for its campaign would be ‘40 Days for Death.’”

Faithful America’s web site claims, “The health reform proposals currently before Congress will ease the burden on us all, from middle class families to those most in need.”

Blythe disagrees: “The health care ‘reform’ proposal will not ease the burden of all. In fact, it will target those most in need of protection – the preborn, the elderly, the seriously ill and the disabled – by determining whether their ‘quality of life’ is worth sustaining.”

In the 30-second Faithful America ad, a handful of clergy and lay people supposedly representing various Protestant traditions and the Catholic Church, tout their support for Obama’s health care plan. The Rev. Stevie Wakes, of Olivet Institutional Baptist Church in Kansas City, Kansas, tells viewers, “God has given us a spirit not of fear, but of love and action.”

“Shouldn’t this love extend to all persons, regardless of their status, age or condition?” Blythe responded. “And shouldn’t our actions defend the cause of the widow and the fatherless? No amount of misusing Scripture will change the facts about the evils included in H.R. 3200.”

The ad ends with the Rev. John Hay of Indianapolis, Indiana declaring, “Millions of people of faith are supporting health insurance reform.”

Blythe set the record straight: “Yes, my generation of young people supports reform, but not at the expense of human lives, particularly those of babies in the womb or the elderly. We will applaud changes to health care that safeguard the lives of all – both born and preborn."

Abortion on TV: Reflection of Cultural Shift?

2009-08-07T11:45:00.000-07:00

Television not only mirrors a society, but can also shape it. Could how abortion is portrayed reflect the changing views of abortion in our culture? When Fox TV network announced they would be censoring a Family Guy episode dubbed “the abortion episode,” the abortion advocates came out in force.

Amanda Marcotte of RH Reality Check (a radically anti-life website) called Fox’s move “systemic sexism,” part of a trend to “write [abortion] off as fringe” and “taboo.” Another RH Reality Check blogger, Sarah Seltzer, complained, “The lack of abortion jokes creates this hyped-up atmosphere of tragedy and controversy around something that is quite common and needs to be discussed more.”

Pro-abortion activists like to legitimize child-killing using numbers. Since so many women procure abortions —1.2 million per year—it must be right. Basically, a “might makes right” mentality. Marcotte points out there are 694,000 open heart surgeries, 600,000 hysterectomies and 193,000 hip replacements, making abortion the most common procedure. Those other surgeries are shown on medical TV shows and talked about in passing conversations without hesitation.

Why is abortion still a sensitive subject despite its frequency? Why is there an “atmosphere of tragedy” surrounding abortion? The answer is quite obvious, if one is willing to take off the “pro-choice” blinders. Abortion leaves women hurting, regretful and sorrow-filled when they realize that they allowed someone to end the life of their child. Much to the dismay of abortion “rights” groups, most TV shows reflect this reality.

A new ABC show, Defying Gravity, is about astronauts in 2052. In it, abortion is criminalized. Within the first two episodes, a character who gets an illegal abortion hears babies crying everywhere she goes.

Similarly, on the show Six Feet Under, Claire visits a lifeless, cold abortion clinic. TV reviewers and commentators described the scene as “a slaughterhouse” or “a cattle-call.” After the abortion, Claire has a breakdown, and the thought of babysitting her infant niece makes her nauseous. Later, she dreams of heaven and sees her aborted daughter there.

Abortion advocates hate these depictions. Yes, they want abortion on TV. But they want it portrayed as quick and easy, devoid of long-lasting consequences. Pro-abortion radicals would like nothing more than pop media renditions of obnoxiously rebellious, promiscuous women having carefree abortions with no lasting repercussions. They want abortion treated like any other outpatient operation. No big deal. That’s not gonna happen. Why? It’s not authentic. “The longer legalized abortion is with us, the more stigmatized it becomes, as reflected even in liberally-made movies and television…There is increasing evidence to [people] on the street that abortion kills children, and that aborting mothers do hear crying babies, have mental breakdowns, and suffer infertility,” explains pro-life blogger, Jill Stanek.

When TV shows deal with unexpected pregnancies, more of them are showing happy women and men of all ages embracing parenthood or choosing adoption. Abortion promoters hate this, too. What about their own hijacked use of the word “choice” don’t they understand? Why are they angered when a person, fictional or not, chooses not to abort. I thought they were supposed to be pro-multiple-choices? MTV’s show 16 and Pregnant displeases them because all the girls choose parenthood instead of “barrenhood.”

On an episode of One Tree Hill, a pregnant Peyton freaks out at the prospect of abortion, yelling, “It’s not an ‘it.’ This is our baby. You saw its heartbeat. You saw its little tiny fingers and its toes.” At this, an abortion supporter wrote, “[The characters] couldn’t get past…the anti-choice rhetoric of the unborn child’s potential and cute little arms and legs.” Let me get this straight, you want them to get past the “rhetoric” of their child’s body parts in order to dismember their baby instead? Is that what you’re insinuating?

Another pet peeve of the pro-aborts is how caring for one’s child is always viewed as the “right thing” to do and results in a happy ending. For instance, The O.C. was deemed “conservative” on abortion because the show’s website said a teen father, “did the right thing and moved back to Chino to help raise [his baby].” One anti-life blogger responded, “Since when is dropping out of high school to work construction and raise a child while you are still basically a child yourself considered doing the right thing for anyone?” To which I ask: is the “right” alternative your choice? The abortion choice?

Why am I spending time discussing abortion on TV? Media impacts culture, specifically the culture of young people. Kids spend an average of four hours per day glued to the tube. The messages they hear blared from the screen stick with them longer than a lecture or a presentation. Although it seems strange that Hollywood could contribute anything good, the honesty with which they tackle the complex and devastating issue of abortion may just help the pro-life movement in our battle against “the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms.” (Ephesians 6:12)

2009-07-31T10:26:00.000-07:00

RFL Netcast 053

Featured artist: Rachel Merchand

Erik was on the road headed to Soulfest, so...

Meet guest co-host Stephanie: Chapter leader & ALL intern

1. How do you like interning?
2. What activities does Saint Michael's chapter have planned?
3. How did you get involved with pro-life work/RFL?

Check out our updated chapter list. If you want to start a chapter send Kortney an e-mail.

News & Commentary

Largest Pro-life web event in history

NY Representative Defends Margaret Sanger

Pence Amendment Voted Down

National Pro-life Memorial Day is October 5 - Promo postcards available, start recruiting now, visit website, buy t-shirt, sign up to participate

FEATURE: Obama-bots, We Love the Obamas, but have no idea what they stand for

* Listen as Stephanie and Kortney recount Monday's activities in D.C. in front of Pelosi's office where a press conference was held spotlighting how the abortion mandate will affect the African American community, followed by an afternoon of activism confronting Michelle Obama.
* Listen to interviews with attendees on abortion as tax-funded healthcare.

Choice Cuts

"The last time I can remember a romantic comedy with a real, relatable, capable-of-growth, possessing-an-inner-life heroine (albeit a quirky, eccentric one) was Juno. And that was wrapped in a creepily-anti choice, pro-female self-sacrifice plot structure which made the film a mixed bag for feminists. It was almost as if a three-dimensional female protagonist was only allowed through the gates of existence by doing penance--fulfilling the conservative fantasy of the willing baby-giving-up teen mom--within her film's storyline."
-Sarah Seltzer, RH Reality Check, "Indie Movies Can Be Sexist, Too"

"The United Nations recently reported that the world population will double in the next 40 years if growth rates go unchecked. India...was specifically mentioned...[and] came up with a solution: To bring electricity to rural villages so people can watch television at night instead of having sex. According to...India's Health and Family Welfare Minister:'When there is no electricity there is nothing else to do but produce babies...I am serious. TV will have a great impact. It's a great medium to tackle the problem ... 80 percent of population growth can be reduced through TV.'"
-Amy Dempsey, RH Reality Check, "Roundup: Obama's Abortion Pledge to the Pope"

"Each side in the abortion debate has its Achilles' heel. For advocates of choice it's the fetus."
-Frances Kissling (former president of Catholics for Choice), "What's Wrong With the New Pro-Lifers," RH Reality Check

Listen to Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey (D-CA) Equate Abortion To A Tonsillectomy

To subscribe to the Rock for Life Podcast click on this iTunes icon

You can also find the Rock for Life Netcast on Myspace or on Podomatic. You can also listen to the Rock for Life Netcast on National Pro-Life Radio every Wednesday at 1pm. To ask us questions or to give us comments, ideas or suggestions write us at Netcast@RockForLife.org or call us at 866-552-3368.

Preventing the Pregnancy Disease: One of the 10 Great Health Achievements of the 20th Century?

2009-07-17T06:39:00.000-07:00

In a recent blog, the president of Planned Parenthood Minnesota, North Dakota, South Dakota Action Fund, Sarah Stoesz, claims to give “The Simple Truth about Family Planning.” Actually, all she manages to do is treat birth control like the discovery of penicillin.

According to a report from the obviously-unbiased-attached-at-the-hip-buddy-of-Planned-Parenthood research group, the Guttmacher Institute, “the typical American woman, who wants two children, spends about five years pregnant, postpartum or trying to become pregnant, and three decades – more than three-quarters of her reproductive life – trying to avoid pregnancy.”

Watch out! Duck and dodge! Get down! Put on your pregnancy-proof vest and wear protective gear as you navigate through those dangerous reproductive years! Heaven forbid you allow God’s blessings to penetrate your anti-life armor. The results could be disastrous: hearing the joyous laughter of more than two children filling your house! Lollipops, toddlers and bottles, oh my!

Even the CDC recognizes the importance of “family planning,” also known as technologies that rescue “unsuspecting” women from the horror of pregnancy and childbearing. They list it as “one of the ten greatest public health achievements of the 20th century.” You know, right alongside such medical advances as controlling infectious diseases, decline in deaths from heart disease and stroke, and healthier mothers and babies.

Really, CDC? In the same breath that you list “healthier mothers and babies” and “decline in deaths from coronary heart disease and stroke” as achievements, you also include “family planning”? Go ahead and ignore the fact that so-called family planning has resulted in at least 51 million dead babies and grieving women, in addition to hormonal birth control increasing female deaths from stroke, pulmonary embolism, cardiac arrest, hypertensive diseases and heart failure.

Wait - C … D … C. Doesn’t that stand for the Centers for Disease Control? Why, yes, it does. And what disease is being controlled with “family planning”? Oh, that’s right; abortion advocates think pregnancy is a disease. I guess we all just began our lives as little diseases in our mother’s wombs. I think I’m going to get a complex.

Explaining why it made the list, the CDC asserts “family planning has provided health benefits such as smaller family size.” And what health “benefits” come from a smaller family size? I can only think of disadvantages such as creating spoiled, self-centered kids who, despite their parents’ claim that limiting the number of children provides more time and focus on the kids they do have, have poor, strained relationships with their parents, and don’t know the meaning of sacrifice or service.

Stoesz then tries to appeal to fiscal conservatives, saying they should “embrace family planning,” for “it costs less to fund contraceptive services than it does to pay for prenatal care, delivery, and infant care associated with unintended pregnancies.” Sorry, Ms. Stoesz, but unlike some who are labeled as “far right” or “conservative” for their view on government spending, true pro-lifers care not how much money a precious child costs to keep alive and don’t consider humans as financial burdens. Regardless of what box we’re put in, we believe that a human being's life is more important than money or trees or tax debates.

I Hate to Say, 'I Told You So'

2009-07-15T14:57:00.001-07:00

Last week, I wrote a scathing blog about a program that paid girls to avoid pregnancy. Most conveniently, the UK government just released the results of its government-funded program that had a similar goal. I’m sure the outcome will not be covered by the U.S. "mainstream" media.

Instead of paying money directly to the young women, the UK spent nearly six million pounds (£2,500 per girl) on a program for "high-risk" teens, which consisted of disseminating birth control and teaching them about sex.

The result? The pregnancy rate more than doubled! Yes, you read right: It doubled. Why do “experts” say this happened? Because the program introduced girls to promiscuous peers who pressured them to have sex.

Actually, “experts,” it’s because giving out birth control and chatting explicitly about sex in all its forms is like handing them a permission slip to have sex. A permission slip that comes with a false sense of security –“Take this and you won’t get pregnant”; ”Wear this and you won’t get an STD”; “If you’re in love and it feels right, you’re ready to have sex.”

One girl involved in the program had four abortions before she turned 18: her first one at age 12; her second one, the result of a tryst with a 19-year-old man at a party; her fourth one, the result of condom failure.

Thank God the Department of Health pledged to drop this disastrous scheme. Unfortunately, however, they’ll most likely come up with some other ineffective, harebrained idea to address their 40,000-pregnant-teens-per-year “problem,” the highest level in western Europe.

Why did the UK initiate this program in the first place? They heard that the U.S. supposedly had success with a similar model in New York. What they failed to consider was that this program ONLY showed promise, supposedly, in NY. According to a news article, “attempts to replicate the work elsewhere in the U.S. did not lead to a fall in teenage pregnancies.”

So, it didn’t work anywhere else, including on another continent. Hmmm, I’d say the NY findings were either a fluke or blatant lying by sex peddlers such as Planned Parenthood.

I hate to sound like a broken record, but until those in authority – teachers, parents, politicians – realize that the only way to improve the lives of teenagers and people of all ages, for that matter, is to promote biblical values, we’ll continue to see failed attempts to tackle the serious disease of sin. It’s like treating cancer with a Band-Aid.
Grammy-nominated hip-hop artist Common put it well in his song about abortion, "Retrospect for Life": “From now on … use self-control instead of birth control. ‘Cause $315 ain’t worth your soul.”

Sex: Good, Babies: Bad

2009-07-15T14:54:00.000-07:00

This mindset seems to be the theme in this week’s news from the frontlines of the pro-death camp.

Take, for instance, this quote by Elisabeth Garber-Paul in an article on the rise in sexual activity during this economic recession: "So join the rest of America in this exciting new trend. Save money, stay in, have sex—just don’t make a baby."

That’s right, Elisabeth, throw respect for yourself out the window and spit in the face of God by removing one of his intentions for intercourse. More babies will just make the economy worse, right? Wrong. In fact, one of the reasons we are even in this recession is because of the plummeting birthrate. There simply aren’t enough people to replace the retiring population in the workplace and pay for Social Security, or to stimulate the economy.

Not that you’ll hear about that from the anti-human, overpopulation zealots. But, do your research. Watch Demographic Winter and Demographic Bomb, two documentaries which debunk the overpopulation myth and ask the very important question: IS IT POSSIBLE WE HAVE BEEN FAILED BY THE VERY IDEAS WE THOUGHT COULD SAVE US?

It goes without saying that abortion advocates think saving sex for marriage is ludicrous and archaic. Just check out the title of a book just released by radical feminist Jessica Valenti, The Purity Myth: How America’s Obsession with Virginity is Hurting Young Women.

In an interview on RH Reality Check, the author, Valenti, purports that teaching and honoring purity is just as dangerous as the media’s “pressure on sexuality and the hypersexualization of women.” Oh, really? So, protecting young people from the heartbreak and emptiness of pre-marital sex, not to mention a load of sexually transmitted diseases, is akin to the objectification of women, the result of which has been a generation of depressed, confused girls with eating disorders?

She goes on to say, “The purity myth is so embedded in our culture and our psyches…You don't have to be forcing your daughter to take a virginity pledge in order for the fiction of virginity to affect your life.” Really? Then, why does every Hollywood film end (or begin) with a couple jumping into bed together? If it’s so “embedded” in our culture, then why are abortion, STD and teen pregnancy rates so high? (I’m not going to even legitimize her term “fiction of virginity” with a response).

As if that isn’t enough, in Greensboro, North Carolina, a new program is paying high school girls to not get pregnant. That’s right. For every day they stay baby-free, $1 is deposited into an account to be used for college. According to WXII12 news, the group was founded by Hazel Brown, a maternity nurse who thought too many teens were having babies. Ms. Brown, how about seeing the root of the problem - too many teens are having premarital sex.

The problem is NOT the presence of a baby, but the actions of his mother and father, which resulted in his existence.

The three goals of this program, called College-Bound Sisters, are for the girls to “avoid pregnancy, graduate from high school and enroll in college,” Brown said. Oh, what lofty goals we have for our young people!

Teenagers rise to the expectations that are set for them. If all we ask is that they avoid pregnancy (and bonus! we’ll pay you for it), what are we teaching girls about sex, relationships, the value of children or personal responsibility, for that matter?

Instead of urging purity and self-control, and demonstrating the joys of a quiver full of children (Psalm 127:4-5) within marriage, this program bribes young girls. If those same girls were taught basic biblical morality, they wouldn’t be having sex, and thus, there would be no chance of pregnancy.

The message of this program in a nutshell: Go ahead and sin against God by having damaging premarital sex, but just make sure you avoid one of the outcomes – babies.

If only young people knew the joy and blessings they are missing out on when they use sex for purely physical and selfish reasons! Then, and only then, they would cherish chastity as it should be cherished.

To my unmarried friends reading this, please flee from this deadly mentality of me-first, pleasure-seeking sex without consequences. Seek righteousness, pursue holiness and practice chastity.

“But mark this: There will be terrible times in the last days. People will be lovers of themselves, lovers of money, boastful, proud, abusive, disobedient to their parents, ungrateful, unholy, without love, unforgiving, slanderous, without self-control, brutal, not lovers of the good, treacherous, rash, conceited, lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God—having a form of godliness but denying its power. Have nothing to do with them.” (2 Timothy 3:1-5)

Lyrics to "Retrospect for Life"

2009-07-08T13:49:00.000-07:00

"Retrospect for Life"
By Common

Yo we gotta start respectin life more y'all
You look at your brother man you gotta see yourself
Gotta see the God within him
Brothers gettin changed real quick over nothin
We losin too many of ours
Gotta recreate y'all
Yo check it

Knowin you the best part of life do I have the right to take yours
Cause I created you irresponsibly
Subconciously knowin the act I was a part of
The start of somethin, I'm not ready to bring into the world
Had myself believin I was sterile
I look into mother's stomach, wonder if you are a boy or a girl
Turnin this woman's womb into a tomb
But she and I agree, a seed we don't need
You would've been much more than a mouth to feed
But someone, I would've fed this information I read
to someone, my life for you I would've had to leave
Instead I lead you to death
I'm sorry for takin your first breath, first step, and first cry
But I wasn't prepared mentally nor financially
Havin a child shouldn't have to bring out the man in me
Plus I wanted you to be raised within a family
I don't wanna, go through the drama of havin a baby's momma
Weekend visits and buyin J's ain't gon' make me a father
For a while bearing a child is somethin I never wanted to do
For me to live forever I can only do that through you
Nerve I got to talk about them niggaz with a gun
Must have really thought I was God to take the life of my son
I could have sacrificed goin out
To think my homies who did it I used to joke about, from now on
I'mgonna use self control instead of birth control
Cause $315 ain't worth your soul
$315 ain't worth your soul
$315 ain't worth it

I, never dreamed you'd leave, in summer
You said you would be here when it rained
Yo
Why didn't you stay

Seeing you as a present and a gift in itself
You had our child in you, I probably never feel what you felt
But you dealt with it like the strong black woman you are
Through our trials and tribulations, child's elimination
An integration of thoughts I feel about the situation
Back and forth my feelings was pacin'
Happy deep down but not joyed enough to have it
But even that's a lie in less than two weeks, we was back at it
Is this unprotected love or safe to say it's lust
Bustin, more than the sweat in somebody you trust
Or is it that we don't trust each other enough
And believe, havin this child'll make us have to stay together
Girl I want you in my life cause you have made it better
Thinkin we all in love cause we can spend a day together
We talkin spendin the rest of our lives
It's too many black women that can say they mothers
but can't say that they wives
I wouldn't chose any other to mother my understanding
But I want our Parenthood to come from Planning
It's so much in my life that's undone
We gotta see eye to eye, about family, before we can become one
If you had decided to have it the situation I wouldn't run from
But I'm walkin, findin myself in my God
So I can, discipline my son with my writin
Not have a judge tellin me how and when to raise my seed
Though his death was at our greed, with no one else to blame
I had a book of Afrikan names, case our minds changed
You say your period hasn't came, and lately I've been sleepy
So quit smokin the weed and the beadies and let's have this boy

I, never dreamed you'd leave in summer
You said you would be here when it rained
You said you would be here when it rained
Ohh I, never dreamed you'd leave in summer
Now the situation's made things change
Things change
Why, didn't you stay
Why didn't you stay...
I, never dreamed you'd leave, in summer
In summer
You said you would be here when, it rained
When it rained, it rained
Ohhhohh I, never dreamed, you'd leave in summer
You said you wouldn't leave
Now the situation's made things change
Things change, why didn't you stay?
Stay, stay stay stay stay stay stay
Mmmmm, stayyy
Uh-uh
Ohh why didn't you stay..

N.O.W. LIFE BEGINS BEFORE BIRTH, N.O.W. IT DOESN’T?

2009-06-26T13:44:00.000-07:00

Patricia Ireland, former head of National Organization of Women (N.O.W.), went on “The O’Reilly Factor” Tuesday night to discuss abortion in light of Tiller’s murder. O’Reilly started by asking her point blank if she’d come to a conclusion about when life begins. Her answer may surprise you.

“I think upon conception there is life.”

Not surprisingly, she promptly followed this up with, “but that’s the wrong question.”

Is it? Actually, it’s precisely the right question. And if by conception you mean when a human sperm penetrates a human oocyte and a distinct and complete individual person is created, then why are you still in favor of abortion on demand?
Her response is part of an alarming new trend whereby abortion advocates admit to the undeniable fact human being's life begins at the beginning of their biological development, yet remain unflinching in their abortion support. In doing this they are exposing an even more disturbing side of their worldview - that it makes no difference if we know when a human being's life begins, abortion is an absolute, unwavering right.

The pro-life fight used to be predominately a fight against the erroneous ideology that we don’t know or aren’t sure when human life begins. In fact, one Supreme Court justice wrote in the Roe v. Wade decision that, “If th[e] suggestion of personhood is established, [Roe v. Wade], of course, collapses, for the fetus' right to life would then be guaranteed specifically by the [Fourteenth] Amendment.”

However, now that even abortion advocates are admitting that a human being's life begins before birth, this big “if” of the Roe decision should result in its “collapse” and reversal. In other words, now that we all agree human life begins before birth, Roe v. Wade should be overturned. Right, Patricia?
Later in the interview, O’Reilly challenged her “upon conception there is life” statement by asking how she justifies aborting a human person. At this, Ireland changed her wording and referred to a pre-born person as “potential life”. Well, which one is it? Life or potential life?
“Fetuses don’t grow inside Petri dishes,” she brilliantly added. Her point being: the value of a human being in the womb is diminished simply because they grow inside of women.

Ireland then went on to make two false statements: 1. That women only get late-term abortions when their life is at risk, like if the "fetus" is dead and needs to be removed. (Excuse me, but last time I checked it’s not an abortion if the child is already dead.), and 2. Abortion is limited in the 2ndand 3rd trimester to only permit an abortion if there’s an extreme threat to the health or life of the mother.
Thankfully, O’Reilly knows his facts and pointed out that “health” is so broadly defined that it can include a migraine headache or stress at being pregnant.
Then, when O’Reilly gave proof that Tiller performed late-term abortions on babies for any reason, including so a girl could go to a concert, Ireland huffed and puffed and said it was demeaning to women to say such a thing.

Although Ireland did a good enough job on her own making the pro-abortion position look bad, we must continue to dismantle the abortion advocates faulty logic and contradictory assertions until all human persons are given equal protection under the law.

Deadly Honesty

2009-06-26T13:27:00.000-07:00

Deadly Honesty: A Response to RH Reality Check....

By Kortney Blythe

For those of you who don’t know, RHRealityCheck.org is a radical pro-abortion web site mostly consisting of blogs/rants about abortion. They put out a weekly podcast, which mostly just attacks pro-lifers and spouts misinformation.

Now that I’m able to keep up with the happenings in the pro-death camp, I half-enjoy, half-despise reading their articles. On the one hand, it keeps me abreast of what the extremists are saying, but on the other hand, it is infuriating when they lie AND when they tell the truth.

.. ..Case in point: Two articles recently posted on the web site accurately reported things said by people on both sides of the debate. Ironically, their honesty revealed an even darker side of the pro-death camp.

The first article, written by user name “cpc_watcher,” discussed former Arkansas governor and presidential candidate Mike Huckabee’s appearance on The Daily Show with Jon Stewart. The author of this blog called Huckabee “a seasoned expert” in arguing for the pro-life side and worried because she didn’t think Stewart was a worthy opponent. Interesting. Are you worried that someone unschooled in “choice” rhetoric will reveal your weak justification for child killing? After spouting a few ad hominem (personal) attacks against Huckabee, the author admits that Huckabee “invoked biology to make his point.” Here’s his quote:

I believe life begins at conception, when 23 chromosomes from a male and 23 from a female create a unique DNA schedule that has never existed before, has an imprint that is unlike any that has ever been… Biologically and scientifically, it is irrefutable that that’s when life begins. Now, some would argue is it human life? But what else can it be? It’s not a dolphin; it’s not a stalk of broccoli. I mean it has to be human life because of the cellular structure…”

She finds this scientific response ironic because, in her mind, Huckabee is anti-medical science. How does she respond to his biological argument? “I was just short of yelling at my iPod, screaming at Stewart to refute his so-called ‘scientific facts’ right there on their air.” Now, make up your mind, cpc_watcher. Either he’s using scientific facts or he’s not. If not, then please correct him using logic, not emotions.

Abortion advocates depend on emotional appeals, misinformation and personal jabs to make their case. While conceding that Huckabee made “some very powerful… arguments against abortion,” that ellipsis (…) in the quote is where the author claims these arguments are inaccurate.

Her defense for this claim is that ACOG (the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists) defines pregnancy as beginning only after implantation is complete, not at the actual biological beginning of a person, as Huckabee asserts. Unfortunately, she’s telling the truth. This fact is why doctors can legally deny that chemical birth control and emergency contraception can end the life of a child. In 1965, ACOG officially changed the definition of pregnancy, opening the door to a host of misinformation that, to this day, deceives well-meaning people into comfortably ingesting fatal chemicals.

The writer makes a few other ridiculous statements, such as “that a zygote is a human life because it will not turn into anything is especially frustrating… [and] full of holes; should we be treating Huckabee like a corpse? Because given enough time and biological process, he’s not likely to turn into anything else.” WHAT?! No one is claiming that a HUMAN zygote should have his/her personhood recognized because s/he will turn into a human, but because s/he already IS!

You may recall that many abortion supporters say that “no one likes abortion” and “everyone” wants to “reduce the number of abortions” because it’s an ugly procedure. Not so, says cpc_watcher. The only reason they really want to reduce abortion is because it’s “an expensive, no-fun medical procedure, something we should avoid not because the procedure is bad or wrong, but because prevention is, well, easier.”

This leads me to the second article. This one was written by Heather Corinna, a sex education activist who has had an abortion and worked in an abortion mill. Refreshingly, but also frighteningly, she writes about the common things “pro-choice” people say to abortion opponents, in an attempt to find common ground, that just aren’t true. As an activist and pro-life educator, I’ve heard these statements countless times from defenders of abortion. Keep in mind the myth and the response are both coming from a pro-abortion blogger. This is not an extensive list.

Myth #1: No woman wants to have an abortion.
Corinna: “Many women, if not most, who choose abortion want to have one.”

She admits that many women feel pressure from those around them to make certain decisions regarding pregnancy. But, she proclaims, coerced abortions are “unacceptable.” Why, then, do abortion advocates fight, with voracious ferocity, laws that would regulate coercion?

Myth #2: No woman has an abortion casually.
Corinna: “Some women DO have abortions in a way you or I might call or see as casual. For some women, having an abortion is not a big deal, is not upsetting, is not something she feels carries a lot of weight for her.”

This myth is one I heard quite frequently while doing activism on college campuses. Student A would snidely say myth #2. Then, a few minutes later a female college student, Student B, would pass by and say something to the effect of, “I had an abortion and I don’t regret it at all. I’m glad I did it.” Obviously, this response contradicts what student A just said. So, at least Corinna is honest. What’s sad is that any woman would let her precious child be ripped limb from limb and feel ambiguous or nonchalant about it. Only the seared conscience of a nation could result in women not mourning for their dead children.

Myth #3: If everyone had access to birth control and all the methods we had were 100% effective, all pregnancies would be wanted and we would have no abortions.
Corinna: “Many women would still want and need abortion.”

This myth is along the same lines of the “you should be giving out condoms if you really want to end abortion” mentality. Thank you, Corinna, for pointing out that no matter how much birth control is out there, selfish people will still demand a “backup plan" in case they change their mind about wanting a child. Our society has become so self-centered that the very life of a child is given or taken at will.

Myth #4: Abortion is a bloody, ugly, brutal, painful procedure.
Corinna: “Any surgical procedure usually involves blood. Most involve pain or discomfort… I have yet to see an abortion procedure I’d describe as brutal or violent.”

Corinna, you’re missing the point! You’re comparing necessary, ethical, lifesaving surgeries to the unethical, life-ending surgery of abortion. The blood involved in a lifesaving surgical procedure is your own blood, and you’re still alive when the surgery is over. The blood you saw when you worked in a mill was the blood of a separate person, and this person was dead after the surgery! The pain in an ethical surgery is only temporary and fades with time. Pain after an abortion is physical, psychological and spiritual, and it never goes away.

Saying you’ve never seen a brutal or violent abortion is like slave owners who said African Americans were happy being slaves. From the oppressor’s perspective, everything is copacetic. But if you look at it through the eyes of the victims, in this case the preborn children, it is nothing but brutal and violent. Like those who fought to outlaw slavery, we must be abortion abolitionists and keeping fighting until abortion is no more and personhood is legally recognized for all.

Did The Founding Fathers Sin By Founding America?

2008-05-22T09:28:00.000-07:00

I'd like your thoughts on this. I was reading Romans 13 recently and this exact thought popped into my head. ("Was the Revolutionary War justified biblically?") Then I open my e-mail and there's an article from Worldview Weekend about it. Brannon Howse makes a compelling argument that it was, but I know John MacArthur is a respected evangelical pastor and author. The more I think about it, I agree with Howse. I think Civil Disobedience is justified when all other avenues to change a sinful government have been exhausted.

What do YOU think?

By Brannon Howse

Liberals love it when conservatives fight among themselves - especially when the battle centers around whether or not America is truly based on a Biblical foundation and God's providential work. In case you're blissfully ignorant about the controversy, let me explain.

Nationally known pastor John MacArthur has actually written that the founding of America was a sin:

Over the past several centuries, people have mistakenly linked democracy and political freedom to Christianity. That's why many contemporary evangelicals believe the American Revolution was completely justified, both politically and scripturally. They follow the arguments of the Declaration of Independence, which declares that life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness are divinely endowed rights.

Therefore those believers say such rights are part of a Christian worldview, worth attaining and defending at all cost including military insurrection at times. But such a position is contrary to the clear teachings and commands of Romans 13:1-7. So the United States was actually born out of a violation of New Testament principles, and any blessings God has bestowed on America have come in spite of that disobedience by the Founding Fathers.[1]

When you combine a lack of knowledge about the American Revolution with a false interpretation of Romans 13, you end up with good conservative Christians adding to the misinformation about our Founders and believing that America was not established under God but by an un-Christian rebellion. My friend and regular Worldview Weekend speaker David Barton has written a paper entitled "Was the American Revolution a Biblically Justified Act?" in which he notes:

The Presbyterians, Lutherans, Baptists, Congregationalists, and most other Christian denominations during the American Revolution believed that Romans 13 meant they were not to overthrow government as an institution and live in anarchy. This passage does not mean they had to submit to every civil law. Note that in Hebrews 11, a number of those who made the cut in the "Faith Hall of Fame" as heroes of the faith were guilty of civil disobedience�including Daniel, the three Hebrew Children, the Hebrew Midwives, Moses, etc.�

If the Founding Fathers had removed themselves from underneath the authority of Great Britain because they were choosing anarchy over an established government, then that would be a violation of Romans 13. Although Romans 13 is not an endorsement of every government, it is a description of what God says is the proper role of civil government.[2]

In Scripture, God initiates several realms of authority in human governance: family, church, and state. These reflect the normal pattern of social interaction, and civilizations throughout history have reproduced these in some form. Simply because the presence of these institutions is normative, however, we should not expect every instance of them to be acceptable.

Fathers are the God-ordained head of the family, but those who abuse their children and wives deserve to be removed from their positions of authority. Few people disagree that a pastor or elder should be removed from leadership in the church - his God-ordained position of authority - if the leader is guilty of grave moral and ethical failures. And, as with church and family rule, God does not necessarily endorse every leader or every civil government that comes along.

For 11 years, our Founders petitioned the King of Great Britain to cease his unlawful, unbiblical actions against the colonials. Although the monarch ignored their grievances, they remained under his authority until he sent 25,000 troops into the colonies for the purpose of seizing property, invading homes, and imprisoning people without trials. The king's actions violated his own British common law, the English Bill of Rights, and the centuries-old Magna Carta.

Once King George III started down the path of violent suppression, the Founders announced their intent to separate from Great Britain. They wrote at length that they were involved in self-defense, which they rightly believed was Biblically acceptable. British troops fired the first shot in every confrontation leading up to the Revolutionary War - the Massacre of 1770, the bombing of Boston in 1774, and the Lexington and Concord engagements of 1775.

Unless you are a thoroughgoing pacifist, there is no basis for saying the Founders sinned in defending themselves against King George's troops and their terrorist tactics against the colonists. The Founders' fight was not a "military insurrection." Our early leaders took seriously their standing before God and believed He could bless a war of defense but not a war of offense. They fought to protect their own lives and those of their family and friends.

Many Christians get queasy over the subject of "civil disobedience" and invoke Romans 13 to avoid the responsibility of standing up to a deviant government. While I agree it is crucial that Christians pursue civil disobedience only when obeying government requires us to disobey God, Scripture offers clear direction on when such action is acceptable.

The Founding Fathers did not violate New Testament principles when they instituted American independence, and it is critical that we close ranks on this fundamental issue. Our nation was founded under God's guiding hand - not in spite of it. Whether or not we continue in the godly heritage of the first Americans is a vital concern, but it's one that should be debated between "us" and "them", not between "us" and "us."

Pro-lifers Protest Abortionist's House

2008-05-20T15:46:00.000-07:00

Click to read story...This newspaper by the way is VERY bias. Oh and I know the pro-lifers who the paper is blaming for this protest, and they didn't do it...not that there would be any thing wrong with it :)
azdailysun.com - Flagstaff and Northern Arizona News, Photos, Obituary, Calendar Events, Classifieds, and Directory

Review of Prince Caspian

2008-05-16T15:25:00.000-07:00

"For the LORD your God is the one who goes with you to fight for you against your enemies to give you victory." - Deuteronomy 20:4

Thank God for Douglas Gresham and (the covertly Christian) Walden Media.

For the second time, Gresham, step-son of C.S. Lewis and co-producer of both Narnia movies, succeeded in maintaining the integrity of his Father's work by avoiding the Hollywood-prone watering down of Christian messages.

Compared to the well-developed dramatic structure (yes, I busted out the middle school literature terms) of The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe (LWW), Prince Caspian was lacking in the "Exposition", aka background information, and spent lots of time in the "Rising Action" and "Climax". However, it kept me entertained with breath-taking cinematography, loads of action-packed scenes, witty dialogue and an oozing of undeniably Christian messages.

The spiritual themes were so powerful I actually took notes on my cell phone. The only other time I've done that is while watching two movies which eerily paralleled the pro-life movement (The Island and Amazing Grace).

As in LWW, Lucy's child-like faith (Matt 18:2-6, Mark 10:15, Luke 18:17) results in a conflict between the four royal siblings when she claims that she sees Aslan and He wants them to take a different, seemingly dangerous, path. Again they doubt her and go with their own preferences, only to be proven wrong.

Later, she urges them to wait for Aslan before attacking their enemies (Psalm 33:20) and when they ignore the advice, her response gave me chills. Attempting to humble her ambitious brother and with a deep expression of wisdom, she looks at her brother and asks, "Who really defeated the White Witch?"

Depending on his own strength, High King Peter charges in prematurely, losing many brave men in the first battle. After trying to blame the defeat on Prince Caspian, he realizes the real problem: they have not called on Aslan.

During the intense, epic battle scenes, reminiscent of both Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers and The Old Testament, Isaiah 40:30-31 kept repeating in my mind. "Even youths grow tired and weary, and young men stumble and fall; but those who hope in the LORD will renew their strength. They will soar on wings like eagles; they will run and not grow weary, they will walk and not be faint."

Finally, Lucy is sent to appeal to Aslan for help, and when he arrives, the Narnians have a parting-of-the-red-sea victory; demonstrating, "If God is for us, who can be against us?" (Romans 8:31b).

Also noteworthy were the themes of mercy, vengeance is the Lord's (Romans 12:19), and "Pride goes before destruction, a haughty spirit before a fall" (Proverbs 16:18).

One could argue that LWW was overall a better film. However, Prince Caspian still proved a compelling depiction of the battle raging in heavenly realms and contained plenty of humor, fighting and even romance to satisfy most people.

Interestingly, at the start of the film, out of fear, the Telmarines (the men who conquered Narnia) had turned Aslan/Narnia into a myth like many today have done with Christianity.

"I am Prince Caspian"

2008-05-15T09:40:00.001-07:00

That line in the previews always brings a smirk to my face. Just the way he says it so dramatic and serious makes me laugh.

Anyhow, tonight at 12:01 am six of us Survivors will be seeing The Chronicles of Narnia: Prince Caspian. I'm expecting great things from the second installment of C.S. Lewis' classic series of children's novels.

There have already been gospel tracks made about the movie, which I plan to give out at the theater (see picture on left).

We're not seeing the movie at just any ole theater either. Disney's El Capitan Theater decorates the auditorium with the setting of the movie using real props from the movie. For The Lion the Witch & The Wardrobe they turned the theater into a forest and poured snow on the audience before the movie started. For Prince Caspian, I'm assuming it will be a battlefield.

Every day I thank God that I'm able to be a missionary for Him, save babies and live in an area of the U.S. that desperately needs the Gospel. This area also happens to have some of the most breath-taking beaches, mountains and entertainment hubs, which my team and I are able to enjoy as a respite from fighting the moral decay of civilization.

I will write more after I see the movie.

Apes, Babies and Overpopulation

2008-05-14T21:58:00.000-07:00

Lately I've been on a documentary kick, which in turn has reignited my passion for apologetics (beyond the realm of pro-life and basic defending of the existence of truth, since I deal with that everyday).

First, Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed, which inspired me to research the Old Earth vs. New Earth Creationism debate. As a result, I will be reading Creation as Science, given and recommended to me by Gabriel Koulikov.

The Business of Being Born was next on my list of eye-opening movies. "Follow the money", my college journalism teacher pounded into my head. And like every other industry in the world, giving birth has lost its sacredness and become all about the money. Hospitals simply want to empty the bed for the next about-to-pop pregnant woman. Gone is the empowering miracle of natural childbirth.

Instead of being a pleasant and exciting surprise, women now plan the date of delivery and do voluntary C-sections, followed by plastic surgery to return their bodies to Hollywood "hot". Pregnancy on television and in movies is portrayed as a very painful and terrifying experience - no wonder girls are so prone to choose abortion instead of adoption.

Interestingly enough, the drugs given to women to first induce labor and then dull the pain actually increase the overall painfulness to the woman. Being Born showed a woman giving birth in a small pool inside her living room with very little pain and no drugs, and it was beautiful.

Every woman who is with child or plans on being a mother should watch this film before giving birth. ***Warning: The female body is not censored during delivery. Breasts and graphic birthing is depicted.***

Tonight I watched Demographic Winter: The Decline of the Human Family. If you've ever heard the myth that we're overpopulated and wondered about the truth, watch this movie. It will scare you while at the same time make you want to reproduce as soon as possible (within marriage, of course).

The main gist: As a country becomes more affluent, people have less children. We are facing a major economic crisis as the "baby boomers" grow old - there are not enough young people entering the workforce to pay for their social security or health care.

A country needs 2.1 average children per woman in order to just replace itself and sustain its economy. Most developed countries (especially in Europe, North America, Asia) have a 1.3 replacement rate.

What this means for our future is some big problems. We're already seeing these problems in America. Countries like Russia and Sweden are offering major financial incentives to couples who have children in order to try and avoid major disaster. But it's not working.

Why? Because the world has become obsessed with self-indulgence. As divorce rates skyrocket, co-habitation becomes norm and sex is no longer seen as a means to reproduction, our society is crumbling.

A secular scientist in the film commented that the groups of people who still value children are the religious and the poor (in his opinion, those less equipped to raise more children). For a Darwinian, he said, this is catastrophic.

Watch the film. You won't regret it. And you'll gain much insight into just how devastating the sexual revolution has been on the world. May God have mercy on us.