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Remarks by President Bush to March for Life Rally Participants

WASHINGTON, January 22, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - THE PRESIDENT: Nellie, good to be with you -- we're fellow West Texans who care deeply about the value of human life. Other members of the board of directors for the March for Life, leaders of the pro-life community, and all those who are here with us for the march, it's good to have you here and welcome to the White House. (Applause.)

As I look out at you, I'll see some folks who have been traveling all night to get here -- (laughter) -- you're slightly bleary-eyed. (Laughter), I'll see others who are getting ready for a day out in the cold. But mostly I see faces that shine with a love for life. (Applause.)

I see people with a deep conviction that even the most vulnerable member of the human family is a child of God. You're here because you know that all life deserves to be protected. And as you begin your march, I'm proud to be standing with you. (Applause.)

Thirty-five years ago today the United States Supreme Court declared and decided that under the law an unborn child is not considered a person. But we know many things about the unborn. Biology confirms that from the start each unborn child is a separate individual with his or her own genetic code. Babies can now survive outside the mother's womb at younger and younger ages. And the fingers and toes and beating hearts that we can see on an unborn child's ultrasound come with something that we cannot see: a soul. (Applause.)

Today we're heartened -- we're heartened by the news that the number of abortions is declining. But the most recent data reports that more than one in five pregnancies end in an abortion. America is better than this, so we will continue to work for a culture of life where a woman with an unplanned pregnancy knows there are caring people who will support her; where a pregnant teen can carry her child and complete her education; where the dignity of both the mother and child is honored and cherished.

We aspire to build a society where each one of us is welcomed in life and protected in law. We haven't arrived, but we are making progress. Here in Washington we passed good laws that promote adoption and extend legal protection to children who are born despite abortion attempts. We came together to ban the cruel practice of partial birth abortion. (Applause.) And in the past year we have prevented that landmark law from being rolled back.

We've seen the dramatic breakthroughs in stem cell research that it is possible to advance medical science while respecting the sanctity of life. (Applause.) Building a culture of life requires more than law; it requires changing hearts. And as we reach out to others and find common ground, we can see the glimmerings of a new America on a far shore. This America is rooted in our belief that in a civilized society, the strong protect the weak. This America is nurtured by people like you, who speak up for the weak and the innocent. This America is the destiny of a people whose founding document speaks of the right to life that is a gift of our Creator, not a grant of the state. (Applause.)

My friends, the time is short and your march is soon. (Laughter.) As you give voice to the voiceless I ask you to take comfort from this: The hearts of the American people are good. (Applause.) Their minds are open to persuasion. And our history shows that a cause rooted in human dignity and appealing to the best instincts of the American people cannot fail. So take heart. (Applause.)

Take heart, be strong, and go forth. May God bless you. (Applause.)

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Portuguese Medical Association Defies Government Order to Accept Abortion

 By Matthew Cullinan Hoffman

PORTUGAL, January 22, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The Portuguese Medical Association, defying threats by the socialist government's health minister to begin criminal proceedings against it, has re-elected its president, Pedro Nunes, who has defied the government's order to change the Association's ethical code to allow abortion.

In his victory speech, Nunes promised to maintain the independence of the Medical Association from the government, signaling his resolve to preserve the Association's ethical code.

The Association does not "have to do the work of the government nor the work of the opposition," said Nunes, and added that his organization should not fear to criticize what it believes to be worthy of criticism.  "Doctors are on the side of the Portuguese," he said.

The Portuguese code of ethics states that "doctors must maintain respect for human life from its beginning", and "the practice of abortion or euthanasia constitutes a grave ethical failure".

Following the government's decision to decriminalize all first-trimester abortions in 2007, socialist health minister Antonio Correia de Campos ordered the Medical Association to eliminate the prohibition against abortion from its ethical code in October.  He was supported by the Portuguese Attorney General, who had issued a legal opinion condemning the passages.

However, Nunes refused, insisting that it was an internal matter, and that the government had no authority to intervene in the affairs of the Association.  Although Correia claimed he was filing a criminal complaint in November, no action has yet been taken against the group.

The group's presidential election was seen as a referendum on the abortion issue, because Nunes was the only candidate who promised from the beginning to maintain the ethical code. His main rival, Miguel Leão, wanted to change to code to comply with the government's demands.

The issue of the ethical code made the recent elections the most intense and bitter in memory.  Although Nunes' pro-abortion rival garnered the most votes in the first round, the January 17th runoff between Leão and Nunes resulted in Leão's resounding defeat, 56 to 44 percent.

Nunes' current term will last until 2010.

Previous LifeSiteNews.com coverage:

Portuguese Government to Prosecute Doctors Group Over "Illegal" Anti-Abortion Ethics Policy
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/nov/07112201.html

700 Portuguese Doctors Sign Petition Urging Medical Association to Continue Opposing Abortion
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/nov/07112801.html

Portuguese Government Orders Doctors to Remove Anti-Abortion Restrictions from Code of Ethics
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/oct/07102203.html

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Abortion Opponents in 59 U.S. Cities Set to Pray Fast and Demonstrate for 40-Days Straight

WASHINGTON, January 22, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - "As America marks the 35th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade U.S. Supreme Court ruling that imposed abortion on our nation, pro-life advocates in 59 cities across 31 states are preparing to launch the next wave of a unique nationwide pro-life campaign, 40 Days for Life," said David Bereit, national campaign director for 40 Days for Life. "From February 6 until March 14, people across America will join together for 40 days of prayer and fasting for an end to abortion, 40 days of constant, peaceful vigil outside abortion facilities and Planned Parenthood offices and 40 days of intensive pro-life community outreach."

The campaign dates of February 6 through March 16 coincide with the Christian season of Lent. "That's what local groups asked for," said Bereit. "Lent is a season of prayer, fasting, repentance and renewal. It is our prayer that the efforts of the thousands of people who will participate in 40 Days for Life in their home towns will touch hearts and minds, save lives -- and help mark the beginning of the end of abortion in America."

During the first nationally coordinated 40 Days for Life effort in the fall of 2007, communities from coast to coast took part in the initiative. "The results were staggering," said Bereit. "Over 100,000 people united in prayer and fasting, more than 22,000 people took to the streets to participate in peaceful prayer vigils outside abortion centers, abortion facilities experienced sharp setbacks -- some cutting back hours and others closing for days at a time -- and at least 340 innocent children were spared from death by abortion."

Even Planned Parenthood -- the nation's largest abortion chain -- noted the impact of 40 Days for Life during the first wave of the campaign. The organization circulated numerous "crisis" e-mail alerts to abortion advocates around the country, calling for their financial help to fight back against the pro-life campaign. Cecile Richards, national president of Planned Parenthood, described 40 Days for Life efforts as "unprecedented assaults," and the CEO of one large Planned Parenthood operation in New York wrote, "Planned Parenthood is under attack and we need your help to fight back! RIGHT NOW, THE LARGEST ANTI-CHOICE PROTEST WE'VE SEEN IN A VERY LONG TIME is taking place. An extremist group and its 40 Days for Life Campaign has launched a relentless attack on Planned Parenthood health centers" [emphasis included in original].

"Following the tremendous impact experienced during the first wave of 40 Days for Life, we can't wait to see what life-saving results will be accomplished from February 6 until March 16," said Bereit.

The list of 40 Days for Life locations is posted online at: http://www.40daysforlife.com/location.html.

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Carnegie Hall Permits Blasphemous Jerry Springer Opera

 By John Connolly

NEW YORK, January 22, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Carnegie Hall will host the anti-Christian and blasphemous show "Jerry Springer-The Opera" on January 29, to the protests of the Catholic League and its president, Bill Donohue.

"Never before in its illustrious history has Carnegie Hall been home to Christian bashing, but that is all about to change on January 29 and 30," said Donohue. "Incredibly, it is allowing a patently obscene and viciously anti-Christian musical to be performed on its stage. Thus has it got into bed with the bigots, making a mockery of art in the process. This isn't art-it's license."

The show is filled with obscenity, and the Catholic League provides a synopsis of the show's DVD which includes Jesus admitting he's gay, sexual assault between biblical characters and portrays Satan as a friendly character frustrated with the ridiculous behavior of Jesus, Adam and Eve in streams of obscene language.
 
"Is it art when a world religion is trashed on stage in a totally obscene way? This is what the officers of Carnegie Hall seem to be saying, which is why they are allowing 'Jerry Springer-The Opera' to soil its stage next week," said Donohue. "And do they agree with Max von Essen, the actor who plays a transsexual in the show? Here is what he told the Internet-site BroadwayWorld: 'I'm a New Yorker. I'm liberal and open-minded. Things don't really shock me. But I was reading the second-act today and thinking that if you're religious, you could be. But you shouldn't.'
 
"How telling. Max has a mind that is so open that it allows him not to be shocked at cultural assaults on someone else's religion, even in instances when he is doing the trashing. When some are offended, he is just liberal enough to tell them they shouldn't be. Is this the road Carnegie Hall wants to travel?"

Readers are encouraged to write or call Carnegie Hall and protest the show's opening at Carnegie Hall.

See the Synopsis of "Jerry Springer - The Opera" (WARNING: obscene language is used):
http://catholicleague.org/jerryspringeropera.php

To Contact Carnegie Hall Public Affairs Department to express concerns:

212-903-9750

881 Seventh Avenue
New York, NY 10019-3210

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Canadian Anglican Bishop to Priests: Approve Homosexual Blessings or Resign

By Hilary White

 

ST. JOHN'S, Newfoundland, January 22, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The deep fissures in the Anglican Communion are increasing as the sides line up in the fight over the "blessings" of homosexual partnerings. A diocese of the Anglican Church of Canada in Newfoundland has announced it will attempt to force its clergy to assent to the blessings, even as the rest of the Worldwide Anglican Communion continues to fracture over the issue.

 

Clergy were called to a mandatory meeting in the cathedral of St. John's and told that if they supported a breakaway movement that objects to the formal blessing of homosexual partnerings, they should "do the honourable thing and resign".

 

The retired former bishop of the diocese of Eastern Newfoundland and Labrador, Don Harvey as well as Malcolm Harding of Brandon, Manitoba, relinquished their licenses in November 2007 in the Anglican Church of Canada and transferred to the authority of Anglican Province of the Southern Cone of America a jurisdiction of the Anglican Church in South America.



Following Bishop Harvey's defection from the ultra-liberal Canadian Anglican Church, the new bishop, the Right Reverend Cyrus Pitman, had them repeat their priestly vows and exacted a loyalty pledge of sorts from his diocesan clergy and re-issued their licences signed by himself rather than Bishop Harvey.

 

Bishop Pitman wrote, "I would expect any clergy involved in the network and working to the establishment of a parallel jurisdiction to the Anglican Church of Canada would do the honourable thing and resign their positions, relinquishing their licences to exercise ordained ministry in this church as their leader has done."

 

The move follows decisions by other dioceses in the country. In October last year, the Anglican Diocese of Ottawa voted to recognize the blessing of marriage for same-sex partners who have been civilly "married" under Canadian law. The diocese of Montreal followed this with a decision to allow blessings for homosexual partners and the diocese of Niagara Falls followed suit in November.

 

A spokesman for the traditionally Christian group, Anglican Network in Canada, responded at the time, "We are grieved that the synod and bishops of Niagara have chosen to walk away from centuries of Christian teaching and defy the consensus within the Anglican Communion."

 

The Right Reverend Donald Harvey, Moderator of the Anglican Network in Canada continued, "There is clearly a growing momentum within the Anglican Church of Canada to ignore biblical teaching, disregard the views of the global Church, and even ignore the principles upon which the Canadian Church was founded. These actions have 'torn the fabric' of the Communion at its deepest level just as the Primates warned in October 2003."

 

In a letter to the Canadian Anglican Primate, the titular head of the Worldwide Anglican Communion, Archbishop of Canterbury Dr. Rowan Williams chastised groups of Canadian Anglicans who have broken away from the ultra-liberal mainstream church, accusing them of poaching clergy. Nevertheless, he admitted he has no authority to prevent what he called "interventions and irregular ordinations" by such groups.

 

Meanwhile, Williams, has announced that the church's dispute over sexual morality will be on the agenda for the next Lambeth Conference to be held in Kent this summer. "We will look at sexuality and the ministry of bishops. We will be reporting back from the listening process that came out of the previous Lambeth Conference." William said.

 

To date, only 70 per cent of the world's Anglican bishops invited to the ten-yearly Lambeth meeting have indicated they will attend.

 

A group of Anglican bishops who hold to the traditional Christian moral doctrines have announced they will be holding an alternate meeting in Jerusalem, a move not supported by the liberal Anglican bishop of that city. The week-long Global Anglican Futures or "Gafcon" conference is set for June, the same month as the Lambeth Conference, and will discuss "the future of mission and relationships within the churches of Anglican Communion".

 

Conservative Anglican commentator, David W. Virtue, summed up the essential division in the Anglican Communion, writing, "Most of the orthodox will stay away from Lambeth thus saying, in so many words, 'We have had enough and we will discuss what it means to fulfill the Great Commission'. The predominant voices at Lambeth will be liberals, not conservatives, with the loudest most strident left wing voices coming from the U.S., Canada, the UK, Wales, Scotland and Ireland."

 

Virtue points out that some bishops have worried publicly that if the conservative bishops stay away from Lambeth, the liberals will use it as an opportunity to overthrow Resolution 1:10, the lynchpin resolution of Lambeth 1998 that says sexual behaviour is only appropriate between a husband and wife.

 

Read related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:



The Split Widens: Anglican Bishops Call Global Conference for Traditional Anglicans

http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/jan/08010401.html

 

No Affirmation of Christian Sexual Morality from Anglican Mother Church at Synod

http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/mar/07030108.html

 

No Theological Opposition to Homosexual Unions, but No Same-Sex Blessings: Canadian Anglicans

http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/jun/07062504.html

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New Massachusetts Law Creates 35-Foot Buffer Zone Around Abortion Mills

BOSTON, January 22, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Attorneys with the Alliance Defense Fund filed a lawsuit in federal court Friday against a new Massachusetts law that creates a 35-foot "buffer" zone around abortion clinics.  The law essentially eliminates free speech rights within the zone by restricting pro-life advocates from sharing their message with people entering the clinics.

"Pro-life advocates shouldn't be penalized for expressing their beliefs," said ADF-allied attorney and lead counsel Michael DePrimo.  "The buffer law is breathtaking in its scope.  It obviously was designed and intended to squelch pro-life speech, but it prohibits much more, such as labor picketing and charitable solicitations.  The First Amendment simply does not permit such outlandish restrictions on peaceful speech."

"It's ironic that Massachusetts, the 'cradle of liberty,' would pass a law that effectively creates a First Amendment-free zone that silences those who seek to share the truth about abortion," said ADF Legal Counsel Tim Chandler.  "Those with pro-life views have the same First Amendment rights as anyone else in America."

On Nov. 13, Massachusetts Governor Deval Patrick signed into law S.B. 1353, which created the "buffer" zone.  First-time violators face a fine of up to $500 and three months in jail.  Repeat offenders face fines of up to $5,000 and 2 1/2 years in prison. 

ADF attorneys filed suit on behalf of several pro-life advocates whose ability to communicate peacefully with people entering the clinics has been severely compromised by the new law.  In some instances, the new law leaves only about one foot of public sidewalk open to free speech, making it virtually impossible to engage in reasoned conversation.

According to the pro-life advocates filing suit, more than 100 women have changed their minds about having an abortion after hearing their message.

A copy of the complaint filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts, Boston Division, in McCullen v. Coakley is available at: http://www.telladf.org/UserDocs/McCullenComplaint.pdf

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Human Rights Tribunal: Religious Freedom Not Violated by Campus Ban on Pro-Life Club

By Hilary White

VANCOUVER, January 22, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Two separate Human Rights Commission complaints launched by student pro-life groups in British Columbia have received rulings. The struggles of pro-life university students to be allowed to present their views on campus has drawn the fire of some major legal players in British Columbia.

John Hof, head of Campaign Life Coalition in the province said students groups facing discrimination on campus should stay away from Canada's government appointed Human Rights Commissions and Tribunals.

In Kelowna, pro-life students at the University of British Columbia, Okanagan had their request to form a campus club refused by the student union and launched a complaint with the BC Human Rights Tribunal. The Tribunal ruled that since the pro-life position is not specifically a religious one, a complaint claiming discrimination based on religious beliefs would fail.

However, at Capilano College in North Vancouver, a request by the college and the student union to dismiss the complaint has been denied and the complaint can be heard by the Tribunal.

Hof told LifeSiteNews.com that the entire system is corrupt and weighted against any Christian position. He said he is appalled that the Human Rights Tribunals would bring out "big name anti-Christian" lawyers in a case involving two small groups of students.

The lawyers in the two complaints, appointed by the Tribunals, were Donald Crane, who opposed pro-life groups in all the legal wrangling over the so-called "bubble zone" protests in BC. The other was Barbara Findlay, who represented Little Sisters, Vancouver's homosexual bookstore that took their demand to bring homosexual pornography into Canada to the Supreme Court.

Meanwhile, pro-life students at Lakehead University in Thunder Bay Ontario are considering a complaint of religious discrimination at the Ontario Human Rights Commission against the student union that refused to ratify their group as an official campus club. The National Post quotes Francisco Gomez Jimenez, of LU Life Support, saying, "That's probably what's coming". He called the treatment of his group by the student union "thoroughly discriminatory".

But Hof said a strategy of "turning the tables" by using the Human Rights Commissions is bound to backfire and that students seeking redress should file suits in the legitimate courts making a legal claim that their Charter-protected rights to free speech have been denied by their universities. The Human Rights Commissions, he told LifeSiteNews.com are designed to do the opposite of protect freedoms. "Human Rights complaints in this country are about politically correct speech, and have nothing to do with human rights," he said.

David Warren, a prominent Canadian journalist who has been observing the development of the Human Rights Commission for decades, concurs. He warns in recent columns in the Ottawa Citizen that "Canada's 'human rights' commissions were designed to be abused". The HRCs are little more than, "kangaroo courts and star chambers designed to silence the politically incorrect, without any of the inherited checks of a legitimate legal system."

Warren relates the story of those who have attempted to use the "human rights machinery" to lodge complaints about attacks in the media on Christians and conservatives.

"Their complaints were invariably dismissed by the tribunals on sight, and yet by making them they contributed to legitimizing the process by which free speech could be 'reviewed,' as a matter of course, by their most deadly enemies."

Read related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:

Canadian University Bans Pro-life Club after Farcical Vote
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2006/nov/06112810.html

National Post Editorial Slams Student Councils Denying Status to Campus Pro-Life Groups
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2006/dec/06120811.html

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Canada's Public Broadcaster CBC Caught Red Handed in Liberal Political Bias, Attempts Denial

By John Connolly

OTTAWA, January 22, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Following accusations of collusion and bias from Canada's Conservative Party, the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation (CBC) transferred a reporter in the centre of the accusations from Ottawa to Toronto on January 21 in an effort to 'fix' the problem.

Krista Erickson, a reporter for CBC, was transferred following an investigation by CBC officials at the behest of a formal complaint made by the reigning Conservative Party. The move was intended to end debate after a leak to the media over CBC feeding questions to a Parliamentary committee in an effort to embarrass the Conservative government.

According to a December 13, 2007 press release, the Conservative Party demanded the investigation following the disclosure of evidence indicating collusion by the CBC with the Liberal Party. According to former Liberal Cabinet Minister and current TVA journalist Jean Lapierre, questions posed by Liberal Members of Parliament to former Prime Minister Brian Mulroney were written by CBC journalists. The questions were about Mulroney's involvement in a spectrum auction for cellular devices, and were intended to embarrass the Conservative Party by casting Mulroney as an unregistered lobbyist.

"I knew all about those questions," said Lapierre. "They were written by the CBC and provided to the Liberal Members of Parliament and the questions that Pablo Rodriguez asked were written by the CBC and I can't believe that but last night, influential Member of Parliament came to me and told me those are the questions that the CBC wants us to ask tomorrow."

The finger-pointing that followed this revelation muddied the waters enough to allow a CBC journalist transfer to pass as a solution to the uncomfortable questions posed to the CBC. Rodriguez claims that he wrote the questions himself, totally denying CBC involvement.

"As you know in Ottawa everybody gets lots of information from a lot of people," he told Reuters. "But at the end of the day we decide what to ask and we write our own questions and I wrote my own questions."

Mike Duffy, a prominent TV journalist, quoted yet another source with another story in a December 13 televeision show.

"Liberal researcher Jay Ephard approached him and said, no, Jean, it's not true," reported Duffy. "The CBC didn't write those questions that were asked by the Liberals. We wrote them. Yes, the CBC phoned us up and suggested questions we should ask but we actually typed them out ourselves."

The Conservative Party felt it necessary to express concern that the CBC was working so closely in politics and with the Liberal Party, no matter who wrote the questions.

"Regardless of who wrote the questions, the fact that our national public broadcaster was actively co-operating with a political party in an attempt to embarrass the government raises serious questions about the impartiality of Canada's publicly funded national broadcaster," said the letter of complaint to the CBC.

On January 21, CBC publisher John Cruickshank landed the blame on Krista Erickson, citing a violation Section 3 of CBC's principles in a public letter to Conservative Party leadership.

Cruickshank was careful to portray the offense as "journalistic zeal" instead of the collusion and liberal bias the CBC is known for.

"Our investigation determined there was no bias in related news coverage," read the letter. "However, our reporter, acting on her own, used inappropriate tactics as a result of journalistic zeal, rather than partisan interest. CBC News management has made the decision to reassign its reporter from the story and to Toronto, effective Jan. 21."

The CBC has a long-standing reputation for liberal bias in Canadian media. They have come under attack for airing offensive material, targeting Catholics and religious groups for mockery, and refusing to allow Conservative pundits and commentators a voice in their media.

The most recent attack against traditional religion came last May, where the CBC independently approved an anti-Catholic comedy that offended Catholics by depicting the Communion host as snack food.

Rodriguez refused to comment on the CBC's move to cover its tracks by transferring Erickson.

"I really don't know the details," he said. "That's really within CBC."

Others who cared more about the question of journalistic integrity were not so noncommittal. The move appears designed to preempt any measure to induce deeper digging on the matter. That's the way it seems to Karen Wirsig, communications co-ordinator for The Canadian Media Guild, an organization that represents journalists at the CBC and other major news organizations.

"It smacks of political pandering," she said. "Particularly in pre-empting whatever the ombudsman may decide and, as far as we're concerned, is totally unprecedented in the way it names a person who's the subject of a disciplinary process and names the result of that process for the world to see.

"It's frankly quite shocking."

Cruickshank included at the end of his letter that the Conservative Party may still make a complaint to the CBC ombudsman Vince Carlin, who reports directly to the CBC president.

See related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:

CBC Caught in Lie Trying to Squirm out of Charges of Anti-Catholic Bigotry
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2007/may/07052802.html

Michael Coren Dropped from CBC Political Panel for Conservative Opinions
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2006/may/06051008.html

Left-Leaning CBC 'News' Pushes Conservatives to Go Where the NDP Would Have Them
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2005/mar/05031508.html

NATIONAL POST BLASTS CBC ANTI-CATHOLIC BIAS
http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2002/jul/02072905.html

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Catholic Thinkers Doctors and Journalists Sign Statement Against Catholic Pro-Abortion Politicians

By John Connolly

WASHINGTON, D.C., January 22, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A group of 96 influential Catholics issued a petition today that explicitly criticizes a statement released by pro-choice politicians last November that calls for greater "civility" from Catholics in political discourse.

The signers of the new statement believe the November statement would have the effect of silencing the pro-life movement and silencing criticism of pro-abortion Catholic politicians.

Most of the signers of the new statement are influential in the public-square, public policy, or academia. Among the 96 signers are university professors, think-tank scholars, journalists, authors, doctors, lawyers and others. They include such Catholic luminaries as Templeton Prize winner Michael Novak, authors Robert Royal and Peter Kreeft, and columnist Russell Shaw.

"Rather than giving pro-abortion Catholic politicians a pass, we should vote them out of office and encourage them to repent," said Austin Ruse, president of the Catholic Family and Human Rights Institute and one of the organizers of the statement.

"Too often these days civility is defined as giving in to the way the media define the issue under debate, whereas honesty demands insisting upon a different way of looking on things, even when this attempt is treated as a nuisance," said Michael Novak of the American Enterprise Institute.

"I signed this statement because, as the Church teaches, abortion is the most important issue in the world; it is not an issue like others, it is not one on which reasonable people can disagree," said William Saunders of the Family Research Council. "We cannot let calls for civility toward pro-abortion Catholic politicians obscure our fundamental obligation to oppose abortion."

The new statement called A Catholic Response to the "Call for Civility" says in part: "All men and women of good will value civility, but civility is not the highest - or the only - civic virtue," says the petition. "Rather, justice is. As Pope Benedict XVI reminds us in Deus Caritas Est, "Justice is both the aim and the intrinsic criterion of all politics.

"If Catholic politicians advocated segregation or - even worse - slavery, would there be a call for civility towards them?" continues the statement. "If Catholic politicians said the poor are poor because of their bad behavior and we are not obliged to help them in any way, wouldn't we say they are heartless and even un-Christian? Some ask for civility now for one reason: abortion.
 
"The lack of public civility comes not from pro-lifers but from those Catholic politicians who support the right to kill innocent life in the womb and those who support defining man-woman marriage out of existence. But, some want to treat these politicians differently because they agree with them on important but purely prudential questions like health care, and the minimum wage.

"Though not all of its signers intend it, we believe the effect of the "Call for Civility" would be to silence the pro-life and pro-family movements," concludes the statement. "We oppose this effort root and branch. In short, we will feel free even strongly to condemn the public policy positions of Catholic politicians who support abortion, embryo-destructive research, and homosexual marriage. They stand against the teachings of the Church and in favor of morally repugnant practices that are counter to the common good and that should be unwelcome in a just or even polite society."

Read Full Text of the Statement with Lists of Signatures:

http://www.c-fam.org/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=726&I...

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March for Life Main Organizer Nellie Gray Hurt but Doing Well After Fall

By John-Henry Westen

Today during the March for Life rally just prior to the March, Nellie Gray who founded and has organized the March for Life since its inception, tripped and fell while on stage.

The 84-year-old pro-life leader was taken to hospital and the hundreds of thousands at the March prayed for her health. 

At the Rose dinner LifeSiteNews.com learned that Gray sustained bruises and cuts and she required stitches to her forehead.  Although she was no longer hospitalized she was unable to attend the Rose Dinner at which she has always been the MC.

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Pro-Life Mass Packed to the Rafters with over 8000+, 400+ Priests, 34 Bishops, 6 Cardinals

By John-Henry Westen

WASHINGTON, DC, January 22, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Working your way from the front to the back of the packed Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception was a near impossibility Monday night, and even if you could make the journey it required an extensive amount of time and effort.  The frigid temperatures outside were no match for the heat generated by the overflow crowd which caused many to fan themselves with brochures during the Prayer Vigil for Life Opening Mass.

Yet despite the throng there was a sense of the sacred and the awesomeness of life at the Mass offered on the eve of the 35th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion.  As the incense wafted up and the opening hymns were sung, a procession of hundreds of seminarians, over 60 deacons, over 400 priests, 34 bishops and archbishops, and 6 cardinals made their way to the marble sanctuary.

In addition to the sea of roman collars, various groups of men and women religious arrayed in their distinctive habits dotted the basilica.  Groups from different dioceses across the nation identified themselves with colored scarves and sweaters.  But far and away the bulk of the congregation was youth, youth who also filled the crypt of the church below the main floor.

The excitement in the air, the massive crowd and the presence of so many clergy, including the highest ranking in the land, may have been a distraction at times, but there was nevertheless reverent prayer.  Sincere and heartfelt pleading with God to end the scourge of abortion went up from thousands of hearts.

The main celebrant, Cardinal Justin Rigali, Archbishop of Philadelphia, and the Chair of the Bishops' Committee on Pro-Life Activities, delivered a homily which was warmly received by all present for its strength and clarity.

“We are reminded daily of the many direct threats to life through abortion, human embryo experimentation, and the false mercy of assisted suicide and euthanasia,” said the Cardinal.  “Tomorrow as you march, you will be surrounded by many courageous witnesses to the dignity of life. All the marchers are different from one another, and yet unified in one common goal: bringing an end to abortion and all attacks on life, and building a culture that always welcomes life!”

“It is when we least expect it that the tiniest among us can humble the powerful,” he continued. “One day not long ago, a very influential stem cell researcher, Dr. Shinya Yamanaka, was humbled when he was looking through a microscope at a human embryo in a fertility clinic. As the New York Times reports: "The glimpse changed his scientific career. 'When I saw the embryo, I suddenly realized there was such a small difference between it and my daughters,' said Dr. Yamanaka, 45, a father of two. 'I thought, we can't keep destroying embryos for our research. There must be another way'."

To applause, Cardinal Rigali noted: “If God can use a helpless embryo to change a human heart, He can certainly use us with all our limitations and weaknesses.”

“Dear friends: by seeking holiness and using the gifts God has given you to accomplish His will in your life, you are contributing mightily to that Kingdom we all long for, where there will be no more crying or pain or death,” said the Cardinal.  “Certainly no abortion. No euthanasia. No assisted suicide. No deep-freezing of embryos as though they were merchandise. And no destruction of human life in the name of science,” he added to more applause.

In the name of Jesus Christ, said Cardinal Rigali, in his closing remarks, “you are also called to pray for an end to abortion in the United States and throughout the world. Roe v. Wade is incompatible with human dignity. It must not stand. It cannot stand. It will not stand.”

As the lengthy recession commenced the huge organ accompanied by thousands of young strong voices belted out "Holy God we Praise Thy Name".

Returning by subway (metro) to hotels across DC, throngs of youth chanted, clapped and did "the wave" on the platform in a joyful celebration.  The spiritual preparation for the March for Life had concluded and the excitement and anticipation of the March itself was growing as the minutes passed.

Although the youth were loud, there was nothing threatening in their antics (even when they resorted to college chants).  There was joy, there was jubilation, there was an infectious sense of fun.  These are the youth of America, the bright future of America.  And nothing could have stamped home that message more clearly than the belting out of the national anthem on that subway platform by thousands of hearty voices.

See more photos at http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008_docs/2008Vigilforlifephotos.htm

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French March for Life in Streets of Paris on Anniversary of Abortion Legalization

By Matthew Cullinan Hoffman

PARIS, January 22, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Up to 10,000 people marched in Paris last Sunday, January 19th in protest of the anniversary of the legalization of abortion, which occurred on the same date in 1975.

While police estimated that only 2,500 people showed up for the march, organizers claimed that around 10,000 attended. Substantial underestimation of the actual size of crowds at pro-life events seems to be the rule for police and media in most of the Western world.

The Paris March for Life began in the Plaza of the Republic and ended next to the National Opera in the middle of the city. The event was attended not only by French citizens but by Britons, Germans, Italians, and Austrians, as well as people of other countries.

The slogan of the march was "Thirty Years is Enough". Participants also held signs that read "Abortion Never Again", "Mama, Save Me, Let Me Live", and "The Family: the Foundation of the Nation".

The French news blog Christian Journal noted that the march was remarkable because in France, "the debate over abortion is almost prohibited."

The Christian Journal added that the French Catholic bishops were nowhere to be seen. "And the bishops, who should be on the front lines, maintain a low profile. Six among them (over 200) have given their support, but none of them were in the March."

One French politician, Bruno Gollnisch of the National Front, reportedly told the blog e-deo during the march that, "It's a moral issue, but it's also an issue of national importance, because France is in the process of committing suicide."  He added that  "If the French kill their children and cause others to come in and replace them, they forfeit their right to live freely and independently in the land of their ancestors."

France has suffered a steep decline in its birthrate, which is below replacement level, and an aging population. Increasingly, however, the country is making efforts to encourage larger families, and the birthrate has risen somewhat (see previous LifeSiteNews coverage at http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2006/mar/06033002.html).

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