October 27, 2008

Guests: Fr. Tony Judge, Redemptorist Missionary speaking at the St. Pius X Parish Mission
Sally Proctor, President of Iowans for Life
Featured Saint of the Day: Bl. Bartholomew of Vicenza

Today Deacon Rick and Jenny first spoke with Fr. Tony Judge a Redemptorist Missionary in town for the St. Pius X Parish Mission. The mission will be taking place every night through Thursday. Thursday night there will be a mass as well as the concluding talk of the mission. The theme of the week is "Welcome Home, Be Renewed in Christ."

Fr. Tony shared a bit of his talk from Sunday with us. He told us that in all families we need to be reminded of who we are. Simple things like getting together to tell stories around the dinner table. These stories are part of who we are and we need to be reminded of their importance in our lives. It is the same way with the Bible, the Word of God is full of the stories that make us who we are. There are two truths that we can discover in the Word of God. One of these is the truth about who God is. The other is the truth about who we are as God's people.

Deacon Rick and Jenny also spoke with Sally Proctor, the President of Iowan's For Life. If anyone would still like to accompany Iowans for Life to the March for Life in January, they have two full buses but would love to take a third. They're wait-listing anyone who calls to sign up for now, but as soon as there are enough people for a full bus, they'll make arrangements.

Sally today, a little spoke about the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA.) The Freedom of Choice Act is a bill that people have been trying to pass since the Clinton Administration. The new version of this Act is the more earth-shattering than any of the versions before it. If passed, it will wipe out all pro-life laws that are in place in all of the 50 states. There will be no enforced waiting period before a girl has an aboriton. There will be no rules as to parental consent. The tax-dollars of the people will be used to fund abortion and hospitals will be forced to perform abortions if asked to. Those backing this bill advocate that it is going to help women. The basis of this law will in fact strip women of the safeguards and help that are available to them at this point.

Women are walking wounded in our society: they've been wounded body, mind and spirit by abortion. Abortion not only robs them of a child, it puts their bodies at risk for Breast Cancer. They live with the mental guilt of their abortion, they know exactly how old their child would be. Over 90% of women regret having their abortion, which is why we see groups like "Silent No More" where women are stepping up to speak out against the tragedy of abortion. These women need to be cared for, they need to be able to forgive themselves, and rebuild the pieces of their lives.

Our society is experiencing the effects of abortion. This economic crisis stems from the 50 million children who have been aborted since Roe-v-Wade. Those aborted in the first years after Roe-v-Wade would be around 35 years old. They would have had families of their own and been contributing to society. These children would have been in their teen years, working and paying taxes. There is less demand on baby supplies and other amenities which puts people out of jobs. There are scientific studies out that prove that when a population is growing the economy booms.

Iowans for Life along with the Gabriel Project have recently provided a young mother with a car seat, a youth bed, and lots of diapers. The Gabriel Project has a phone number that will connect you with people who volunteer to help women through their pregnancy: connecting them with resources and support.

For more information about Iowans for Life you can go to their website:
www.iowansforlife.org