LifeZine No. 529: 5th Oct 07
Amnesty International Should Value All Human Life
According to Ray McIntyre writing in the “Irish Times” and “Irish Catholic” newspapers, “the promotion of the violent act of abortion is not the answer the plight of the innocent female victims of the most heinous of human rights violations”. He was writing in the context of the recent decision of Amnesty International to promote and support abortion. He continued: “How does Amnesty expect to have any moral credibility when its new policy now implies that the innocent baby in the womb has less right to life than any convicted rapist, anyone convicted of genocide or anyone guilty of the most heinous violence against women?” Details: CLICK TO READ MORE.....
Abnormalities and Abortion
Rosemary Murphy Hopkins, a retired paediatric physiotherapist, wrote in “The Irish Times” recently on the subject of abnormalities in unborn children and abortion. “Fifty years ago, when I was a student in England—10 years before Britain's abortion legislation—one of our lecturers, an eminent professor of paediatric surgery told us: ‘Paediatricians are tainted with the view that neonatal abnormalities should not be treated. They believe that it is better for the family that siblings be spared the handicapped child who is treated as a scapegoat and, as on Good Friday, one should die for the sake of the others’”. According to Ms Hopkins, “We all carry some lethal genes, as did this fine man who, in his own words, was ‘born deformed’. He had the condition Spina Bifida. Becoming an orthopaedic surgeon, he specialised in closing the lesion in babies at about 18 months of age. What a loss for medicine it could have been, had he been conceived today, when abortion is freely available in Britain if this defect is suspected.” The Irish Times. September 19. END.
UK Catholic Schools and Amnesty International
Following Amnesty International’s decision to support “the right to abortion”, Oona Stannard, chief executive and director of the Catholic Education Service, an agency of the Bishops’ Conference of England and Wales, has issued the following statement: “Catholic schools take very seriously their work with charities and the development of an informed social conscience in their pupils or students. Indeed, these are hallmarks of good Catholic schools. Such work goes well beyond supporting exclusively Catholic charities and organisations. Catholic schools will always want to make sure that their charitable fundraising and their work to instil a strong social conscience are done with organisations whose philosophy, aims and practices support Christian values including the sanctity of life. The bottom line should be: ‘Can I be sure that my energy or money will be used in ways that are life supporting’. Decisions about working with any particular organisations or projects are made on this basis.” Since Amnesty International made its decision in August, the Vatican has withdrawn financial support. Both Bishop Michael Evans of East Anglia and Cardinal Keith O’Brien of Edinburgh have resigned from the organisation. Catholic Education Service. END.
British Poll Shows Most Oppose Late-Term Abortions, Want More Limits
A new poll in England finds more than 70 percent of women oppose late-term abortions and want the limits scaled back. The survey also found that 90 percent of women want abortion practitioners to be required to disclose information about alternatives. The survey also found that about 80 percent of women say there should be a waiting period between when an abortion is requested and when its execution. They say this would allow a woman a chance to consider alternatives. Other findings showed there are too many abortions in England and that the numbers should be reduced. Eighty percent of those polled say the abortion law should be reviewed regularly to keep up with medical science. And, seventy percent support the right of doctors, nurses and other medical professionals to refuse to participate in abortions. LifeNews.com. CLICK TO READ MORE.....
Cardinal Ruini Slams Italian Abortion Law
The Catholic Church in Italy has reignited the debate over Italy's abortion law after an obstetrician mistakenly aborted a mother’s healthy twin baby instead of a sibling with Down syndrome. Cardinal Camillo Ruini, former head of the Italian bishops' conference and the pope's vicar for Rome, said that the time had come to re-examine the abortion law in the light of new medical advances. ELN. END.
Men Can Suffer a Myriad of Grief Issues Following an Abortion
Abortion is usually considered purely a woman's issue and one where men should have little or no role. However, one man who regularly counsels men who have been involved in an abortion says men are fundamentally affected by that decision. Kevin Burke is the associate director of Rachel's Vineyard Ministries, a group that reaches out to those adversely affected by abortion. Burke says men suffer from a myriad of problems following a girlfriend’s or wife’s abortion—especially one which they supported or persuaded their partner to have. "The reality is that men are involved in 95% of all abortion decisions, and they are profoundly impacted by their participation in the abortion of their child", Burke added. "In the last eight years we have seen a steady increase in men who attended our Rachel's Vineyard Retreats seeking healing." ZENIT/LifeNews.com. CLICK TO READ MORE.....