Hilary Clinton’s unashamed and forceful support for even partial birth abortion, at the last Presidential Debate this week, was literally incredible. It was difficult to listen to, and to believe! She had no hesitation, no reluctance to affirm: for the sake of the life and health of the mother, the mother and she alone had absolute power over the unborn son or daughter in her womb – even if only one day, or even hours, from normal childbirth!
Think of it. The child would be viable, and ready for life outside of her – the child would be ready for induced labor, moments away from natural birth right then and there! But if the woman decides at the last moment that for some reason “her health” might be threatened in some way by the life of this child, then she should be free to destroy the life of this child. She should be free to kill her baby. And we suppose that the seriousness of the threat to her “health” posed by the life of her child would be a matter to be decided by the woman and the woman alone.
The child in the mother’s womb has no rights, in Hillary Clinton’s world, absolutely no human rights at all. The mother has complete life-or-death power over this child, right up to the birth of the child. No, even worse, right up to the completed birth of the child! The baby can be partially born, his or her little head exposed, so that the doctor can then easily kill him, or her, during the birth process. Thus the horrific and inhuman name for the “procedure” – “partial birth abortion.”
Catholics, can there be any moral justification for such an inhuman “human right” as Democrats want to assure to every woman in the country, and in the world? The next president will have at least one, probably two or more appointments to the Supreme Court – the court which is supposed to judge laws, but has now begun to define or rewrite laws on its own. Can you imagine America under laws allowing the murder of babies in the very process of being born – again? And with a taxpayer-funded Planned Parenthood free to sell baby parts, the by-product of the abortion mills, all for the alleged sake of “science”? Have we really come to this, in America? Have our hearts become so hardened?
Catholics, can any Catholic – no, can any human being – justify such barbarism, such insanity?
Catholics, can any Christian justify electing such a candidate to be President, having such power and authority?
Here is a comparison the the two Platforms on this particular issue (from Priests for Life website):
There is more, of course, to consider. Here are some sober and wise words from Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson, of the Knights of Columbus:
Once again we meet during a presidential election campaign in the United States and once again we face the question: “How should Catholics exercise their responsibilities as citizens?”
Catholics often confront a dilemma in deciding how to vote: Can we support a candidate who may be attractive for many reasons but who supports abortion? Some partisan advocates have sought to excuse support for pro-abortion candidates through a complex balancing act.
They claim other issues are important enough to offset a candidate’s support for abortion. But the right to abortion is not just another political issue; it is in reality a legal regime that has resulted in more than 40 million deaths.
Imagine for a moment the largest 25 cities in the United States and Canada suddenly empty of people. This is what the loss of 40 million human beings would look like.
In fact, 40 million is greater than the entire population of Canada. What political issue could possibly outweigh this human devastation?
The answer, of course, is that there is none.
Abortion is different. Abortion is the killing of the innocent on a massive scale. We need to end the political manipulation of Catholic voters by abortion advocates.
It is time to end the entanglement of Catholic people with abortion killing. It is time to stop creating excuses for voting for pro-abortion politicians.
We will never succeed in building a culture of life if we continue to vote for politicians who support a culture of death. Catholic voters have the power to transform our politics.
(LINK)
In this same article, Mr. Anderson cites the wisdom of St. Teresa of Calcutta – “Mother Teresa” – who said,
I feel that the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a war against the child, a direct killing of the innocent child, murder by the mother herself. And if we accept that a mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another?
Any country that accepts abortion is not teaching its people to love, but to use any violence to get what they want.
Catholics of America – please – save this country from the evil ready to creep in upon us, the evil that is called “Progressivism” – an ancient evil as old as sin, as old as the Culture of Death, as old as the father of lies ever seeking to deceive good people to follow his lies into his kingdom of death.
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Thanks again, Thomas! It is so important to make issues as clear as possible — and no issue is more important than the abortion issue! I pray every Catholic will vote to save the lives of the unborn. “Re-productive health” is a lie intended to deceive and bring death not health to babies.
Come Holy Spirit, bring us into All Truth as Jesus promised. Enable us to discern Your Truth from the lies of the evil one, and to speak Your Truth clearly in this world grown dark with confusion!
By: Deborah on October 21, 2016
at 1:24 pm
Sorry, but this must be said:
If a father brutally assaults and rapes his 12 year old daughter and she gets pregnant, she has EVERY RIGHT and logical reason to take the morning after pill. No question asked. I can’t even begin to imagine how traumatic that would be, but this is an example when abortion is absolutely acceptable.
By: Ripley Stevenson on October 21, 2016
at 6:30 pm
Hello Ripley. Thank you for leaving this comment – you express a sentiment held by many people today, women and men. I hope I can convince you to give this issue some second thoughts, however, as difficult as that might be.
Let’s suppose a case – a situation – a human experience – such as you’ve described. A young girl is pregnant because of rape and incest: does this justify an abortion?
Such a girl as you have described was deeply violated and hurt – but what about the little girl or little boy now growing within her? What exactly did that smallest, most needy, most vulnerable of human persons DO, to be found guilty of a capital offense? What did he or she DO to deserve the death penalty? To be rejected by his or her mother, sight unseen? To have the chance of life and happiness taken away from him, or her, before even taking the first breath of life in the world?
Yes, the daughter who was assaulted and raped was violated in a great, an immense injustice! She was deeply hurt, and the hurt was made worse many times over because the attacker was her father, one who owed her not his cruel attack but the opposite: he owed her his protection, and his kindness, and his fatherly love!
But consider her possibly turning to an abortion, to the killing of her child within her: Should she – the one violated, assaulted and raped by her father – turn and violate, assault and kill her child whom she now mothers within her? She who was innocent, but deeply hurt – should she then destroy the innocent one within her? Her father thought nothing of her his own child, but only of himself, in his attack! Should she then think nothing of the rights and needs of the child – her child – now within her?
The child in her is there, even though conceived in violence, in rape – yet the child is there because God, with love for that child, allowed conception to take place. God created a soul for that child: a new, personal, immortal soul made in the image of God, made for happiness and for love. And that child, conceived not in the human love of a loving mother and father, was nevertheless conceived and created by the all-loving God and Father of all. That child was conceived for a purpose, in the mind and heart of God – a purpose for good, a purpose for happiness and for love.
That child – every child – deserves life because God gave him, or her, life.
The example you described has several factors that also need consideration:
1) The girl is only twelve, and thus would need special medical care and attention in her pregnancy. The primary doctor helping her would need to be attentive to the health and well-being of both mother and child within her. He must care for and work to protect the life and health of both – both.
2) The girl clearly needs legal protection in the future from her predator-father.
3) There may well be girls, or young women, who have experienced such horror as you have described, and who did choose, perhaps in confusion and in pain – and perhaps in anger – an abortion. Please know of God’s enduring love for you, and for your aborted child, and know of His great welcoming mercy. God will forgive any sin, of any person, who looks to Him for His forgiveness and understanding. God does understand, and He wants all His children to come to Him – or to come back to Him – to come home, in Him.
4) Finally, there is dispute over the “morning after pill” – as to whether it is an abortifacient, or merely a way to block an unwanted conception. As far as I know, that issue is still unresolved. Abortion is always wrong and must be refused, in favor of life for the innocent child in the womb.
— But it is not wrong to block a conception that has not yet occurred, the potential result of an unwanted sexual violation. Such a blocking is simply self-defence against an unwanted sexual intrusion – a way of saying “No!” to the rape, after the fact.
— Thus, a “Morning after” drug can be morally acceptable, depending on what it is designed to do, what it does in the woman’s body. If it causes the rejection of a fertilized egg, then it is an abortion of a tiny human baby, it is wrong. If it prevents the union of sperm and egg, and thus blocks a conception that was not consented to, then it is not an abortion; it is not wrong.
I hope I’ve given you, and any other readers conflicted over this very important issue, more to consider. I hope I’ve helped you to see the great – infinite – value of every human life, as indeed God sees it. The first, the primary human right is the right to life! If we can take away that right “legally”, but unjustly, unfairly, then no human rights are safe. None at all.
May the Lord lead you, and us all, ever more deeply into His wisdom and truth.
By: Thomas Richard on October 22, 2016
at 6:48 am
Ripley, For a Catholic, the child in the womb has a right to life by virtue of his creation as a human being. The right to life is the bedrock upon which all other rights draw merit. Being a member of the human family, it’s right to live can’t be subject to a judgement call by it’s parents. Just as even though our born children may suffer from the horrors of the world and others or are a burden to some of their parents, there is no right to kill it.
By: Stella Maris on October 22, 2016
at 6:51 am
While, as Thomas pointed out, the Catholic position rejects abortion even in cases such as this, and for good reasons, the blog post was specifically about partial birth abortion.
Do you believe, then, that a 12 year old girl who has been brutally raped by her father should be allowed to carry the child to term and then take steps to have the child’s brains scrambled as he or she is being delivered from the young woman’s body? Is that OK?
The problem with the poor 12-year-old rape victim, who really does deserve all of the support and love we can give her for the horrible torture and betrayal she has received, is that she only seems to be hauled out of the closet by abortion proponents as a wedge to pry open the door to full, unrestricted access to even the most barbaric abortion procedures… after which she is ignored again. Given this, I wonder whether abortion isn’t more for society’s convenience, so that everyone else doesn’t have to deal with her, rather than for her health. If everyone were so concerned about her welfare, wouldn’t society shower her with psychological help and offers of material assistance after the abortion? Instead, she seems to appear only in these debates.
Returning to the topic of the post, I cannot see why a traumatized rape victim would wait nine months to request an abortion, and then submit to such a grisly procedure when giving the baby up for adoption is arguably simpler and less traumatic.
By: Bruce on October 24, 2016
at 10:51 pm
A very powerful blog Thomas. I pray Catholics…at least….open their eyes to the abomination that abortion is. It is the murder of innocent children who are precious in the sight of God. I continue to pray for our church and our country.
By: Susan on October 24, 2016
at 2:42 pm