Dear friend,

This week I turn 37.

It’s hard to believe. How time flies. January 22, 1973 seems like so long ago. I’m the oldest in my family. It’s a pretty big family, but I’ll explain that later.

If you’re a boomer, you probably don’t think much of my generation — Gen X. But that’s because we’re a threat to you! My generation is changing the world! Just think of all that has happened in the world these past 37 years…

The end of Vietnam. Watergate. Jimmy Carter. Actually, I don’t remember much from the 70s, since I was just entering elementary school when Ronald Reagan became president.

I loved the 80s. That’s when I grew up, but I had no idea just how much the world was changing.

Then, the Berlin Wall fell. I’ll never forget that day in November, 1989. I was 16 and on top of the world. I can remember my history teacher telling me that the world would never be the same. He was right.

Then, something even more dramatic developed. The Internet. If you want to understand me and my generation, then go online. When I was in college, a few of my friends saw it coming. We helped start a revolution online. And don’t believe it when they say the Internet bubble has burst. The only thing that has burst is the old way of doing business.

Now, I’m working on my third business startup — all by the time I reached 33. Not bad, eh? I got married four years ago, and we’re expecting our first child in three months. A new generation begins…

Except for one problem.

You see, I wasn’t actually born on January 22, 1973. In fact, I wasn’t born at all.

I never was given the chance to take even that first breath – never mind then the millions of breaths that would have followed over these 37 years.

Not a single breath.

That’s because of something else that happened on January 22, 1973.

Seven Supreme Court justices made a decision that would dramatically affect my life – and the lives of over 5- million others who would never take a breath.

That’s my family. And it’s growing every day. In fact, in the next 24 hours the family of abortion victims will grow by dozens more than the number of people who died when the Trade Center buildings collapsed.

The cleanup from 9/11 took a long time and finally was considered finished. But the clean up from 1/22/73 keeps going on and on!

And to think it was all based on a lie. Jane “Roe” of Roe v. Wade was lied to. And so were you – if you believed even for a moment that the mass of tissue wasn’t a human life.

That mass of tissue was I!

My goal here isn’t to make you feel guilty. Rather, think of me – or what could have been me – the next time the topic of abortion comes up.

Think of me graduating from high school and going to college. Think of me getting married and having children. Think of me celebrating my birthday with family and friends.

Think of me turning 37.

–Anonymous

An excellent article by a friend:

http://www.thedcwriteup.com/2009/08/reinventing-popes/

I meant to post on this some time ago, but for a variety of reasons it kept getting put off.  The upside is that now that the Notre Dame commencement ceremony has taken place, I can comment on things in their totality.

First, I want to be clear that I am very angry with the university for allowing President Obama the opportunity to speak at the commencement ceremony in addition to awarding him an honorary doctorate of law.  That being said, I also want to express my displeasure and disappointment with some of the attacks leveled against the university.  I think Matt of the Holy Whapping put it best:

For a lot of us, it was a bit like discovering our dear old mother had a drinking problem. Something must be done, but watching others gleefully taunting her was a bit hard to handle, as right as they might have been in the abstract to rebuke her. She is still someone’s mother, after all.

To be blunt, the name calling of the university (e.g. “Notre Shame”) is just downright juvenile.  You might as well add “Nanner, nanner, nanner” and be done with it.  It adds nothing constructive to the issue at hand.

In regards to the protests, I must commend the student groups, organized under ND Response, for their prayerful and constructive response to this decision by the university.  I firmly believe that the primary response should be with the students.  This is a matter of their university administration making a very poor decision.  Furthermore, the students have the best information about what the atmosphere is on campus as well as how a university works.  While outside groups wanting to protest is commendable, I believe the best they could have done is followed the students’ lead and joined with them rather than staging their own protests.  Third party groups, while they may be well-meaning, can be woefully ignorant about the university and end up setting back the work the students have accomplished with the administration.

In the end, of course, the awarding of President Obama with an honorary doctorate of law is a gross violation of the 2004 USCCB document “Catholics in Political Life”.  Aside from that, as Arizona State University said, what has the president done during his term in office to merit such an award?  His term is just beginning.  Unfortunately, what he has done is enact policies that are detrimental to the culture of life.  These policies violate the Natural Law, and as such should automatically disqualify someone from receiving any legal award, especially one from a supposedly Catholic university where the Natural Law should still be recognized and upheld.  A law is an ordinance of reason, and violations of the Natural Law are unreasonable.

The university tried to couch this decision by speaking of “dialogue” or “debate”.  I have problems in using the word debate in reference to abortion.  There is no debate on abortion — it is intrinsically evil.  A debate implies that there are two different approaches to an issue, each one valid, and we are trying to decide which is best.  We can debate the best way to reform the health care system, if at all.  We can debate the best ways to help mothers care for their children.  Regarding abortion though, even if the pro-abortion/pro-choice side makes what appears to be a more convincing argument in a “debate”, they are still wrong because abortion is intrinsically evil and contrary to the Natural Law, which is written on the heart of every person (even if they try will not admit it).  Dialogue might be a better word to use, but even that can be misconstrued.  I think these terminological concerns are particularly important in a society steeped in relativism where the prevalent idea is that I have my truth and you have your truth and never the twain shall meet.  The goal about talking with the opposing side regarding abortion is to convert their hearts and help them see the truth that it is human beings that are being killed.

Obama in his speech at commencement, as Bishop Finn pointed out, ended any real hope for dialogue when he described the positions on abortion as “irreconcilable”.  While he spoke about the opposing sides working together to try to decrease the number of unwanted pregnancies, his plan for that involves promotion of a contraceptive mentality.  So long as contraception is practiced mainstream in this country there will always be a push for abortion because it is viewed as the “fail-safe” should the contraception inevitably fail.

In this whole Notre Dame fiasco, there has been much focus on the negative aspects of Notre Dame.  I am telling you from experience that Notre Dame is not all bad.  There is a yearly Eucharistic Procession at which 600+ people have been attending the past few years.  There are something like 150 Masses that are said on campus each week.  Campus Ministry is heading in the right direction.  Right to Life is the largest student group on campus, and there are several hardcore Catholic groups on campus.  There is daily adoration on weekdays, and numerous opportunities for Confession throughout the week.  The Catholicism of Notre Dame is in her students.  Granted, some students live what would be considered the stereotypical college student lifestyle, but there are many good Catholic students who are on fire for their faith.  There are also many strong priests within the Congregation of Holy Cross.  This is where the future of the Catholicism at Notre Dame lies.  The University is not beyond redemption, and I firmly believe that this future redemption will come about through the grassroots witness of the Catholic students on campus.  While all these good aspects do not excuse the bad, they show that Notre Dame is not as far gone as some other so-called “Catholic” schools in this country.

I have no regrets about attending Notre Dame for my graduate studies.  If it had not been for my time at Notre Dame and the people that I met there, I highly doubt I would be in seminary right now.  I think that is a great witness to the good that is still possible at Our Lady’s School.

I just read an article about a Canadian couple.  The husband is terminally ill, but the wife is healthy.  They plan to go to a Swiss assisted suicide clinic and both commit suicide with the aid of the clinic.  Up until now I have only read about terminally ill people erroneously deciding to commit suicide.  Now we have reached a new level of insanity when the healthy commit suicide at these clinics as well.

Here is a great pro-life short film:

http://www.thedoorpost.com/hope/Volition/

I just read an anti-abortion article entitled “Flashpoint! A Woman’s Right To Choose”.  It is really good.  His basic argument is that unless one determines that life begins at conception, any other determined time is just arbitrary.  What makes this argument particularly powerful is that he speaks from personal experience.  He has positively cooperated in three abortions, and his actions might have led to more.  He regrets them all.

I do wish, however, the author took a stronger stance agianst the argument that abortion should be allowed in the cases of rape, incest, orand birth defects.  That, of course, does not justify killing a baby conceived through rape or incest or with severe birth defects; such children also have the inalienable right to life.  Ultimately, though, he concludes that abortion is not the best thing in such a case and adoption would be better, but that part of the argument is still weak and should be stronger.

I read a news report today about a botched abortion in which the 23-week-old baby was delivered alive (the abortionist did not arrive in time to kill her before she was born).  One of the owners of the abortion clinic, who has no medical training, placed the live baby in a biohazard bag, sealed the bag, and threw the baby into the trash.  The decomposing remains were later found by police.  Another report said this owner knocked the baby onto the floor before throwing her out.

I had written some time ago about the paganization of society such that the abortion mentality is reverting us back to the days in which unwanted children were left to die of exposure in the wilderness (I am thinking most notably of ancient Sparta).  This abortion clinic owner has taken the next “logical” step brought about by an abortive mentality, namely, throw away living babies when the abortion fails.  While many are expressing shock and outrage over this, I ask: what did you expect?  While I am saddened and angered by this repulsive incident, I am in no way shocked.  I called it some time ago.

Nancy Pelosi explained on This Week on Sunday that funding contraception will help improve the economy since fewer government dollars will need to be spent on taking care of children.  The irony is, fewer children means fewer future payees into Social Security.

Dear friend,

This week I turn 36.

It’s hard to believe. How time flies. January 22, 1973 seems like so long ago. I’m the oldest in my family. It’s a pretty big family, but I’ll explain that later.

If you’re a boomer, you probably don’t think much of my generation — Gen X. But that’s because we’re a threat to you! My generation is changing the world! Just think of all that has happened in the world these past 36 years…

The end of Vietnam. Watergate. Jimmy Carter. Actually, I don’t remember much from the 70s, since I was just entering elementary school when Ronald Reagan became president.
I loved the 80s. That’s when I grew up, but I had no idea just how much the world was changing.

Then, the Berlin Wall fell. I’ll never forget that day in November, 1989. I was 16 and on top of the world. I can remember my history teacher telling me that the world would never be the same. He was right.

Then, something even more dramatic developed. The Internet. If you want to understand me and my generation, then go online. When I was in college, a few of my friends saw it coming. We helped start a revolution online. And don’t believe it when they say the Internet bubble has burst. The only thing that has burst is the old way of doing business.

Now, I’m working on my third business startup — all by the time I reached 33. Not bad, eh? I got married four years ago, and we’re expecting our first child in three months. A new generation begins…

Except for one problem.

You see, I wasn’t actually born on January 22, 1973. In fact, I wasn’t born at all.

I never was given the chance to take even that first breath – never mind then the millions of breaths that would have followed over these 36 years.

Not a single breath.

That’s because of something else that happened on January 22, 1973.

Seven Supreme Court justices made a decision that would dramatically affect my life – and the lives of over 5- million others who would never take a breath.

That’s my family. And it’s growing every day. In fact, in the next 24 hours the family of abortion victims will grow by dozens more than the number of people who died when the Trade Center buildings collapsed.

The cleanup from 9/11 took a long time and finally was considered finished. But the clean up from 1/22/73 keeps going on and on!

And to think it was all based on a lie. Jane “Roe” of Roe v. Wade was lied to. And so were you – if you believed even for a moment that the mass of tissue wasn’t a human life.

That mass of tissue was I!

My goal here isn’t to make you feel guilty. Rather, think of me – or what could have been me – the next time the topic of abortion comes up.

Think of me graduating from high school and going to college. Think of me getting married and having children. Think of me celebrating my birthday with family and friends.

Think of me turning 36.

–Anonymous

By executive order, Obama will end the Mexico City policy tomorrow. This policy prevented non-government organizations from having access to U.S. funds unless they did not discuss or provide abortions outside of the United States as a means of family planning.

I am still curious if Obama will address the marchers on the March for Life (I am not holding my breath).