Ahmadinejad Demands Apology for U.S. 'Crimes'

Yep, that's right. This is what happens when the 'Blame America First' crowd is in charge. Lovely!!!!!!!!!!


Wednesday, January 28, 2009


TEHRAN, Iran —  Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad called for "profound changes" in U.S. foreign policy on Wednesday, including giving up support for Israel, during an address to thousands of people in the western city of Kermanshah.
President Obama on Tuesday, in an interview with Arabic television, called for more dialogue with Iran to express difference and see "where there are potential avenues for progress."
Without mentioning President Barack Obama by name, Ahmadinejad Wednesday repeatedly referred to those who want to bring "change," a word used often in Obama's election campaign, and indicated that Iran would be looking to see if there would be substantive differences in U.S. policy. (Full story at Fox News)

'Conciliatory' Obama speaks to Al-Arabiya

Watching or listening to an American President humble himself meekly in front of Islamic terrorists is a new low. Weakness is not look upon favorably in the Muslim world, only strength, determination and sense of purpose is. Obama is proving that America is going to be weak in the face of Islamic terrorism.

Rick Moran
January 27, 2009

Will Obama be any more successful than George Bush in reaching out to Muslims? Bush confidante and friend Karen Hughes ran a high profile effort out of the State Department that was supposed to counter the propaganda coming from the Arab press about the United States while extending a hand to the worldwide Muslim community in friendship.

For a variety of reasons -- not all of them Bush's or Hughes' fault -- the effort fell flat on its face. Hughes not only had to counter propaganda from Muslim countries but also the hysterical and oftentimes false reporting from the western press on Bush and US intentions toward Muslim countries. In addition, the idea that Bush was supposed to "apologize" for liberating 25 million Muslims from tyranny was just never going to happen, no matter how much al-Jazeera and other Arab media demanded it.

In short, it was an effort doomed to fail from the outset.

Now here's Barack Obama, World Superstar, beloved of billions, inviting the less hysterical than al-Jazeera (but still dishonest) al-Arabiya TV into the White House for a chat. And the interview goes about as well as you'd expect -- for Muslims. For US interests? Not so much: (Full story at American Thinker)

Vatican daily clarifies scope and limits of lifting of Lefebvrists’ excommunication

Rome, Jan 27, 2009 / 02:16 pm (CNA).- The Vatican’s daily newspaper L’Osservatore Romano published an editorial Monday clarifying the scope and limits of the lifting of the excommunication of four bishops ordained by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in 1988. The editorial stressed that the gesture does not yet mean a return to “full communion” with the Church and moreover is a call to the “full acceptance of the Magisterium, obviously including the Second Vatican Council.”

“Benedict XVI has pronounced important words recalling that ‘the elderly among us also do not forget the first announcement of the Council made by John XXIII on January 25, 1959, exactly 50 years ago.’ It was a gesture that Pope Ratzinger today defines as a ‘providential decision’ prompted by the Holy Spirit and that our newspaper by no accident recalls with emphasis on the day of the lifting of the excommunication.”

(Full story at CNA)

Obama Tells Democrats to Drop Planned Parenthood Stimulus Funds After Outrage

by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
January 27, 2009


Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- After a national pro-life outcry following news that Congressional Democrats placed a bailout for the Planned Parenthood abortion business in the economic stimulus bill, President Barack Obama has urged party leaders to remove it. Obama is expected to tell Congressional Republicans today during a meeting.


White House Press Secretary Robert Gibbs talked about how Obama is worried that keeping the provision in the bill could jeopardize its potential for passage.

"While [Obama] agrees that greater access to family planning is good policy, the president believes that the funding for it does not belong in the economic recovery and reinvestment plan," he said. (Full story at LifeNews.com)

Martin Luther King, Jr.'s Niece Challenges Barack Obama on Abortion Today

by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
January 23, 2009

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- The niece of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., will lead a prayer vigil and memorial outside the White House this morning to remember unborn children killed in abortions. Civil rights activist Alveda King will place 1400 flowers in front of the White House to honor the number of black babies who die from abortions.

The event is part of the outreach directed this week to newly-minted President Barack Obama in an effort to get him to reverse his pro-abortion position.

King will deliver the keynote address at the ceremony and she told LifeNews.com earlier this week how she is disappointed that Obama is betraying the cultural pro-life views of the black community.

“Over 45 years ago, my Uncle, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., wrote from a Birmingham jail cell that ‘[i]njustice anywhere is a threat to justice everywhere,’” King said. “Today, there is no greater injustice than that suffered by the 4,000 babies, 1,400 of them black, who die on any given day at the hands of abortionists."
(Full story at LifeNews.com)

Anglican Rumors Denied

Posted by Tom McFeely
Thursday, January 29, 2009 1:30 PM

Archbishop John Hepworth, head of the Traditional Anglican Communion. (Wikipedia)A Vatican source has denied rumors that Rome has decided to create a personal prelature for members of the Traditional Anglican Communion.

Leaders of the Traditional Anglican Communion, an international group of disaffected Anglicans that claims to have more than 400,000 members, have been in discussions with Rome since late 2007 about entering the Church as a corporate body.
The group broke with the Anglican hierarchy in 1990 because of objections to the ordination of women and other heterodox actions undertaken by some of the churches that belong to the Anglican Communion.
(Full story at NCRegister.com)

Bishop Williamson apologizes for ‘imprudent’ Holocaust remarks

Rome, Jan 30, 2009 / 06:10 pm (CNA).- A bishop whose excommunication was recently lifted by the Pope has written a letter to a leading cardinal expressing his regret for the “unnecessary distress and problems” he had caused by making “imprudent” remarks allegedly denying the Holocaust.

The bishop quoted the Prophet Jonah who told shipmates “throw me into the sea” to halt a tempest.

Bishop Richard Williamson is one of the four bishops leading the traditionalist group Society of St. Pius X (SSPX). The bishops’ 1988 excommunications were lifted last week by Pope Benedict in an effort to advance Church unity. (Full story at CNA)

SSPX leader apologizes for Bishop Williamson’s Holocaust denial

Menzingen, Jan 27, 2009 / 06:56 pm (CNA).- Today the leader of the Society of St. Pius X, Bishop Bernard Fellay, apologized to Pope Benedict XVI for comments made by Bishop Richard Williamson in which he denied the Holocaust during an interview on Swedish television last week.

According to Reuters, Bishop Williamson’s remarks sparked widespread criticism by Jewish communities, especially since they came on the eve of his reconciliation with the Catholic Church. On Saturday, the Holy Father lifted the excommunication of Bishops Williamson, Fellay and two other prelates from the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) who were ordained by Marcel Lefebvre in 1988. (Full story at CNA)

Amid Pressure Democrats Drop Contraceptive Funding from Stimulus Bill

From EWTNews

Washington DC, Jan 27, 2009 (CNA).- A $200 million provision for contraception programs is being dropped from the $825 billion stimulus package following criticism from pro-lifers and Republican congressmen.

President Barack Obama personally called House Democratic leaders to ask them to remove the provision, an Obama aide told CNN. One of his calls reportedly went to Rep. Henry Waxman (D-CA), chairman of the Committee on Oversight and Government Reform and one of the most influential liberal members of Congress.

The president reportedly urged the provision’s removal because it was a hot button issue among Republicans and did not focus on creating jobs as quickly as possible.

The provision would have provided contraception to low-income families and removed a requirement that states seek permission from the federal government to provide family planning services for Medicaid recipients.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi entered into the fray in a weekend interview when she defended the allocation of millions as a cost reducing measure.

Pelosi also characterized the funding of the contraceptives as helping with the fiscal crisis. “The states are in terrible fiscal budget crises now and part of what we do for children's health, education and some of those elements are to help the states meet their financial needs. One of those - one of the initiatives you mentioned, the contraception, will reduce costs to the states and to the federal government,” she said.

Monday Fr. Thomas Euteneur of Human Life International criticized Pelosi’s justification of the proposal, charging that her argument reduced human beings to their economic value and also treated children as a hindrance to economic growth.
“What she and her fellow anti-life crusaders are doing is trying to sneak their destructive ideology into law by convincing the ignorant that it is fiscally necessary,” he charged in an e-mail to CNA.

Pope Benedict asks SSPX to accept Vatican II

From CNA News
Vatican City, Jan 28, 2009 / 11:20 am (CNA).- After delivering his usual Wednesday address today, Pope Benedict XVI explained his recent decision to lift the excommunications on four bishops ordained by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in 1988. The Pope said he hopes the bishops will respond to his decision by accepting his authority and the teachings of Vatican II.

The four bishops in question--Bishops Bernard Fellay, Bernard Tissier de Mallerais, Richard Williamson and Alfonso del Gallareta--were all excommunicated by Pope John Paul II in 1988 because Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre chose to ordain them without permission from the Pope. These prelates compose the leadership of the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X (SSPX).

Pope Benedict explained his motivation for lifting the excommunications, saying, "I have undertaken this act of paternal benevolence because those same bishops have repeatedly expressed to me their profound suffering at the situation in which they found themselves.”

As he explained his reasons for removing the excommunications of the four bishops today, the Pope called on them to take the next step towards full reconciliation.

"I hope that this gesture of mine will be followed by a prompt commitment on their part to take the further steps necessary to achieve full communion with the Church, thus showing true faithfulness to, and true recognition of, the Magisterium and authority of the Pope and of Vatican Council II," Pope Benedict said.

Pontiff Tells Why He's Reaching Out to Lefebvrists

Points to Unity as "Explicit Duty" of a Pastor

VATICAN CITY, JAN. 28, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Benedict XVI is offering a personal explanation for his decision to remove the excommunication of four traditionalist bishops ordained without papal permission.

The Pope spoke today at the general audience of the decree made public Saturday, which lifted the excommunication of four prelates of the Society of St. Pius X, illicitly ordained to the episcopate by Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in 1988. (Full story at zenit.org)

Pliability Journalism

By JAMES TARANTO

More than 144 hours into Barack Obama's presidency, the economy is still in recession, the country is still at war, and in many parts of the country it's still cold outside. Citizens are growing impatient: Wasn't President Obama supposed to bring change?
Yet one institution has changed dramatically, and in a very short time: the press. After spending the Bush years as a voice of opposition, American journalists have by and large turned on a dime and become cheerleaders for the man in power.
A case in point is the Associated Press, perhaps the nation's premier "straight news" outfit. During the Bush years, the AP introduced a new reportorial idiom called "accountability journalism," whose goal is "to report whether government officials are doing the job for which they were elected and keeping the promises they make." Turns out they weren't.

(Full story at WSJ: Best of the Web Today)

Pelosi on Kids: They're an Economic Drain

1/27/2009

Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights (www.catholicleague.org/)

"Now we have Pelosi arguing that the way to balance the budget is not by cutting expenditures, but by cutting kids."

NEW YORK (Catholic League) - Yesterday, House Speaker Nancy Pelosi told ABC’s George Stephanopoulos that it was necessary to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on family planning services in order to stimulate the economy. Pelosi maintained that “contraception will reduce costs to the states and to the federal government.”

Catholic League president Bill Donohue commented as follows:

“Looks like the Democrats have abortion and contraception on the brain. Last week, President Barack Obama lifted restrictions on federal funds being used to promote and perform abortions overseas. Now we have Pelosi arguing that the way to balance the budget is not by cutting expenditures, but by cutting kids.  (Full story at Catholic Online)
 

Speaker Pelosi: contraception is good for the economy

From (CWNews.com)

 January 26, 2009

US Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi has made the novel argument that federal expenditures on birth control will spark the American economy. In an interview with George Stephanopoulos of ABC television, Pelosi, who is a Catholic, explained that increased spending on contraception "will reduce costs to the states and to the federal government"-- thereby implying that children are a burden to taxpayers. When Stephanopoulos asked the Speaker whether she was comfortable with that argument, she replied: "No apologies.

Pelosi attempts to justify funding for contraception in economic stimulus package

Washington DC, Jan 26, 2009 / 07:16 pm (CNA).- House Speaker Nancy Pelosi (D-CA) in a Sunday interview tried to justify the inclusion of hundreds of millions of dollars in funding for contraceptives in the $825 billion economic stimulus package by claiming family planning services “reduce cost.”
Speaker Pelosi made her comments in an appearance on ABC’s This Week with host George Stephanopoulos.
Stephanopoulos asked how the expansion of “family planning services” could be considered an economic stimulus.  The Speaker replied:
“Well, the family planning services reduce cost. They reduce cost. The states are in terrible fiscal budget crises now and part of what we do for children's health, education and some of those elements are to help the states meet their financial needs. One of those - one of the initiatives you mentioned, the contraception, will reduce costs to the states and to the federal government.”  (Full story at CNA)

Demographic Winter: "Schools will be turned into nursing homes. Playgrounds will become graveyards."

By John-Henry Westen

WASHINGTON, DC, January 26, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Celebrated columnist and pro-family leader Don Feder gave a jaw-dropping presentation on the coming 'Demographic Winter' at the Rose Dinner which closes the official March for Life festivities every year. Speaking to hundreds of attendees, Feder suggested that the demographic problem of worldwide declining birthrates "could result in the greatest crisis humanity will confront in this century" as "all over the world, children are disappearing."

"In the Western world, birthrates are falling and populations are aging," said Feder. "The consequences for your children and grandchildren could well be catastrophic."

Feder noted, "In 30 years, worldwide, birth rates have fallen by more than 50%. In 1979, the average woman on this planet had 6 children. Today, the average is 2.9 children, and falling."  He explained the situation noting, "demographers tell us that with a birthrate of 1.3, everything else being equal, a nation will lose half of its population every 45 years." (Full story at LifeSiteNews.com

The Vatican and the SSPX: why further talks are crucial

by Phil Lawler
Jan. 28, 2009 (CWNews.com) - The deplorable public statements by Bishop Richard Williamson, questioning the gravity of the Holocaust, have obscured the true importance of Pope Benedict's decision to lift the excommunications of the four bishops who head the traditionalist Society of St. Pius X (SSPX). So before we examine what has happened, we need to understand what has not:  (Full story at CWNews.com)

I won... now get over it!

Posted By Bobby Eberle GOPUSA

On January 24, 2009 at 8:24 am

And the winner of the "no class" award goes to... His Majesty... the messiah... President Obama.
The media love to make comparisons between former President Bush and President Obama... one is hated, the other beloved. The fact is that at the outset of the Bush Administration, the former president attended a Democrat retreat as a show of goodwill and to try to set the tone for bipartisanship in Washington. President Obama, on the other hand, is showing his "bipartisanship" with his own version of "it's my way or the highway" attitude.
As noted in a recent Fox News story, Obama told GOP leaders at a meeting that "you can't just listen to Rush Limbaugh and get things done."
In other words, in order to "get things done," Republicans need to see things Obama's way. So much for tolerance of ideas.
Fox News goes on to report that in a meeting on the "stimulus" (read that as welfare programs, bailouts, and more spending), Obama told Rep. Eric Cantor (R-VA), "I won. I will trump you on that."
Cantor was objecting to Obama's "proposal to increase benefits for low-income workers who don't owe federal income taxes." In other words, Cantor was objecting to a government welfare program.
The worst thing about the economic conditions facing America is not the conditions themselves. What we need to fear the most is the constant barrage we'll hear from Obama, the media, left-wing Democrats, and even moderate Republicans that this issue is so important that the government "needs to step in and get things done."
Government involvement will only make things worse, just as it did in the Great Depression. Let the business cycle work, and save generations of Americans from the massive debt that Obama and company are about to create.

Country’s ‘new moment’ requires pro-life action, Archbishop Chaput says

Denver, Jan 24, 2009 / 07:51 am (CNA).- Archbishop of Denver Charles J. Chaput, appealing to the “greatest qualities” of Americans, has called on Christians to oppose pro-abortion Congressional and presidential initiatives. He also urged Catholics to sign an anti-FOCA petition protesting abortion laws in a “new moment” that requires “great vigilance and sustained action” from pro-lifers.
Writing in his column in the Jan. 21 issue of the Denver Catholic Register, Archbishop Chaput said that Christians have an obligation to love their country and to “build on its greatest qualities and serve its best ideals.” Christians must also pray for their country’s leaders and obey its just laws.
However, he added, “When bad laws and court decisions cripple the soul of a society, Christians must work to change them as a matter both of justice and charity. Otherwise we risk colluding in the evil of their outcome.” Full story at CNA

Reaction to Obama's reversal of Mexico City Policy

As should be, there have been critical reactions from our Catholic bishops and Right to Life groups to Obama's reversal of Mexico City Policy. Rather than post each article, I decided to list them here. I encourage you to read these articles.

USCCB: "reversal of Mexico City Policy is very disappointing"

from CNA Daily News

Washington DC, Jan 23, 2009 / 08:05 pm (CNA).- Immediately after President Barack Obama signed the executive order reversing the Mexico City policy, at what was described as "a private act in his office," Cardinal Justin Rigali, chairman of the U.S. bishops' Committee on Pro-Life Activities described the decision as "very disappointing."

Colorado bishops: Obama's reversal of Mexico City Policy "profoundly unfortunate"

from CNA Daily News

Denver, Jan 23, 2009 / 08:07 pm (CNA).- In a statement issued minutes after the White House confirmed the reversal of the policy protecting foreign nations from the promotion of abortion with US taxes,  the Colorado Bishops' Conference said in a statement that "we are saddened and troubled by President Obama's reversal today of the Mexico City Policy by executive order."

Executive Order Rescinds Protection against Torturing, Killing Children in the Womb

from Catholic Online > Politics by Deacon Keith Fournier

The “Mexico City Policy” protected another group of human persons from being tortured, unto ...

Exporting Abortion And The Ugly American

from Catholic Online > Politics by Steven W. Mosher

The Mexico City Policy was intended to get the U.S. out of the international abortion business.

 

Obama overturns Mexico City Policy, pro-lifers react

from CNA Daily News

Washington DC, Jan 23, 2009 / 05:54 pm (CNA).- Pro-life leaders reacted critically to President Barack Obama's Friday reversal of President George W. Bush's ban on federal funding for international groups that promote or perform abortions. One Latin American commentator charged that the policy weakens anti-poverty efforts and had enabled a coercive sterilization campaign in Peru under the Clinton administration.

 

Pro-Life Leaders Condemn Obama's Funding of International Abortion Groups

from LifeSiteNews.com Headlines by lsn@LifeSiteNews.com

WASHINGTON, DC, January 23, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The following joint statement by 22 of the nation's pre-eminent pro-life organizations was issued today in response to President Obama's signing of an executive order revoking the Mexico City policy. The Mexico City policy is a Reagan-era policy...

Vatican criticizes Obama on abortion issue

by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf  (WDTPRS)

Reactions to Pres. Obama’s decision.

Vatican criticizes Obama on abortion issue

VATICAN CITY (AP) — Vatican officials said Saturday they were disappointed by President Barack Obama’s decision to end a ban on federal funding for international groups that perform abortions or provide information on them.

Monsignor Rino Fisichella, who heads the Vatican’s Pontifical Academy for Life, urged Obama to listen to all voices in America without "the arrogance of those who, being in power, believe they can decide of life and death."

Fisichella said in an interview published Saturday in Corriere della Sera that "if this is one of President Obama’s first acts, I have to say, in all due respect, that we’re heading quickly toward disappointment."

Obama signed an executive order that ended the ban on Friday, reversing the policy of the Bush administration.

"This deals a harsh blow not only to us Catholics but to all the people across the world who fight against the slaughter of innocents that is carried out with the abortion," another top official with the Academy for Life, Monsignor Elio Sgreccia, told the ANSA news agency.

"Among the many good things that he could have done, Barack Obama instead chose the worst," he was quoted as saying Saturday.

Officials at the academy could not be reached Saturday.

In Corriere there was another article about this and it mentions the video I posted the other day from CatholicVote.org in which it is shown and argued that abortion kills people who might grow up to be someone like… Pres. Obama.  I posted about that here.  GO WATCH THE VIDEO.

Pope lifts excommunications of Lefebvrite bishops

By John Thavis
Catholic News Service

VATICAN CITY (CNS) -- Pope Benedict XVI has lifted the excommunication of four bishops ordained against papal orders in 1988 by the late Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre. The move was considered a major concession to the archbishop's traditionalist followers.

The Vatican said the decree removing the excommunication, signed Jan. 21 and made public three days later, marked an important step toward full communion with the Society of St. Pius X, founded by Archbishop Lefebvre in 1970. Full story at CNS

Pope Benedict lifts excommunication of bishops ordained by Lefebvre

Vatican City, Jan 24, 2009 / 09:20 am (CNA).- Pope Benedict XVI has lifted the excommunication of the four bishops from the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) ordained by Marcel Lefebvre in 1988 in a decision he hopes will lead to “real and final unity.”
A press release from the Vatican reveals that after dialogue between the Holy See and SSPX, represented by its Superior General, Bishop Bernard Fellay and his request in a letter on behalf of the other three bishops in the Society, Most Reverend Bernard Tissier de Mallerais, Most Reverend Richard Williamson and Most Reverend Alfonso del Gallareta, the Holy Father has decided to lift “the excommunication in which they had incurred twenty years ago.”  Full story at CNA

Here I'm Not, Lord

By Mary Eberstadt

Today, readers, we interrupt revisiting the Seven Deadly Sins to raise a question of great significance during this eventful week. Why did Archbishop Donald Wuerl, the highest-ranking Catholic eminence in the Washington, D.C. area, attend Wednesday’s ostentatiously diverse, mega-denominational prayer service at the National Cathedral for President Obama?


Granted, the fanfare was impressive – seats for 3,200 distinguished guests, twenty especially prominent religious leaders, heart-rending bursts of song, and a liturgy ranging from the latest rewritings of the Book of Common Prayer to “Hindu, Jewish, Muslim, and Cherokee sources, among others,” as The Washington Post put it. It’s also true that the Roman Catholic archbishop of Washington traditionally leads a prayer at these august proceedings – which may for some observers render his presence there beyond question.

Full story at The Catholic Thing

Special Report: March for Life – It’s a New Day

Catholic Online (http://www.catholic.org/)

Words from the White House and from the 2009 March for Life confirmed the chasm that exists between those who are giving a voice to the unborn and our new Chief Executive. It's a new day in the cause for Life.

Pay particular attention to Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi's statement. How she  can be allowed to continue to receive Holy Communion is beyond me.  

WASHINGTON (Catholic Online) - As thousands of pro-life citizens gathered Thursday on the National Mall for the March for Life, chain link fences, signs and porta-johns were still present as a reminder of an inaugural held there just two days ago. The inauguration of our 44th President and the convening of our 36th March for Life are two events that confirm the major collision of values now present.

Full story at Catholic Online

House Republicans ask Obama to disavow ‘FOCA agenda’

Washington DC, Jan 23, 2009 / 05:48 am (CNA).- More than 100 Republican members of the U.S. House of Representatives have signed a letter to President Barack Obama asking that he withdraw his campaign pledge to sign the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA) and other pro-abortion rights laws.

FOCA is legislation designed to protect abortion rights even if the Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade is overturned. It threatens to abolish existing minimal state and federal restrictions on abortion and could even threaten the rights of Catholic hospitals to refuse to perform abortions. Full story at CNA

Obama Revokes Abortion Funding Policy, Will Fund Overseas Abortions with Taxpayer Money

By John Jalsevac

WASHINGTON, D.C., January 23, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) – One day after the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, President Obama has signed an order to lift the Mexico City policy, a Reagan-era policy that prohibits taxpayer funds from going to organizations that promote or perform abortions overseas.

Population Action International, a pro-abortion group, praised Obama's decision, saying in a statement that it will "save women's lives around the world."

"Women's health has been severely impacted by the cutoff of assistance," said the group. "President Obama's actions will help reduce the number of unintended pregnancies, abortions and women dying from high-risk pregnancies because they don't have access to family planning."

Susan B. Anthony List President Marjorie Dannenfelse, however, strongly criticized Obama's move, saying: "America should respond to women's needs in developing countries with real assistance that also upholds their dignity, not by promoting or paying for abortions. I am disappointed by President Obama’s decision to bypass the will of American taxpayers and promote the radical agenda of Planned Parenthood and the abortion lobby."

It was widely anticipated that Obama would sign the executive order yesterday, on the 36th anniversary of Roe. In 1993 former president Bill Clinton had revoked the policy on that day, while George Bush reinstated the policy on his first day in office in 2001, the day before the Roe anniversary.

Instead of signing the order yesterday, however, Obama instead issued a statement defending Roe, while speaking of the need to find “common ground” in the “divisive” and "sensitive" abortion debate.

In yesterday’s statement Obama explained, “I remain committed to protecting a woman’s right to choose.” Nevertheless, he said, “we must work to find common ground to expand access to affordable contraception, accurate health information, and preventative services.”

While the decision not to revoke the policy yesterday was cautiously interpreted by some as evidence that Obama may not be as extreme on abortion as he has promised to be, and would not force taxpayers to pay for abortions, pro-life and pro-abortion organizations did not have to wait long for Obama to prove his solidly pro-abortion credentials.

"President Obama not long ago told the American people that he would support policies to reduce abortions, but today he is effectively guaranteeing more abortions by funding groups that promote abortion as a method of population control," said Douglas Johnson, legislative director of the National Right to Life Committee.

The Mexico City policy was considered by many to be one of the most effective pro-life policies of the Bush and Reagan administrations. International Planned Parenthood Federation (IPPF), one of the most pro-abortion organizations in the world, told the BBC today that under the Bush administration, thanks to the Mexico City Policy, the organisation had lost more than $100m (£73m) in funding.

Pope channel makes debut on YouTube

Vatican City, Jan 23, 2009 / 11:40 am (CNA).- Pope Benedict XVI has launched himself into the digital age today with the Vatican announcing that a YouTube channel http://www.youtube.com/vatican dedicated to his activities and events at the Vatican is now online.

The Vatican’s announcement of its new partnership with Google’s YouTube coincides with the release of the Pope’s annual message for the World Day of Communications, which this year focuses on how to utilize new technologies to promote a culture of respect, dialogue and friendship. Full story at CNA

Barack Obama Will Scrap Mexico Policy Later Today, Fund Foreign Abortions

The reprieve did not last long.


by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
January 23, 2009

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Putting aside the pro-abortion appointments to key administration and policy positions, the pro-abortion record of new president Barack Obama will begin in earnest later today. That's when he will officially scrap the Mexico City Policy that stops funding groups that promote or perform abortions overseas.
 
Obama was slated to overturn on Thursday the protections President Bush put back in place following the Clinton administration, but Obama decided to wait.

He hopes making his decision today to force taxpayers to fund foreign abortions will somehow make him seem less radical because he decided to wait until after the pro-life movement mourned the thirty-sixth anniversary of Roe v. Wade. Full story at LifeSiteNews

EWTN Launches New Pro-Life Site On Anniversary of Roe v. Wade

By Michelle Laque Johnson,
Director of Communications

EWTN has just launched a new pro-life site. Check it out at www.ewtn.com/prolife. Pro-life advocates are welcome to link to this page.

The new site will be updated daily and will include the latest pro-life video and audio segments from EWTN’s many pro-life programs, schedules of upcoming television and radio programs, and highlights from archived programs.

 

Among the many features of the site are a Pro-Life Forum and a Natural Family Planning Forum where people can post questions about any of the life issues and receive on-line answers. These forums are searchable so people can research answers to questions already posed.

 

The site also includes relevant papal documents, pro-life links, a pro-life voters’ guide and much more. There are plans for even more features to be added, so log on every day.

We hope you enjoy the new site – and will tell your friends about it!

Opinion: Fr. Markey on 'Communion on the Hand'

I believe that until we regain our reverence for the blessed Eucharist, it's going to be difficult, at best, our country's conversion through the blessing of Our Lord and Saviour, Jesus Christ.


We need to be reminded of (CCC 1324): The Eucharist is "the source and summit of the Christian life." "The other sacraments, and indeed all ecclesiastical ministries and works of the apostolate, are bound up with the Eucharist and are oriented toward it. For in the blessed Eucharist is contained the whole spiritual good of the Church, namely Christ himself, our Pasch.  

And the sentence in (CCC 1331) that states: Holy Communion, because by this sacrament we unite ourselves to Christ, who makes us sharers in his Body and Blood to form a single body".  

In addition also read the Gospel of  St. John (6: 51-58): "I am the living bread which came down from heaven; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever; and the bread which I shall give for the life of the world is my flesh." The Jews then disputed among themselves, saying, "How can this man give us his flesh to eat?" So Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of man and drink his blood, you have no life in you; he who eats my flesh and drinks my blood has eternal life, and I will raise him up at the last day. For my flesh is food indeed, and my blood is drink indeed. He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in me, and I in him. As the living Father sent me, and I live because of the Father, so he who eats me will live because of me. This is the bread which came down from heaven, not such as the fathers ate and died; he who eats this bread will live for ever."


Then there would be such reverence for the Eucharist that articles, such as the one below, would not be be necessary.


 
Catholic Online (www.catholic.org)
I encourage parishioners to give prayerful consideration to following Pope Benedict XVI’s lead by receiving Holy Communion on the tongue in the New Year.

BRIDGEPORT, Conn. (Catholic Online) - The beginning of each year is often a time of “New Year Resolutions”, and a wonderful resolution for 2009 would be to start exercising the option of receiving Holy Communion on the tongue in Mass. Let me explain why.  Full story at Catholic Online

The battle lines are drawn: the pro-life challenge in America today

Jan. 22, 2009 (CWNews.com) - Tens of thousands of pro-lifers marched in Washington today. Their mood was somber-- not only because they were marking the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the 1973 Supreme Court decision that ushered America into the era of abortion-on-demand, but also because the newly inaugurated President Obama has announced his determination to extend that era. Full story at CWNNews.com

Archbishop Chaput: 'Let your voice supporting life be heard'

By Archbishop Charles J. Chaput, O.F.M, CAP.
1/22/2009

Denver Catholic Register (www.archden.org)
When bad laws and court decisions cripple the soul of a society, Christians must work to change them as a matter both of justice and charity.

DENVER, CO (Denver Catholic Register) - Christians have an obligation to love their country, build on its greatest qualities and serve its best ideals. We also have the duty to pray for our leaders and obey the law—insofar as the law does not violate human dignity in some systematic, gravely evil way. When bad laws and court decisions cripple the soul of a society, Christians must work to change them as a matter both of justice and charity. Otherwise we risk colluding in the evil of their outcome.

Obviously with families to raise, jobs to pursue and lives to live, not all Christians can be engaged in the many important issues facing our country. But we can always at least serve the truth by not lying to ourselves and to each other.

Full story CatholicOnline

This explains a lot (Updated)

from Sarah Palin for President by Josh Painter

Remember Nefarious Nichole Wallace? She's the former McCain staffer who was assigned to be one of the "handlers" of then-vice-presidential candidate Sarah Palin. It was none other than Nefarious Nichole who arranged the Palin interview with her former CBS buddy Katie Couric. It was later learned that Couric prepped for her ambush of Gov. Palin by studying with then-candidate Barack Obama's informal chief advisor Sam Nunn.

Wallace has also been named by multiple sources as the bright idea behind the RNC's purchase of $150,000 in clothes for the Palins which they never asked for, and Wallace's is the name which surfaced most often as one of the sources inside the McCain campaign who "leaked" lies to the media that the governor didn't know Africa was a continent or that she was not able to name the members of NAFTA. They were foolish lies for Wallace to tell, because Gov. Palin was required to follow NAFTA guidelines to conclude her agreement with a Canadian company for a gas pipeline deal, and she has been involved in her church's extensive relief and missionary work in Africa.

For the record, Wallace has denied being the source of the leaks. But if anyone has any doubts that she was a saboteur on the inside of the McCain campaign, let them read this. It's pretty clear now where her sympathies have been all along.

Update: Erick Erickson, my boss at RedState.com and Commander of Operation Leper has read Nicole Wallace's shout out to Republicans to get on the abortionist-in-chief's love train, and he is not pleased.

- JP

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More Boos Than Balls

from Ann Coulter's Townhall.com Column

 

It will not be easy for President B. Hussein Obama. More than half the country voted for him, and yet our newspapers are brimming with snippy remarks at every little aspect of his inauguration.

Here's a small sampling of the churlishness in just The New York Times: 

-- The American public is bemused by the tasteless show-biz extravaganza surrounding Barack Obama's inauguration today. 

-- There is something to be said for some showiness in an inauguration. But one felt discomfited all the same. 

-- This is an inauguration, not a coronation. 

-- Is there a parallel between Mrs. Obama's jewel-toned outfit and somebody else's glass slippers? Why limousines and not shank's mare? 

-- It is still unclear whether we are supposed to shout "Whoopee!" or "Shame!" about the new elegance the Obamas are bringing to Washington. 

Boy, talk about raining on somebody's parade! These were not, of course, comments about the inauguration of the angel Obama; they are (slightly edited) comments about the inauguration of another historic president, Ronald Reagan, in January 1981.

Full story at Townhall.com 

More watched Reagan's inaugural than Obama's

How about this !!!! To listen to the MSM, you would think  no previous Ignauguration has come close to this past week's.

Nielsen: 41.8 million saw 'Gipper,' 37.8 million tuned in for Barack.

Full story at THR.com

Day 1: White House bashes George Bush

Official U.S. site rips ex-prez for 'unconscionable ineptitude'

Unable to let go of its campaign mantra blaming the nation's ills on the "failed policies" of George W. Bush, the White House of President Barack Obama immediately posted on its website charges that Bush broke promises and allowed "catastrophic failures" responding to the needs of Americans.  Full story at WorldNetDaily.com

Pelosi glad Bush is gone

It's so nice that Mrs. Pelosi is living up to her promise of 'civility'.. ""It felt like a 10-pound anvil was lifted off my head," she said about former President George W. Bush's exit from Washington. maybe that '10-pound anvil' that was lifted off was the last of her conscience.

House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, in a post-inauguration interview with Bay Area reporters Wednesday, said she will move far-reaching climate change legislation this year, but opposes - at least for now - the idea of Congress approving another costly bailout for troubled banks. Full story here





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Obama’s Decision to Close Gitmo Called ‘Dangerous and Irresponsible’

Heads up those of you that live in  Rep. John Murtha's (D-PA) district. You may have some new neighbors!!!

The Associated Press recently reported that detainees who have been released from Guantanamo Bay are “increasingly returning to the fight against the United States and its allies.” The report says 61 terrorist detainees released have rejoined the fight.



By Susan Jones, Senior Editor

(CNSNews.com) - President Barack Obama on Thursday is expected to issue an executive order that would close the Guantanamo Bay detention center with one year.

He campaigned on the promise to do so, something that cheered those who say the prison at the U.S. Naval base violates the human rights of America's terrorist enemies.

The Obama administration already has suspended trials for terrorist suspects at Guantanamo for 120 days pending a review of the military tribunals.

According to the Associated Press, a draft of the executive order to close Gitmo reads as follows:

Full story CNSNews.com

Pope prepared to lift excommunication of SSPX bishops

Let us pray that The Church welcomes the members of the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX) back. The link to Rorate Caeli is very informative and provides background to the issue.

According to multiple reports from reliable Vatican-watchers, Pope Benedict XVI will soon lift the decree of excommunication imposed upon four traditionalist bishops who were consecrated by the late Archbishop Marcel Lefebvre in 1988. Italian journalists report that the Pope's action will be made public within a matter of days. The move would be a major step toward reconciliation with the Society of St. Pius X (SSPX).


SSPX leaders-- including the bishops living under the decree of excommunication-- have consistently stated that before ending their break with the Holy See, they would insist on the removal of that excommunication and the right of every Catholic priest to celebrate the Mass using the traditional rite. With the publication of Summorum Pontificum in 2007, Pope Benedict fulfilled the latter condition; lifting the excommunication would satisfy the former SSPX demand. Still to be resolved, however, would be the serious disagreements over the authority and interpretation of Vatican II documents.

The Rorate Caeli blog is carefully following the latest reports, from Rome and elsewhere, on the Pope's reported plan.

Removal of the excommunications of SSPX Bishops Updates here. (Rorate Caeli)

New Archbishop of Detroit Calls for Opposition to Obama Abortion Agenda

By Tim Waggoner


DETROIT, January 22, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The newly appointed Archbishop of Detroit, Allen Vigneron, has wasted little time in confronting President Barack Obama's notorious support of abortion, calling for forceful opposition of the new government's anti-life agenda.

In an interview with The Detroit News, Vigneron addressed several current issues, such as Catholic higher education and the failing economy's impact on the Church's social ministries, but indicated that challenging the new US government's radical anti-life positions is of the highest priority.

"I share the concern of all of the bishops of the United States that the administration has, at least prior to the election, given us indications that they are going to rescind some of the protections of the unborn," Vigneron said. "And I am very disappointed in that."

"We are going to have to represent our opposition as forcefully as we can and try to build coalitions to dissuade the administration from moving to that," said Vigneron, referring indirectly to President Obama's potential signing of the Freedom of Choice Act, which permits late and partial birth abortions and calls for domestic and international government funding of abortion, among other things.

The newly appointed archbishop was also asked to address the Church's position on refusing pro-abortion politicians Holy Communion. Canon 915 of the Catholic Church's Code of Canon Law states that those "who obstinately persist in manifest grave sin are not to be admitted to communion."

"I am not going to answer any hypothetical questions like that, especially from this distance," said Vigneron. "I simply want to affirm that part of being a Catholic is having a conviction that on these moral matters, the church speaks the mind of Christ. And I want to help Catholics, especially Catholics in responsible positions, to maintain the integrity of their professions."

Vigneron touched on this issue back in 2004, when in an article he stated, "Whenever a politician or political party promotes the acceptance and support of abortion or euthanasia, no matter how morally compelling their stands may seem on other issues, their stand on these crucial life issues must be judged as fundamentally flawed.”

Archbishop Vigneron concluded with a message of hope to Christians in the face of the severe moral and societal problems present today: "But I think that Christianity and the other faiths have some particular contributions to make, and one is to give people encouragement and to remind them that there is a tremendous reason for hope: God is with us, and he has seen us through tough times before."

The Archbishop is set to be formally installed in the Detroit Archdiocese on January 28.

LifeSiteNews.com

Philadelphia Cardinal Rigali Warns of "Eternal" Consequences of Abortion at March for Life Mass

By John-Henry Westen

WASHINGTON, DC, January 21, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Speaking to some 16,000 in attendance at the Vigil Mass for the March for Life this evening, principal celebrant Cardinal Justin Rigali, Archbishop of Philadelphia gave a stirring homily, rousing the massive crowd to applause at several points.

After a quote from the late Rev. John Neuhaus on the vitality of the pro-life movement, Cardinal Rigali expressed on behalf of the US Bishops "deep admiration" for the efforts of pro-life activists.

The Philadelphia Archbishop praised the fact that Barack Obama was the first African-American President, but used Obama's rhetoric of change to clamor for a "change" towards a "culture of life." From the US Bishops, and Catholics, he said, the new President can expect "respectful but impassioned protest" where needed in defending life.
The Cardinal encouraged prayer to end abortion and advocacy for legal protection of unborn children. All pro-life work is to be undertaken, he suggested, with the knowledge that "Christ is our Hope, and in Him the victory is already won."

Archbishop Rigali acknowledged that standing up for life can bring trials. "We can be rejected because we confront society," he said. "Are we prepared to say yes to His will without counting the cost?"

Those sacrifices, he suggested, are most necessary since many "people greatly loved by God are being deceived" into accepting abortion, and the "consequences of abortion can be devastating and eternal."

Such heroic courage is needed, he said, "now more than ever." He noted abortion's toll of over 50 million killed children, and the looming Freedom of Choice Act which would "pave the way for more wholesale assaults" on unborn children.

"What is at stake," he said, quoting the Pledge of Allegiance, "is 'liberty and justice for all.'"

LifeSiteNews.com

Barack Obama Postpones Decision to Send Tax Dollars Overseas for Abortion

I am conflicted by this. On one hand, the longer it is before the Mexico City Policy is overturned, the more lives are saved. But let's face it, postponing the reversal of the Mexico City Policy is nothing but a cheap political trick.

by Steven Ertelt

LifeNews.com Editor
January 22, 2009

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- In a move to downplay his pro-abortion agenda, President Barack Obama has decided to wait a little longer to reverse a Bush policy preventing taxpayer funding of abortions overseas. The Mexico City Policy prevents sending public funds to groups that perform or promote abortions in other countries.

The new president could either issue an order tomorrow or in the near future to reverse the policy or allow Congress to do it.

Obama was expected to overturn the pro-life policy on his first or second full days in office and to possibly do so today, on the anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision.

However, a CBN News report indicates Obama will not overturn the policy on a day that pro-life advocates mourn the Supreme Court allowing virtually unlimited abortions.

Full story at LifeNews

Barack Obama Statement: Reduce Abortions by Honoring Pro-Abortion Decision

Sadly this is what is to be expected from our new President. The fact that 54% of  US Catholics voted for him is a signal on how much we need to repent. 

by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
January 22, 2009

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- President Barack Obama used the occasion of the thirty-sixth anniversary of the Roe v. Wade decision to issue a contradictory statement. The new president called for reducing abortions but honored the radical decision that ushered in an era of 50 million abortions and virtually no limits.

Obama praised the Supreme Court for issuing what has been one of the most condemned rulings in its history.

"[T]his decision not only protects women’s health and reproductive freedom, but stands for a broader principle: That government should not intrude on our most private family matters,” Obama said in a statement.

Full story at LifeNews

Obama Mania Will Eventually Collide With Reality

Ultimately, the Barack Obama house of cards will not endure. Let the liberals of Capitol Hill and on the nightly news tell the nation that its future lies in the rotting carcass of collectivism.

Christopher G. Adamo

Conservatives, real conservatives, are by now thoroughly nauseated from all of the inaugural gushing and fawning over Obama. But if they think that this slobber-fest was going to end now that he has assumed the presidency, they are going to be sorely disappointed. The leftist cheerleaders will continue trumpeting the supposed grandeur and majesty of this day long after its fabricated luster has thoroughly dulled in the eyes of the thinking public. Full Story at Alains Newsletter

Archbishop Vigneron calls for opposition to Obama abortion stand

Oakland, Jan 22, 2009 / 06:25 am (CNA).- Archbishop Vigneron, the next Archbishop of Detroit, has expressed disappointment with Obama’s position on abortion and has called for forceful opposition and coalition-building to counter it.
Archbishop Vigneron, speaking in an interview with the Detroit News, said he shares other bishops’ concerns that the Obama administration has given indications that the president is going to rescind some protections for the unborn. Full story at CNA

The Difference Two Days Makes

 By Steve Skojec *

As Washington D.C. geared up (or in my case, hunkered down) in preparation for the unprecedented influx of people expected to attend the inauguration of President Barack Obama today, a telling paradox came to light.

Officials estimate at least 1.5 million people are in town for the historic swearing-in of our nation's first black president. Security is tight, with some 25,000 police officers on duty, all bridges into the city shut down to motor traffic, and enforced attendance cutoffs once parade routes reach capacity. The enterprising people of the D.C. metropolitan area capitalized on booked-solid hotels by renting out their homes for thousands of dollars a night to visitors with cash in hand. To be blunt, this city has never seen anything like what is unfolding today.

Absent from all this anticipation is the fact that just two days later, another group of people will be arriving in D.C. They won't have money to spend on hotels, let alone privately rented accommodations, so many of them will get what sleep they can aboard charter buses, stay with friends, or sprawl out with sleeping bags on the hard concrete floor in the basement of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. They are here for a far more important purpose than even this historic election, and in fact many (if not all) of them live in fear of how this 44th American president might worsen the crisis they are coming to protest.  Full story at InsideCatholic.com

Wounded Vets Walk Out on Onaugural Ball

Posted by Josh Painter (Profile)

An inaugural ball honoring U.S. military veterans ended in a kerfluffle as several veterans walked out when a musical act’s attempt at humor backfired.
During the Heroes Red, White & Blue Inaugural Ball honoring the nation’s veterans, a vocalist with George Clinton and the P. Funk All-Stars held up a white towel with large block letters saying “[Expletive] GEORGE,” perturbing many audience members who walked out after the display, interpreting it as a jab at the outgoing commander-in-chief, George W. Bush.

Full story at Red State.com

Abortion: The Unspoken Jihad

By Matt Spivey

In Arabic, the word "jihad" means "inner struggle," and for those involved in one particular battle, there is no simple answer and varying perspectives cause, in many cases, violent reactions and repercussions.  That word has come to signify the murder of innocence and the demolition of security in a time of worldwide uncertainty.  The death toll keeps rising as years keep passing, and fighting in this war guarantees earning the label of "radical," "extremist," or "fanatic."  Yet those who do keep fighting are actually trying to save lives.  With the 36^th year of Roe v. Wade passing today, the war rages on.  Full story at American Thinker

OSV: 'Conduct story of newly ordained'

from OSV Daily Take by John Norton

OSV's editorial board has called for a national study of newly ordained priests, as a follow-up to the release this month of the report on Vatican-commissioned "visitations" of U.S. seminaries. Here's the newsweekly's editorial from the Feb. 1 issue:

For many years now liberal and conservative Catholics have debated the quality of U.S. seminary education, and by extension the quality of the men who have been called to serve them as future priests.

Now, a 20-page summary of a recent Vatican-requested study of 229 college and theology-level seminaries gives a thorough appraisal of both the strengths and weaknesses of the seminary system today, concluding that they are, "in general, healthy."(See story, Page 5.)

It found that since the last major study of U.S. seminaries in the 1980s, there was more stability and many improvements on the campuses. The doctrine of the priesthood was well taught in the majority of diocesan seminaries, it said, and the candidates are generally "full of zeal, pious and faithful to prayer." Moral problems such as homosexual behavior were less in evidence.

Full story at OSV Daily Take

Obama administration could ration access to medical treatment

For those who think it will be GREAT if  US health care is nationalized. It's scary to think we elected people who want to, in effect, put a price for our life. 

The Obama administration is advancing a proposal that would control access to medicines and medical treatments on the basis of their "cost effectiveness." The proposal-- modeled after the British experience with the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (with the Orwellian acronym NICE)-- would encourage federal officials to place a monetary value on a year added to a patient's life. That approach could result in a judgment that certain patient's diseases should not be treated. Full story at WSJ Online

Obama to Work to Repeal Federal Defense of Marriage Act, Promote Homosexual Adoption

Obama's extreme-left social agenda outlined on updated White House website

January 21, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) – Since the election of Barack Obama to the presidency many have suggested that most voters were not aware of, or did not take into consideration or did not vote for Obama on account of his policies on social issues. Instead it was widely suggested that the economy was the deciding factor in the election.

Many otherwise conservative American voters have also suggested that Obama’s goal of finding “common ground” and “reaching across the aisle” would ensure that he would not be as anti-family or anti-life as many pro-life and pro-family activists were saying he would be.

Now that Obama is elected, however, it has been made abundantly clear that he intends on pursuing a radical social agenda the likes of which the United States has never before seen. Full story at LifeSiteNews

Women Who Regret their Abortions to Speak at National and San Fran Marches for Life

WASHINGTON, January 21, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) Members of the Silent No More Awareness Campaign (SNMAC), the world's largest network of men and women harmed by abortion, will give their personal abortion testimonies at Washington, DC's March for Life on Thursday and San Francisco's Walk for Life West Coast on Saturday.


"The Silent No More women and men have suffered years of torment because of abortion," said SNMAC co- founder Janet Morana. "This week they will stand in front of the Supreme Court and on the streets of San Francisco to proclaim that the time for healing has begun. To be pro-life is to be pro-woman. Everyone still locked in silence and shame can come forward and embrace new hope and peace."

Hundreds of thousands of pro-lifers are expected to attend the March for Life in the nation’s capital tomorrow. San Francisco’s Walk for Life has also been well attended in the past, with an estimated 25,000 participants taking part in last year’s event.

"We who oppose abortion do not oppose those who have had abortions; rather we embrace them with love," said SNMAC co-founder Georgette Forney, a keynote speaker at Saturday's Walk for Life West Coast. "We who have lived with the pain and regret of abortion declare to our nation that abortion is unjust, cruel, and oppressive. If hope is truly to be restored, abortion must end."

Since the launching of the Silent No More Awareness Campaign in 2003, 2,739 women and men have shared their testimonies publicly at over 325 gatherings in 44 states and seven countries where more than 41,000 spectators have heard about abortion's negative aftereffects. More than 6,100 people are registered to be Silent No More. Raising awareness about the hurtful aftermath of abortion and the help that is available to cope with the pain are two of the Campaign's goals.

http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/jan/09012108.html

Norma McCorvey, Former Roe, Records New Television Commercial on Abortion

by Steven Ertelt

LifeNews.com Editor
January 20, 2009

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- Norma McCorvey, the former Jane Roe of the infamous Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision, has recorded a new television commercial speaking out against abortion. The commercial is running on stations in several states as the part of educational campaigns pro-life groups are undertaking.

"Back in 1973, I was a very confused twenty-one year old with one child and facing an unplanned pregnancy," she says in the ad. "At the time I fought to obtain a legal abortion, but truth be told, I have three daughters and never had an abortion." Full story at LifeNews.com

Again, priest teaches his flock about liturgy - this guy gets it! (Part II)

from What Does The Prayer Really Say? by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

At St. Mary’s in Norwalk, CT, Fr. Greg J. Markey is instructing his flock on liturgical matters.

I have written about this fellow before. He "gets it".

We saw Part I the other day.

January 25, 2009

Part II: Yet beyond the lack of fidelity to the Vatican II liturgical norms there is still a deeper question which has only now begun to be addressed by Pope Benedict XVI: whether the liturgical reform of the Second Vatican Council that we have today was what the Fathers of the Council intended. [This is a good point. And it is nearly a forbidden question in many circles. The answer is, of course, "NO! What we got is nothing like what they asked for."] Addressing the discontinuity between the Council’s idea of liturgical renewal and the final form of the Vatican II Mass, the then Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger wrote: “(I)n the place of liturgy as the fruit of development came fabricated liturgy. We abandoned the organic, living process of growth and development over centuries, and replaced it –as in a manufacturing process- with a fabrication, a banal on-the-spot product.” Full story at WDTPRS

Again, priest teaches his flock about liturgy - this guy gets it! (Part I)

from What Does The Prayer Really Say? by Fr. John Zuhlsdorf

At St. Mary’s in Norwalk, CT, Fr. Greg J. Markey is instructing his flock on liturgical matters.

I have written about this fellow before. He "gets it".

January 18, 2009

Part I: These past two Sundays I have dedicated my Pastor’s Column to New Year Resolutions. First I recommended that following Pope Benedict XVI’s lead, people no longer receive Holy Communion in the hand, and start receiving on the tongue. [Three cheers!] Secondly I recommended that people start correcting themselves when they use the Lord’s name in vain. [Very good! The two are connected. Apparently this priest takes the cura animarum seriously.] This week I recommend that everyone in the parish make it a point to attend the 9:30 am Extraordinary Form of the Mass at least a few times during the coming year. [Yes. The EF is for everyone and a parish shouldn’t be divided into two ghettoes.] Full story at WDTPRS

FOCA: sweeping pro-abortion legislation, favored by Obama, likely to stall in Congress

Maybe I am "optimistically dreaming" . Let's hope this is true.

January 16, 2009


American pro-life leaders have warned that the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA) is the most radical pro-abortion legislation ever proposed in Washington. Speaking to a Planned Parenthood audience during his presidential campaign, Barack Obama promised to sign FOCA as soon as he took office. But the president-elect does not have that option. FOCA has not yet been introduced in Congress, and knowledgeable pro-life veterans on Capitol Hill say that the bill has slim prospects for passage, particularly in the Senate.

Full story at Catolic Culture

Biden worships at church JFK attended

This morning before Mass a conversation with a friend turned to the issue of Catholic politicians who support abortion receiving the Holy Eucharist at Mass. He expressed his frustration with the situation of pro-abortion politicians like Biden, Pelosi, Kennedy, et al,,, promote abortion every chance they get and continue to receive the most precious Body and Blood of Our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ with no sanctions from our Bishops.



I share his frustration. I pray daily for the conversions of our country and politicians on Right To Life issues, especially abortion. While it is true some Bishops this past election were much more vocal than in the past, the fact is 54% of Catholics voted for President Obama. This is higher than the 52% of the total poulation that voted for President Obama.


Actions speak louder than words (how may times have we heard this?).  The Bishops say they cannot judge a person's heart, but I ask where are these pro-abortion politicans hearts are when they continue to vote anti-life? This inaction by our Bishops causes scandal because when John Catholic in the pew sees pro-abortion politicians receiving Holy Communion, it sends the message that life issues are on the same level as other issues, or worse, are not that important. 

Let me state I know this is not the intention of our Bishops.  But no matter how many letters and homilies given by our Bishops on respecting life, when they continue to allow pro-abortion politicians to receive Holy Communion, that speaks volumes to John (I will not say Joe) Catholic in the pew. You then have situations like this where Vice President Joe Biden goes to Mass, receives Holy Communion and later a standing ovation..  John Foresman

 
January 18, 2009

WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President-elect Joe Biden worshipped and received communion Sunday at the same Roman Catholic church President John F. Kennedy attended just hours before his inauguration.

Biden and his wife, Jill, sat in a pew reserved for him and his family toward the back of Holy Trinity Catholic Church, and listened as the Rev. Larry Madden, S.J., delivered a sermon about God as a constant anchor and the promise of hope and change for those who believe.
Although Madden did not mention Biden's name, the presence of the vice president-elect was obvious in other ways.

Secret Service agents were discreetly stationed throughout the church, including either side of the altar. Toward the end of the 11:30 a.m. Mass, as one of the lectors urged those in attendance to welcome new members and visitors, some in the congregation laughed and then applauded, looking toward Biden. He eventually stood and acknowledged the response that included a standing ovation.
Among those at the service was Biden's former colleague, Sen. Patrick Leahy, D-Vt., a regular at Holy Trinity.

Biden, the former Delaware senator, has attended Mass at the church before; his granddaughter received her first communion there last year. A Biden son, Hunter, lives in the area.

Kennedy worshipped at Holy Trinity during his time in Washington, and a plaque on the fence at the front of the church describes the 35th president. On the snowy morning of Jan. 20, 1961, Kennedy attended Mass there before his swearing-in.
During Sunday's service, the congregation was asked to pray for "wisdom and integrity" to guide the new president and his administration, a recognition of Tuesday's inauguration of President-elect Barack Obama and Biden.

Classless to the last

Okay. Let's make a wrap on yesterday's immaculation (thanks Rush!!)

Rick Moran
Obama's intent to remake American politics got a jolt of reality yesterday when thousands of his supporters booed and mocked George Bush as he stepped on to the platform:

The crowd packed on the west side of the Capitol grounds serenaded President Bush in mocking fashion when he took to the inaugural stage alongside Vice President Dick Cheney.

"Nah nah nah nah, hey hey, good-bye," a section of the crowd chanted.

The crowd packed immediately below the podium received Bush in stony silence when he took his seat on the stage surrounding the podium where Barack Obama was scheduled to take the oath office to become the 44th president of the United States.

The jeers are among the final public feedback Bush will receive as president.

First Lady Laura Bush and Lynne Cheney received light applause when they were announced to the crowd.

Full story at American Thinker 

Facing (or defacing?) the flag

Yes, we asked for "Change". The One is here. Dontcha' just feel tingly all over?

A girl holds an American flag with U.S. President-Elect Barack Obama's face on it as preparations continue for Obama's inauguration at the U.S. Capitol in Washington January 19, 2009.

REUTERS/Shannon Stapleton (UNITED STATES)

Obama White House Calls for Repealing Defense of Marriage Act

Wednesday, January 21, 2009
By Matt Cover

(CNSNews.com) – President Barack H. Obama is poised to be the most pro-homosexual chief executive in history.

Unveiling his agenda Tuesday on the newly refurbished version of the White House Web site, Obama called for the repeal of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), as well as the extension of more than 1,000 federal marriage benefits and of adoption rights to homosexual couples. Full Story at CNSNews

Joe the Plumber challenges Obama again

Ethel C. Fenig

Professional plumber turned darned good reporter, Samuel Joseph Wurzelbacher, aka Joe the Plumber, challenges President Barack Hussein Obama on Pajamas TV to read the hate filled Hamas Charter. 

Filled with vile invective against Jews, Israel and other infidels, Plumber Joe and his fellow reporters happen to think Obama and Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton should read the original Charter source material before talking to, or engaging,  Hamas followers in dialogue. 

 

Gee, why didn't the professional reporters ever think of that?  Because they're professional.  No wonder they mock Wurzelbacher; they fear him. 

Indiana Catholics remember Roe v. Wade, look to defeat FOCA

South Bend, Jan 20, 2009 / 05:43 pm (CNA).- Catholics in South Bend, Indiana marked the tragedy of the legalization of abortion at an evening Mass and vigil at St. Matthew Cathedral on January 18. During his homily, Father Tom Foley asked the assembly to pray for President Obama and described the devastating effects that the Freedom of Choice Act (FOCA) could have on the U.S. if it reaches the president’s desk. Full story at CNA

Barack Obama halts Guantanamo trials

helping the terroists right out of the gate......


From TimesOnline

Hours after being sworn in as US President, Barack Obama has called for a halt to Guantanamo war crimes tribunals, a move which will begin the long awaited process of dismantling the prison itself. 

His request for a 120-day suspension of all 21 pending tribunals will bring to a halt the case against Khalid Sheikh Mohammed, the self-proclaimed 9/11 mastermind and four co-defendants who faced the death penalty if convicted.
Military judges are expected to rule on Mr Obama's request to halt the trials today at the US naval base.

The request by Mr Obama was widely anticipated - he had already vowed to close down the prison and its controversial military commission trial system.

"In order to permit the newly inaugurated president and his administration time to review the military commission process, generally, and the cases currently pending before the military commissions, specifically, the secretary of defense has, by order of the president directed the chief prosecutor to seek continuances of 120 days in all pending case," prosecutor Clay Trivett said, in the written request to the judges.

The request said that freezing the trials until May 20 would give the new administration time to evaluate the cases and decide what forum best suits any future prosecution.

About 245 foreign captives are still held at the detention centre that opened in January 2002. The Bush administration had said it planned to try 80 prisoners on war crimes charges, but only three cases have been completed.
Defence lawyers had complained that the tribunals allowed hearsay evidence and coerced testimony, and were the subject of so much political interference that fairness was impossible.

U.S. Bishops Ask President Obama Not to Reverse Bush's Pro-Life Policies

(CNSNews.com) – In a letter made public on Monday, Cardinal Francis George, president of the United States Conference of  Catholic Bishops, asked President Barack Obama not to abandon the pro-life policies put into place during the Bush administration.

Those policies include a ban on federal funding for embryonic stem cell research, protection of federally funded health care providers who have a moral objection to abortion, and the reversal of the Mexico City Policy, which prohibits federal dollars being spent on abortion in foreign countries. Full story at CNSNews

Cardinal George's Letter to Obama

"We Will Consistently Defend the Fundamental Right to Life"

WASHINGTON, D.C., JAN. 18, 2009 (Zenit.org).- Here is the text of the message Cardinal Francis George, archbishop of Chicago and president of the U.S. episcopal conference, sent last week to president-elect Barack Obama, who will take office as the president of the United States on Tuesday.

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Dear Mr. President-elect,

As our nation begins a new year, a new Administration and a new Congress, I write to outline principles and priorities that guide the public policy efforts of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). As President of the Bishops' Conference, I assure you of our prayers, hopes and commitment to make this period of national change a time to advance the common good and defend the life and dignity of all, especially the vulnerable and poor. We continue to seek ways to work constructively with the new Administration and Congress and others of good will to pursue policies which respect the dignity of all human life and bring greater justice to our nation and peace to our world. Full story at Zenit.org