Category: News

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The Handiwork of God

You Oh Lord have formed my inmost being; You knit me together in my mother’s womb. Already you knew my soul, my bones were not hidden from you when I was being made in secret….I praise you that I am wonderfully fearfully made. (Psalm 139:13-15)


Development of the Unborn Baby.

  • Day 1: fertilization: all human chromosomes are present; unique human life begins.
  • Day 6: embryo begins implantation in the uterus.
  • Day 22: heart begins to beat with the child’s own blood, often a different type than the mothers’.
  • Week 3: By the end of third week the child’s backbone spinal column and nervous system are forming. The liver, kidneys and intestines begin to take shape.
  • Week 4: By the end of week four the child is ten thousand times larger than the fertilized egg.
  • Week 5: Eyes, legs, and hands begin to develop.
  • Week 6: Brain waves are detectable; mouth and lips are present; fingernails are forming.
  • Week 7: Eyelids, and toes form, nose distinct. The baby is kicking and swimming.
  • Week 8: Every organ is in place, bones begin to replace cartilage, and fingerprints begin to form. By the 8th week the baby can begin to hear.
  • Weeks 9 and 10: Teeth begin to form, fingernails develop. The baby can turn his head, and frown. The baby can hiccup.
  • Weeks 10 and 11: The baby can “breathe” amniotic fluid.
  • Week 11 the baby can grasp objects placed in its hand; all organ systems are functioning. The baby has a skeletal structure, nerves, and circulation.
  • Week 12: The baby has all of the parts necessary to experience pain, including nerves, spinal cord, and thalamus. Vocal cords are complete. The baby can suck its thumb.
  • Week 14: At this age, the heart pumps several quarts of blood through the body every day.
  • Week 15: The baby has an adult’s taste buds. Month 4: Bone Marrow is now beginning to form. The heart is pumping 25 quarts of blood a day. By the end of month 4 the baby will be 8-10 inches in length and will weigh up to half a pound.
  • Week 17: The baby can have dream (REM) sleep.
  • Week 19: Babies can routinely be saved at 21 to 22 weeks after fertilization, and sometimes they can be saved even younger.
  • Week 20: The earliest stage at which Partial birth abortions are performed. At 20 weeks the baby recognizes its’ mothers voice.
  • Months 5 and 6: The baby practices breathing by inhaling amniotic fluid into its developing lungs. The baby will grasp at the umbilical cord when it feels it. Most mothers feel an increase in movement, kicking, and hiccups from the baby. Oil and sweat glands are now functioning. The baby is now twelve inches long or more, and weighs up to one and a half pounds.
  • Months 7 through 9: Eyeteeth are present. The baby opens and closes his eyes. The baby is using four of the five senses (vision, hearing, taste, and touch.) He knows the difference between waking and sleeping, and can relate to the moods of the mother. The baby’s skin begins to thicken, and a layer of fat is produced and stored beneath the skin. Antibodies are built up, and the baby’s heart begins to pump 300 gallons of blood per day.
  • Approximately one week before the birth the baby stops growing, and “drops” usually head down into the pelvic cavity.

Sources Used: Bergel, Gary (Produced by NRLC) “When You Were Formed in Secret.” 1998. Flanagan, Geraldine Lux. Beginning Life. The Marvelous Journey from Conception to Birth. New York: DK Publishing Inc., 1996. Hopson, Janet L. Fetal Psychology. Oct. 1998. 07 Jan 2003.

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More Self-Inflicted Wounds??

The latest issue of Gloria TV  News contains a strange and troubling event from the Church in Vienna. It appears that a rather appalling (and ugly) statue of a recently beatified saint is to go on display in St. Stephens Cathedral. Here is the text from the video:

Today, a sculpture allegedly representing Sr. Restituta Kafka will be unveiled in St. Stephen’s Cathedral in Vienna. Sr. Restituta was arrested and murdered by the Nazis during the Second World War. In June 98 she was declared a blessed by Pope John Paul II. Her new sculpture shows a female face without veil and with big breasts. It will be placed in a side-chapel of St. Stephen’s Cathedral. The bust was created by Alfred Hrdlicka, the same artist who caused a worldwide scandal with a painting representing Christ’s Last Supper as a homosexual orgy. The controversial painting was exposed in the diocesan museum of Vienna. Hrdlicka calls himself an atheist and Stalinist.

It is unfortunate enough when modern artists attack the Church and the faith of simple believers, but it is even more troubling when Catholic Church leaders accept and display such “art.” Why has the Cathedral contracted with an artist who has clearly demonstrated contempt for the faith and who apparently has a thirst for scandal?  Once the artwork was completed and so clearly vulgar and impious why does the Cathedral display it?  Where is the local Archbishop in all this? Why these self-inflicted wounds? Clearly there are many who hate and ridicule our faith and relish in scandalizing the faithful, so why are we paying for this and displaying it? I feel safe in saying this would not happen in the Cathedral of Washington.

There is another item in this news report from Gloria TV on the question of the words of consecration: The Hungarian Bishops’ Conference has decided to implement a longtime wish of the Pope. Beginning with the coming feast of Pentecost the words used in Mass during the consecration of the chalice will be brought in line with the Latin original and with the Gospels. The present wording will thus be changed to say that Christ died “for many” instead of the current “for all.” While it s true that it is the wish of God to save all, it nevertheless reamins true that not all accept his offer of salvation. In a time when many people maintain unbiblical notions that just about every one will be saved, it is important that our prayers refelct the more sober biblical teaching that many in fact are lost (cf Matt 7:14 inter al.) For this reason, and for the important reason that our prayer texts correspond to scriptural texts, the Pope has asked that incorrect translations be fixed. Here in America a new translation is coming forth that reflects the correction.

Here is the video in reference. WARNING: the video contains some vulgar photos displaying the “art” in question. The photos are presented in order for the viewer to understand the story.

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Congressional Action Introduced to Save Opportunity Scholarships

A second Statement has come from the Archdiocese of Washington today welcoming legisaltion introduced in Congress today to save the Opportunity Scholarship Program (School Vouchers). Here is the statement followed by some comments in red from very truly yours.

Archdiocese Welcomes Introduction of Congressional Legislation to Continue Opportunity Scholarship Program

The Archdiocese of Washington welcomes legislation introduced today in the U.S. House of Representatives, the Preserving D.C. Student Scholarships Act of 2009. This bill would continue the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program and permit low-income students in the District of Columbia to continue to receive a quality education at the school of their choice. Without swift action by Congress, this federally-funded program will end in 2010, putting the children’s education at risk.

This program is a lifesaver for children in the city. Not only has a Congressionally-mandated study found the Opportunity Scholarship Program to be successful in increasing student achievement, but we have seen its positive impact first-hand with students transformed into enthusiastic young scholars,” said Patricia Weitzel-O’Neill, Ph.D., superintendent of schools for the Archdiocese of Washington.

Opportunity Scholarship students who graduated from Archbishop Carroll High School this year, for example, have been accepted at 30 colleges and universities, including St. John’s University, Syracuse University, Norfolk State and others. This follows the success of the two prior years, when 100 percent of the scholarship students graduated from this competitive high school and were accepted into college.

Of the more than 1,700 students who received Opportunity Scholarships this year, 879 attended Catholic schools in the District. The federally-funded scholarships provide low-income families with up to $7,500 towards tuition and some fees at participating non-public schools. The program was established five years ago as part of the three-sector initiative to strengthen education across the city that also has brought millions of new federal funds to the District’s public and charter schools.

The Archdiocese of Washington supports full and permanent funding of the DC Opportunity Scholarship Program as part of comprehensive support for education in the District of Columbia. Visit www.dcopportunityscholarship.org for more information.

This issue isn’t that hard to understand. If the focus is on the children of Washington DC and what is best for them then Opportunity Scholarships  (School Vouchers)  should continue to be offered. If the focus is on politics and what union leaders and some bureaucrats want then it is the children who will suffer. The DC Public schools are broken and far from being fixed. Some reforms may have begun but things are still terrible. DC Children and their families need options. This is CLEARLY what is best for them. Why don’t we just keep it this simple: do what is best for DC children. Keep the opportunity scholarship program available for DC children and their families.

The following video indicates that the President has not yet taken a position on the matter. Since it was made he has taken a stand against continuing the program. He has proposed that the students currently in the system can continue until they graduate. But no new students will be allowed to enter.  Thus he and others want the program to die. We need to continue to work with the President and Congress to change their minds on this matter.

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Latest form Gloria TV News:

In this issue are some items related to the aftermath of the President’s Speech at Notre Dame. It looks like the former President of Trinity University here in Washington is rather upset with critics of the Honorary Degree Awarded to President Obama. At Commencement exercises she refers to these critics (which include a fairly large number of Bishops) as “Catholic Vigilantes.”  Another interesting bit of news about the protests at Notre Dame is that among the “vigilantes” 🙂 present at the protest was Norma McCorvey (who was the Jane Roe of Roe v. Wade). Most of you know that she converted to Catholicism in 1998 and has worked actively in the pro-life movement for many years now. It is a great and healing thought that she is now among us as a fellow Catholic and a pro-life advocate. God is good, very good.

Also in this edition of Gloria TV News is a strange and sad story about a Catholic school boy who wants to be  a  girl.  There are also some reflections from Former Archbishop of Milwaukee Rembert Weakland about the Abuse Scandal.

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Update – L’Osservatore Romano and The Notre Dame Speech

Yesterday (see link to May 18 below) I featured excerpts from a Catholic News Service (CNS) article that summarized a rather upbeat review of the President’s speech at Notre Dame by the official paper of the Vatican L’Osservatore Romano. (MY ORIGINAL ARTICLE HERE) Today CNS expanded on it’s coverage a bit and also pointed to another article more critcal of the speech, particularly in reference to Embryonic Stem Cell research. Here are a few excerpts from the CNS Article:

A few pages later, L’Osservatore Romano dedicates another, far more critical article of Obama’s stand on embryonic stem cell research, marking a clear departure from the somewhat positive evaluation the newspaper recently made of the President’s first 100 days. The article, titled “Campaign in the US against stem cells,” features the effort launched by the U.S. bishops, especially the web site of the USCCB, to oppose Obama’s new policy regarding the use of embryos for scientific research….[which]….reversed the decision of the Bush administration regarding the ban on (federal funding for) embryonic stem cell research, for the first time taxpayers’ money will be used to kill human beings in embryonic state to obtain stem cells.” In the article, L’Osservatore Romano extensively quotes Cardinal Justin Rigali and Archbishop Charles Chaput, one of the most vocal critics of Obama’s anti-life policies. “The Archbishop of Denver –the Vatican newspaper says- insists that ‘American public life cannot function if we keep our religious beliefs in the closet … the US does not need to be a Christian country, but it cannot survive if it is not open to solidarity and faith.” By expressing strong support to the U.S. bishops and quoting Archbishop Chaput’s recent conference at the Becket Fund dinner, L’Osservatore Romano has put to rest speculation that the Vatican was being “unsupportive” of the American Bishops’ strong criticism to Obama’s anti-life policies.

You can read the full CNS article here: CNS Full Article

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More on Notre Dame in News

The latest issue of Gloria.TV news has a couple of reports on the Notre Dame issue. See below. By the way, AMERICAN PAPIST reports that Notre Dame has taken a big blow in terms of Alumni withholding donations. Presently 14 million has been withdrawn. I can’t link directly to the American Papist Article and so I reproduce it here:

ND Alumni withhold nearly $14m because of Obama at ND

The hemorrhaging continues. These are just the donations they can track down:
Notre Dame alumni who are upset with the university’s decision to allow pro-abortion President Barack Obama to give this coming weekend’s commencement speech and to give him an honorary degree continue to withhold their donations to the Catholic college.

In total, pro-life alumni and donors who feel disenfranchised by Notre Dame’s decision have decided to withhold nearly $14 million in gifts they normally would have given.

David DiFranco, a Michigan businessman and 1995 Notre Dame graduate, told LifeNews.com on Wednesday that the ReplaceJenkins.com web site for disgruntled alumni has received over 1,400 pledges to withhold donations within a month since its launch. (LifeNews)
I’m not sure if I’d call these folks “disgruntled.” “Principled” sounds better to my ears.

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President’s Address at Notre Dame

The video below shows an excerpt from the President’s speech at Notre Dame. A couple of thoughts occur to me in terms of his remarks:

  1. The President has laid out a case that we should not demonize and that we should disagree agreeably in this matter. At one level this all sounds fine. But the issue here is not about being nice, it is about whether a Catholic institution should honor someone who is vigorously and uncompromisingly pro-abortion with an honorary degree of Law.  Being nice is one thing, honoring what is not honorable is another. The President as a man, and as the President of the United States of America is honorable but his philosophy about the law is not. As St. Paul wrote to the Corinthians  whom he loved: “In hoc non  laudo” (in this I do not praise (you)).
  2. Therefore the issue before us is more about us, than the President. What are WE doing here? What are we NOT doing? Are there going to be corrective moves from Church authority that will prevent such honors being bestowed in the future?
  3. An analogy here: When a non-Catholic asks me if they can take Holy Communion I have to answer no. Perhaps this is not the “nicest answer” but it is the truest. Why can they not receive? Because communion means something. It means that I share communion with Jesus Christ. But it also means that I share communion with his Body the Church, that I accept what the Church teaches  in faith and morals and the truth that this really is the Body of Christ I am receiving. In the same way that communion actually means something and is not just an old ritual, bestowing an honorary Doctorate of Law means something. It means that we honor the recipient’s understanding of and interpretation of the Law. But we do NOT honor an interpretation of law that says it is legal to kill thousands of innocent people every day. We cannot honor an interpretation of law that  sanctions what has caused the death of tens of millions. It is not. Just as Holy Communion (which actually means something) must be withheld when such communion is lacking so should honors be withheld when when what is held cannot be honored. Again, this is no personal disrespect to the Office of President, nor to President Obama as a man. But we cannot honor his interpretation of the law here. And it is not some small point of law in question, it is a point of law that has led to the death of many millions.
  4. So, being nice and agreeable is fine, being truthful and maintaining integrity is better.
  5. Pray for our our President. He is clearly an articulate and intelligent man. What an ally he could be if he were converted on this matter. Pray too for our Church that we can use a moment like this to look more deeply and what we are doing and what it all means.