Former Gosnell clinic worker seeks help from pro-life organization

Abby Johnson

A former Planned Parenthood worker and her pro-life organization are reaching out to a former abortion worker for convicted abortionist Kermit Gosnell. 

Abby Johnson, who once managed a Planned Parenthood, founded And Then There Were None to reach out to abortion clinic workers who want to leave the industry.

What might be the biggest challenge for abortion workers who leave the industry, renounce that work, and seek restoration and a relationship with Christ?

 

According to Johnson, the Gosnell employee contacted her organization after authorities arrested her, though by then the woman said she was at peace.  

"And that really told us something," says Johnson, "because we knew that she had been participating in this evil for a long time, and at that point she realized that she had been participating in evil as well."

Gosnell is serving three life sentences for killing babies born alive during abortions, as well as federal drug sentences, and several of his employees have also been sentenced.

Johnson announced the contact in an email to supporters, and LifeSiteNews.com. reported the incident in a July 16 story on its website.

The former employee is a Christian and Johnson's organization is now helping her on a path toward forgiveness.

"She's actually going to be attending one of our healing retreats that our ministry puts on," says Johnson, "so we're excited that she'll be part of that."

In the email, Johnson wrote that the ex-abortion employee is eager to share her pro-life story, "and I can tell you that it is a beautiful story of redemption."

Johnson established her ministry in 2012. In that short time, she says dozens of abortion workers have received spiritual, legal and financial help from the group.

In May, And Then There Were None held its first-ever Leave the Abortion Industry Day and welcomed five workers who left their jobs. 

Contact: Charlie Butts, Source: OneNewsNow.com

High levels of pro-life state legislation passed so far this year

The progress of pro-life legislation at the state level this year has made the 2013 the second-best year on record for the number of abortion-regulating laws that have passed by mid-year.

State legislators enacted 43 provisions restricting abortion in the first half of 2013, according to the Guttmacher Institute, which support legalized abortion. The group said in a July 8 analysis that this number is up slightly from the same period in 2012 when 39 provisions were enacted, but down from an all-time high of 80 recorded in 2011.

Debate over abortion regulation has made headlines in 2013 due partly to the trial of Philadelphia abortionist Kermit Gosnell, who was convicted on charges including malpractice and the murder of babies who were born alive following failed abortions in his clinic.

Arkansas legislators in March overrode a Democratic governor's veto of a bill that bars most abortion after 12 weeks into pregnancy, on the basis that that is the time when a fetal heartbeat can first be identified through an abdominal ultrasound.

Also in March, North Dakota legislators passed three pro-life bills. One bill bans abortion if a fetal heartbeat can be detected. It will take effect in August if it withstands legal challenges. Another bill bans abortions that target the unborn child on the basis of his or her sex or genetic abnormalities.

A third North Dakota bill requires any abortionist in the state to have admitting and staff privileges at a nearby hospital that allows abortions to take place in its facilities.

Alabama enacted similar requirements. Seven states now have these laws, though two states face legal challenges over them.

Alabama now requires surgical abortion clinics to have the same standards of care as ambulatory surgical centers, joining 25 other states with similar laws.

 

Indiana in 2013 extended these standards to clinics that perform medication-based abortions.

Four states – Alabama, Indiana, Louisiana and Mississippi – enacted laws barring the remote "telemedicine" dispensing of abortion medication. Twelve states now have similar legislation.

The Arkansas and Pennsylvania legislatures voted to limit abortion coverage in the health insurance exchanges created by the 2010 federal health care legislation, bringing the total of these state laws to 22.

A new Indiana law requires a woman seeking an abortion to have an ultrasound, while Ohio now requires a woman seeking an abortion to undergo an external exam to determine whether a fetal heartbeat can be detected.

Kansas and Montana have passed laws protecting physicians from lawsuits stemming from claims that their acts or omissions contributed to a mother not aborting a child with disabilities.

The state of Ohio has barred public hospitals from making transfer agreements with abortion clinics, including emergency situations. The provision could mean that women suffering complications during abortions will face more difficulty receiving treatment.

The number of pro-life bills passed in the first half of 2013 was bolstered on Friday, July 12, when the Texas Senate passed a bill barring most abortions after 20 weeks of pregnancy and increasing standards for abortion clinics.

Source: CNA/EWTN News

Gov. Perry Signs Texas Pro-Life Bill

Despite sometimes fierce and contentious opposition from abortion activists, Gov. Rick Perry signed significant legislation today that will protect the lives of women and preborn babies.

The law prohibits abortions after 20 weeks, when preborn babies begin to feel pain. It also requires abortionists to be qualified to treat life-threatening complications, and to have hospital admitting privileges no farther than 30 miles away.

"This is an important day for those who support life and for those who support the health of Texas women," Perry said. "In signing House Bill 2, we celebrate and further cement the foundation on which the culture of life in Texas is built."

It wasn't an easy road, but Texas lawmakers didn't let protesters deter them.

Sen. Wendy Davis last month tried to block a similar bill with a filibuster. She was stopped for veering off topic. Then, more than 400 abortion activists interrupted the proceedings, which prevented lawmakers from voting before the midnight deadline.

Perry then announced the second special session, which began July 1.

Susan B. Anthony List President Marjorie Dannenfelser called the law a "life-saving victory."  

It also sheds light on the need for such legislation at the federal level.

The U.S. House of Representatives passed the Pain-Capable Unborn Child Protection Act last month. The legislation would ban abortions nationwide after 20 weeks of pregnancy. But it's unlikely that Senate leadership will ever bring it to the floor.

"Polls consistently show that the majority of Americans support protecting babies and women late in pregnancy," Dannenfelser said. "Senate Majority Leader Reid should bring this to the floor for a vote. If he and his Senate colleagues stand with the American people against the barbarism of late-term abortion, they have nothing to fear from a Senate vote. Conversely, remaining silent on this — especially in the aftermath of Kermit Gosnell and — other abortion clinic horrors — would be both a moral and political mistake."

We cannot let the abortion industry "police itself," said Americans United for Life (AUL) President Charmaine Yoest.

"States like Texas will save lives by insisting that high standards be followed," Yoest explained. "This should be an area of bipartisan agreement."

Dannenfelser agrees.

"Real lives are at stake," she said. "Washington, as well as the abortion lobby, must not be allowed to ignore the women and babies suffering barbaric late-term abortions nationwide."

Contact: Bethany Monk, Source: CitizenLink

Where charities stand on life

 

Caution: This story contains information that some may find offensive.

 

Some notable charities have aligned with Planned Parenthood on issues related to life and religious freedom.

 

The March of Dimes, the American Cancer Society and the Spina Bifida Association are listed in a recent white paper in joining Planned Parenthood against the Blunt Amendment, which would have provided some protections against ObamaCare mandates. Easter Seals also opposed it.

 

Rita Diller of STOPP International tells OneNewsNow three of the four charities have a history of anti-life policies or have funded life-destroying research.

 

"The March of Dimes has historically funded research that has led to the eradication by abortion of an entire class of people -- those with genetic abnormalities," she reports. "It's a eugenic organization. Much of its research has enabled search-and-destroy missions on pre-born children."

 

Diller goes on to describe one of the organization's research projects.

 

"March of Dimes funded experiments where Doctor Peter Adam actually delivered babies alive by hysterotomy, then severed their heads and kept those heads artificially alive for experimentation in his brain fuel metabolism research," the pro-lifer details. "These babies were between three to five months gestation."

 

That research was co-funded by the National Institutes of Health, an organization that has co-funded with Planned Parenthood in clinical trials.

 

Diller's complete report is available on the STOPP International website, and the American Life League has released a list of charitable organizations and their positions on the life issues.

 

Contact: Charlie Butts, Source: OneNewsNow.com

How will Abortion Advocates Respond to Yesterdays' Illinois Supreme Court Decision?

 

In the wake of the Illinois Supreme Court's decision to uphold the right of parents to be notified if their underage child seeks an abortion, the question is: How will the abortion industry react?

 

"We are disappointed by the Illinois Supreme Court's decision to dismiss a lawsuit challenging the Illinois Parental Notice of Abortion Act of 1995," said Carol Brite, president and CEO of Planned Parenthood of Illinois. "While we believe the Illinois Parental Notice of Abortion Act puts the health and safety of teens at unnecessary risk, Planned Parenthood of Illinois is committed to doing everything we can to make this new process as easy as possible for teens if the law goes into effect."

 

Other abortion groups such as Personal PAC, which endorses and financially supports legislators and judges concurs. In 2012, Personal PAC endorsed 49 of the 118 Illinois House members and 32 of the 59 Illinois Senate members, as well as Supreme Court Justice Mary Jane Theis.

 

Abortion proponents such as Planned Parenthood, Personal PAC and others could respond to Thursday's decision in various ways, including, 1.) Attempting to repeal the 1995 Parental Notification Act in the Illinois General Assembly, 2.) Appealing the Illinois Supreme Court's decision to the U.S. Supreme Court or 3.) Accepting the decision and finding ways to work around the notficiation process.

 

Given Democrat super majorities in both chambers of the Illinois General Assembly, and Democrat control of the Executive Branch, it would seem that option #2 might be the path of least resistance for the pro-abortion side.

 

For those unfamiliar with the legislative history, the Parental Notification Act passed the Illinois General Assembly during the only two years (1995-1996) that Republicans held the majority in both legislative chambers. Since that time, no substantial anti-abortion legislation has made its way past the Illinois House floor under the leadership of Democrat House Speaker Mike Madigan, except for the 2005 Born Alive Infant Protection Act, which was amended to specifically say it would not deter abortions in Illinois.

 

The U.S. Supreme Court has already affirmed parental notification for minors before abortion, leaving the decision whether or not to enact to individual states.

 

In the Illinois Supreme Court's statement, Justice Bob Thomas differed in one aspect of the Court's lead opinion by writing in his concurrence that he believed the 1970 Illinois Constitutional Convention refused to recognize the right to abortion, a position Attorney General Lisa Madigan conceded to the ACLU.

 

In sum, I believe that delegates to the Sixth Illinois Constitutional Convention refused to recognize a right to abortion in drafting our 1970 constitution, and that is how I would construe our due process clause. Given the clear intent of the drafters of our 1970 constitution, I would reject the lockstep approach that the lead opinion employs in construing the language of our due process clause to mean the same as the federal due process clause on the subject of abortion. In the end, however, we are in unanimous agreement that the Illinois due process clause does not render the Parental Notification of Abortion Act of 1995 unconstitutional. I believe we also wind up in the same place in the event that Casey and Roe are ever overruled. If that were to happen, the lead opinion's approach would simply revert the meaning of our due process clause to the pre-Roe interpretation and the matter of abortion regulation (i.e., whether to regulate or prohibit it) would be left for the legislative process. Although it may seem to be an academic point, then, to conclude, as I do, that the Illinois Constitution does not contain a right to abortion, it is our solemn obligation to discern and effectuate the true intent of the drafters of our state constitution on this matter.

 

The Illinois Supreme Court's opinion is available HERE.

 

Source: Illinois Review

Ireland legalizes abortion

 

In the early hours of July 12, following a marathon debate, the Irish parliament voted 127-31 in favor of the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill, which legalizes abortion in some circumstances, including when the mother says she is suicidal.

 

Only five members of the majority Fine Gael party broke ranks with Prime Minister Enda Kelly, who did not permit a conscience vote on the issue. In doing so, the five were automatically expelled from the party. One of the five, Lucinda Creighton, 33, resigned from her post as Ireland's European affairs minister. "I think compromise is essential to any coalition," she said. "I feel we've compromised on economic issues, social policy, and so on. But when it comes to something that is a matter of life and death, at least as far as I'm concerned it is, I think it's not really possible to compromise." In addition, Sin

 

Source: Catholic World News

Illinois Parental Notice of Abortion Act will finally go into effect

 

Illinois' long-delayed Parental Notice of Abortion Act will finally go into effect within a matter of days thanks to the Illinois Supreme Court's unanimous ruling this morning that the law does not violate the Illinois Constitution. Under the Illinois law, passed in 1995 but never ruled enforceable until now, a parent or guardian must be notified at least 48 hours before an unemancipated child under the age of 18 undergoes an abortion.

 

"This is a huge victory for the rights of parents not only in Illinois but in all midwestern states," said Tom Brejcha, President and Chief Counsel of the Thomas More Society.

 

The Supreme Court's decision represents the successful culmination of an almost nine-year effort by the Society's special counsel, constitutional scholar Paul Linton, to have the law enforced.  Linton met with Illinois pro-life leaders at the end of 2004 to develop a strategy for reviving the parental notice law, which had languished in legal limbo for many years because the Illinois Supreme Court refused, in 1995, to adopt a needed rule for confidential "bypass" hearings and expedited appeals for minor girls who were either deemed "mature" or made credible claims of family abuse.

 

For lack of that rule, federal courts held the law unconstitutional and enjoined its enforcement in February 1996. Linton and several pro-life leaders enlisted the assistance of then-DuPage County State's Attorney Joe Birkett to assist the effort.  In 2006, both Birkett and the Society petitioned the Illinois Supreme Court to adopt the needed procedural rule. Shortly after, the Supreme Court adopted the rule needed to put the law into effect.

 

But the ACLU renewed its fight against the law, despite the new rule, on other federal constitutional grounds.  The Thomas More Society was involved in the litigation due to the efforts of Peter Breen, then its Executive Director and Legal Counsel, who recruited two downstate State's Attorneys to intervene in the case to ensure a vigorous defense for the law in the state and federal courts.  The ACLU ultimately lost their final federal challenge before the Seventh Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago in July 2009.  Yet, a day before the parental notice law was to go into effect in late 2009, the ACLU filed a new state court lawsuit, claiming the statute violated the Illinois Constitution of 1970. 

 

The state trial court rejected ACLU's state court suit, but the Appellate Court reversed and sent the case back down to the trial court for further proceedings. Both the Attorney General and Thomas More Society then filed petitions for review by the Illinois Supreme Court. Both petitions were granted in November 2011. The Society's special counsel, Paul Linton, author of a widely acclaimed legal treatise, Abortion Under State Constitutions (Car. Acad. Press, 2d ed. 2012), authored the Society's "friend-of-the-court" brief on behalf of over twenty Illinois State's Attorneys in defending parental notice. Linton also orally argued in defense of the law before the Supreme Court on behalf of the two State's Attorneys who had attempted to intervene in the case to bolster defense of the law.

 

The ACLU's repeated challenges to the constitutionality of the Illinois parental notice law had resulted in Illinois becoming a "fugitive" abortion state – a "dumping ground" for out-of-state minors' abortions.  Until now, Illinois was the only midwestern state without a parental notice or consent law in effect. This allowed thousands of abortions to be performed in Illinois on non-resident minors who crossed state lines, often accompanied by the adults who impregnated them, to evade their own state's parental notice or consent laws.

 

Source: Illinois Review

Pro-life bill passes Texas House

 

The Texas House approved its version of a bill on Wednesday (July 10) that would forbid most abortions beyond 20 weeks, require ambulatory clinic standards for abortion facilities and require abortion doctors to have hospital privileges within 30 miles of their practices.

 

House Bill 2 now goes to the Texas Senate, which could vote on the Senate version, SB 1, as early as Friday. House Republicans, who have largely championed the bill, staved off attempts to amend it.

 

Time ran out during the first special called session of the legislature on June 25 following a 10-hour Democrat-led filibuster and then procedural questions from opponents that aimed to derail a vote as well as crowd noise from abortion-rights protestors. That same week, Gov. Rick Perry, who has said he would sign the legislation, announced a second special session to take up the matter again.

 

Opponents have acknowledged it would be difficult to stop the heavily GOP Texas legislature from prevailing the second time. One Democrat, Sen. Eddie Lucio of Brownsville, voted for the bill in the first session and gave an impassioned plea during the filibuster to his Democrat colleague Sen. Wendy Davis of Fort Worth, who gained international headlines for her stand against the bill. Lucio is a Senate co-sponsor of SB 1.

 

Pro-choice advocates have charged that the ambulatory care requirements would cause 36 of the 42 Texas abortion clinics to close their doors, while pro-lifers have argued the same standards should apply to abortion that apply to other surgical procedures.

 

According to the Associated Press, lawmakers spent more than 10 hours on Tuesday debating the bill as pro-life and pro-choice activists tried to make their voices heard on the Capitol grounds and one day after an estimated 2,000 pro-life activists rallied in support of the legislation amid heckles from opponents.

 

During Monday's rally, the slate of speakers, led by former Arkansas governor and Fox News host Mike Huckabee, hit a common theme -- the inherent value of human life -- with several speakers making a point to state their Christian love for pro-choice activists, clad in orange, on the fringes of the crowd.

 

Huckabee followed Concerned Women for America CEO Penny Nance, Lt. Gov. David Dewhurst and state Attorney General Greg Abbott, who is expected to seek the governor's office after Gov. Rick Perry, a fellow Republican, announced earlier in the day he would not seek another term.

 

Southern Baptists on the platform included Jim Richards, executive director of the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention, and Steve Washburn, pastor of First Baptist Church in Pflugerville, both of whom prayed, and First Baptist Church of Dallas pastor Robert Jeffress, who kicked off the rally with a fiery speech characterizing the abortion debate as being between "light and darkness, good and evil, the Kingdom of God and the kingdom of Satan."

 

Richards, who closed the rally in prayer, reminded the crowd that more than 2,400 SBTC churches stand with them in upholding the sanctity of human life as part of their confession of faith.

 

Huckabee, in his keynote address, said "life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness" are not ordained by a government document but by God. He framed the abortion debate in the context of the Holocaust and slavery. The foundation for both lay in the poisonous concept that one person or group is better than another.

 

Contact: Jerry Pierce, Source: Baptist Press

Wisconsin Gov. Signs Pro-Life Bill into Law

 

Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker signed a bill into law Friday requiring that women seeking abortions be given the opportunity to see their preborn babies via ultrasound. Senate Bill 206, or Sonya's Law, also requires that an abortionist have admitting privileges at a hospital within 30 miles of an abortion facility.

 

"Sonya's Law will empower women to make truly informed decisions regarding how they will proceed with their pregnancies and will protect the lives of women who experience complications after their abortions," said Wisconsin Right to Life Legislative Director Susan Armacost.

 

Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin and Affiliated Medical Services announced plans to file suit against the law.

 

This announcement is no surprise to anyone, Armacost said.

 

"It appears that the court challenge will focus on the hospital admitting privileges," she explained. "Apparently, Wisconsin's abortion clinics don't believe their abortionists need to have hospital privileges at a local hospital within 30 miles of their clinic — or anywhere at all.

 

Laws requiring hospital admitted privileges have been enacted in North Dakota, Alabama and Mississippi, according to the Guttmacher Institute, a pro-abortion organization.

 

Currently, when a woman in Wisconsin experiences life-threatening complications after an abortion, the abortion seller sends to her a hospital alone. She must then explain her medical issues to the emergency room staff.

 

"The abortionist who performed the abortion is nowhere to be seen," Armacost explained.  "This deplorable situation must change."     

 

Contact: Bethank Monk, Source CitizenLink

Face of Abortion Exhibition Returns to Chicagoland

 

Pro-Life Action League's Graphic "Face the Truth Tour" Reminds Public Abortion is Infanticide

 

With the national horror over abortionist Kermit Gosnell's conviction for murdering babies still fresh in the public mind, a new bill banning late-term abortion having just passed in Congress, and a dramatic confrontation over abortion legislation boiling in Texas, the Pro-Life Action League hits the streets of Chicagoland to remind the public what abortion is really all about. From July 12 through July 20, Face the Truth Tours will appear at busy intersections throughout Chicago and the suburbs, with pro-life advocates displaying large posters that accurately depict the graphic reality of abortion, juxtaposed with beautiful pictures of living children, both born and unborn.

 

One significant stop on the Face the Truth Tour will be the Saturday, July 13, visit to the controversial Planned Parenthood abortion clinic in Aurora. The clinic has generated continued opposition from residents, churches and area pro-life groups, since its embattled opening in October 2007. It was the largest abortion facility in the country at the time and remains the subject of ongoing protests and lawsuits.

 

Two days of the Face the Truth Tour will be devoted to downtown Chicago, with graphic displays at Daley Plaza, Ogilvie Transportation Center, Union Station, Lake Shore Drive, the Art Institute and along overpasses on the Kennedy Expressway.

 

The schedule of communities the Face the Truth Tour will visit follows. Time and location details are available at prolifeaction.org/truth/tours.php.

 

• Friday, July 12: Joliet/Shorewood

• Saturday, July 13: Aurora/Naperville

• Monday, July 15 & Tuesday, July 16: Downtown Chicago

• Wednesday, July 17: Melrose Park/Westchester/Westmont

• Thursday, July 18: Lake Zurich/Palatine/Arlington Heights

• Friday, July 19: Chicago South Side/Burbank

• Saturday, July 20: Lincolnwood/Evanston

 

Though the Face the Truth Tour always meets with some opposition, the goal is not to offend or to shock, but rather to raise awareness and change attitudes. The Face the Truth Tour allows people to confront the horrible injustice of abortion with their own eyes—and when they do, they are more likely to take action to prevent that injustice, even if they resent having to see it.

 

"It's true that these pictures of bloody, broken, aborted babies are disturbing," explained Eric Scheidler, Executive Director of the Pro-Life Action League. "They should be disturbing, because abortion itself is disturbing," he continued, "This is the reality of what abortion does to unborn children. This is not some harmless, inconsequential surgery. It's violent and it's ugly."

 

The Pro-Life Action League has coordinated Face the Truth Tours for over a dozen years, and last year's event encountered some first-time obstacles, including a temperature of 102° on the first day. The Westchester police had city workers remove the tour's "Warning: Graphic Abortion Photos Ahead" signs that allow drivers and pedestrians the opportunity to detour around the display. In Chicago's 34th Ward "Special Services Area" officers—not to be confused with Chicago police officers—attempted to shut down the display, insisting that a permit was required from Alderman Carrie Austin for any protest activity

 

Despite the occasional challenges and objections, Scheidler was ready with the reason why the Pro-Life Action League will continue organizing these public education tours. "The Face the Truth Tours work. Every year people stop to thank us for sharing the reality of abortion because it caused them to reconsider a planned abortion or begin the healing process from a past abortion," said Scheidler. He added, "Last year a woman came up to us and said that she had an abortion 12 years ago, and that at the time, she felt she had no choice. She told us, 'I keep looking at your picture, and I can't believe I did that to my baby…nobody told me it was a baby.'"

 

To learn more about Face the Truth Tours and the life-saving work of the Pro-Life Action League, view the two-minute Face the Truth video at: youtu.be/-UT5zSsHxA8o or read more at prolifeaction.org/truth.

 

Source: Pro-Life Action League

Boston Men's HIV Cure is a Victory for Adult Stem Cell Research

 

The news of two men supposedly being cured from HIV (only the 3rd and 4th people ever to be cured) is cause for celebration for those promoting ethical adult stem cells, and provides motivation to increase adult stem cell research. As reported at the International AIDS Society meeting in Kuala Lumpur, the two men, now known as the "Boston patients", received bone marrow adult stem cell transplants as part of their treatment for lymphoma.

 

Their doctors believe that the adult stem cell therapy (via graft-versus-host reaction) combined with continued anti-retroviral drugs during the transplant period eliminated virus-containing cells in the men's bodies. Their adult stem cell transplants were 3 and 5 years ago, but now the men have been off of their anti-retroviral drug therapy for several weeks, and continue to show no signs of viral DNA or RNA in their blood. It will probably be two years before scientists feel more secure in labeling the men "cured".

 

Their treatment was different from the "Berlin patient", Timothy Brown, who appears to have been cured of HIV after an adult stem cell transplant in 2007. Brown, the first person apparently cured of HIV, received an adult stem cell transplant specifically from a donor whose cells carried the HIV-resistant CCR5-Δ32 gene. Recently news broke of a baby who was born with HIV but who is now apparently HIV-free, due to anti-retroviral drug treatment. Prevention is of course better, and in fact there was a recent celebration of the one-millionth baby born without HIV, as a result of the PEPFAR program started under President Bush.

 

The technique used for the two new patients apparently cured of HIV opens up a larger potential donor pool for adult stem cell transplants, though this is still a risky treatment procedure that will need refinement, and this is not a suitable treatment option for every HIV patient. Still, this is another encouraging example of the usefulness of ethical adult stem cells.

 

You can view the video on this here.

 

Written by Andrew Mullins, Source: FRCBlog

Continued major problems in HHS mandate’s ‘final rule’

 

The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) has conducted an initial analysis of the Obama administration's 110-page final rule for the implementation of the HHS mandate.

 

"We will have more to say," said Cardinal Timothy Dolan of New York, USCCB president. "At this point, however, our study has not discovered any new change that eliminates the need to continue defending our rights in Congress and the courts."

 

Cardinal Dolan said in a statement that the USCCB continued to find "problems with the 'religious employer' exemption" and "problems with the lack of any exemption or 'accommodation' for individuals and for-profit businesses":

 

There have been no changes in those areas since the proposed rule of February. At that time, we made clear that all but one of the problems we originally identified with the definition of "religious employer" remained in place, and that the proposed rule actually made matters more troubling by preventing dioceses and other exempt employers from extending their coverage to the employees of service ministries that are not exempt. We also made clear in February that the proposed rule, like earlier versions, made no provision at all for individuals and for-profit businesses. Because the final rule remains the same in these areas, so do our concerns.

 

Regarding "the 'accommodation' for religious charities, schools, and hospitals, the overall structure remains the same as under the proposed rule," Cardinal Dolan added. "There are, however, some relatively small changes to the 'accommodation' that will take more time to evaluate. But even now, it is clear that the final rule does at least three things differently from the proposed rule":

 

For insured plans, the proposed rule would have established separate insurance policies for coverage of sterilization, contraception, and abortifacients; but the final rule does not.Now, there is only one policy, and it is the one sponsored by the Catholic employer. The objectionable items will still be paid for by virtue of the fact that an employee belongs to the Catholic employer's plan, but these amounts are described as "payments" rather than "coverage."

 

Also regarding insured plans, the final rule proposes to segregate funds in a way not specified in the proposed rule. This seems intended to strengthen the claim that objectionable items will not ultimately be paid by the employer's premium dollars. But it is unclear whether the proposal succeeds in identifying a source of funds that is genuinely separate from the objecting employer, and if so, whether it is workable to draw from that separate source.

 

Regarding self-insured plans, the proposed rule described three alternative roles for the third-party administrator in securing coverage of sterilization, contraception, and abortifacients. The final rule selects the alternative that treats the employer's very act of objecting to coverage of sterilization, contraception, and abortifacients as the legal authorization for a third-party administrator to secure the objectionable coverage. In our comments to HHS on the proposed rule, we identified this alternative as the most objectionable of the three.

 

The USCCB statement was released in the afternoon of July 3, as the nation prepared for a long holiday weekend.

 

Source: CWN

'Hail Satan!' Pro-Abortion Fans

 
Bill Donohue comments on pro-abortion supporters in Texas:
 
While pro-life protesters were singing "Amazing Grace" Tuesday in Austin, pro-abortion fans were screaming "Hail Satan!" (A video of this scene is available on TheBlaze.)
 
It would be unfair to say that all pro-abortion supporters would support this obscenity, and indeed most would not. Among hard-core activists, though, there are no doubt more than just a few who feel comfortable with invoking Satan's name in behalf of their cause. Here's why I say this.
 
There are writers and activists who support more than abortion rights--they hail it as a positive good. For example, the book by women's studies professor Patricia Lunneborg, Abortion: A Positive Decision, boasts how abortion liberates women. The volume, Abortion is a Blessing, by militant atheist Anne Nicol Gaylor, sees abortion as a sacred right. So does French author Ginette Paris: her book, The Sacrament of Abortion, tells us exactly where she is coming from.
 
Catholics reach out to young pregnant women who have made the wrong decision, and indeed the Catholic Church has a program, "Project Rachel," that serves them in many ways. Moreover, when someone in the pro-life community acts in an offensive way, he is quickly condemned. By contrast, there are pro-abortion fanatics who draw their inspiration from Satanic forces. Worse, many of those in the pro-abortion community are quite content to stay silent about such offenses.
 
Perhaps the time has come for a mass exorcism.

Contact: The Catholic League for Religious and Civil Rights

Pro-life teachers protest pro-abortion leaders at NEA convention

Pro-life educators have sent a message to the National Education Association (NEA) at its annual session, which met recently at the Georgia World Congress Center in Atlanta.

Bob Pawson, who heads Pro-Life Educators of America, tells OneNewsNow that pro-life teachers, with parents and teachers, sought to draw attention to the NEA leadership's pro-abortion activism and policies.

"Of course, as usual, we're not asking the union to become pro-life," Pawson says. "We're just saying get out of the abortion issue, and be truly disengaged and neutral on it."

Pro-lifers from Georgia Right to Life and the Center for Bio-Ethical Reform participated in pickets asking delegates to repeal provisions that promote abortion.

Pawson says the group received thumbs-up by some delegates and obscene gestures from others, but were not deterred from their objective.

"We joined the union for representation at the collective bargaining table - not to be misrepresented by a bunch of left-wingers who have taken over our union on social, moral and political issues," Pawson says.

"These issues are important to Americans and to teachers, but they should not be important to us as a collective bargaining agency," he adds.

Pawson, who has taught in New Jersey since 1980, finds it ironic that the organization promotes the killing of future students.

Contact: Charlie Butts, Source: OneNewsNow.com

After crisis pregnancy, young mom finds fulfillment

 

A 22-year-old single mom who chose life during an unplanned pregnancy says that she has found "purpose and love" in the joys and trials of motherhood.

 

"Being a mom is definitely the road to sainthood for me; it requires total self-sacrifice, but dying to oneself through motherhood has only brought me closer to Christ," Raquel Kato told CNA in a recent interview.

 

Kato's story spread on the internet last year, after she experienced God's unconditional love in a powerful and life-changing way.

 

When her 21st birthday led to an unplanned pregnancy, she felt terrified and alone as a single college student. Keeping her pregnancy a secret, she scheduled an abortion, even though she knew in her heart that it was wrong.

 

However, a week before her scheduled abortion, Kato attended daily Mass and felt God's merciful love touching her heart. She cancelled the abortion and gave birth to a baby girl, whom she named AveMarie Rose, in October 2012.

 

She went on to share her story through online venues including Catholic Exchange, FOCUS blog and One Billion Stories. In the nine months since AveMarie was born, she has received positive, supportive reactions.

 

"In general, I would have to say I have gotten a great response," she told CNA, explaining that she has received many comments from people who were "very grateful" for the perspective that she had to share.

 

Kato described motherhood as "the greatest blessing" in her life.

 

"I've never been so challenged, grown so much, or been so joyful," she said. "I love making my daughter smile, rocking her to sleep, and watching her reach different milestones."

 

"Seeing how much joy she has brought to my parents, friends, and community is so rewarding. My daughter brings a deeper sense of purpose and love to my life and I can't imagine my life without her."

 

While she acknowledged that "being a single mom has its hard moments," she added that "it's all worth it" when her daughter is "peacefully sleeping, or giggling uncontrollably, or cuddling in my arms."

 

Kato said the most important thing she hopes that people are able to take from hearing her story is an understanding of "how to love mothers who are found in unplanned pregnancy."

 

These women, she explained, "are broken and scared and they need to be reminded that they are loved in the midst of brokenness."

 

Reflecting on her own journey, she said that the loving support of those around her – and particularly offers to babysit for free – have been crucial.

 

"Because of the support of my friends, family, and neighbors I have been able to complete my undergraduate degree, maintain a part-time job (at a pregnancy resource center), and begin graduate school," she said, explaining that this support is paving the way for her to be able to support her daughter with a stable job.

 

"None of this would be possible without those people helping me with childcare," she stressed.

 

This type of support is the most valuable resource that can be given to a single mom, Kato advised, emphasizing the need to show compassion and love to women facing unplanned pregnancies.

 

"If the women in a crisis pregnancy don't understand their own worth and dignity, they will have a hard time understanding the dignity of their unborn child," she said.

 

Source: CNA/EWTN News

Hobby Lobby saved from hefty mandate fines

 

Hobby Lobby gained relief just in time to avoid a hefty penalty for refusing to comply with the Obama administration's abortion/contraception mandate.

 

A federal court blocked enforcement June 28 against the popular craft store chain of a federal regulation that requires employers to pay for coverage of contraceptives, including ones that can cause abortions. The temporary restraining order prevented the mandate from going into effect Monday (July 1) and spared Hobby Lobby a penalty that could have reached $1.3 million a day.

 

The next step in a lawsuit by Hobby Lobby and a sister Christian bookstore chain, Mardel, is a July 19 hearing regarding their request for a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of the abortion/contraception mandate while the court case continues.

 

The order from Joe Heaton, federal judge for the Western District of Oklahoma, came only a day after the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver ruled Hobby Lobby and Mardel had demonstrated they probably would prevail in showing their religious freedom had been infringed on by the mandate. The eight judges for the 10th Circuit also instructed the lower court to reconsider whether it should grant an injunction.

 

A lawyer representing Hobby Lobby commended both courts.

 

Hobby Lobby and its owners "faced the terrible choice of violating their faith or paying massive fines starting this Monday morning," said Kyle Duncan, general counsel with the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. "We are delighted that both the 10th Circuit and the district court have spared them from this unjust burden on their religious freedom."

 

The Obama administration issued final rules on the abortion/contraception mandate the same day Heaton issued his order in the Hobby Lobby case. The rules did not provide a religious liberty accommodation to for-profit companies such as Hobby Lobby and Mardel, and religious freedom advocates said they failed to remedy the conscience problems for non-profit organizations that object.

 

Hobby Lobby, which has 550 stores in the United States, and Mardel filed suit last year against the portion of the 2010 health care reform law that requires employers to pay for coverage of drugs defined by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) as contraceptives, even if they can cause abortions. Members of the Green family -- evangelical Christians who own Hobby Lobby and Mardel -- do not oppose all contraceptive methods, only those that have abortion-causing qualities. They have said they will not obey the mandate.

 

The FDA-approved drugs in question in the case include Plan B and other "morning-after" pills with a secondary, post-fertilization mechanism that can cause an abortion by preventing implantation of tiny embryos. The mandate also covers "ella," which -- in a fashion similar to the abortion drug RU 486 --- can act even after implantation to end the life of the child.

 

More than 60 lawsuits have been filed against the abortion/contraception mandate. Before the June 28 order, Hobby Lobby had been one of only seven for-profit companies that had failed to win an injunction or restraining order blocking enforcement of the controversial requirement while their suits proceeded in court, according to the Becket Fund. Courts now have granted injunctions or restraining orders to 22 for-profit corporations. No action has been taken in four lawsuits by for-profit companies.

 

The Obama administration's final rules for the abortion/contraception requirement extended the implementation date for Christian institutions and other non-profit organizations from Aug. 1 to Jan. 1, 2014. It will take effect when each organization's health plan begins a new year. The mandate's start-up date for for-profit organizations was Aug. 1 of last year.

 

Hobby Lobby seeks to honor God "by operating the company in a manner consistent with Biblical principles," according to its statement of purpose. Its stores are closed on Sundays. The Oklahoma City-based chain contributes to Christian organizations selected by the Green family that seek "to share the Good News of Jesus Christ to all the world," according to its website.

 

The case is Hobby Lobby v. Sebelius.

 

Compiled by Washington bureau chief Tom Strode, Source: Baptist Press

Revised Obamacare Abortion Pill Mandate Provides No Exemption for Religious-Owned Businesses

 

 

 
The Obama administration released its final revised rules surrounding its controversial contraception mandate on Friday, which pro-life organizations note still lacks an exemption for religious-owned businesses.
 
As previously reported, last December, two colleges won a challenge against Obamacare's abortion pill mandate after the government vowed that it would rewrite the requirement so that it would not to pertain to sectarian educational institutions.
Wheaton College, a Christian entity located not far from Chicago, Illinois, and Belmont Abbey College, a Catholic institution west of Charlotte, North Carolina, both previously had their lawsuits dismissed by lower courts. However, during proceedings in the appellate courts, the Health and Human Services Department promised that it would make an adjustment to the contraceptive mandate in Obamacare to exempt colleges like Wheaton and Belmont Abbey.
 
In February, the administration released a draft of its revised rules, redefining the phrase "religious employer," and allowing universities and religious hospitals to take part in the exemption. In such cases, the insurance company will pay for the contraceptives instead of the organization. On Friday, the mandate was officially finalized.
 
"Today's announcement reinforces our commitment to respect the concerns of houses of worship and other non-profit religious organizations that object to contraceptive coverage, while helping to ensure that women get the care they need, regardless of where they work," Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius said in a statement.
However, pro-life organizations said that the revised rule did not go far enough to protect religious freedom, specifically in regard to religious-owned businesses.
 
"When it comes to religious liberty, the Department of Health and Human Services is acting like a kid who doesn't want to eat his lima beans," said Eric Rassbach of The Becket Fund for Religious Liberty, which has been representing the craft chain Hobby Lobby in the courts, as well as numerous other non-profit institutions. "Our Constitution and laws require them to protect religious exercise, but they really don't want to, so they are trying every trick in the book to avoid doing so. But we will keep suing until the courts make HHS comply with its obligations."
 
"Unfortunately the final rule announced today is the same old, same old. As we said when the proposed rule was issued, this doesn't solve the religious conscience problem because it still makes our non-profit clients the gatekeepers to abortion and provides no protection to religious businesses," he stated. "The easy way to resolve this would have been to exempt sincere religious employers completely, as the Constitution requires. Instead this issue will have to be decided in court."
Gregory Baylor, senior counsel at the Christian legal organization Alliance Defending Freedom, released similar comments.
 
"All Americans should be free to live according to their faith rather than be forced into violating that faith. The Obama administration insists on waging war on religious freedom, and the final rule issued today confirms that," he said. "It ignores the voices of numerous Americans who expressed concern about the mandate's impact on for-profit, faith-based job creators. And it does nothing to alleviate the concerns of the non-profit religious organizations we represent, who are still subject to the mandate."
"On multiple levels, the president is articulating what is arguably the most narrow view of religious freedom ever expressed by an administration in this nation's history," he added.
 
In spite of the new rules not containing an exemption for religious businesses, this week, the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals ruled in favor of Hobby Lobby, reversing the denial of a federal injunction and sending the matter back to the district court for further review.
 
"A religious individual may enter the for-profit realm intending to demonstrate to the marketplace that a corporation can succeed financially while adhering to religious values," the panel wrote. "As a court, we do not see how we can distinguish this form of evangelism from any other."
 
Source: ChristianNews.net

Giving more freedom to dangerous drug raises questions

 

The U.S. Supreme Court is telling the Oklahoma Supreme Court to think twice about its decision on the use of an abortion drug.

 

Oklahoma's high court struck down a law that stipulates that RU486 must be dispensed according to guidelines established by the Food and Drug Administration. Most abortion clinics do not adhere to those guidelines. Americans United for Life General Counsel Ovide Lamontange tells OneNewsNow the U.S. Supreme Court wants Oklahoma to answer some serious questions about its decision.

 

"The Food and Drug Administration issues protocols and instructions for various drugs," he says. "That's how the drugs are supposed to be used in every other setting in health care, and that's the way it should be for abortion as well."

 

So he is saying an abortion drug should not be given a pass.

 

"The abortion industry isn't about logic," he adds. "It's about making money. It's about exploiting women. It's about taking advantage of the poor and those women who are victims of their greed. And so they want a special class treatment for bringing abortion about."

 

That is in spite of the fact that using RU486 has caused at least 14 women to die and more than 2,000 others to be hospitalized due to serious side effects. After the Supreme Court gets answers to the questions, the justices will decide whether to accept the case.

 

Contact: Charlie Butts, Source: OneNewsNow.com

Thomas More Society in Chicago defends life for 15th year

 

The Thomas More Society in Chicago is celebrating a birthday as it continues to fight to preserve life and constitutional freedoms.

 

Thomas More Society was born fifteen years ago, fathered by attorney Tom Brejcha, for the sake of defending Joe Scheidler of the Pro-Life Action League who had been sued by the National Organization for Women. The National Organization for Women accused Scheidler of racketeering because of his work to save the lives of preborn children. Scheidler says Brejcha and the Thomas More Society went to the U.S. Supreme Court three times before gaining victory.

 

"A decision in our favor was that we were not racketeers," Scheidler says. "We had put our house in escrow, we were being assessed triple damages as they do in racketeering, and all of that was thrown out because of the diligent work of Tom Brejcha and the Thomas More Society."

 

During that period, Thomas More Society was not solely focused on that major case.

 

"Now Tom has gone on to take dozens and dozens of cases similar to ours," Scheidler tells OneNewsNow. "And one reason I wanted Tom was because when we went out to lunch and he first was being introduced to me, he said, 'I win cases.' And that was what I needed to hear."

 

In fact, Brejcha looks for cases to handle, including representing Live Action in their ongoing ministry to expose the abortion industry for what it is.

 

Contact: Charlie Butts, Source: OneNewsNow.com

Pro-life gatherings for experienced activists – and for younger ones, too

 

The National Right to Life Committee is holding its 43rd annual convention in Dallas starting today, in hopes of building up those in the pro-life movement. At the same time, young people within the pro-life movement will be having their own convention.

 

NRLC spokesman Derrick Jones tells OneNewsNow that leaders from throughout the country are gathered for three days of workshops, education, and networking.

 

"This is bringing together our chapter leadership, our state leadership, individual activists all coming together to learn the latest developments that are affecting the pro-life movement," which includes, he says, "advances in stem-cell research [and] new legislative efforts, including bills to protect pain-capable unborn children."

 

While the pro-life movement suffered setbacks in the 2012 election, more people have come to terms with life issues. A Gallup poll shows an increase in people describing themselves as "pro-life." The convention, Jones says, is a serious one for delegates.

 

"This gives them a chance to kind of come together for a few days, recharge, regroup and get ready to go back and really go," he offers, "but also [it's about] educating newcomers and getting them excited to get involved and take the pro-life message back to their communities."

 

According to the pro-life spokesman, that is vital because most of the successes in passing pro-life bills in recent years have been on the state level.

 

One of the featured speakers at the NRLC gathering is  Texas Governor Rick Perry, who just today  called a special legislative session to allow the GOP-controlled statehouse another attempt at passing a pro-life bill after angry pro-abortion people in the gallery interrupted a vote this week.

 

Teens for Life gathering as well

 

Amanda Gilioli of Wisconsin is on the National Right to Life youth advisory board and tells OneNewsNow that no effort has been spared to obtain standout pro-life speakers for the Teens for Life gathering.

 

"We're having Wesley J. Smith, Melissa Ohden who is an abortion survivor, Bobby Schindler who is Terri Schiavo's brother, [and] Senator Ted Cruz from Texas," she shares, adding that the list includes several youth speakers because young people are influenced by their peers.

 

Gilioli says life is an issue of growing importance to her generation.

 

"Abortion just affects our generation a lot more powerfully than maybe generations before," she sahs. "I think we recognize that our parents had a choice and they could have chosen differently than what they did, and I think that really affects us. You know, we see that people in our classrooms are missing and we know people who had abortions or different things like that."

 

Her hope is that young people attending the convention will leave fully prepared to go home and energize other youth to join the ranks of the pro-life movement.

 

Contact: Charlie Butts, Source: OneNewsNow.com