We stand at a cultural crossroads, the intersection of the Culture of Life and the Culture of Death. At this critical juncture, the choices we make matter, now and forever. Therefore, the members of Life is Worth Living, a lay apostolate, have chosen to promote the Culture of Life.
Our mission is to strive to affirm -- in thought, word, and deed -- the infinite preciousness of human life; to encourage service to others rather than radical self-interest; and to promote a climate of public opinion that recognizes the right of all human beings to life, respect, compassionate care, appropriate medical treatment, and equality under the law.
E-Letter #108, October 29, 2008
posted by Julie Grimstad
Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Dear Members and Friends,
The United States of America is at a critical juncture. Will we elect men and women to public office who are pro-life or pro-death? I do not think it is hyperbole to say that this election will determine the fate of our nation and affect the whole world.
The items in this E-Letter highlight the recent pronouncements made by numerous Catholic bishops in the U.S. regarding how Catholics should determine which candidates to vote for in the upcoming election. I urge you to share these messages from our good shepherds with everyone you know.
You may never again in your lifetime be given an opportunity like this--the opportunity to be genuinely instrumental in securing legal protection for every human life and legal recognition of the personhood of every human being from conception (fertilization) to natural death..
My good friend and mentor, the late Dr. Joseph R. Stanton, used to cite an ancient Chinese curse, "May you live in interesting times." Then he would explain that it is not a curse, but a blessing, to be able to serve God and man in interesting times. These, my friends, are interesting times. I encourage you to ask yourself, "How will I best serve God and man at this momentous time in history?"
In the Sacred Heart,
Julie Grimstad
Executive Director
Item 1. Bishop Robert W. Finn (Kansas City-St. Joseph), in the newspaper of his diocese, October 24, wrote, "Together with the other Bishops of Missouri, I am calling on all the faithful to make this last week before the election a week of prayer for our nation--a week of prayer for the protection of Human Life." He added, "Join me in calling upon Mary in this month of the rosary. In 1571, in the midst of the Battle of Lepanto, when the future of Christian Europe was in the balance and the odds against them were overwhelming, prayer to Our Lady of the Rosary brought the decisive victory. We ask her now to watch over our country and bring us the victory of life."
Item 2. Bishop Robert J. Hermann (current administrator--Archdiocese of St. Louis), in the St. Louis Review, October 17, wrote a column entitled "I Thought You Should Know." He began, "More than anything else, this election is about saving our children or killing our children. This life issue is the overriding issue facing each of us in this coming election. All other issues, including the economy, have to take second place to the issue of life." He started the first 13 paragraphs with the plea "Save our children!" in bold letters. The last paragraph, he started with "Prayer is our protection."
Bishop Hermann confronted "so-called good Catholics," asking questions which should sear the conscience of anyone calling himself/herself Catholic who is tempted to vote for pro-abortion candidates. For instance, "Do some of our so-called good Catholics, who may go to Mass every Sunday and receive the Holy Eucharist, really believe that voting for a pro-abortion candidate, when there is a clear alternative and therefore no justifiable reason for so doing, is really not voting to have children killed?"
Bishop Hermann's entire article can be read online at http://www.catholic.org/printer_friendly.php?id=30126§ion=Cathcom.
Item 3. Over 80 Bishops Say Abortion/Life Issues Defining Issues of Election
An article by Tim Waggoner published by LifeSiteNews.com, October 27, 2008, ought to make every faithful Catholic stand up and cheer. Waggoner wrote, "A comprehensive list compiled by InsideCatholic.com reveals that more than 80 U.S. bishops have proclaimed abortion and the life issues to be the defining issues in the upcoming election, including 22 bishops who signed on to a joint statement by the New York bishops, and another 10 bishops who signed on to a Pennsylvania joint statement." To read the full article, click here http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2008/oct/08102710.html.
LET US PRAY that the determination of Catholic bishops to reach Catholic voters at this 11th hour pays off!
THE END