Archive for the ‘Euthanasia’ Category

Two pro-life bills were signed by Georgia’s Governor Deal last week: the GA Fetal Pain bill and the ban on Assisted Suicides.

Monday, May 7th, 2012

I had the honor of serving on the Board of Georgia Right to Life during the beginning stages of this wonderful pro-life efforts. It’s a great victory for the pro-life movement and the the state of Georgia!

GRTL President Dan Becker today expressed thanks to Governor Nathan Deal for signing a law that protects preborn children capable of feeling pain.

“I am deeply grateful that Governor Deal has demonstrated his commitment to protecting the preborn,” Becker said, “by signing this measure, at least 1,500 babies a year will no longer be killed.”

Previously, Georgia allowed abortions for almost any reason throughout all nine months of pregnancy.

The new law, HB 954 sponsored by Rep. Doug McKillip (District 115), will take effect on January 1, 2013. It clearly establishes that Georgia has a “compelling state interest in protecting the lives of unborn children from the stage at which they are capable of feeling pain.”

That stage is now set at 20 weeks after gestation, which means no abortions can be performed after that, except in cases where it’s necessary to save the life of the mother, or to end a “medically futile” pregnancy.

“While this new law represents significant progress in saving lives, a last-minute amendment that allows doctors to end so-called futile pregnancies is a first step to establishing a eugenic policy in Georgia,” Becker said, “It opens the door to destroying babies doctors think may be less than perfect.”

Noting that the proposal prompted a heated and emotional debate, Becker added “I commend those legislators who honored the sanctity of life and did not abandon their principles.”

Georgia now joins six other states that have passed similar laws.
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Georgia Right to Life Hails Assisted Suicide Ban Signing

GRTL President Dan Becker today praised Governor Nathan Deal for signing the state’s new assisted suicide law.

“Stopping the immoral and barbaric practice of killing in the name of compassion is the right thing to do,” Becker said, “Governor Deal deserves credit for endorsing this measure.”

The bill, HB 1114 sponsored by Rep. Ed Setzler (District 35), was passed in response to last February’s decision by the Georgia Supreme Court that struck down the state’s previous weak and ineffective law.

The law becomes effective immediately.

The old law only prevented advertising assisted suicide services, but did not prohibit the procedure itself.

“Any society that claims to value life cannot justify taking a life lest we risk establishing a public policy with its attendant expectation of a ‘duty to die’,” Becker said, “The Hippocratic Oath says, ‘I will give no deadly medicine to any one if asked, nor suggest any such counsel …’ “

“We should instead devote our knowledge and resources to helping people in desperate situations.”

Fr. Pavone To LCWR: Priests for Life Will Work “Side by Side” With Women Religious To Proclaim A Pro-Life Message

Thursday, April 19th, 2012

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: April 19, 2012

Contact: Leslie Palma
347-286-7277

STATEN ISLAND, NY — Father Frank Pavone, National Director of Priests for Life, issued the following comment today on the Vatican’s assessment of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious (LCWR):

“As a pro-life ministry dedicated to fully activating the Church to end abortion and euthanasia, Priests for Life is grateful to the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith for the assessment it has issued of the Leadership Conference of Women Religious, and in particular for pointing out the problem of silence regarding abortion and the right to life.”

Following a two-year investigation into the LCWR, the Vatican concluded, in part, that, “while there has been a great deal of work on the part of LCWR promoting issues of social justice in harmony with the church’s social doctrine, it is silent on the right to life from conception to natural death.”

Responding to that finding, Father Pavone said, “Priests for Life has the highest regard for the women religious in the Church and the consecration they have made to God of their lives. We want to work side by side with them and support them in the pro-life dimensions of their life and ministry. We therefore encourage the LCWR and all its members to make the right to life a clear and constant aspect of the message they proclaim to the world.”

Father Pavone concluded: “As we have often pointed out, the very act of consecrating one’s life to God strikes at the heart of the culture of death. While the culture of death proclaims, ‘I have the right to choose,’ the religious life proclaims, ‘My life and choices belong to God, and there is where I find true freedom.’ ”

To read the statement from the Vatican, go to
www.priestsforlife.org/CDF-LCWR-Assessment.pdf.

Priests for Life is the nation’s largest Catholic pro-life organization dedicated to ending abortion and euthanasia. For more information, visit Priests for Life.

“Terri Schiavo Priest” Issues Anniversary Statement

Monday, March 26th, 2012

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: March 25, 2012

Contact: Andre Kim
347-286-7277

New York, NY — Fr. Frank Pavone, National Director of Priests for Life, who became known as the “Terri Schiavo Priest” because of his involvement in the case back in 2005, issued the following statement in preparation for the seventh anniversary of her death on March 31:

“None of us who were in Terri’s room during her final weeks and hours will ever forget the intense spiritual and emotional impact of that experience. Terri’s death was not a dignified, peaceful, beautiful event, like the proponents of euthanasia want to paint it. Instead, it was violent, ugly, and offensive to the dignity that Terri and every human person, whether disabled or not, possesses.

“During Terri’s fight, some asked, ‘Why so much commotion over one person?’ Our answer is twofold. First, every single person is worth every effort it takes to stand up for them. And second, Terri’s fight is our fight. If she is not safe, neither are we. If she can be discarded, so can millions of others.

“That’s why I’m so grateful to see how God’s grace sustains Terri’s family to fight for all the other Terri’s of our world. That’s why our Priests for Life team is honored to have co-founded with them this annual International Day of Remembrance for Terri Schindler Schiavo and All of our Vulnerable Brothers and Sisters.

“As I said when I preached at Terri’s funeral Mass, let us take hold of the mission that is given to us now, to move forward with resolve, creativity, and boldness to protect human life and build a culture of life.”

For information on observing Terri’s Day on March 31, see www.TerrisDay.org.

Priests for Life is the nation’s largest Catholic pro-life organization dedicated to ending abortion and euthanasia. For more information, visit Priests for Life.

Father Pavone invites all to join Novena in memory of Terri Schiavo

Friday, March 23rd, 2012

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: March 23, 2012

Contact: Andre Kim
347-286-7277

Seventh Anniversary of her death will be March 31

March 31 will mark seven years since Terri Schindler Schiavo died after being deliberately dehydrated, with the consent of a Florida court. The International Day of Prayer and Remembrance for Terri Schindler Schiavo, and All of Our Vulnerable Brothers and Sisters (“Terri’s Day”) was established in 2007 by the Schindler family and Priests for Life, and is observed each year.

As in previous years, Father Frank Pavone, National Director of Priests for Life, asks those who celebrate the sanctity of life to join him in a Novena that will begin today and conclude on Terri’s Day. The “Prayer in Remembrance of Terri Schiavo” can be found in English and Spanish at www.PrayerCampaign.org.

“As I said when I preached at Terri’s funeral Mass, the tragedy of what happened to her is meant to bring us all together, galvanized to help all the other Terris of the world,” Father Pavone said “Let us not miss this opportunity to educate and inspire one another, and let’s all continue to support Terri’s family and the Terri Schiavo Life & Hope Network.”

Father Pavone noted that there is a new urgency for prayer and pro-life activism this year.

“As certain aspects of health care law pose more and more of a threat to human life, we have to be more vigilant than ever to protect the Terris of today and tomorrow,” he said.

The annual National Mass for Terri’s Day at the Ave Maria Oratory at Ave Maria University in Ave Maria, Florida, will take place at 5 p.m. on Friday, March 30. This year, Fr. Denis Wilde, OSA, Associate Director of Priests for Life, will deliver the homily.

“Terri’s Day” was established to foster education, prayer, and activism to counter discrimination against the disabled. We urge Churches, schools, organizations, families, and individuals to observe this day. Suggested prayers and activities are at www.TerrisDay.org.

Priests for Life is the nation’s largest Catholic pro-life organization dedicated to ending abortion and euthanasia. For more information, visit Priests for Life.

NewsOne taps PFL’s Alveda King as one of Top 10 Black Women

Thursday, March 8th, 2012

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: March 8, 2012

Contact: Andre Kim
347-286-7277

Dr. Alveda King, Priests for Life’s full-time director of African-American Outreach, has been named one of NewsOne’s Top 10 Black Women.

In naming its “Sheroes,” the news service wrote of Dr. King: “Deemed the ‘voice of the voiceless’ and an enemy of pro-choice advocates everywhere, King, the niece of civil rights activist Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., believes that unborn babies have a right to life… King, a pro-life activist and evangelical minister is driven by a strong spiritual conviction which is to keep the controversial issue of abortion before lawmakers.”

Dr. King shares the honor with First Lady Michelle Obama; astronaut Dr. Mae Jemison; Liberia President Elllen Johnson Sirleaf and other women of achievement.

“At Priests for Life, we have always recognized Dr. King as a ‘sheroe,’ because she is courageous and relentless when it comes to speaking out for the unborn,” said Father Frank Pavone, National Director of Priests for Life. “To have her recognized by NewsOne is very exciting. She deserves the honor.”

An Atlanta resident and mother of six, Dr. King is a former college professor who served in the Georgia State House of Representatives. She is a recipient of the Life Prize Award (2011), the Cardinal John O’Connor Pro-Life Hall of Fame Award (2011) from the Legatus organization and the Civil Rights Award from Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) (2011). She is a best-selling author whose books include “How Can the Dream Survive if we Murder the Children?” and “I Don’t Want Your Man, I Want My Own.”

She is an accomplished actress and songwriter. The Founder of King for America, she is also the recipient of an honorary Doctorate of Laws degree from Saint Anselm College and sits on the board of Georgia Right to Life. She is a member of the National Black Prolife Coalition, NBPC, a frequent guest on Fox News and a spokeswoman for the Silent No More Awareness Campaign.

“I am humbled and so honored by this recognition,” Dr. King said.”African-Americans need to bring an end to the abortion genocide that is decimating our community and NewsOne is helping me get that message to the people who most need to hear it. I thank NewsOne from the bottom of my heart.”

To read the NewsOne story, go to http://newsone.com/nation/ruthlogan/top-black-women/?omcamp=EMC-CVNL

To learn more about Dr. Alveda King and Priests for Life’s African-American Outreach, go to www.priestsforlife.org/africanamerican/index.htm

Priests for Life is the nation’s largest Catholic pro-life organization dedicated to ending abortion and euthanasia. For more information, visit Priests for Life.

Priests for Life Applauds Feast of Blessed John Paul II

Tuesday, November 15th, 2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: November 14, 2011

Contact: Andre Kim
347-286-7277

Washington, DC – Fr. Frank Pavone, National Director of Priests for Life, applauded the vote this afternoon of the US Bishops to include in the United States liturgical calendar the Feast of Blessed John Paul II on October 22. After this action is approved by Rome, Churches in the United States will have the option of using the special prayers at Mass written in honor of John Paul II each year on October 22.

Fr. Pavone said, “This is a special blessing for our people, because it gives them yet another opportunity to honor the man whom many of us call the Pope of Life. A liturgical feast day is an occasion to ask for the intercession of the one who is honored, to reflect on his teachings, and to resolve to imitate his example.

“Pope John Paul II, whom I was privileged to know and under whom I worked on pro-life issues at the Vatican, has left the Church the most comprehensive and compelling body of pro-life teachings in our history. Moreover, his example of unwavering dedication to speaking up for the weakest among us – the children still in the womb – and for challenging public authority to protect them, is an example we all need more than ever. As the battle for life intensifies, we also need his intercession more than ever. Once this new liturgical feast is approved by Rome, Priests for Life will promote it vigorously within the parishes and other Catholic institutions across the United States.”

Priests for Life is the nation’s largest Catholic pro-life organization dedicated to ending abortion and euthanasia. For more information, visit Priests for Life.

11.11.11 Releases a new song at THE CALL DETROIT

Monday, November 14th, 2011

The numerical series 11.11.11 received much attention. Of course, this is just one of countless numerical configurations that point to the truth of the Intelligent Designer of all Creation including the universe as we are discovering it. Actually, 11.11.11 is more powerful that 9.11 which traumatized and confounded the world for almost a decade.

In the unfolding saga of the greatness of Almighty God, the truthful power of Jesus Christ the Son of God and the Awesome Mystery of the Holy Spirit of God, there was a sign, a convergence in Detroit, Michigan for 24 hours on 11.11.11. Yours truly was there as a witness.

The theme of THE CALL DETROIT 11.11.11 was all about Occupy the Kingdom of God and let GOD’s Son Jesus be revealed in the earth. It turned out to be an incredible repentance and forgiveness; for racism, sexually immorality, abortion; shedding of innocent blood including gang violence. We prayed for America, for governments, families, loved ones, strangers, healing, and so much more… Goodness, you had to be there. Maybe GOD TV will re-air it.

When an ex-Muslim terrorist kneeled before his Jewish brother in Christ and repented for the ancient tribal war of Ishmael and Isaac, the crowd was amazed and fell into deep worship of GOD. When the tribes of the globe mutually repented for sins of racism to each other, the healing deepened. When the truth about abortion was revealed, when fathers repented to the mothers of the aborted children, when the wounded women repented and held up our heads free from shame, the healing mercy of GOD washed us all.

When the revelation of the always living, never dying DNA and RNA of THE BLOOD OF JESUS was released in the meeting, we all sang THE BLOOD THAT JESUS SHED FOR ME WILL NEVER LOOSE ITS POWER. That old traditional hymn became a NEW SONG!

Again, you had to be there—but then again, you didn’t. There was much released into the atmosphere, causing the Praying Church, the Worshipping and Praying Church to rise to a new level. The impact is permanent and universal.

Below is the text of remarks from the meeting:

Dr. Alveda King
Remarks at THE CALL DETROIT: 11/11/11
November 12, 2011

Dear Heavenly Father, it’s us. We, Your people who are called by Your Name. Wash us in the Blood of Your Dear and Precious Son, Jesus in Whom You are well pleased. Guide us by the Power of Your Holy Spirit to humble ourselves and pray, and seek Your face that we and our land may be healed. In Jesus’ Name. Amen.

First, let’s revisit a little history, going back even before the 300 terrible years of the Willie Lynch Saga, which we all know is about the dark time of racism and slavery in America. Let’s go back even further to visit a man named Jacob. His great-grandfather Abraham is the ancient Father of Many Nations. Joseph’s grandfather Isaac sowed in times of famine and became a very rich man. Joseph’s father Jacob wrestled with the angel of GOD and his name was changed to Israel. Anyway, a spirit of miscommunication caused spirits of jealousy, greed, murder and slavery to be released into Joseph’s life. His brothers – who by the way were the same color as he was, so slavery isn’t just about skin color- Jacob’s brothers threw him into a pit and Joseph became a slave and later by the grace of God, he became a liberator.

And then there was Moses, a Hebrew baby who was adopted by an Egyptian Princess. The brown Hebrew nation was oppressed by the brown rulers of Egypt. God raised up Moses to be the voice of liberation for His “chosen people.”

Then there is Africa of a more modern day, which found the same brown skinned descendents of Abraham, Isaac, Israel and Joseph in bondage for hundreds of years, still singing the freedom Bible songs, GO DOWN MOSES, JOSHUA FIT THE BATTLE OF JERICO… They were still singing THE LORD’S SONGS in a strange land – Africa.

Again, brown-now-black skinned people sold the FREEDOM SINGERS to another land, this time to people with pink and beige skin, called Caucasians. The slaves were transported to a land called America and met the Willie Lynch slave system, and Jim Crow and a host of horrors.

Today, we are gathered together, and we are still singing the Bible Freedom songs, which you will hear at THE CALL DETROIT 11.11.11

Today, as human beings, many of us have lived in two centuries. We have experienced the presence of Almighty God across the ages. In the 20th Century, Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. was called as a modern day Moses to lead a spiritual movement that would be historically labeled as the Civil Rights Movement of the 20th Century. The hub of the 20th Century Movement was in Birmingham, Alabama. Called the “Sons of Thunder,” my father, Rev. A. D. King is brother to Martin. They have been compared to John and Robert Kennedy in that they both gave their lives as Freedom Fighters. Both men love the Lord, and they live in heaven together today.

Uncle M. L., Daddy, and their earthly father, Daddy King were preachers of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. They were Freedom Fighters, and they were also Pro-Life Warriors. Daddy King rescued me from abortion in 1950. You can read the story in my book: HOW CAN THE DREAM SURVIVE IF WE MURDER THE CHILDREN?

Even though I had two secret abortions in the nineteen sixties and seventies, and a miscarriage due to the ravages of sin and secrets, God did not give up on me. In the mid-nineteen seventies, Daddy King and the father of the fifth child I was carrying convinced me spiritually, scientifically, medically and socially that the baby in my womb was truly a human being entitled to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

In 1983, I gave my life to Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior, and in the 1990’s became a “Voice for Life,” working today with Priests for Life Ministries.

Last night, I met a young woman who sat on the knee of Daddy King when she was 2 years old. She is 32 years old today. She shared with me that she was slated for abortion, and her father and mother let her live. Daddy King said she would have a spiritual destiny, and that her life would help many people.

You see, Daddy King, like his sons M. L. and A. D. and like many in our family, was a prophet. All those years ago when my mother wanted to abort me, Daddy King told her: “No. They are lying to you. She is not a lump of flesh. She is a little girl, with bright skin and bright red hair. She will be a blessing to many.” So you see, this little girl who is part Irish, part African and part Native American is standing before you today to bear witness of Acts 17:26, that of One Blood, God made all people to live on earth in a Beloved Community, and one day, to live in Eternity with Him. So we are one human race, not separate races. Racism is the spawn of a divisive lie. We are one human family in need of the Blood of Jesus!

Amos 5:24 says: But let justice roll down like waters And righteousness like an ever-flowing stream. My Uncle ML quoted that in his MOUNTAINTOP speech. He had a dream that we would all be free one day. Our prayers today are for repentance and freedom. For all human beings, from conception until natural death.

As Dr. Levonne Yuille, the Father of the Black Pro-Life Movement of the late 20th Century prepares to come to you, please allow me to say that I am Dr. Alveda King. I too have a dream. It is in my genes.

Here in Detroit, Michigan, a focal point of the 21st Century Civil Rights Movement, we lift up the banner of JESUS, coming against the lie of abortion, eugenics, genocide, euthanasia, and all that would destroy abundant life that our Lord and Master Jesus promises us. We bind murder in the womb, we bind sexual immorality, we bind idolatry. We chose Life In Jesus’ Name!

Friends, we are standing at the river. Justice and Righteousness flow together at the ford before us. For some the crossing is shallow, for some the crossing is deep. There is a river whose streams make glad the people of God. Agape Love is the bridge across the rushing streams. Let us launch out into the deep without fear. The freedom rides of the 20th Century meet the pro-life freedom rides of the 21st Century. The witness of the Dreamer Joseph of the ancient Bible days, the witness of the Prophet Moses of those times, the witness of the Sons of Thunder and all the beloved apostles of the early century all are with us today in the cloud of Heavenly worshipers. We gathered here and across the globe join together at this THE CALL DETROIT, 11/11/11. We Occupy this Planet today in our prayers. We resist the forces of darkness that try to wrest the knowledge of our Kingdom Inheritance from us. We resist their violent attacks against the Kingdom of our Heavenly Father. Their force must bend, bow and break before the Power of Almighty God! We draw near to God. We resist the devil. Flee Satan! As Jesus teaches us, by the Power of God’s Holy Spirit, and the ministry of the Holy Angels of God, we Occupy Until Jesus comes!

Loose the sound of true worship! Let the sound of the worship of the people who love the Lord fill the atmosphere, drowning out the ancient songs of the enemy that have once ruled this place.

Father, we give you all the glory, all the honor and all the praise. In Jesus Name. Amen

Poetry by Alveda King

Ripples (In Time and Space)

I

Libations, fluids rippling on the sands bringing time and space together; Bringing souls and spirits together… pebbles on the water, water making ripples,
Ripples in time.
“Behold I show you a mystery; We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed
In a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump;
For the trumpet shall sound, and the dead shall be raised
Incorruptible
And we shall be changed.”

II

Libations, shadows rippling on the sand
The earth beneath my feet changes from my dark and musky
Mother, becoming red and alien, harsh,
As the waters ripple and the great ship rolls.

III

I am carried away from my familiar jungle of fruits and passion flowers, wild animal friends and even wilder beasts;
Four legged animals, predators and yet, magnificent creations of God, with skins and furs …and fangs.

IV

Yet, change carries us over waters that no longer
Ripple.
The water becomes an awesome, rolling jungle of waves
That carries us on in the Middle Passage
Washing us away from our home ground to a new land of tears and sorrow,
Our newfound home in a new world.

V

And yet, wherever we were bought,
Beaten and scattered, over continents and islands,
New blood was added to our veins; and yet the Blood of our Motherland remained,
True and deep.
In our new world, we learned to harvest new crops;
Some not quite so different from our jungle fruits and vegetation.
We tamed fields of cotton and tobacco
Even as our wild, free spirits were tamed by the new predator; Two-legged beasts, still creatures of God, yet not quite so magnificent in their borrowed skins and furs. But still their fangs, though changed Remain deadly.

VI

The libations continue
The spirits that were summoned bring new birth to memories
Reflections of time itself.
We see ourselves in a new jungle– still a part of God’s creation,
And yet, the earth has changed.
The soil is not dark and musty between our bare and braceleted feet,
Nor is it red and cracked beneath our chained and callous feet.
It has become rock, concrete,
A machine-made improvement on nature,
And yet still part of nature.

VII

The tribal dancers before the sun, the wind, the rain and the Moon
have become whirling disco bodies beneath a myriad of simulated starlight,
Lightning and thundering electro phonic sounds.

VIII

The hunter’s spears and darts have become a mania for Money;
And guns bring down men and the bloodthirsty prey upon the weak who become Homeless, Jobless, and
Dreamless.

IX

The savagery continues, though times and methods change. The lie of racism causes us to forget that we are all of one blood. Slaughter begins in the womb, and the terror rains down across the ages. Humanity seems to have forgotten why we are here.

Humankind has changed, and yet has not changed, only
Shimmered and rippled in the reflections of time.

X

For though one generation passeth away, another generation cometh.
As the sun rises, it sets only to rise again.
The wind goes to the south only to return to the north,
Whirling continually, returning again according to its circuits.
And the rivers run to the sea, yet the sea is not full,
For the rivers return again to that place from which they came.
For that which has been, shall be again, and that which has been done,
Shall be done again.
For as all things change, they remain because: “There is no new thing under the sun.” There are only rippling images of change, all belonging to the universe, The Old, the New created by the Omnipotent
The Lord GOD! Who changes not.

Alveda King: “Occupy” Movement Must Turn Away From Violence

Monday, November 7th, 2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: November 7, 2011

Contact: Andre Kim
347-286-7277

ATLANTA – Dr. Alveda King, director of African-American Outreach for Priests for Life and founder of King for America, said the Occupy Wall Street movement must embrace prayer and disavow violence if it hopes to emulate the 20th century Civil Rights Movement.

“The whole Civil Rights movement was founded in prayer, in crying out to God in peace,” Dr. King said today during an interview on “Fox & Friends.” “This movement is not peaceful,” she said of Occupy Wall Street.

Dr. King, the niece of Rev. Dr. Martin King Jr., was invited on the show to discuss comments made by Rev. Jesse Jackson last week in Atlanta, comparing the two movements and insisting that Martin Luther King would have supported Occupy Wall Street.

“Rev. Jackson knows this is not the model my uncle upheld, or that my father, Rev. A.D. King, upheld,” she said. “The people who came out are hurting, they need answers. They need help, not to be incited to violence. They need a leader who is going to lead them peacefully.

Calling him “a civil wrong leader on this point,” Dr. King said, “Rev. Jackson needs to revisit his 20th century history.”

Dr. King also noted that the pro-life movement has adopted the prayerful, peaceful model of the Civil Rights movement as it works to end abortion, euthanasia, assisted suicide and embryonic stem cell research.

Priests for Life is the nation’s largest Catholic pro-life organization dedicated to ending abortion and euthanasia. For more information, visit Priests for Life.

‘York Eight’ Make Lifelong Commitment to the Unborn

Tuesday, October 25th, 2011

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Date: October 25, 2011

Contact: Andre Kim
347-286-7277

During a regular Saturday morning Mass in York, Pa., last week, eight people pledged their lives to the fight against abortion. For the new members of the Missionaries of Evangelium Vitae – or Missionaries of the Gospel of Life – this was not a promise made lightly.

Deacon Daniel Bernardy’s promise was rooted in his experiences as a Peace Corps volunteer working in an orphanage in Iran.

Stephanie Burns made her first promise the day she was to have surgery for breast cancer, but found out she was pregnant instead.

For Maria Mullen, a journey that began 29 years ago in Mexico continues today with renewed vigor and commitment.

More than 206 have made lifetime pledges as MEVs, with more than 1,622 in formation around the world. Their stories are as varied as those of the “York Eight,” whose journey began in a “Life Cell” led by MEVs Peggy Pritchard and Vicki Crispo, and whose promises were accepted by Father Paul Schenk, director of Respect Life activities for the Diocese of Harrisburg.

The spirituality and mission of the Missionaries of the Gospel of Life have been shaped by the teaching and example of Pope John Paul II, author of “Evangelium Vitae,” and Mother Teresa of Calcutta. The program was developed by Father Frank Pavone, National Director of the Priests for Life.

“What attracts the MEVs is the fact that pro-life is a spirituality,” said Father Pavone. “It’s not a hobby or an extracurricular activity. Rather, it flows from the very core of their faith, and from their commitment to be disciples of Jesus Christ. There they find both the ‘why’ and the ‘how’ of pro-life activism.”

After decades involved in pro-life in Mexico, Mrs. Mullen has decided that for now, she will concentrate her efforts at home, raising her children as the next generation of pro-life warriors.

Mrs. Burns, who delivered a healthy son after her breast cancer diagnosis and is now cancer-free herself, is a junior high teacher at a Catholic school. She opens each class with a pro-life prayer to Mary, in the hopes of instilling “a respect for all life into my young students before they can be indoctrinated into the culture of death. After all, our future is in their hands.”

In addition to his many duties as a deacon, Deacon Bernardy can still be found outside abortion clinics with his “weapon of choice” – rosary beads.

Wendy Matarese has had an abortion, and her MEV promise allows her to reach out to other women who have been hurt by the lie that abortion is a solution to a problem.

“After more than a decade out of a state of grace, I went to Reconciliation and the Eucharist,” she said. “Without my association with the MEV and the grace of God, that may not have happened.”

To find out more about the MEV program, visit Missionaries of the Gospel of Life. To arrange an interview with Father Pavone, any of the York Eight, or Mrs. Pritchard and Mrs. Crispo, call Andre Kim at 347-286-7277.

Priests for Life is the nation’s largest Catholic pro-life organization dedicated to ending abortion and euthanasia. For more information, visit Priests for Life.

Baby Joseph: A Life Worth Living

Wednesday, September 28th, 2011

By Fr. Frank Pavone

Tuesday, September 27, 2011

I learned with sadness tonight of the passing of Baby Joseph Maraachli, the boy from Canada who, earlier this year, made international headlines as his family fought to give him the basic care he needed in order to breathe. I extend my condolences and prayers to his family.

This young boy and his parents fulfilled a special mission from God. Amidst a Culture of Death where despair leads us to dispose of the vulnerable, they upheld a Culture of Life where hope leads us to welcome and care for the vulnerable.

From my first conversation with Baby Joseph’s parents, they expressed to me their trust in God. They had no demands of Him regarding how long their son would live. They just wanted to fulfill their calling to love their child unconditionally and to protect him from those who considered his life worthless.

Jerry Horn, Senior Vice President of Priests for Life (right) with Joseph's father, Moe

And they fulfilled that calling. After encountering, to their astonishment, the unwillingness of the Canadian medical and legal establishment to give their son a simple tracheotomy, they turned to Priests for Life, and we arranged for the child to receive that treatment at Cardinal Glennon Childrens’ Medical Center in Saint Louis. I’ll never forget the night I flew in the medical jet to pick up the baby and his dad. (Mom and their older child joined us shortly thereafter.) It was the middle of the night. It was cold. And yet new hope and joy were born on that Kalitta MedFlight. Joseph’s Dad Moe was literally pinching himself, saying he could hardly believe that his son was now free from the prison of a hospital where he had been, and able to receive a new evaluation and care.

And what a joy it was, after those weeks in Saint Louis, to celebrate Holy Thursday and, on that day, to see Joseph go home with his parents, breathing on his own without tubes or machines. Nobody denied that he had a serious, degenerative neurological condition, and nobody was unwilling to accept professional medical judgment. What we refused to accept, however, was the arrogance of medical and legal professionals who presumed to judge the value of his life, and to say he wasn’t worth treating. Yes, there is such a thing as a worthless treatment, but there is never such a thing as a worthless life.

That’s the line that needs to be drawn in the sand again and again. That’s the prophetic witness that needs to thunder from our pulpits and be lobbied in the halls of government.

I praise God tonight for the tens of thousands who stood with Priests for Life and other prolife groups to save Baby Joseph. We remain convinced that the value of life is not measured in months or years, but rather reflected in the love we share moment by moment. We all loved Joseph, because God entrusts us to the care of each other. In that conviction we will continue to counteract the culture of death and restore protection and equality to all, born and unborn.