Friday, March 31, 2006

A Year Later, Terri Remembered....

One year ago today, Terri Schindler Schiavo died after 13 days of being without a single drop of water or an ounce of food.

Please go read Our Word and Welcome To It here and here, Pro-life Blogs, and at Blogs for Terri.

You can also search this blog to read the archives here for either Terri Schindler Schiavo or Terri Schiavo. Two ways to do that, either above through Blogger or through Technorati in the side bar.

I am on my way to work a 16 hour shift, then a lot of family things (wrestling, bowling of grandson, and shower for future daughter in law on Sun. So I will be 'not here' a lot this weekend.

Remember the Schindler family in your prayers this weekend. And pray for Mercy and Conversion for Michael.

God bless!

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Thursday, March 30, 2006

Terri --"Victim Soul for the Cause of Life"

Victim Soul for the Cause of Life


On this first anniversary of the death of Terri Schiavo we remember with deepest love that dear young woman who became the victim soul for the cause of life in our country. It’s not that raw judicial killings have not been perpetrated before on other innocents like Terri. It’s just that her case was the injustice that everyone in the world will remember, and believe me, I have spoken to people on five continents who watched her execution with baited breath during those agonizing thirteen days last year. She was the one who, despite being unable to speak, gave voice to the voiceless and sensitized us to the victim status of all who are thrust to the grave by the brute force of unscrupulous thugs like Michael Schiavo.


In the history of the Church some people are recognized as “victim souls,” meaning that they are chosen for suffering by God. It is hard to fathom why that is so until you see the fruits of their lives. I suspect that Terri will be recognized by history as one of those who were given to the world as living crucifixes to assure that no one will miss the message of the Cross. The act of crucifixion, as a form of execution in the Roman empire, was a brutal testament to the consequences of political disobedience, but a living crucifix is a testament to the consequences of rejecting God.


This is a message that our society has yet not gotten, but God still preaches it through prophets like Terri. A society that perpetrates or allows the judicial murder of more than a million innocent babies each year has rejected God. Terri was chosen by God to display for us in bold relief the enormity of this rejection, and if we did not get the message it is our own fault. All the elements of abortion fit together with Terri’s witness: a man wanted her killed because she was inconvenient to him, an activist judge provided the legal rationale for her killing, the police aided and abetted the murder, a special interest radical New Age lawyer thrust the lance into the side of the victim, and a conflicted public sat around debating the question of whether she should die or not and calling everyone who wanted to do anything about it a right-wing religious fanatic. In the face of this kind of rejection of God’s law, “Thou shall not kill,” Terri’s witness burns with an astounding radiance.


We miss Terri incredibly, but our grief is attenuated because victim souls never die in vain. Their lives always leave a spiritual wake washing the benefits of their suffering into the societies that had the privilege of seeing their prophetic witness. Since Terri died one year ago our country has virtually blasted open the Supreme Court with two new Justices, and several states are pounding on the door of the most murderous high court decision in all of history carving out a pathway of hope for the innocents who like Terri never had a chance.


In ten, twenty, fifty years who will remember Michael Schiavo? No one.
But Terri will never be forgotten, at least not if I have anything to say about it.


Sincerely Yours in Christ,

Rev. Thomas J. Euteneuer,
President, Human Life International



A Life That Matters - The Legacy Terri Schiavo

More on Remembering
Terri Schiavo

For the Spirit & Life
archives click here

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Interesting Statistics from DearPeggy.com

MARRIAGE TO AN AFFAIR PARTNER

Diane, regarding your comment:
I suppose the next thing will be to discredit the idea that that
marrying the person with whom you had an affair reduces chances of
remarriage success.

The generally-accepted statistics:
--marriage results from an affair somewhere between 1% and 9% of the time (based on the particular study) --the divorce rate for such marriages is about 70%

I usually tell people that the chances of having a successful marriage that began from an affair is "about like winning the lottery" - possible for a rare few, but not something any sensible person would bet on.

Peggy Vaughan
DearPeggy.com
peggy@dearpeggy.com

Thanks to Diane Sollee of Smart Marriages

Elizabeth Marquardt Seeking Adult Children of Divorce

Elizabeth Marquardt has made this request (via Diane Sollee of Smart Marriages ):



- ARE YOU A GROWN CHILD OF DIVORCE IN THE CHICAGO AREA? (OR DO YOU KNOW SOMEONE WHO IS?)
I'm beginning a project that will result in a short film about the inner lives of grown children of divorce, based on study findings reported in Between Two Worlds: The Inner Lives of Children of Divorce.

I'm looking for young adults (roughly 18-35 years old) who grew up with divorced parents and currently live in the Chicago area who would be interested in being interviewed on camera about their experience.

If that's you, or if you have a friend who would be interested, or if you want to learn more ­ please contact me at elizabeth@americanvalues.org

Please also forward this announcement to any relevant lists. Thanks!

Elizabeth Marquardt

Jill Carroll Released!

Fantastic news this AM. Jill Carroll has been released, and her Dad said she is doing well.

Thank God!

From the BlogsforTerri Team

This email came in yesterday from Blogs for Terri Team:

Dear BlogsforTerri friends,

You're probably aware of the controversy that has hit the airwaves concerning the release of two books about Terri Schiavo. Terri's ex-husband, Michael, has published a text he recently affirmed was written to "settle some scores" with Terri's family.

Yesterday, the Schindler's released a provocative book in honor of their daughter that provides a never-before-seen look at Terri's life and death and the societal changes that set the stage for her court ordered dehydration. The book is titled A Life that Matters: the legacy of Terri Schiavo - a lesson for us all and is inscribed with the following dedication:

Dedicated to Terri and to all with disabilities, wounded in body or spirit

May God always be your never ceasing fountain of strength, consolation and joy. May you be seen as our society's greatest treasure.

A Life that Matters is a must read for every supporter of Terri Schiavo as well as critics who have based their opinion on media reports.

Although some judge a book by its cover, many look at real-time sales and popularity as an indicator of public support. Consequently, Br. Paul O'Donnell, the Schindler's spiritual advisor, urges Schindler supporters to purchase their book. "It would make a statement that our society is against the killing of the disabled, is against euthanasia, if , by the grace of God, this could be a NY times best seller," he said. "It would make a profound statement."

We also hope you will stop by BlogsforTerri this week. Last year Terri's brother, Bobby Schindler, gave a poignant speech in Arizona, which he provided to BlogsforTerri. The first three part have been published:

Terri Schiavo's Life and Death

The Culture of Death Movement

Legalized Killing: The PVS Diagnosis

The final section is scheduled for release later this week.

Thank you for reading and continuing to take a stand for life.

The BlogsforTerri Team


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Wednesday, March 29, 2006

From Cheryl Ford, RN of Fight4Terri More Updates

FLORIDA RIGHT TO LIFE
378 CenterPointe Circle, Suite 1250
Altamonte Springs FL 32701
407.834.LIFE

• Michael Says He Almost Gave Up His Efforts to Euthanize Terri Schiavo
As Terri Schiavo Remembered, Pro-Life Group Urges Protective Measures
Michael Says He Almost Gave Up His Efforts to Euthanize Terri Schiavo
Clearwater, FL (LifeNews.com) -- In his new book "Terri: The Truth," which he has admitted was written to "settle a score" with Terri Schiavo's family, Michael Schiavo explains he almost gave up on his years-long battle to euthanize her. Michael wrote that Jodi Centonze, the woman he lived with for several years while married to Terri, urged him to "walk away" from the battle with Terri's family the day before Terri's feeding tube was removed for the last time. He wrote that he decided to give up on his efforts to take Terri's life so he could move on with his own. However, his attorney, assisted suicide advocate George Felos, talked him out of it. When he called Felos to tell him the news that he was quitting the legal battle, Felos told him euthanasia proponents were counting on Michael to win. "(Felos) reminded me that we had to realize that it wasn't just about Terri anymore," Michael wrote. "It was about the rest of the people who didn't want the government telling us how we could die and when we were allowed to decide that we didn't want further medical treatment. And it was about who has the right to make decisions between a husband and wife," he said. The Schindler family and pro-life groups frequently suspected Felos, a longtime euthanasia advocate who is still promoting the grisly practice at conferences and conventions, was a driving force behind Schiavo's efforts to kill Terri. Read the complete story.

As Terri Schiavo Remembered, Pro-Life Group Urges Protective Measures
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) -- As millions of Americans mourn Terri Schiavo's euthanasia death on its one-year anniversary Friday, a pro-life is urging people to complete a pro-life version of an advanced directive in order to prevent becoming the next person sentenced to death by the courts or family members. "Terri's death was a gross injustice that marked a sad day in our history when our society allowed Terri, a woman with a severe disability, to be discarded in such a cruel and inhumane manner," says Burke Balch, the director of medical ethics for the National Right to Life Committee. Balch said his group wants Americans to do two things to make a difference: complete a Will to Live form from NRLC and contact your state legislators and urge laws to protect disabled people. The Will to Live form allows patients to clearly express the kinds of treatment they want should they be unable to make their own health care decisions down the road. Balch says the form is vitally important because an NRLC study shows the laws of all but ten states may allow doctors and hospitals to disregard advance directives when the directives call for treatment, food, or fluids. The form is designed to make it clear that a patient wants food and fluids continued. Following Terri Schiavo's death, many groups and the media have focused on urging Americans to complete living will forms. However, NRLC reports that, increasingly, health care providers who consider a patient's "quality of life" too low are defying these directives in order to deny treatment against patient and family wishes. Read the complete story.

Available NOW....
The book,
Our Fight4Terri
Discounted for Fight4Terri supporters at:
www.Fight4Terri.com
or, can be ordered directly from publisher at:
Trafford Publishing: Our Fight4Terri


Cheryl Ford, RN (www.Fight4Terri.com) is not affiliated with any other group and works to protect the rights of the disabled community


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Tuesday, March 28, 2006

Fr Pavone "Blessing the Grave" of Terri Schindler Schiavo

From Fr Pavone after he had blessed Terri's grave, as a reminder again, while drawing closer to the one year anniversary of her murder by dehydration/starvation:

Blessing the Grave
Fr. Frank Pavone

National Director, Priests for Life


Click here for Spanish version

Click here for the audio version (MP3 format)

Fr. Frank's columns are podcast. Click here for more information.

I recently had the privilege of blessing the grave of Terri Schindler-Schiavo, who was murdered on March 31, 2005 by dehydration. Her grave is not far from the place where she died, and where people from around the world had gathered to protest and pray.

Those who visit the gravestone, however, will notice something highly unusual. While on most graves there is an inscription of two dates – when the person was born and when he or she died – on Terri’s there are three. Here’s exactly what the grave says:

Born December 3, 1963

Departed this Earth February 25, 1990

At Peace March 31, 2005

The whole world knows that she died on March 31, 2005. National and global media were present at the scene for days, covering every detail. Media were present again when I preached at her funeral mass. We know when she died.

But her gravestone has become a pulpit for the euthanasia movement. Those who killed her are now using her grave as a platform for their twisted ideology. What they are trying to say is that once her brain was injured in 1990 and she was no longer functioning like most of us, she wasn’t one of us anymore. She “departed this earth.”

This is actually a variation on an ancient heresy, which says that we are really spirits inhabiting a body. Terri couldn’t communicate normally. So, her “spirit” must have left her. The body was just a shell left behind. Those who believe she really “departed this earth” in 1990 can therefore pretend it was OK to kill her in 2005. After all, it wasn’t really her. She was already gone.

This is heresy, because Christianity teaches that we are a unity of body and soul, not simply a soul “using” a body. The body matters. What we do to the body, we do to the person.


Moreover, the gravestone inscription is a deep insult to all who are disabled, and to all those who love and care for them. Should they be considered already dead, too? Are we just wasting our time caring for them? Euthanasia advocates would have us think so.

A recent news story about a disabled unborn child quoted one as saying, “There’s no human life there.” Isn’t that the same idea? They think the baby has already “departed this earth,” so they don’t hesitate to abort the body.


As I blessed Terri’s grave, I also prayed that God’s people would be kept safe from this falsehood. And I recalled being in Terri’s room the day she died. I remembered her face, dehydrated from not having had a drop of water in two weeks. I recalled seeing the flowers, inches away, on her night table. They were immersed in water. And as I left the grave, I gave a final glance to the vase of flowers that was standing by the stone.

[Note: Personal notes of condolence for Terri’s family can be forwarded to Terri@priestsforlife.org, and Fr. Frank will deliver them.]

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A Distant Thunder... Getting Closer... It is Here!

When I heard of this new movie, I was not sure how it was going to take on the issue of Partial Birth Abortion.

But I bought the DVD, and I have watched it several times, each time seeing something I missed the first time through. It is powerful. To try to tell you about it any more than what is on the website about it would be to diminish its effect.

Fr Frank Pavone has also written about the movie here, and provides another way to order it.

Click here to order "A Distant Thunder."

Andrew Card Resigned

Chief of Staff Andy Card has resigned; Josh Bolten has been named as his successor.

Greta Van Susteren has also written about his resignation.

Memorial Mass for Terri Schindler Schiavo


Notice from Cheryl Ford, RN:

There will be a 1 year Memorial Mass this Friday, March 31st, 8pm at St. Patrick's in Largo, FL.

Presiding will be Fr. Frank Pavone (Priests for Life) and Fr. Euteneuer (Human Life International).

Terri's family will be in attendance.


This Mass is open to all who supported Terri's fight for life.





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John Paul II left message on Divine Mercy

John Paul II left message on Divine Mercy

Mar. 27 (CWNews.com) - Pope John Paul II left behind a message on Divine Mercy before his death last April 2.

During a visit on March 26 to the Roman parish of God the Merciful Father, Pope Benedict XVI revealed the existence of his predecessor's message, and then read a portion of the message to the congregation. The manuscript was to have been Pope John Paul's message for the feast of Divine Mercy, which fell last year on April 3, the day after the Polish Pope died.

In his hand-written message, which Pope Benedict described as "like a last will and testament," Pope John Paul had written:

To humanity, which at times seems to be lost and dominated by the power of evil, selfishness, and fear, the risen Lord offers the gift of his love that pardons, reconciles and opens the soul to hope. It is love that converts hearts and brings peace. ... How much the world needs to understand and accept Divine Mercy!

Pope Benedict challenged the people of the parish in eastern Rome: "Let this be task, above all within your families and throughout the neighborhood: to understand and welcome the merciful love of God." Pope John Paul II had nourished a deep attachment to the Divine Mercy devotion, introduced by St. Faustina Kowalska in the 1930s. The late Pontiff canonized St. Faustina in 2000, and established the feast of the Divine Mercy, to be celebrated on the Sunday after Easter, that same year. The Roman parish of God the Merciful Father was also consecrated during the Jubilee Year 2000.

Addiction Series Reposted at Dr Bob's

Jan 31, 2008...a visitor to my blog went to Dr Bob's site, and I tried the link as well, and found that he has moved them. The list is on this page now, and each has a short blurb. Click on the title on his page, and you will be taken to the current location. God bless!

The Doc Is In, and Dr Bob is reposting his series on Addiction. Excellent articles. He currently has two of them reposted. (originally posted Mar 25, 2006 at 12:59 pm. Being brought up to top to add the others).

Addiction & Judgement

The Downward Spiral


Addendum:

There Is a Solution


The Revenge of the Fifth

While I was at his blog, I noticed this quotation at the top for the There is a Solution article (this quote changes, so it just happened to be there...):

That is why the rich young man was so loath to follow Jesus, for the cost of his following was the death of his will. In fact, every command of Jesus is a call to die, with all our affections and lusts. But we do not want to die, and therefore Jesus Christ and His call are necessarily our death and our life.
--Dietrich Bonhoeffer--

This struck me in a way that it may NOT hit others. For just before the diagnosis was made in our family, the afflicted loved one said "If I give my life to Him and go back to Church like you want me to, it means that I have to give up drinking and smoking and everything." I was surprised, and told him you don't have to give up ANYTHING ... that He works in your life to help in any way that we need to change, but that He takes us right where we are...

At the time, it did not hit me that he KNEW he had a problem. Because I was still in denial myself, it never dawned on me what he was really saying... "I CAN'T give it up..." That realization on my part came much later, in my own recovery as a family member, in Alanon.

This quotation really brings that home.


Another that popped up sort of shows the result of the choices of the rich man...and anyone who chooses to put off that response to Him, or decides against 'Come Follow Me'.

There will be two kinds of people in the end:
Those who will say to God, "Thy will be done",
and those to whom God will say, "Thy will be done".
--C.S. Lewis--


God bless!

Family Upset About Use of Dan O'Connell's Name

Northland Catholic Roundtable has posted this newspaper article

saying that the family of murdered Dan O'Connell is upset about Dr David Pence's ( who recently formed the Dan O'Connell Society) use his name for a cause that they say is not theirs, and have threatened legal action if Pence does not stop using their loved one's name.

Monday, March 27, 2006

From Cheryl Ford, RN of Fight4Terri

This email is from Cheryl Ford, RN tonight. God bless!


If you feel inclined, please click on the link and post your comments on Bay News 9.

http://www.baynews9.com/content/36/2006/3/27/150718.html

Family feud that divided a nation

Terri Schiavo was 41 when she died.
The family feud that divided a nation goes public again, when two books about Terri Schiavo hit the market a day apart.

Schiavo's husband Michael released his book Monday. Schiavo's family, the Schindlers, release their side of the story Tuesday.

Schiavo was the Pinellas Park woman who remained in a vegetative state for 15 years before her feeding tube was removed March 31 of last year. Her story and the family drama on both sides of the issue fueled debates that went all the way to the highest branches of government in Washington.

Michael Schiavo's book, "Terri: The Truth," will tell his side of
More about Schiavo
Link Click here for past stories about Terri Schiavo.

Click here for a Schiavo timeline.

Click here for comments from politicians and others.

Click here to download a living will form.
the story after keeping a low profile during her final days. Schiavo writes about his love for his wife and the threats he received for following her wishes.

"A religious zealot offered $250,000 to anyone who would kill me," Schiavo writes. "My two babies were threatened with death. All because I was doing what Terri, the woman I loved, wanted."

In another excerpt, Schiavo writes, "When Terri collapsed in February, 1990, I was certain she would recover. My love for her kept that hope alive in me for years. But there came a time when I had to face the medical facts."

In Schiavo's parents' book, "A Life That Matters," her brother, Bobby Schindler, chronicles the first moments he saw his sister after her collapse.

"I could see half the side of her face and she was having trouble breathing. I leaned down and shook her shoulders and said 'Terri get up, get up.' There was no response. And it was that moment that the paramedics knocked on the door."

Schindler tells the reader how his parents reacted to the news that something was terribly wrong with his sister.

"My dad kept asking me over and over again, 'What do you think is wrong?' And I didn't know. I didn't know. I didn't know what was wrong. And we just waited."

Michael Schiavo and the Schindlers fought in court for eight years over what each thought were Terri's best interests. The courts gave Michael Schiavo the final say.


Available NOW....
The book,
Our Fight4Terri
Discounted for Fight4Terri supporters at:
www.Fight4Terri.com
or, can be ordered directly from publisher at:
Trafford Publishing: Our Fight4Terri


Cheryl Ford, RN (www.Fight4Terri.com) is not affiliated with any other group and works to protect the rights of the disabled community


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Abdul Rahman Released

The charges were dropped against him, and then it was announced by the UN that Abdul Rahman was seeking asylum in another country. Then came the announcement that he had been released!

"We released him last night because the prosecutors told us to," he said. "His family was there when he was freed, but I don't know where he was taken."

Deputy Attorney General Mohammed Eshak Aloko told the AP that prosecutors had issued a letter calling for Rahman's release because "he was mentally unfit to stand trial." He also said he did not know where he was being held.

He said Rahman may be sent overseas for medical treatment.

Hours earlier, hundreds of clerics, students and others chanting "Death to Christians!" marched through the northern Afghan Mazar-i-Sharif to protest the court's decision Sunday to dismiss the case.

So where is he? And how are they keeping him SAFE if they don't know????

Prayers still needed, obviously!

Fr Jonathan Morris' Open Letter to Illegal Mexican Immigrants

An Open Letter to Illegal Mexican Immigrants

Monday , March 27, 2006

by Father Jonathan Morris for FOX Fan Central

Editor's note: Father Jonathan discusses the immigration debate with Neil Cavuto, Monday, March 27th at 4:05 p.m. ET on "Your World."

Dear Mexicans living illegally in the United States:

Over the last few months I’ve been in touch with promoters of House Bill 4437, the legislative proposal, among others, to be taken up by the Senate this Tuesday that aims to crack down on undocumented workers like you. I’ve told lawmakers that their hopes to rectify the present system — a shameful one for you and for us — will not happen through a bill like this. It focuses on enforcement alone, while providing no realistic plan to deal with the 12 million illegal immigrants already on this side of the border.

I’ve reminded lawmakers of their responsibility to shun the seduction of political polarization. You may not be very familiar with our political structures, but we have a two-party system. It works quite well, but it has its limitations, and immigration reform is showcasing them like never before. To be a conservative on immigration has come to mean just “talking tough” and avoiding anything that could be perceived by constituents as giving in. To be a true liberal on immigration requires pretending border concerns are all hype and winking at a system of illegality.

But polarization is bad because it perverts sound judgment. It rejects the obvious, that when two sides are so wrong, compromise is not weakness. In fact, it is wisdom and strength.

I want you to know we Americans know the present system is a hypocritical one. Our visa procedures in Mexico are so slow and demanding that you prefer to risk your lives in the desert than wait in line. After all, your cousins have told you our talk is bigger than our stick. We promise you work if you survive the trip. And you don’t feel guilty. You know the most powerful country in the world could find you and send you back, but it doesn’t really want to. When local and federal agencies turn a blind eye to companies that employ you, they are telling you that what you do is not so bad. And you recognize the government’s inaction as tacit permission to stay and work.

This system is bad, and we’re working on it. But now my attention turns to you. We saw your Mexican flags wafting in the winds of Southern California this weekend — as hundreds of thousands took to the streets in protest of legislation that would make illegal crossing a felony, build a wall to keep you out, and criminalize Americans who help you once you’re here.

Friday you imposed a “thank a Mexican day” in Georgia. Tens of thousands of you chose to defy your bosses and take the day off. The boldest among you rallied on the steps of the Georgia Capitol and, of course, you brought your flags with you. Compatriots in Phoenix had their own Latin party — the red and green could not be missed.

And all these flags make me cringe — both for Americans and for you.

When you wave them, or wear them, you send a signal. But trust me. If you want compromise to the polarization I’ve described above, if you want a rectification of a hypocritical system, this is not the signal you want to send. You have to understand, we Americans are funny about flags. Do you remember the months after 9-11? We donned the stars and stripes on our houses, cars, trees, and lawns. In those months of horror, our penchant for red, white, and blue had nothing to do with ethnicity. And their ubiquitous presence meant much more than national pride. You see, my Mexican friends, the American flag is for us a symbol of national unity. Let me say that again — it’s a symbol of unity.

And unity is what we need. Unity of mind, and unity of heart. Oh, unity of mind, that reminds me. Learn English. When we see your placards and hear your chants, if we don’t understand them, we get mad. You know by now that we Americans aren’t so good for languages. We can’t roll our “R’s” and when we try, you laugh and we turn red — another “gringo” thing, I know. When we go south of the border, we sometimes forget to bring dictionaries and guide books, as if the whole world should speak our tongue. Tell your family members living in Mexico to test us. They should go ahead and speak to us in Spanish. Don’t let us forget we are visitors, guests in a foreign land. But when we are at home, make sure we know it. We don’t demand Oxford English. Just show us you are trying to be one with us. That’s part of unity of the mind, an important step for unity of the heart.

Here’s another hint for unity, this time all about the heart. Say “thank you,” over and over again. I know you have lots of reasons to complain, but you also have great motives for gratitude. Taking part in this status quo of immigration hypocrisy, means we often use you and abuse you. The temptation would be to do the same to us. When you get sick and go to the hospital, we take care of you, and that costs a lot of money. Not all Americans are rich, you know. When we see medical insurance skyrocketing, and city hospitals in bankruptcy, our attention and outrage turn on you. It’s the Mexicans! And to some degree, we are right. Illegal immigration puts a great burden on our social services. You don’t pay full taxes and you send your money home.

But our principles are even stronger than our anger. We are going to take care of you when you are in need. Thank God, it’s still part of the American way. But please, just say “thank you.” Let people know with an attitude of gratitude that you are visitors, guests with only tacit permission to work in a foreign land. It’s part of building unity of the heart.

The U.S. Senate has a choice to make this week. They can either play politics or be statesmen. They can either divide or unite. I’ll keep talking to them, and filling them in on what I think. Who knows, maybe they’ll listen.

But I’m talking to you, too, all Mexicans living illegally in the United States. The best way to protest the status quo is to wave the American flag, speak English, and say thank you. The first is a symbol of national unity, the second makes us feel at home, and the third, well, it’s an act of humility that will go along way to heal the heart.

God bless, Father Jonathan

P.S. And to American readers, are we willing to go beyond partisan lines and philosophy to support just and realistic legislation? We are a nation of laws, but laws mean nothing when they are unjust, unfair, or unrealistic. In light of our present reality of 12 million illegals, legislation that only punishes and doesn’t heal is legislation that will not work.

P.P.S. I would love to hear what you think? Write to me at: fatherjonathan@foxnews.com

This article is part of a regular blog hosted by Father Jonathan Morris on FOXNews.com. You can invite new readers by forwarding this URL address: www.foxnews.com/fatherjonathan.

Write to Father Jonathan at fatherjonathan@foxnews.com.

Sunday, March 26, 2006

Fr. Pavone to Michael Schiavo

Just got home from work, and this email was waiting for me... God bless~~

To: National Desk

Contact: Jerry Horn of Priests for Life, 540-220-0095

WASHINGTON, March 25 /U.S. Newswire/ -- Fr. Frank Pavone, national director of Priests for Life, and an eyewitness to Terri Schiavo's final hours, released the following open letter to Michael Schiavo tonight. Fr. Pavone will read it to a worldwide audience on an internationally broadcast religious service on Sunday morning, March 26:

A year ago this week, I stood by the bedside of the woman you married and promised to love in good times and bad, in sickness and health. She was enduring a very bad time, because she hadn't been given food or drink in nearly two weeks. And you were the one insisting that she continue to be deprived of food and water, right up to her death. I watched her face for hours on end, right up to moments before her last breath. Her death was not peaceful, nor was it beautiful. If you saw her too, and noticed what her eyes were doing, you know that to describe her last agony as peaceful is a lie.

This week, tens of millions of Americans will remember those agonizing days last year, and will scratch their heads trying to figure out why you didn't simply let Terri's mom, dad, and siblings take care of her, as they were willing to do. They offered you, again and again, the option to simply let them care for Terri, without asking anything of you. But you refused and continued to insist that Terri's feeding be stopped. She had no terminal illness. She was simply a disabled woman who needed extra care that you weren't willing to give.

I speak to you today on behalf of the tens of millions of Americans who still wonder why. I speak to you today to express their anger, their dismay, their outraged astonishment at your behavior in the midst of this tragedy. Most people will wonder about these questions in silence, but as one of only a few people who were eyewitnesses to Terri's dehydration, I have to speak.

I have spoken to you before, not in person, but through mass media. Before Terri's feeding tube was removed for the last time, I appealed to you with respect, asking you not to continue on the road you were pursuing, urging you to reconsider your decisions, in the light of the damage you were doing. I invited you to talk. But you did not respond.

Then, after Terri died, I called her death a killing, and I called you a murderer because you knew -- as we all did -- that ceasing to feed Terri would kill her. We watched, but you had the power to save her. Her life was in your hands, but you threw it away, with the willing cooperation of attorneys and judges who were as heartless as you were. Some have demanded that I apologize to you for calling you a murderer. Not only will I not apologize, I will repeat it again. Your decision to have Terri dehydrated to death was a decision to kill her. It doesn't matter if Judge Greer said it was legal. No judge, no court, no power on earth can legitimize what you did. It makes no difference if what you did was legal in the eyes of men; it was murder in the eyes of God and of millions of your fellow Americans and countless more around the world. You are the one who owes all of us an apology.

Your actions offend us. Not only have you killed Terri and deeply wounded her family, but you have disgraced our nation, betrayed the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and undermined the principles that hold us together as a civilized society. You have offended those who struggle on a daily basis to care for loved ones who are dying, and who sometimes have to make the very legitimate decision to discontinue futile treatment. You have offended them by trying to confuse Terri's circumstances with theirs. Terri's case was not one of judging treatment to be worthless -- which is sometimes the case; rather, it was about judging a life to be worthless, which is never the case.

You have made your mark on history, but sadly, it is an ugly stain. In the name of millions around the world, I call on you today to embrace a life of repentance, and to ask forgiveness from the Lord, who holds the lives of each of us in His hands.

-- Fr. Frank Pavone

Priests for Life is the nation's largest Catholic pro-life organization dedicated to ending abortion and euthanasia. For more information, visit http://www.priestsforlife.org.

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Afghan Court Dismisses Case vs. Alleged Christian Convert

Citing a lack of evidence... but how are they going to protect him when they release him??
And if he is 'spirited away' to keep him safe from those who have threatened to cut him into pieces if he is released... he still has lost his children?

We still need to pray.


"We are watching him constantly. This is a very sensitive case so he needs high security," he said in an interview in his office in a crumbling building inside the jail.

Rahman is being held in a cell by himself next to the office of a senior prison guard, the warden said. He showed the AP the outside of Rahman's cell door, but refused to allow reporters to speak to him or see him.

He said Rahman had been asking guards for a Bible but that they did not have any to give him.

Rahman, meanwhile, said he was fully aware of his choice and was ready to die for it, according to an interview published Sunday in an Italian newspaper La Repubblica.

"I am serene. I have full awareness of what I have chosen. If I must die, I will die," Abdul Rahman told the Rome daily, responding to questions sent to him via a human rights worker who visited him in prison.

"Somebody, a long time ago, did it for all of us," he added in a clear reference to Jesus.

Rahman also told the Italian newspaper that his family — including his ex-wife and teenage daughters — reported him to the authorities three weeks ago.

He said he made his choice to become a Christian "in small steps," after he left Afghanistan 16 years ago. He moved to Pakistan, then Germany. He tried to get a visa in Belgium.

"In Peshawar I worked for a humanitarian organization. They were Catholics," Rahman said. "I started talking to them about religion, I read the Bible, it opened my heart and my mind."

Dr Bob Begins with Fiction, then Speaks Reality...

I have wanted to draw attention to these, but never got around to it until tonight. Dr Bob, of The Doctor Is In, has written a scenario that begins with a 'look back' from a time in the future (August 6, 2008)....something to think about, something to pray about, something that could happen...

Apollyon Appears-I:
Looking Back


Apollyon Appears-II
The False Prophet

He continues...and ends with:

We are daily told we are in a war on terror. We are not–we are in a war with Islam. It is not a war we declared, or wanted, but an ancient war now declared on us. It is imperative that we speak plainly about this, setting aside the soft sentimentalities which fear offending anyone. There will, of course, be hollers of protest by the usual suspects; these must be ignored, and answered firmly, with truth, and history, and fact, not wishful thinking and weak apologies.

The Prophet has told us his plans, his vision of a world at peace. It is a false peace, from a false prophet–yet his faithful followers pursue it to the gates of death, and we are their targets. The hour is late–it is dangerous to sleep.


Apollyon Appears-III
The Core

It just gets better.... Dr Bob speaks a reality most do not want to see....



The Pornography of Ideas

And in this one, he responds to a long comment he had gotten after Apollyon Appears-III.

Very good, and a lot of hard work went into these four posts.


Oh, and for good measure, he also points us to Michael J Totten's "'The Head of the Snake".