CEC For Life

Contact: Lila Rose, Live Action, 408-497-3982, lilarose@liveaction.org

MONTGOMERY, Alabama, July 7 — Alabama Attorney General Troy King has called a new undercover video released last week showing Planned Parenthood of Alabama apparently breaking state mandatory reporting laws for sexual abuse “extremely troubling” and requested the full recordings. The student-led nonprofit responsible for the recordings, Live Action, immediately sent the full footage, which the Attorney General’s office received yesterday.

The video shows a Planned Parenthood staffer, identified as “Tanisha,” telling a purportedly 14-year-old girl with a 31-year-old “boyfriend” that Planned Parenthood “does sometimes bend the rules a little bit” when it comes to reporting statutory rape to state authorities. Despite strong parental consent laws in Alabama, “Tanisha” also explains that a person with the “same last name” as the 14-year-old would suffice as a guardian or parent to sign off for the minor’s abortion. In an interview last week, King said, “If that tape is an accurate depiction of what’s happening, that’s very troubling,” and “if that video is true and accurate and correct, it’s extremely troubling from a legal and moral point of view.”

The Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office has also expressed concern about the contents of the video and warned of potential repercussions for Planned Parenthood. Lt. Randy Christian said: “Anyone who sees that should be disturbed by it, and I hope they’re disturbed by it. For a 31 year old to have sex with a 14 year old, that is rape in the second degree. I think they are not only morally obligated to report it – the law requires them to report it, and there could be some serious consequences otherwise.”

Lila Rose, president of Live Action and the UCLA student who went undercover posing as the 14-year-old in the video, called for a thorough state investigation of Planned Parenthood: “Attorney General King should use this evidence to subpoena records and witness testimony from Planned Parenthood of Alabama and the state Department of Human Resources.”

Rose notes that in 2006, three Alabama abortion clinics were placed on probation after an investigation found them operating outside state regulations. King said of the current allegations, “We have knowledge that the law may have been broken and I think we’re compelled at that point to see if it has or not.”

“Attorney General King is absolutely correct,” says Rose. “How many other rapes has this single clinic covered up? When mandatory reporters at Planned Parenthood can ‘bend the rules a little bit’ in service of their abortion-first mentality and put vulnerable young girls at risk, someone needs to stand up and put a stop to it.”

(To view the undercover video and for more information, go to www.LiveAction.org)

“You killed the Author of Life, but God raised him from the dead.We are witnesses of this.”- Acts 3:15

      A few years ago this passage struck me as it relates not only to Peter, who proclaimed it and to the many others who saw Jesus resurrected, but it applied to me as well. I am a witness to the saving power of Jesus Christ resurrected from the dead.  Although this shouldn’t be a new revelation to any Christian, it is certainly one that struck me as not only the revelation of Jesus Christ from the dead, but also as it applies to human life. We are witnesses to life. Each time a child is born, we are witnesses to to this new life. Each time an ultrasound is performed and we can see the unborn child , we are witnesses to God’s creation of human life. Each time we view countless photographs,studies, and reports on human life in the womb, we become witnesses of this life and the reality and proof thereof. If Peter had not seen Christ resurrected, could he really say that he was a witness? We have witnessed the shedding of innocent blood of our brothers and sisters in the womb.  We have witnessed the violation of the sanctity of human life. Yes, we are witnesses of this. But, we are witnesses to life as well. We have seen the sick healed, the lame walk and the power of God working in another’s life. We have seen and experienced the Life of Christ living in us. We are also witnesses to life.  

       So, if we are then witnesses to life, then we must also speak up for life! We are often times the only voice that someone will listen to, the only person standing between someone’s decision to preserve life or to end it. We are witnesses to the saving power of Jesus Christ and we are witnesses to the divine creation of human life and its sacredness. We are witnesses of this.

Jacob

       Our church recently celebrated “Sanctity of Life Sunday,” in which we acknowledge the sanctity of all human life, from conception to natural death. We affirm this not only through the liturgy of the word and sacraments but we included a few songs and hymns proclaiming the Gospel of Life. One hymn that our choir sang caused me to ponder the humanity of children in the womb. It reminded me that those children who will die from abortion are not just tissue, fetal beings, or the product of conception, but they have a face; they bear “imago dei” the very likeness and face of God Himself.

       This is nothing new to any of us who have stood with our preborn brothers and sisters affirming and proclaiming their personhood. The hymn is a lullaby to the children who were slaughtered because of Herod’s rage and ultimate hatred of Jesus Christ and his Kingship. It echoes what we all feel we need to express to these children.

I’m sorry that someone didn’t love you enough to keep you.

I’m sorry that your family abandoned you.

I’m sorry that I wasn’t there to save you.

I’m sorry.

The hymn captures these feelings of pity saying, ” That woe is me, poor Child for Thee! And every mourn and day, For thy parting neither say nor sing…”  

        I am convinced that it is not enough that I speak or write about abortion. I will be held accountable for my actions in defending the unborn. It is I who want to hear when God asks those children, ” Do you know him?”  that I may hear, ” Yes, he tried to save me.”

      I encourage you to ponder these words and contemplate that there are children today who will never hear a lullaby, never experience the love of a parent, never hear words of comfort from another human being.

Lully, lullay, Thou little tiny Child,

Bye, bye, lully, lullay.

Lullay, thou little tiny Child,

Bye, bye, lully, lullay.

O sisters too, how may we do,

For to preserve this day

This poor youngling for whom we do sing

Bye, bye, lully, lullay.

Herod, the king, in his raging,

Charged he hath this day

His men of might, in his own sight,

All children young to slay.

That  woe is me, poor Child for Thee!

And every mourn and day,

For thy parting neither say nor sing,

Bye, bye, lully, lullay.

 Peace, Jacob

Well, as they might say in Ireland, it’s been A-A-AGES since I posted on the blog. And it really has. I mean I’d probably have to break into the archives just to find my last entry. My apologies for that. Apparently life gets away even from those who wish to defend it.

But I’m back now. For today at least. And I hope this note finds every one of you with hopeful spirits and PACKED LUGGAGE. That’s right kids, the March for Life is next week and I cannot wait to see your brilliant freezing faces. (New Yorkers, please do not scoff at this last comment. The weatherman predicts 40 degree weather on the day of the march. For a beach-kept southerner like myself, such cold could be deadly. I shall bring my mittens.)

Now. No more chit-chat. I got on here to share a recent commentary with you from Bryan Kemper of Stand True Ministries. It’s good literature, and it’s good timing. I hope it speaks to your heart as much as it spoke to mine. AND I really really hope to have an opportunity to hug you next week.

Peace of the Lord,

Sarah (commentary below)

“They, Too, Are America”

Langston Hughes wrote a poem entitled “I, Too” in which he dreamed of a day when African Americans would not be shunned. This simple poem speaks volumes about personhood and the struggle to attain equality.

Corrie Ten Boom wrote a book entitled “The Hiding Place” in which she talked about her days in a concentration camp. She was not Jewish; she was imprisoned and tortured for hiding Jews in her home because she believed they were equal human persons.

Rosa Parks sat down and refused to get up from a seat she was told she had no right to sit in. She decided that she was no longer going to be told that she was less human than anyone else on that bus.

Anne Frank wrote in her diary, “I don’t think of all the misery but of the beauty that still remains” – this coming from a young woman having to live in a hidden apartment for two years because she was declared a non – human person.

Martin Luther King, Jr. cried out, “I have a dream.” He believed in a world where men were not looked at as black or white, but as men. He believed we could live as equal human persons and destroy the prejudices that plagued mankind.

What do all these people have in common?

Some may say oppression. Oppression is certainly a word that can be used to describe all of their lives. Can you imagine yourself as young girl like Anne Frank living in a small hidden apartment for two years, never allowed to leave for fear of certain death?

Some may say determination. Langston Hughes was determined to see a day when our African American brothers would not be seen as less than any other American.

Some may say courage. I can’t imagine the courage it took for Corrie Ten Boom to risk her own life and freedom for total strangers. She endured years of torture and even found a way to thank God for her bunk being infested with fleas, knowing it saved her from abuse.

Some may say resolve. Oh, to see the resolve in the face of Rosa Parks on the bus that day! To see her claim her spot as an equal human person and refuse to be dehumanized.

Some may say passion. Passion is one of the best words you can use to describe Dr Martin Luther King, Jr. When you hear his speech you can’t help but be moved.

While all of these words are truly things these great humans had in common, there is one other thing that makes them stand out from others who have been dehumanized: their voice. They all had a voice and were able to use that voice to cry out for their lives, their freedom and their humanity. A voice is something that thousands of innocent people every day in America will never have.

Can you imagine if a child in the womb could write a poem about how one day he too would be called an American?

Can you imagine if babies that were not going to be killed by abortion could hide others that were scheduled for death?

Can you imagine if when the abortionist tried to kill a young little girl she was able to sit down in the womb with resolve and say, “I will not be killed”?

Can you imagine the speech a young child would give proclaiming the day all innocent pre-born children are counted as human?

While we know these things are impossible for the children in the womb to accomplish, they are not impossible for us. We do have a voice; we now need to find the courage, determination, resolve and passion to fight against the oppression of innocent children.

Some may say, “How dare you compare abortion with the holocaust or oppression of African Americans!” I say how dare we not. How dare we look back at some of the most brutal, inhumane and dehumanizing acts in history and not also include the killing of innocent babies?

We are ushering in a new era in America this year. With the election of Barack Obama to the Presidency, we are seeing something many people believed would not happen in their lifetime. We are witnessing something that we should all be proud of regardless of our political views. America has taken one more step towards equality and wiping out racial prejudices.

So many people do not believe they will see the killing of innocent children stop in their lifetime either. So many people have accepted the abortion holocaust as status quo. I refuse to accept or believe that we cannot defeat this evil.

It is time, my friends, to adopt the words that describe these great humans I wrote about. It is time to believe that we will usher in an era where pre-born children are considered full human persons. It is time to use our voices to proclaim life and freedom for the thousands of our brothers and sisters who die needlessly every day.

It is time to say: They, Too, America.

          Today I was thinking about Mary, the Mother of Jesus. I suppose that most Christians tend to think of her a lot during the Christmas season because we mention her a little more in songs, readings, and even spot her in icons and the occasional Christmas card. I was thinking more though of her role as a pregnant mom. My friend who works at a local crisis pregnancy center here in Birmingham told me that just this past week they had recieved three appointments from girls between the ages of eleven and thirteen. All three were wanting an abortion, one adult asked that the girl’s fallopian tubes be tied! I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Then I thought of Mary. Here a young teenage girl, pregnant with the saviour of the world was facing a similar situation. Mary was “favored” and especially chosen for this great and wonderful gift, yet I can only imagine how painful her heart must  have felt knowing the extreme scorn and scandal this pregnancy was going to bring. I can only imagine that Mary was also faced with the same temptations that these young girls face as they carry their child to term. Is this really worth it? What will people think of me? Am I doing the right thing? Yet it was Mary’s “yes” that allowed her faith in God to overcome her deepest fears.  “I am the handmaiden of the Lord, be it unto me as you have said.” What Mary’s are searching for answers now?  What children in the womb need a “yes.”

                       Lord, help me to remember all women facing crisis pregancies, remembering that Mary said yes , and through her yes, I may have eternal life with Christ.

Peace,

Jacob

I hope everyone is getting involved with this.  Sign up on Stand True’s website.

- Alan Melanson

WHAT: 40 DAYS FOR LIFE

WHEN: SEPT. 24TH- NOV. 2ND

WHERE: ACROSS AMERICA, EVEN IN YOUR LOCAL COMMUNITY!

The 40 Days for Life campaign is a set apart time where many people from across the country will unite in prayer and fasting for the end of abortion in our nation and throughout the world. People will be praying 24/7 at abortion centers and fasting in order to see a physical change of the landscape of our culture. Check out www.40daysforlife.com to find out where the campaign will be in your local community.

Will you give up your precious time to pray for  precious children in need?

 ”Our hands did not shed this blood, nor did our eyes see it done.  Accept this atonement for your people Israel, whom you have redeemed, O LORD, and do not hold your people guilty of the blood of an innocent man.” And the bloodshed will be atoned for. So you will purge from yourselves the guilt of shedding innocent blood, since you have done what is right in the eyes of the LORD.” – Deut. 21:7-9