On life and the new President

NPR is already spouting anti-Catholic bias by claiming that the new President will have strained relations with the Vatican because of the President's stand on life issues. John Allen in NCR has already debunked this myth citing the Vatican's eagerness to work with the new administration despite its disagreements with them on questions of life.

I'd like to propose the following to all of us who care deeply about life issues. Let's call this my inaugural address:

Citizen of this great country:

We are a country that is divided, but not so divided that we can no longer work for the common good for all people, born and unborn. While some among us feel that it within a woman's right to terminate a pregnancy others of us also seek that the result of that termination is the death of her baby. Even those of us who stand concerned for the poor, who live in such dire circumstances that adding the responsibility for a human life makes the task of simply living seem insurmountable, feel deeply for those who choose abortion.

While many of us who see abortion as an intrinsic evil, pray for the day when legislation makes the act of murdering an innocent child illegal, I fear that day is far off. That doesn't mean that we stop trying to influence those who make the laws of our land, but rather, we need to ask ourselves how we are best serving the needs of those who are mired in those dire circumstances that push them to seek abortions. Until we can serve the needs of these women eagerly and with a smile on our face and even facing our own discomfort because of our commitment, we can have no hope of legislative success.

So my brothers and sisters, while there are many, our own President included, who will not help us legislate justice in this instance, I ask if they might help us provide care and love for women who would choose a higher road, if only our means allowed them to choose alternatives? Perhaps our good works and our commitment to that might turn their hearts into seeing how much we love these women and their children that they might grow to love not only that care we show but also to love the children that get raised because of that love? Perhaps, seeing our commitment moves them to find these families not as easily disposable? Perhaps one of these recipients grows up to be President and remembers how we treated them as a precious child of God and that person grows to abhor war, injustice and the very intrinsic evil in which we speak.

We all learn from our experiences and while we may not be able to reach all of those who need our care we indeed can try to pour our our love until our hearts grow weary with love and God's inexhaustible love takes over when we cannot manage to love. And the love that we have spread becomes contagious so much so that just as Saul would become Paul and stop his own persecuting and killing, we too might see that same conversion happen again.

What contribution can you make to the unborn today despite our lack of legislation?

Or will you simply let the lawmakers stop you from doing good works?