PA Pro-Life Federation On-Line News

Member Group : PA Pro-Life Federation

Pennsylvania Pro-Life Online News from the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation
October 1, 2008

A publication of the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation
4800 Jonestown Rd., Suite 102
Harrisburg, PA 17109
717-541-0034

If you have trouble accessing any of these stories, you can find them on our website at http://www.paprolife.org/resources/e_news.html.

For Breaking News updates daily, visit our website at www.paprolife.org.
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In this issue:
Celebrate Life Banquet Now Has a Waiting List
Register to Vote by Oct. 6!
Abortion Survivor Stars in TV Ad
Knights of Columbus Members Take Out Ad on Biden and Abortion
Philosophical Arguments Against Abortion
Life Chain Set for Oct. 5
2-Year-Olds for Life
Interfaith Pro-Life Prayer Breakfast in Greensburg
Chapter Information from Around the State!

Help us in our life-saving work! Quick, easy online donation now available. Donate by logging onto http://www.paprolife.org/donate.

Celebrate Life Banquet Now Has a Waiting List
Thanks to an overwhelming response, the 2008 Celebrate Life Banquet in Harrisburg is now sold out. If you would like a place on the waiting list for the October 16th pro-life event of the year, call us at 717-541-0034. For more information, visit www.paprolife.org and follow the prompts under the photo of our keynote speaker, Michael Clancy.

Register to Vote by Oct. 6!
The voter registration deadline in Pennsylvania is just around the corner. If you’re not already registered to vote, you have until October 6th to do so. For details, go to http://www.votespa.com/RegistertoVote/tabid/68/language/en-US/Default.aspx. Be sure that your pro-life friends and relatives are registered to vote, too! Meanwhile, the deadline for submitting an application for an absentee ballot is Tuesday, October 28. The absentee ballots themselves must be received by the county election board by Friday, Oct. 31. The deadlines are identical for alternative ballots, which are available if a polling place is not accessible to a voter. Applications are available through www.votespa.com or at each county election board.

Abortion Survivor Stars in TV Ad
Abortion survivor Gianna Jessen is appearing in a television ad which publicizes Democratic Presidential candidate Barack Obama’s opposition to the Illinois Born Alive Infants Protection Act. Gianna was born 31 years ago after a failed abortion. In the commercial, which was produced by the 527 political organization known as BornAliveTruth.org, Gianna speaks of how, if Obama had his way, she wouldn’t have survived. Gianna was the keynote speaker at the 2007 Pennsylvania Pro-Life Conference. You can view the ad at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=anieuWFWe8s .

Knights of Columbus Members Take Out Ad on Biden and Abortion
Members of the Knights of Columbus, a Catholic organization, have taken out ads in USA Today, the Washington Times, and the Philadelphia Inquirer, requesting that Democratic Vice-Presidential candidate Joe Biden correct his statements on abortion. Biden is pro-abortion and for Roe v. Wade, even though such positions are in direct opposition to the teachings of the Catholic Church. The Knights of Columbus state, "Sen. Obama stressed your Catholic identity repeatedly when he introduced you as his running mate, and so your statements carry considerable weight, whether they are correct or not. You now have a unique responsibility when you make public statements about Catholic teaching."

Philosophical Arguments Against Abortion
Columnist Arwen Mosher offers a philosophical approach to rejecting abortion. You can find her blog on the Faith & Family website at http://www.faithandfamilylive.com/blog/the_logic_of_abortion#When:14:45:00Z.

Life Chain Set for Oct. 5
People throughout the nation will be gathering on sidewalks Oct. 5 in solidarity for life. That’s the date of Life Chain, the national effort to bring renewed attention to the issue of abortion. Participants form a human chain to raise awareness of the importance of the life issues. This peaceful, prayerful event will be taking place in communities throughout Pennsylvania. To learn more, visit http://www.lifechain.net/ .

2-Year-Olds for Life
By Maria Vitale, Education Director
([email protected])

I am convinced that all 2-year-olds are pro-life.
I formed that conclusion working a pro-life booth at a local county fair.
As soon as a 2-year-old’s eyes spotted one of the fetal models on the table, he or she would reach out with both arms with an impassioned plea to touch "the babies." One little girl giggled when a model of a 30-week-old unborn baby was placed in her hands.
There was not one toddler who came up to the display who did not express delight with the fetal models. In short, they loved them.
It is natural for children to be drawn to babies. It’s in their DNA. They’re amused and captivated by the tiniest human beings.
That’s why fetal models are a great teaching tool. They show what an unborn child really looks like at various stages of development. Teenagers often express surprise to learn that a child 12 weeks after conception has eyes, fingers, toes. That’s because the handiwork of God is hidden, concealed within a pregnant woman’s body.
A fetal model is the best argument that can be made against "choice"–against the concept that an unborn child’s existence depends solely on the mindset of the mother. Whether the mother is married or not, employed or not, graduated or not, the unborn child is a being with a genetic make-up separate from that of the pregnant woman. While it is true that, pre-viability, an unborn child cannot exist outside the nurturing of the woman’s womb, an infant cannot continue to live unless it is nourished, too. Degree of dependency should not be considered the determining factor in whether a child lives or dies.
Somewhere between toddlerhood and twenty-something-ness, something is sometimes lost. That something is a natural love for babies. Showing off fetal models at county fairs and festivals is one way to rekindle the romance with the littlest ones among us.
There are many reasons people give for justifying abortion–youth, immaturity, child abuse, poverty, disability, and disease, to name a few. Indeed, there are many problems in the modern world. Abortion doesn’t solve any of them.

Interfaith Pro-Life Prayer Breakfast in Greensburg
The Greensburg Diocesan Council of the National Council of Catholic Women is announcing the 14th Annual Interfaith Pro-Life Prayer Breakfast Saturday, Oct. 4 at 10 a.m. at the Four Points Hotel, Greensburg. Keynote speaker is David Bereit, national campaign director for 40 Days for Life. Reservation deadline is Sept. 27. For more information, contact Betty Nemchik at 724-668-7436.

Chapter Information from Around the State
Bradford County PHL Hosts Straight Talk on Stem Cell Research
The Bradford County Pennsylvanians for Human Life hosted an educational presentation stem cell research on September 25th at the American Legion in Towanda. Michael Ciccocioppo, executive director of the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation gave an informative PowerPoint presentation against the killing of living human embryos for research purposes to the more than 35 interested community members present.
During the presentation, Ciccocioppo helped to clear up some of the mixed messages on stem cell research made popular in the main stream media. He separated the facts from the fiction by:
– offering a basic understanding of what stem cells are and why they are so important;
– comparing and contrasting ethical adult stem cell research with unethical stem cell research that destroys living human embryos in their most vulnerable state;
– demonstrating that embryonic stem cell research has been a complete scientific failure;
– showing that living human embryos at in vitro fertilization clinics should not be killed but given life through embryo adoption programs;
– discussing why some scientists continue to push for taxpayer funding of embryonic stem cell research;
– exposing legislation before the U.S. Congress which would require the mass killing of a class of human beings;
– explaining how unethical stem cell research will ultimately lead to the mass cloning and killing of human embryos; and
– describing the implications of exploiting women for their eggs
Attendees expressed a much clearer understanding of the issue after the presentation. They said they were better prepared to explain to others that pro-lifers are all for stem cell research, as long as it does not kill living human beings. And they felt equipped to support their position with easily understandable scientific facts.
If you would like to invite Ciccocioppo to make a presentation on stem cell research to your chapter, school, church or other organization, please contact him at the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation headquarters in Harrisburg by calling 717-541-0034 or emailing [email protected] . It is our mission to educate the public on these vital life issues. There is no set speaker fee, but donations are always welcomed!

Live in Southeast PA? Contact SE Regional Coordinator Heather Wilson to find out more about joining a chapter in Bucks, Montgomery, Chester, Delaware, or Philadelphia County. You can reach Heather by e-mail at [email protected].

Live in the Southwest? If you’d like to become involved in a chapter, contact Southwest Regional Coordinator Bryce McMinn, who recently set up a regional office in Washington County. Here’s his contact information: Bryce C. McMinn, Southwest Regional Coordinator; Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation; 74 Oak Spring Road, Suite 101; Washington, PA 15301; Work Phone: 724-228-1162; Cell Phone: 412-835-2812; E-Mail: [email protected].

More Chapter Info:

The PA Pro-Life Online News is a publication of the Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation; 4800 Jonestown Rd., Suite 102; Harrisburg, PA; 17109. It is never sent unsolicited. To unsubscribe, send an e-mail to [email protected].

IN THIS ISSUE:
Events
Waiting List for Celebrate Life Banquet!

4800 Jonestown Rd., Suite 102; Harrisburg, PA; 17109| www.paprolife.org | Copyright © 2008 Pennsylvania Pro-Life Federation