September 2009 Newsletter
Back to Main Newsletters Page"Well, it's a legal medical practice... and by even having to talk about it, I mean, we're not talking about having your tonsils out, and whether you can or can't. It's all based on religious matters, and ideas that different people have. They have every right for those ideas. Let them have an abortion, or not have an abortion, based on their needs, not ours!"
-- Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey of California, arguing against a pro-life amendment to stop abortion from being funded as part of government-run health care.
It seems that every few years there occurs some kind of development that vaults the pro-life issue to the front pages of newspapers, and to the center of the national consciousness. For example, the horrible starvation death of Terri Schiavo in 2005 sparked a national argument over euthanasia, and how we value the lives of those with profound disabilities.
The life issues are once again front and center, thanks to the raging debate over President Obama's attempt to increase government's role in health care. Pro-life members of Congress have attempted repeatedly to amend the health care legislation to ensure that government does not get into the business of using our tax dollars to pay for abortions. As I write this letter, every pro-life amendment has been defeated on close votes
In the midst of one of these debates, U.S. Rep. Lynn Woolsey uttered the now infamous words above, suggesting that abortion is the moral equivalent of having a tonsillectomy. Let's give the Congresswoman credit where credit is due: in less than 70 words, she managed to summarize 40 years worth of incoherent arguments that have been churned out by the pro-abortion movement.
There was a time in my life when I would have reacted with great anger to the Congresswoman's callous remarks. Indeed, a measured amount of righteous anger is appropriate when you consider that ideas have consequences, and these particular ideas have deadly consequences.
But more than anger, I feel a genuine and heartfelt pity for the likes of Lynn Woolsey. When the late Mother Teresa referred to abortion as a "great poverty" she wasn't referring just to the act itself, but to the mindset that gives rise to it. When you find yourself arguing that abortion has no more significance than a tonsillectomy, you have truly "reached the bottom of the barrel," philosophically speaking.
Comments such as these actually energize our team at Healing the Culture, because we're reminded that our pro-life educational work is a mission every bit as real and consequential as what Mother Teresa did in the streets of Calcutta. Our pro-life work continues to build momentum, and I am excited to share some highlights of what we accomplished in August, and what's coming up in September and October:
- Teacher training completed: Last month I flew to Mobile, Alabama and trained the faculty members of McGill-Toolen High School on how to teach Principles and Choices, the first phase of our prototype high school curriculum. I'll return in mid-October to observe and evaluate the classroom teaching and learn how we can further improve this groundbreaking educational tool.
- Youth group, junior high testing arranged: We have completed preparations to test the same Principles and Choices curriculum at two different venues in Seattle: a church-based young adult ministry, and a private middle school. These are experiments to see how adaptable our curriculum is for youth in a non-classroom setting, and for students who are younger than high school age.
- Notre Dame University partnership: In September, I'll be traveling once again to Notre Dame to teach a seminar to pre-med students in our "Being With" curriculum. This curriculum prepares future doctors on how to constructively respond to the experience of suffering among terminally ill and chronically ill patients.
- Meetings to promote curriculum: Also in September, we'll be meeting with officials at the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops in Washington, D.C., and the dioceses of Los Angeles, Orlando, and Denver. These ongoing meetings are crucial for building the relationships necessary to get our curriculum into every Catholic school in the country, before expanding to other Christian schools.
- A packed speaking schedule: This Fall we'll be taking "Life Principles" presentations to many audiences, including a business group in Orlando, Florida; the students and faculty of Trinity Western University and Redeemer Pacific College in Vancouver, British Columbia; and a western Washington high school student pro-life leadership conference.
Your financial solidarity with Healing the Culture allows us to spread the pro-life message far and wide. We like to say that we're "too busy lighting candles to have time to curse the darkness." Our team is working hard to advance our initiatives despite the challenges of securing needed funding in a troubled economy.
If your circumstances allow you to support our work with a financial investment this month, I would be especially grateful for your support. We recognize that every donation we receive at Healing the Culture represents an affirmation from our supporters that you want this work to continue.
On behalf of our Board members, staff, and volunteers, let me thank you for being faithful to this mission in good times and bad. You know that building a culture of life is too important to be postponed to another day... or another generation. The work is ours to do, here and now, and your support allows us to move forward.
Blessings,
Camille Pauley
President
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