Human Life Matters

CANADIAN MEDIA SUPPRESSES CERTAIN VOICES

2013-05-12T19:22:00.000-07:00

Canada has no legal protection for prenatal life at any point during pregnancy. It is legal for a Canadian woman to have an abortion for any reason or no reason up to and including the 9th month (if she can find a doctor to do it). All abortions are paid for by the public purse. A woman in Canada can have as many abortions as she wants.

Many Canadian citizens are deeply opposed to this appalling state of affairs. This year 12,000 people showed up in front of Canada's Parliament to make their voices heard in the annual March for Life. If you were unaware of it, that's probably because the media either did not report the story or only passingly referred to it. It seems there are some voices Canada's liberal media elites want to suppress. (Let 200 people show up in front of a provincial legislature supporting a right to have a ~~sex change,~~ gender reassignment at taxpayer expense and watch the media show up!)

The suppression of coverage of pro-Life voices by the liberal media was to be expected.There were exceptions -- such as the Sun Media chain -- but they are the exception that proves the rule: Canadian media willfully manipulate news coverage. Certain stories are suppressed, they try to silence certain voices .

Michael Coren

There are a few journalists who go against the grain: Michael Coren is one. He is a champion of free speech and a fair and unbiased news media. Mr. Coren discussed media suppression of the March for Life on his TV show. Click on link below. --- MDP
http://www.sunnewsnetwork.ca/video/2369425715001

I HELPLESSLY WATCHED A FRIEND KILL HIMSELF WITH FOOD!

2013-05-09T19:53:00.000-07:00

I once had a friend named Dave. Although he was as strong as a mule, he was one of the gentlest souls I've ever known. Granted he had his faults but in the 30 years I knew Dave, not once did I hear him make an unkind comment about anyone. That's a rare quality. David was gentle, loyal and kind. Unfortunately for him and me, he was also morbidly obese.

David had a wonderful singing voice. He accompanied me on many of my speaking tours across Canada and the United States and often sang inspirational songs after my speeches. David was so unassuming and modest -- audiences were stunned that such a superb voice came out of him.

Many of my venues were rather dressy events and all David had were gigantic T-shirts and formless sweat pants. He could not find a suit to fit. My wife is an extraordinary dress maker so she used her talent to make him a suit.

How does this relate to human dignity? Assaults on human value and dignity take many forms. We must not forget that everybody possesses natural human dignity that started with the spark of life we often refer to as conception. At some point in his life, Dave ceased to believe in his own worth. He ceased to believe in his own natural human dignity that is rooted in the image of God that was his (whether he believed it or not).

Dave experienced much emotional and spiritual pain in his life which he buried deep inside. There were people who loved Dave, but somehow something happened at an earlier time in his life that made him incapable of receiving their love or even believing he was worthy of being truly loved. (?)

Food became Dave's comfort -- a kind of salve to temporarily relieve his soul-pain and inexpressible sorrows that haunted him throughout his life. As Dave's weight and size increased, the simplest things like sleep became difficult. He slept leaning on a chair because laying down made breathing too difficult.

Food was his seductive enemy that increasingly isolated him from a world that prizes the slender and fit and increased his sorrow. Many people recoiled at his extreme obesity and turned away in disgust.

Dave had an aversion to doctors and had not seen one in years. I begged him to see my doctor but he would not go. He ate more as though he was committing suicide by the installment plan. It worked.

One day I received a call from Dave's sister: He dropped dead of a heart attack. He was 48 years old. My friend was gone.

If over consumption of food is a problem for you or a loved-one, please seek help to get it under control.

Recently I came across a widely viewed video on YouTube. It had another morbidly obese man (much younger than Dave) with a gentle demeanor and an exquisite voice. He reminded me Dave. See below. -- MDP

ABORTIONIST DR. KERMIT GOSNELL'S BARBARITY IS NOT UNIQUE

2013-05-01T08:43:00.005-07:00

Abortionist Dr. Kermit Gosnell

The secular liberal media is finally lifting their blackout of coverage of the Kermit Gosnell ~~House of Horrors~~ abortion clinic in Philadelphia. The video below is shocking but the story needs to be widely known. The squalid conditions, violation of health standards, under-qualified or unqualified staff, have been a continual refrain about abortion clinics in various jurisdictions.

I suspect this is just the tip of a cold and dirty iceberg of the abortion industry.Why would we expect any different? If life is not respected why would health regulations be respected?

Abortion did not liberate society: it has murdered our nations' children in a holocaust of unprecidented proportions and has hardened or broken millions of human hearts. It has scarred and killed our women. That's what 40 years of abortion did. Never mistake barbarity with enlightenment. Let us use the grisly case of Kermit Gosnell to mark the beginning of the end a dark chapter in North America's 40 year history of abortion. Let us use this terrible case to change our national mindset toward a new embrace of the value and dignity of all human life. That's real enlightenment.

Yes, Dr. Kermit Gosnell was a baby killer, but he is not so unique. All abortionists are baby killers. Make abortion something of the past and enter the sunlit uplands of inclusion and love.

Mark Davis Pickup

LILA ROSE: A GREAT AMERICAN

2013-04-30T10:29:00.001-07:00

Lila Rose

Lila Rose is a courageous American woman who is dedicated to making a difference in the ethical and moral war against the wholescale holocaust of abortion. I want you to see her undercover videos. Click on the image below for just one example of a conversation with a staffer at an abortion mill.

Mark Davis Pickup

GOD WILL WIPE AWAY EVERY TEAR

2013-04-28T18:44:00.002-07:00

Read Mark Davis Pickup's latest blog entitled "GOD WILL WIPE AWAY EVERY TEAR" at http://markpickup.org

PUBLISHING INACCURACIES AT AMERICA'S NATIONAL CATHOLIC REPORTER

2013-04-13T09:29:00.001-07:00

Mark Davis Pickup

HumanLifeMatters' blogger Mark Davis Pickup has written a post taking to task America's National Catholic Reporter. They published a grossly ill-informed article by Presbyterian Bill Tammeus about capital punishment and abortion within Catholicism. Why would a purportedly Catholic newspaper do this? To read Mark's blog under the title THE NATIONAL CATHOLIC REPORTER, CAPITAL PUNISHMENT AND "BUNDLES OF CELLS", go to http://markpickup.org

MOST CANADIANS OPPOSE GENDER-SELECTED ABORTIONS

2013-04-03T12:48:00.000-07:00

Recently in Canada a Conservative Member of Parliament tried to bring bring a motion against gender selected abortions before Parliament. Mark Warawa was blocked, his motion deemed "unvotable", his protests blocked and silenced, his appeal to the Speaker of the House of Commons to uphold his right to speak, was met with disdain. He was denounced as a "rogue member" and generally abused. This was an outrageous abuse of power under the Conservative Government of Prime Minister Stephen Harper!

This morning I received an email from Canadian pro-Life champion John Hof, President of United for Life British Columbia. The substance of that email deals Canadian attitudes toward gender-selection abortions. Ninety-five percent of Canadians oppose sex-selected abortions! It seems Canada's government is out of touch with Canadians on this issue. See below.

Poll Shows Sex-Selection Abortion a Major Problem for all Canadians

April 3, 2013

Langley, BC. A recent poll, conducted by Abingdon Research on behalf of United for Life BC and WeNeedALaw.ca, found that Canadians overwhelmingly oppose gender-selection abortion, but also that many believe it is happening within their communities.

Overall, of those Canadians who had an opinion, 95% said sex-selection abortion is wrong, (83% said it is always wrong and 12% said it is sometimes wrong). “When was the last time 95% of Canadians agreed on anything?” asked United for Life spokesperson, John Hof

For the first time, this poll sought to specifically measure what Canadians from different cultural communities think about gender-selection abortion. The poll found that an overwhelming majority of Canadians from every ethnic and religious group oppose sex-selection abortion in all cases. Less than 8% of people from any cultural community said it was not wrong.

“We already knew Canadians strongly oppose sex-selection abortion,” said Hof. “This poll shows that Canadians from all different backgrounds are more or less on the same page.”

Canadians from certain cultural and religious communities were somewhat more likely to believe that sex-selection abortion happens within their communities. Numbers were highest among Hindus (57% yes or sometimes, 11% no, 32% don’t know) and Buddhists (44% yes or sometimes, 22% no, 32% don’t know).

“These numbers suggest very strongly that sex-selection abortion is happening in Canada,” said John Hof. “Although it is a greater problem in some communities, extremely large majorities from every community want it to stop.”

This poll was conducted online and surveyed 2502 Canadians in English Canada between January 21 and March 15, 2012. Visible minority Canadians were oversampled in this survey. Overall, the survey has a margin of error of +/- 2.8%, nineteen times out of twenty.

Contact: John Hof, United for Life British Columbia 604-534-4828 john@unitedforlifebc.ca

CANADIAN COURT CASE ON EUTHANASIA COULD HAVE FAR-REACHING IMPLICATIONS ON THE MOST VULNERABLE

2013-03-25T19:00:00.000-07:00

See Canada's Christian Week magazine article entitled, "Court rules on controversial euthanasia case" at http://christianweek.org/stories.php?id=2305

MDP

BLOG SURPASSED 150,000 INTERNATIONAL HITS!

2013-03-16T09:13:00.003-07:00

The HumanLifeMatters blog has surpassed 150,000 hits. The audience truly is international. As of March 15th 2013, the top 10 countries of documented visits are, in descending order: The United States, Canada, Ukraine, Russia, China, Germany, the United Kingdom, France, the Netherlands and Poland.

THE IMPORTANT CONCEPT OF SHARING

2013-03-15T15:34:00.000-07:00

So much of what is essential to getting along in life is learned early. Most people would see the 34 second video clip below as the beginnings of sibling rivalry. In fact, the Youtube video is called "Pacifier Wars". Au contraire! I see it differently. These babies are sharing. -- MDP

RIVER OF GRIEF

2013-02-20T17:34:00.000-08:00

Mark Davis Pickup

Followers of this blog may be interested in my latest column for Canada's Western Catholic Reporter. It deals with what I call a river of grief that confronts people with sudden onset of serious disabilities or chronic illnesses. My column states, in part:

"... For example, the sudden catastrophe of spinal cord injury can be the source of deep despair and bitterness for the individual who finds himself facing paraplegia or quadriplegia, often in the blink of an eye.

All it takes is a fall or car accident. It is a terrible shock to lose partial or complete use of one's limbs. A severed spinal cord irrevocably and drastically alters how a person lives his life.

Grief is like a river that can block the sufferer from continuing his life journey. It is imperative to cross the river of grief and discover what is on the other shore. After the initial shock passes, it becomes critically important to actively and intentionally rebuild one's life and incorporate the new reality.

The individual must develop a new self-identity that includes his disability or condition and his loved ones must encourage this process and accept the new person and how he perceives himself. But the individual's new reality should not be focused on his disability. This transition phase is uncertain and even dangerous.

Some people refuse to rise above their circumstances and face their new reality. They want their old life back or they want no life. They are unwilling to cross the river of grief and can become suicidal. Unresolved grief in people with disabilities (and their loved ones) can fuel calls for euthanasia and assisted suicide."

To read the rest of my column go to http://wcr.ab.ca/Columns/OpinionsStories/tabid/70/entryid/3686/Disability-forces-one-to-cross-a-river-of-grief.aspx

Mark Davis Pickup

DESIRING HUMAN ACCEPTANCE

2013-02-06T18:39:00.002-08:00

On a number of occasions I have written about the loneliness of disability. I suppose readers might be apt to think loneliness is not unique to people with severe disabilities, and they are right. Most lonely people are not disabled. You don’t even need to be alone to be lonely; a person can be lonely in a crowded room. The issue is interconnectedness with others.

Humanity was created for relationships. We are hardwired for connections with others and for intimacy. I’m not referring to intimacy in a sexual context ─ although that is important in marriage ─ I am referring to a broader context of intimate human friendship and belonging.

Being cut-off from intimate human friendships and the accompanying sense of not belonging to a social group is a source of deep loneliness. In his brilliant and penetrating 1943 essay entitled The Inner Ring, C.S. Lewis wrote about the human desire to belong to certain social groups and the terror of being excluded from them. He described the rings of social groups in society like skins of an onion.

All people may, at any point, be included in or excluded from a desired social Ring, or try to pierce through to a Ring, or be in the process of being thrown from one. Lewis said:

C.S. Lewis

“I believe that in all men’s lives at certain periods, and in many men’s lives at all periods between infancy and extreme old age, one of the most dominant elements is the desire to be inside the local Ring and the terror of being left outside.”

The desire to be on the inside of a society of people may not necessarily be for the snobbery of high life. A person may desire to be part of a particular grungy artistic côterie or some intellectual or political clique. It is an aspect of life people may not speak about – particularly when they are trying to get into a new group − when they are still one of “them” rather than one of “us”.

We see this desire to belong blatantly displayed with teenagers. The yearning to fit into a particular group will propel a young person to do odd or drastic things to gain acceptance. It can become all-consuming for them. Behavior, clothing, general appearance and morals will change to identify with, and be accepted by, a particular social group of teens ─ often identified as the “in” group. In order for there to be “in” groups, there must also be “out” groups. An “in” group maintains its elitism by remaining small and making entrance difficult for some and impossible for others. They create terror for the excluded by cruel and humiliating reminders of their exclusion. The excluded will try to find some point of affinity with another group to which they stand a chance of gaining acceptance. The drive to be accepted and enjoy intimate friendships is very strong. When it is denied the soul aches, the heart breaks. Being rejected by all social groups is too horrible to contemplate and creates unbearable dimensions of loneliness.

For many people with profound disabilities, they are often excluded from all social groups.

Before my own disability, gaining acceptance within certain desirable social groups was easy. Once inside the group, I built my status as relationships were established. (This was immensely useful to my career and raw ambition.) That all changed the day I was diagnosed with an incurable and degenerative disease. Doors to my social rings of people quietly closed and did not reopen. Intimate human relationships of friends grew cool and eventually went cold. It all happened with the greatest of politeness and aplomb but there was no mistaking it: I went from warmth of “us” to cold shock and dismay of being with “them”.

The unstated rejection was complete: Invitations to intimate discussions huddled with like-minded people ceased. The warm reassuring winks, nods and subtle smiles of acknowledgement about some esoteric point of understanding, agreement and approval disappeared and were replaced by blank stares or worse: expressions of pity! I cannot express in words the horrible shock of becoming an outsider.

It was only when I eventually discovered that it didn’t matter. I was accepted by the Holy One who died as an outsider, rejected by men. There is no need to strive to reach for an invisible ring of earthly acceptance or fear of losing it. My desire for intimacy is fulfilled in a relationship with Christ. I have unconditional acceptance by the creator of intimacy.

MDP

Statistics for the HumanLifeMatters Blog surpass 135,000 hits

2013-02-01T09:19:00.000-08:00

As of February 1st 2013, statistics indicate that the HumanLifeMatters blog hits have now exceeded 135,000 visits from all over the world. When I started the blog a few years ago, I had no idea it would generate such interest.

Not surprising, the most interest comes from the United States, followed by Canada and then Europe, but I am consistently surprised by the level of hits coming from China and Russia.

If you would like to have an bioethical or Life issue opinion piece published on the HumanLifeMatters' blog send your email of inquiry to HumanLifeMatters@shaw.ca

Mark Davis Pickup

MAKING TIME FOR THE INTERIOR SELF

2013-01-29T09:05:00.001-08:00

Mark Davis Pickup

See Mark Davis Pickup's latest short personal blog post encouraging nurture for the inner self. Go to http://markpickup.org under "Cold and Quiet Canadian Winters"

MEDIA COVERAGE OF MARCH FOR LIFE WAS MISSING SOMETHING

2013-01-26T10:33:00.002-08:00

The 2013 March for Life in Washington DC marked 40 years of abortion on demand in the United States: It broke all previous attendance records with an estimated 500,000 people. Did you notice something about the meagre media coverage of the event? The absence of the word "life". As usual the liberal media are trying to couch the debate to show abortion supporter in a positive light. Liberal abortion advocates do not like the term "pro-life" because it implies they are pro-death. Yes, that pretty much sums it up -- if the shoe fits. Let me strip away all the flowery or deceptive language and put the issue in raw blunt words.

Pro-choicers support the choice to kill unwanted or inconvenient unborn children to solve what amounts to social problems of their parents. Am I wrong?

For more information on the media censoring of the word life from coverage of the 2013 March for Life in Washington D.C. go to http://www.lifenews.com/2013/01/25/networks-censor-word-life-from-march-for-life-coverage/ , "Networks Censor Word from March for Life Coverage."

MDP

MARTIN LUTHER KING'S DREAM REVISITED

2013-01-22T19:52:00.003-08:00

As was mentioned in the last blog post (found below this post), it has been forty years of unrestricted abortion across the United States under the infamous Roe v. Wade Supreme Court ruling. It proved that even a nation’s highest court can make the lowest of decisions.

The January 2013 edition of the magazine Columbia published by the Knights of Columbus deals with abortion in America. Supreme Knight, Carl A. Anderson, wrote an excellent column entitled “Our Moral Responsibility”. He stated that it is not possible for any legal system to hold up human rights if it supports the principle that it is acceptable to kill the most innocent members of society. Anderson then wrote: “Roe v Wade not only accepts this principle, but it elevates it to a constitutional right.” He said that “no person is entitled to claim absolute control over another human life already called into existence.”

The truth of Mr. Anderson’s pen cuts with the precision of a freshly sharpened knife. Think about it. Wasn’t that the same moral position that ultimately stopped slavery in Aerica?

It was odd that the most pro-abortion President America has ever known was inaugurated for his second term on Martin Luther King Jr. Memorial Day (January 21st 2013). The great civil rights leader's immortal speech I have a dream still rings the bell of liberty 45 years after his assassination.

The root of that speech drew upon the foundational principle upon which America was founded: "I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident: that all men are created equal." Dr. King dreamed of a day when black Americans would truly stand as equals with white America and that they would not be "judged by the color of their skin but the content of their character." That dream is coming to pass as a black American has risen to the highest Office in the land. But that President sullies the dream of Martin Luther King making it once again incomplete and corrupted: This black President believes in a different kind of human oppression and inequality of a class of humanity: the unborn.

And so Dr. Martin Luther King's niece has risen up to carry the torch for human equality. Dr. Alveda King speaks for the lives of unwanted children being sacrificed on the altar of so-called sexual freedom of their parents. There is nothing free about it ... it is the children pay the price with their lives before they ever see the light of day or feel the sun's warmth on their backs! I am so grateful another member of the King family again points the way for the nation when it is falling so terrible short of its potential. Alveda King is calling America to recognize its blind spot about abortion. Liberty can not live without human equality. America is far from that noble ideal as long as abortion clinics operate and prosper across the land.

Understand the scale of human oppression and slaughter: since 1973, over 54 million preborn American children have lost their lives at a rate of over 4,000 each day. The abortion industry churns on day after day all across America aborting babies and preying on vulnerable and frightened young women in crisis pregnancies.

It does not need to be that way.

Americans of good will must welcome women in crisis pregnancies into their homes, churches and communities. Welcome their babies into your spheres of abundant nurture. Shut down the abortion clinics in your towns and cities. Peacefully rise up in righteous indignation against this evil of our age. Do not rest until all human life -- from the spark of conception to the last breath of life's natural conclusion -- receives the care and protection it deserves as valued members of the human family.

Remember Martin Luther King's dream:

"I have a dream that one day every valley shall be exalted, every hill and mountain shall be made low, the rough places will be made plain, and the crooked places will be made straight, and the glory of the Lord shall be revealed, and all flesh shall see it together."

"... This will be the day when all of God's children will be able to sing with a new meaning, "My country, 'tis of thee, sweet land of liberty, of thee I sing. Land where my fathers died, land of the pilgrims pride, from every mountainside, let freedom ring."

Alveda King, take the torch of liberty from your uncle's fallen hand. Renew his dream of human equality and liberty -- this time for the smallest voices yet to sing and breath. Call your countrymen to make rough places plain and crooked paths straight. America's blood-stained soil can yet be washed clean with the tears of national repentance. The glory of the Lord can be revealed. And I will pray for you from far away. I have such love for America.

MDP

ROE V. WADE: MAKE YOU PROTEST HEARD AND YOUR INDIGNATION FELT

2013-01-20T16:26:00.001-08:00

Yes, it is true: America made a grave mistake by re-electing Barack Obama. What's done is done.

The question is what do American Christians do now? Take for granted that the media will support whatever he does and even suppress the truth for their man.

Support the President for the good and life affirming things he does. Pray for him. We are under Scriptural command to pray for our leaders. Pray for yourselves too. Pray that God gives you discernment and wisdom and courage. So much is at stake.

Do not be afraid to clearly and resolutely articulate those things Obama and his Administration do that are offensive to freedom (not licence) or are clearly an offense to God -- like abortion. America's soil has been polluted with the blood of more than 55 million unborn children killed by abortion.* It is a time when darkness is presented as light. Christians must speak up like never before, Evangelicals and Catholics united together to stop this unprecedented holocaust!

Protest en masse against abortion and euthanasia. Take this holy battle to end abortion to the streets of your cities and towns. If it is at all possible, go to Washington and participate in the March for Life marking the 40th Anniversary of the horrible Roe V. Wade decision that opened the path to abortion across the land. Show up in such large numbers that the streets of Washington become clogged and the business of the Capitol is brought to a halt. Make so much noise with loud protests of righteous indignation that the halls of Congress shake to their foundations. If you can't make it to Washington, flood the offices of your representatives and senators in Washington and the office of Supreme Court Chief Justice with emails, faxes and telephone calls marking the occasion of January 22nd.

Speak for the 55 million children who had no voice and those who are about to die!

MDP

*Canada's soil is bloodied by abortion too.

WHAT HAVE WE LEARNED ABOUT INJUSTICE OVER THE PAST 156 YEARS?

2013-01-07T19:40:00.001-08:00

In his excellent (although vaguely anti-Catholic) book THE MARKETING OF EVIL: How Radicals Elitists, and Pseudo-Experts Sell Us Corruption Disguised as Freedom, David Kupelian wrote about the Dred Scott Supreme Court case of 1857. The Dred Scott decision denied blacks American citizenship and even questioned their full personhood. Kupelian laid out the case and quoted Supreme Court Chief Justice, Roger B Taney who wrote for the high court majority that blacks have “no rights which the white man is bound to respect; and that the negro might justly and lawfully be reduced to slavery for his benefit. He was bought and sold and treated as an ordinary article of merchandise and traffic, whenever profit could be made by it.” Kupelian asked how the dreadful decision by the U.S. Supreme Court could get around the Declaration of Independence which affirmed that “all men are created equal”? Kupelian quoted Taney’s rationale: “It is too clear for dispute, that the enslaved African race were not intended to be included, and formed no part of the people who framed and adopted this declaration.”

Today, we look upon the Dred Scott Supreme Court decision with horror and disgust. And so we should. But we must not be so pious. Future generations will probably look back at the Roe v. Wade 1973 abortion decision with equal horror and disgust. And so they should. It was a barbaric decision by the highest court in the United States that was responsible for over 45 million abortions throughout the past 40 years! Each day across America more than 4,000 unborn children are sacrificed of the altar of sexual freedom for their parents.

In my country of Canada, the Supreme Court has decided that unborn children are not legal persons until birth ─ despite mountains of medical and biological knowledge about the humanity of prenatal life. And every Canadian abortion is paid for by tax dollars. Unborn children in the United States and Canada can be aborted throughout all 9 months.

If any place deserves God’s punishment, it is North America where these atrocities go on day after day, year and year, decade after decade.

MDP

GRIEF OF NEWTOWN

2012-12-16T19:45:00.000-08:00

Although I have faced cancer and nearly three decades of disease that has steadily and irrevocable stripped me of physical function and disabled me, it's nothing compared to the grief being endured by the parents of murdered children and loved-ones in Newtown, CT.

As we celebrate Christmas, let us remember and pray for the good people of Newtown who lost loved-ones. President Obama's address on Sunday evening began with the 2 Corinthians 4.16-5.1:

"Therefore we do not lose heart. Even though our outward man is perishing, yet the inward man is being renewed day by day. For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory. While we do not look at the things which are seen, but at the things that are not seen. For the things that are seen are temporary, but the things that are not seen are eternal. For we know that if our earthly house, this tent, is destroyed, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens."

This Scripture has been a comfort and consolation to me. I hope it provides similar solace to grievers of Newtown. The solace and promise of the Apostle Paul's words are found a few verses earlier: "Knowing that He who raised up the Lord Jesus will raise us up with Jesus" (verse 14).

There, dear people of Newtown, this is this griever's hope and joy (even in the midst of pain and sorrow): To know I will be with Christ in eternity. You too will see your little ones again. Jesus himself said, "Let the little children come to Me, and do not forbid them; for such is the kingdom of heaven." (Matthew 19.14). Remember you were reminded of this at the memorial for your children?

Please do not despair. Follow Christ. You will see them again in glory.

Mark Davis Pickup

WHY IS NORTH AMERICAN CULTURE IN MORAL SHAMBLES?

2012-12-10T11:06:00.000-08:00

Although this blog deals with Life and bioethical issues, I want to take thsi opportunity to recommed a book that is critically important to anyone who is wondering how and why North American culture got into such moral shambles. The book is THE MARKETING OF EVIL: How Radicals, Elitists, and Pseudo-Experts Sell Us Corruption Disguised as Freedom, by David Kupelian. I you cannot find it at your local bookstore, it can be purchased through Amazon.

Put this insightful book at the top of your reading list for 2013! For American Christians who visit this blog (the majority of the readership), I recommend you begin with Chapter 10 then read the rest of the book. It explains so much about how North America got into our current moral quagmire. Canadians will benefit too. David Kupelian's words of wisdom are equally applicable to Canada.

Mark Davis Pickup

WELCOME TO OUR WORLD

2012-12-08T10:32:00.001-08:00

It seems so long ago. It was a long time ago -- over a quarter of a century in fact. I co-founded a crisis pregnancy centre in the Canadian city of Edmonton. It was a church-based ministry for women in crisis pregnancies to offer life affirming alternatives instead of abortion. Initially we called the ministry Outreach for Life.

By 1987, my own struggle with aggressive multiple sclerosis forced me to step down from the board and leave the ministry in the capable hands of others. Boy are they capable!

The ministry has grown. It is now called the Pregnancy Care Centre. Today, they not only serve women in crisis pregnancies and their babies, the Pregnancy Care Centre counsels post-abortive women (and men) and have an active community education program. God has brought such vibrant and committed Christians to the ministry to serve as volunteers and staff at the Centre or at a board level. Edmonton's evangelical community has rallied behind them in support. You can learn more by visiting www.pregnancycarecentre.ca and www.abortionrecovery.ca
I can only admire them from afar and marvel at where God has brought this ministry from its humble beginnings in the living rooms of its first President, Marg Ferchoff, and the first Vice President: me.

The Pregnancy Care Centre has served literally thousands of women over the years. The Centre's director, Nora, has occasionally let me know how things are going. (I addressed their tenth and twentieth anniversary banquets.)

Every year I receive the Centre's Christmas card naming the infants born during the year as a result of outreach and service to their mothers. This year was no different. The card came with the names of 99 children and a Christmas message: "Now all glory to God, Who is able through His mighty power at work within us to accomplish infinitely more than we ask o think." Indeed!

Because of another Child born 2,000 years ago, we have hope today and welcome other babies into our world. See link below.
MDP

BEAUTIFUL ANIMATION OF BIRTH

2012-11-09T09:35:00.001-08:00

3-D ultrasound of an unborn baby

A short video can be seen at the link below showing a computer depiction of a child's birth, courtesy of TheVisualMD.com. The video is called BeautifulBirth. Excellent! It is particularly important for those who ascribe to the ridiculous legal fiction that the unborn child is only a human being once fully born.

http://www.thevisualmd.com/interactives.php?idu=1033609495&idc=980&sd=1?utm_source=Newsletter&utm_medium=Email&utm_content=VMD_06&utm_campaign=Pregnancy_iBook

PROTECTING EAGLE EGGS VERSUS UNBORN BABIES

2012-11-06T08:26:00.000-08:00

And if you try to offer life affirming alternatives to the mother of this unborn baby, you may face this (see below). What happened to our civilized society in North America? What kind of barbarians have we become!

(NB: In Canada, every abortion is paid for by taxpayers. It has been this way for decades.)

HEARTS TO INCLUDE PEOPLE WITH DISABILITIES

2012-11-01T14:50:00.001-07:00

http://www.airdriecityview.com/article/20121101/ACV0302/311019970/0/ACV

Me with granddaughter Grace

Above is a link to another article about my granddaughter, Grace, winning the title of Little Miss Calgary 2013. It is in this week's local newspaper City View for the city of Airdrie (a bedroom community of the Canadian city, Calgary, Alberta).* The article appears under the title "Airdrie girl awarded title of Little Miss Calgary 2013."

As you will read, Grace has a heart for people with disabilities. It comes natural. We have often talked about the natural human dignity of every human life. She has grown up riding on the back of my electric wheelchair or scooter -- as have her siblings. My grandchildren are not poorer because of my disability, they are richer because of it. You will detect from the article at the link above that even at the tender age of eight years, Grace has the heart of an advocate. She's not alone in this attribute.

Grandson Graham and "W"

Grace's little brother Graham (6) is friends with a blind classmate. I will call him W.** They are "buds". W is one of Graham's circle of friends and is included as a normal part of his days. Graham leads W around the classroom activity centers and the playground and W makes Graham laugh. W is a funny guy!

Mark
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* Calgary (population 1,100,000) is the corporate hub of Canada's massive oil and gas industry which are second only to Saudi Arabia. Calgary hosted the 1988 Winter Olympics Games -- officially known as the XV Olympic Winter Games. The city is home of the world famous Calgary Stampede.
** I do not have clearance from W's parents to use his name.

THE AMERICAN ELECTION AND THE CRITICAL ISSUE OF ABORTION

2012-10-28T18:42:00.002-07:00

The U.S. election is just days away. Most of the readers of this blog are American and I want to encourage them all to take this opportunity to exercise their right to vote.

EVANGELICAL VOTERS

I want evangelical readers to take some time to listen to Dr. David Jeremiah, Pastor and broadcaster, speak about the momentous decision that lies before evangelical Americans this election. I urge you to put aside half an hour to listen to Dr. Jeremiah's message. Click here: http://vimeo.com/52163082

CATHOLIC VOTERS

I urge Catholic readers of this blog to listen to Fr. Frank Pavone of Priests for Life speak about what should be a paramount consideration when deciding who to vote for on election day. Click here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BC1-6j3-V-8&feature=youtu.be

Which candidate is more likely to support the fundamental right to life?

If Barack Obama gets a second term it may prove pivitol to the direction of abortion in America for decades to come with dire consequences to millions more preborn children. (I believe it will be disastrous for the character of America on a number of fronts.) In an emailer under the title, "Election Could Decide Fate of Abortion for 40 More Years", LifeNews editor Steven Ertelt reports:

The average age of Justices on the United States Supreme Court is 71. Justice Ruth Bader Ginsberg is 79, Justice Antonin Scalia is 76, Justice Anthony Kennedy is 76, Justice Stephen Breyer is 74.

The next President's may potentially appoint some or all their replacements. We know that Obama is radically pro-abortion. (This is the man who supported partial birth abortion while an Illinois state legislator.) Do you think he will appoint Justices who respect all human life? Not likely. Obama will appoint pro-abortion Judges who will ensure the status quo of Roe v. Wade remains in Tlace: the abortion holocaust in America will continue.

I ask American readers of this blog to vote for the candidate who is most likely to make decisions that will be more supportive to the right to life cause. I believe it is likely to be Mitt Romney.

Neither Presidential candidate is ideal: the question is which one is better? You must decide. I have stated my opinion.

Mark Davis Pickup