Catholic Fire

LIFE Life is an opportunity, benefit from it. Life is beauty, admire it. Life is bliss, taste it. Life is a dream, realize it. Life is a challenge, meet it. Life is a duty, complete it. Life is a game, play it. Life is costly, care for it. Life is wealth, keep it. Life is love, enjoy it. Life is mystery, know it. Life is a promise, fulfill it. Life is sorrow, overcome it. Life is a song, sing it. Life is a struggle, accept it. Life is tragedy, confront it. Life is an adventure, dare it. Life is luck, make it. Life is too precious, do not destroy it. Life is life, fight for it.

Lord God, I thank you today for the gift of my life, And for the lives of all my brothers and sisters. I know there is nothing that destroys more life than abortion, Yet I rejoice that you have conquered death by the Resurrection of Your Son. I am ready to do my part in ending abortion. Today I commit myself Never to be silent, Never to be passive, Never to be forgetful of the unborn. I commit myself to be active in the pro-life movement, And never to stop defending life Until all my brothers and sisters are protected, And our nation once again becomes A nation with liberty and justice Not just for some, but for all, Through Christ our Lord. Amen!  En Español: Oración para abolir el aborto Dios Padre, te agradezco por el obsequio de mi vida, por las vidas de todos mis hermanos y hermanas. Sé que no hay nada que destruya la vida más que el aborto, y me regocijo al saber que Tu has conquistado la muerte con la Resurrección de Tu Hijo. Estoy listo para...

Dozens of families and wailing children welcomed Pope Francis as he addressed Italy's Movement for Life at the Clementine Hall. In his remarks, the Pope once again brought up the "throw-away” culture, and the threat it poses to life, in all its stages. POPE FRANCIS "One of the greatest risks we are exposed to today, is the divorce between economy and morality; between the possibilities offered by a market, stocked with each technological advancement, and the elementary ethical norms of human nature, increasingly neglected. It is then necessary to reiterate our strongest opposition to each direct attack on life, especially the innocent and defenseless.” The Pope concluded that each Christian has the responsibility to protect life. He asked that they do it with attentiveness and proximity to women, so they don't feel neglected or alone.

You may not have heard about it – the broadcast networks gave it only 46 seconds of news time – but hundreds of thousands of anti-abortion protesters from all walks of life gathered on the national mall Wednesday to march to the Supreme Court. Continue reading. Related: The best photos from the 2014 Washington March for Life Tens of thousands brave the cold to March for Life Pope Francis Tweets his support of March for Life

TERRIFIC PERFORMANCE on CNN's "Crossfire" by Lila Rose, President of   Live Action,  in defense of unborn human life.  Watch, listen, and learn.

Bishop Richard J. Malone addresses Governor Cuomo's comments about pro-life extreme conservatism.

Students from Benedictine College in Kansas carry the March for Life sign at the head of the March, Jan. 22, 2014. Credit: Addie Mena/CNA. Tens of thousands of pro-life activists endured frigid temperatures and a snow storm Wednesday as they gathered at the National Mall in Washington, D.C., to mark the 41st anniversary of the landmark Roe v. Wade ruling that has prepared the way for an estimated 56 million abortions. In past years the march has drawn crowds estimated between 400,000 and 650,000 . However, the winter storm that blew through Washington on Tuesday led to cancellations of numerous buses and planes, creating a visible drop in numbers at this year's rally and march. The Philadelphia archdiocese, for instance, canceled all of their buses. Continue reading. Related Stories : Hundreds of Thousands of Pro-Lifers March for Life: Mourn 56 Million Abortions Youth travel through storms to give witness at March for Life VIDEO: 41 YEARS AFTER ROE, THE ABORTION ...

Rome, Italy, Dec 10, 2013 / 04:07 am (CNA).- “The Sinner's Guide to Natural Family Planning” has 95 percent five-star reviews on Amazon.com. Despite its growing popularity and critical acclaim, however, the book's author humbly describes herself as “a housewife with a bunch of blogs.” Continue reading.

Washington D.C., Oct 9, 2013 / 12:43 am (CNA/EWTN News).- A year-long initiative from the U.S. bishops is calling the faithful to respond to the needs of the unborn, supporting life in its most vulnerable stages. “We are called to love and respect one another as Christ does,” said Cardinal Séan P. O’Malley of Boston, who heads the pro-life committee for the U.S. bishops’ conference, in an Oct. 4 video. In the video, posted online, he delivered a message for Respect Life Sunday, which took place this year on Oct. 6 in dioceses across the country. Respect Life Sunday kicks off Respect Life Month, the cardinal explained, as well as “a full year of programs devoted to promoting and upholding the dignity of every person’s life, from the first moment of conception to the last moment of natural death.” The U.S. bishops’ conference has said that Respect Life Month and the following year of pro-life activities will take place in parishes throughout the nation, focusing on prayer and ...

Via Fox News: A Washington state congresswoman and her husband are speaking out about a trial that left them devastated, but now filled with new hope ... and new life, with a bouncing and healthy baby girl named Abigail. Rep. Jaime Herrera Beutler (R) and her husband, Dan, were over the moon when they found out they were expecting their first child late in 2012 ... but nothing could prepare them for the journey ahead. Doctors told them their daughter had Potter's Syndrome, a diagnosis that is fatal. Or, is often fatal. Physicians say baby Abigail is the first baby to survive the diagnosis. In essence, the syndrome is characterized by a lack of amniotic fluid in utero, which makes the womb shrink and prevents the baby from developing normally, particularly the kidneys. "I don't know if anything can ever prepare you for that kind of a diagnosis. It floored us," Herrera Beutler said. "On one hand, we were first time parents and excited, and then we get ...

View more videos at: http://nbcphiladelphia.com . Praise God! I have been praying for this young girl and her family! A big victory in federal court today for 10-year-old Sarah Murnaghan , a dying girl in need of a lung transplant. This afternoon, Judge Michael Baylson granted the Murnaghan family's request for a temporary restraining order, telling the Secretary of Health and Human Services to cease application of the "Under 12" rule when it comes to Sarah. The 10-year-old Newtown Square, Pa. girl has been hospitalized at Children's Hospital in Philadelphia for three months with end-stage cystic fibrosis. Read the entire story. Previous Posts on Catholic Fire: 10-Year-Old Fights for Her Life Due to "Immoral" Federal Policy Update: Mom Pleads for Help to Save Dying 10-Year-Old Daughter

WASHINGTON, D.C., January 25, 2013, (LifeSiteNews.com) – Huddled under winter coats and hats and scarves, hundreds of thousands of pro-life activists gathered on the Mall in Washington D.C. this morning to send a clear message to politicians in the Capitol, and the whole country: 40 years is too long, abortion must end! But despite the frigid January temperatures, the crowd, made up largely of teens and young adults, was boisterous, with many groups chanting pro-life slogans and singing hymns as they walked. This year's March marked the 40th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, since which an estimated 55 million babies have been killed by abortion in America. While accurate estimates of the number of attendees at the march are hard to come by, organizers had said in the days leading up to the event that all signs pointed to a record-breaking crowd. Hotels in the D.C area sold out far in advance of when they normally do, and organizers installed two jumbotrons just to ensure that all...

 “We hope and pray that our soldiers do not die on the battlefields. Then something like this happens on one of our bases by a fellow soldier." “What happened today is a tragedy. Our prayers are with those who are affected and their families, and I pray for comfort and healing of those who were shot." ~The Catholic Bishop of Beaumont, Texas, Curtis Guillory, commenting on on the tragedy at Ft. Hood today. Source

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Do you think this woman is pro-life? Think again. Here is an excerpt from an editorial in today's Washington Times: Americans who think the 1973 Roe v. Wade case legalizing abortion was wrongly decided -- and think the Supreme Court repeatedly compounded its error by limiting the power of states to regulate abortion counseling and the provision of abortion to minors -- should calmly but actively urge their senators to oppose Judge Sotomayor's nomination. The most basic evidence of the judge's support for Roe comes in the triple combination of White House assurances to that effect, of pro-choice senators declaring after meeting with her that they are sure she agrees with them, and of her entire jurisprudential approach of broadly construing anything characterized as "women's rights." Other evidence is more direct . Consider that from 1980 until October 1992, Judge Sotomayor served on the board -- at times as vice president and at times as chairman of the litiga...

The MacDonald family can tell us a thing or 2 about surviving abortion. The story begins in 1968, when Jenn MacDonald's mother attempted to abort her, but felt too guilty to finish the job. Jenn says... Unmarried, still in high school, and alone she tried to abort me, but in 1968 abortion was still illegal. The "procedure" didn't work and she was supposed to return the next week to try again. Being raised Catholic, she "got the guilts" and didn't return. But for God's grace, I would have been thrown out with the trash. Read the rest at Jill's blog. Recently 2 of Jenn's children submitted video entries for Lia Mills' Challenge to Pro-Life Youth Contest . The video by Jenn's 7-year-old son is at the top of this post. Jenn's 11-year-old daughter composed a song that she worked on for months... H/T: Jill Stanek

Lia, whose teacher did not want her to speak on pro-life issues, spoke to 12,000 people at a March for Life recently. What an eloquent speaker and a powerful witness! H/T: Christine

Last week Gallup announced that for the first time in their polling, more people identify themselves as pro-life than pro-choice, 51% to 42%. Yesterday, a Fox poll backed that up by showing similar results (49% pro-life to 43% pro-choice). These results are likely even an understatement, because the way the question is phrased makes a big difference. I remember one woman, who, when asked to identify which she was, pro-life or pro-choice, said something like, "Well I think it should be a choice for when a woman is otherwise going to die, so I guess I'm pro-choice." The point is that those calling themselves pro-choice include people, like this woman, who are against abortion 99.9% of the time. Of course, we would want to tell such a woman that while there might be the very, very rare situation of where it would physically help a woman to remove an unborn baby before birth, there is no reason to kill that baby. Plus all research shows that a woman with a physically challeng...

Read Fr. Frank Pavone's reflections here.