Women Religious Claim Vatican Investigation is a "Cycle of Violence"

Some people are professional victims. They go through life seeking to turn any conversation or event into attack. They may frequently accuse every single person they come across as being "violent" or "abusive" and they play the victim in a way that might actually be convincing to people who don't know them very well. The saddest part of this reality is that they actually believe the lies that they tell themselves and shuffle through life as dreary, self made victims, feeling sorry for themselves.

I've watched a family member struggle with this sort of illness, for it really seems to be an illness, and have seen how this sort of anger can eat away at a person until they are paranoid and hardly sane. As I read through one of my favorite blogs, Hanc Aquam, and then clicked over to see the news story Father Philip had linked to at NCR Online I seriously began to wonder how many women in the leadership of the LCWR have this sort of complex. The paranoia in the women who commented to NCR was apparent to anyone who isn't a Vatican Conspiracy Theorist.

Here are some of the responses to the voluntary visitation of the women religious in our country:

"This was a grassroots response. It was not organized. It came out of a widespread sense that the Vatican action was an unjust affront to women religious."

So a voluntary investigation is an "unjust affront to women religious?" I thought it was especially interesting that, after hearing so much about how horrible the retirement conditions are for these women, they are deeply offended that the Vatican is inquiring about their retirements. You can't really complain that the Vatican isn't doing anything to help, when you won't hand over the information about what's going on!

"All along, said one woman religious, the challenge has been to respond to the Vatican in a way that breaks a cycle of violence. She said that the women religious communities have attempted to respond by using a language "devoid of the violence" they found in the Vatican questionnaire and within the wider study. She characterized the congregation responses as "creative and affirming," and part of an effort to set a positive example in "nonviolent resistance."

"On the one hand we didn't want to roll over and play dead," she said. "So the question was, "How do you step outside a violent framework and do something new?' That was the challenge that emerged." One congregation, she said, cited a U.S. bishops' statement concerning domestic abuse in its response letter to Millea. "The point is, there have to be more than two choices: Take the abuse and offer it up, or kill the abuser.""

I have to say that as a woman who had a boyfriend during my teen years pick up a two by four and slam me across the back with it, I find this statement and the comparison of women religious with abuse victims to be offensive. My feelings are somewhat dulled by the decade that has passed between that incident and the present time. A voluntary investigation by the Vatican is hardly "violence." These women claim in the interviews to be out in the world and ghettos living out the spirit of Vatican II, but they really seem to living in a fantasy world that is completely out of touch with reality if they think that words and investigations are equatable to domestic abuse. I can't help but feel sorry for them and will offer up prayers that God will grant guidance to them and heal the anger that they very obviously feel towards the Church they claim to love.

Idiot of the Week: Chris Matthews

There was quite a lot of competition for this "prize" but one special person really stood out and so this weeks Idiot of the Week is Chris Matthews. Most of you have probably already heard about (if not seen) his interview with Bishop Tobin on Hardball.

Matthews appears to be yet another sad example of a "Catholic" who doesn't seem to know anything about the religion he claims to belong to and who would rather bluster on about why everything that the Church teaches is wrong rather than do a little research to broaden his perspective (never a good quality in a journalist).

Matthews apparently believes in the existence of "Abortion Rights" which, by the nature of their very name, violate the most basic of Human Rights, the right to life. Deacon Fournier explains this very in his opinion piece on Catholic.org well when he says:

"The claim of a so called “right” to abort an innocent child is heinous. It is also a fallacy to couch this evil in the language of a woman’s “Right to Choose.” Some choices are always and everywhere wrong. Yet, that is the current state of the positive law in America since the horrendous decisions in Roe and Doe. Women can “choose” to take the life of our first neighbors, the ones who live where we all once lived, in the womb. That “choice” - which is always and everywhere wrong because it is the taking of innocent human life - is also currently protected by the Police Power of the State.

Abortion is the only example of taking innocent human life which is so protected by the Police Power of the State. It has a special status as some sort of "super right" in the American libertine culture and the dictatorship of relativism. Imagine if the positive law created a so called “right” to kill three week old babies because the Supreme Court said it was OK. There is no moral difference. Abortion is feticide in a new language intended to make what is evil sound acceptable."

Of course, I personally don't expect much from a show or a journalist on MSNBC. They aren't known for their clear perspective on moral matters, or even on the daily news for that matter.

When Bishop Tobin came on the show he found himself interrupted repeatedly as Matthews delivered a condescending lecture, while pretending to be respectful by referring to Bishop Tobin as Your Excellency. Matthews proceeded to tell the bishop that words like "murder" and "killing" which are used in abortion cases "do not seem to apply in terms of writing the law." I wonder when the names of crimes stopped being used to describe the crimes in legal matters? Clearly that hasn't happened. I believe we hear the word "murder" used in murder cases quite frequently. And we obviously couldn't use "manslaughter" because the act of abortion always involves some sort of premeditation.

He then urged the Bishop to "consider the possibility of error here, because in getting into telling public officials how to set public policy, you're stepping beyond moral teaching, and you're basically assuming a moral authority which I don't think is yours."

Hmmmmmmmmm.... so according to Matthews, Bishops don't have the right to advise politicians who claim to be members of their religion, their sheep, as they are the shepherds of the flock, because by doing so they somehow overstep their "moral authority." I wonder if Matthews even thinks about what he's going to say before he goes on the air or if he just makes it up as he goes along, because the logic behind the statement is truly nonsensical.

And that is just a tiny piece of what makes Chris Matthews this weeks Idiot of the Week.

Anyone who'd like to nominate next weeks Idiot of the Week can do so in the comments section of this post. I'll post a new Idiot every Friday, and while I have quite a few in mind, I'll definitely consider suggestions!

Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!

My mom and I got lots of cooking done yesterday, so this years Thanksgiving should be pretty relaxing. Now I've just got to go downstairs and get the turkey ready. Here's a look at last years Thanksgiving. It's fun to think that next year at this time we'll have a little one that's just about that age!

Hi!

A Present? For Me?!?!

Thanksgiving Toys from Nani and Grumpa!

Sadie's first meal of rice cereal!

Head Covering of the Week

This hat has been with me for a long time, and while it may not be the prettiest headcovering in the world it is definitely one of the most snuggly warm and practical in cold weather. It's made of very thick yarn and I used to wear it during my lifeguarding days when it was freezing outside and the pool, for some reason was still open (with no one there I got a lot of reading done for classes and who can argue with sitting around for six hours getting paid to read while waiting to see if anyone will show up?). I had a number of friends tell me it was the ugliest hat they'd ever seen, but it's blue, it matches a lot of my dresses and I love it! So here is my Head Covering of the Week, my not so pretty, sensible knit cap!

Father Thomas Reese Gives a Great Example of an Idiotic Statement

If only it were Friday, my Idiot of the Week day... Quite a few people are vying for the title this week, although I have to say I'm always surprised when the candidate is an actual priest.

“It's important to make a distinction between people who are pro abortion and people who are pro choice.”

This amazing quote came from Father Thomas Reese, a Jesuit Priest, while debating Father Mitch Pacwa on prime time news. Father Reese came up with this stellar statement while attempting to explain why pro-abortion politicians should be allowed to receive communion.

I've done a number of posts on that issue and my opinion on it is pretty clear (as is the Canon Law that allows it). So I'll stick to the quote today.

Father Reese believes that there's an important distinction between the titles "pro abortion" and "pro choice." Are the babies that are murdered as a result of the votes cast by "pro choice" politicians any less dead?

Maybe we should all just use the term "pro death." It seems just a little more honest and less confusing than "pro choice." After all, the terminology did manage to confuse Father Reese into thinking that murdering someone as a matter of "choice" is somehow less evil.

The Manhattan Declaration

I've been putting a lot of Sadie Frowns on here lately and when I saw this document this morning I knew instantly that it deserves a Sadie Smile. The Manhattan Declaration was put together by Orthodox, Catholic and Evangelical Christians and is absolutely amazing. It is long, but it's worth it to read the entire thing. Here is one of my favorite sections, although the whole document is amazing:

"While the whole scope of Christian moral concern, including a special concern for the poor and vulnerable, claims our attention, we are especially troubled that in our nation today the lives of the unborn, the disabled, and the elderly are severely threatened; that the institution of marriage, already buffeted by promiscuity, infidelity and divorce, is in jeopardy of being redefined to accommodate fashionable ideologies; that freedom of religion and the rights of conscience are gravely jeopardized by those who would use the instruments of coercion to compel persons of faith to compromise their deepest convictions.

Because the sanctity of human life, the dignity of marriage as a union of husband and wife, and the freedom of conscience and religion are foundational principles of justice and the common good, we are compelled by our Christian faith to speak and act in their defense. In this declaration we affirm: 1) the profound, inherent, and equal dignity of every human being as a creature fashioned in the very image of God, possessing inherent rights of equal dignity and life; 2) marriage as a conjugal union of man and woman, ordained by God from the creation, and historically understood by believers and non-believers alike, to be the most basic institution in society and; 3) religious liberty, which is grounded in the character of God, the example of Christ, and the inherent freedom and dignity of human beings created in the divine image.

We are Christians who have joined together across historic lines of ecclesial differences to affirm our right - and, more importantly, to embrace our obligation - to speak and act in defense of these truths. We pledge to each other, and to our fellow believers, that no power on earth, be it cultural or political, will intimidate us into silence or acquiescence. It is our duty to proclaim the Gospel of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ in its fullness, both in season and out of season. May God help us not to fail in that duty."

If you feel strongly about these issues and agree with the document click over and add your signature!

Idiot of the Week: Representative Patrick Kennedy

Today's Idiot of the Week (I am still playing catch up for last week) can hardly come as a surprise for anyone who has read any of the previous posts. Representative Patrick Kennedy seems to be one of those Catholics who loves to attack to Church. He just doesn't understand how Church teachings could possibly be expected to influence our day to day decisions, especially when it isn't politically expedient.

But what pushed Representative Kennedy over the edge and into todays column were his recent attempts to bash Bishop Tobin in an attempt to make the US Bishops look bad in the wake of the work they have done to prevent federally funded abortion legislation from passing.

Representative Kennedy may claim to be Catholic but he's proven that he'll do whatever it takes to discredit the Church that he claims to be a part of.

Pro-Choice Catholic Politicians Who'll Do ANYTHING to Get Elected

I ran across this quote in the article Kennedy dispute reveals divide among Catholics on Forbes.com this morning. "Church Observer" and author Michael Sean Winters was again referenced as an apparent "authority" on the matter:

"Michael Sean Winters, author of "Left At The Altar: How the Democrats Lost the Catholics and How the Catholics Can Save the Democrats," said he found the public dispute unseemly, even though he opposes abortion and thinks Kennedy is wrong. He said bishops are not making appropriate distinctions when penalizing people over abortion.

There's "a difference between being an abortion doctor, procuring an abortion for yourself or your spouse and saying, 'I don't think abortion should be illegal,'" he said."

What Mr. Winters doesn't seem to understand is that while there is a difference between having an abortion, being an abortion doctor and saying "I don't think abortion should be illegal" there is yet another category to add to this list. It is the category of "politician fighting to make sure unborn children can still be torn piece by piece from their mother's womb." The Church doesn't go out looking for people who say "I don't think abortion should be illegal" to bar from the communion line but if you're a Catholic politician who has chosen to be in the public eye, advocating abortion, you have freely placed yourself in a scandalous position. More than that you are working to ensure that more women can kill more children. Because of their influence in lawmaking and policy that means that Catholic politicians who support abortion are responsible for the deaths of the children that their policies allow to be murdered.

The article quotes another politician, former Democratic New York Gov. Mario Cuomo as saying: "If you're required (by the church) to make everybody follow your Catholic role, then nobody would vote for Catholics because it's clear that when you get the authority, you're going to be guided by your faith."

Mr. Cuomo also seems to be missing the point. Abortion isn't simply a "Catholic role." It's a matter of life and death. And recent polls have shown that the majority of Americans recognize that abortion is wrong. However the quote also makes it pretty clear that, like many politicians, Mr. Cuomo can separate moral issues from political expediency in order to get elected, although it doesn't seem that it helped him stay in the public eye.

What many "pro-choice Catholic politicians" don't seem to understand is that abortion isn't simply a Catholic issue. It's a very cut and dry matter of morality. Murder, that is the taking of an innocent life, is wrong. Even country and religion in the world recognizes this. The idea that a life is not a life simply because the child has not taken it's first breath is absurd.

Representative Kennedy Lies About Order from Bishop Tobin

When I showed my husband my "Bishop of the Week" post yesterday he scanned the article and then wondered aloud at the timing. Many democrats are very upset about the influence the Bishops have had in blocking federal abortion funding these past few weeks. Was this simply a ploy by Kennedy to attempt to make the Bishop look bad in the press?

It seems that it was.

Today it was released that the letter from Bishop Tobin to Representative Kennedy, requesting that he refrain from receiving the Eucharist, was written in 2007. Why is Kennedy suddenly bringing up (and twisting) a letter that was written nearly three years ago? Because it's politically expedient. Representative Kennedy would do whatever he can to make the Catholic Church look bad, because he (very publicly) disagrees with the Church's teachings. His statements this week are quite simply a continuation of his earlier attacks on the Church. Here's the latest from the AP:

Providence bishop disputes Kennedy’s take on Communion message
By John E. Mulligan

Journal Washington Bureau

WASHINGTON, D.C. — Providence Bishop Thomas J. Tobin on Sunday disputed key details of Rep. Patrick J. Kennedy’s account of their 2007 communication about whether the congressman should take Communion, given his support for abortion rights.

The leader of Rhode Island’s Catholics criticized the timing of Kennedy’s decision to publicize what the bishop called a private, “pastoral” message. He termed “absolutely inaccurate” Kennedy’s assertion that the bishop had instructed the priests of Rhode Island not to give him Communion.

“If I had told 300 priests of the diocese in any format not to give Communion to Kennedy or anybody else, you think that would have remained confidential?” Bishop Tobin asked.

Bishop Tobin spoke in an interview after Kennedy’s assertion in The Providence Sunday Journal that the “bishop instructed me not to take Communion and said that he has instructed the diocesan priests not to give me Communion.”

“If he took it as an instruction, so be it, but it was really a request,” Bishop Tobin said upon releasing excerpts of a Feb. 21, 2007, letter to the Rhode Island Democrat. The bishop said he felt he had to comment on the letter because Kennedy had chosen to “break it open.”

“My correspondence with him was nearly three years ago — and I think it’s important to stress that — [and] was intended to be personal and confidential and pastoral,” the bishop said. “It was never intended for the public domain.”

Read Entire Story Here.

Can we really be surprised that Kennedy is doing something slimy and twisting the truth for his own ends?

I'm not. This is a man who regularly defends the killing of unborn children. Anyone who defends wholesale murder on a daily basis is likely to have no problem lying to make himself look good.

Outfit of the Week

This weeks Outfit of the Week comes a day late because the battery in my camera was dead and Sadie went into a full out fuss when she thought I was going to put her down to try and find the charger (it was right around bedtime). Putting this outfit together last week showed me that finding appropriate clothing for a memorial service isn't all that easy sometimes.

The challenge was pretty typical. Every dress that I found was either too short or too low cut (or strapless). I finally compromised and layered (that always seems to be the solution these days). I found a cable knit sweater "dress" at Old Navy and fell in love. It wasn't long enough to wear as a dress (in my humble opinion) but I began searching for the second half of my outfit. I found it in the clearance section. A long, strapless black sport knit dress left over from summer. I tried on the small (they only had a small and a XL) and amazingly it fit perfectly (I am not a small these days, for the record). I put the dress over it and was perfectly covered. My black snood from Garlands of Grace didn't make it in time, but I did put in the order at the last minute. Hopefully it will arrive soon.

I was a little surprised to see pretty much everyone at the Memorial Service for my grandmother dressed like they were going to a picnic. It was on a boat, so I expected people to be bundled up (I wore tights and a jacket and was a little too warm once the sea sickness set in) but I didn't expect such casual attire (and my immediate family was the one who handled the plans so I know there weren't instructions to "dress casually"). I believe it was even more casual than the status quo at most Masses these days. Maybe I'm just old fashioned (okay, I know, I am) but I find that odd. And I was the ONLY person who wore black (my immediate family wore dark grey and Paul wore black pants, but everyone else was colorful, again, like they were going to a picnic). It's just strange to me!

Bishop of the Week: Bishop Thomas Tobin of Providence

There have been several Bishops in the news that I've wanted to feature in this section this week, but an article I spotted on the yahoo news section helped me make my decision as I clicked over to see what the Associated Press had to say about Bishop Thomas Tobin of Providence Rhode Island. Here are a few highlights:

"Roman Catholic Bishop Thomas Tobin has banned Rep. Patrick Kennedy from receiving Communion, the central sacrament of the church, in Rhode Island because of the congressman's support for abortion rights, Kennedy said in a newspaper interview published Sunday. The decision by the outspoken prelate, reported on The Providence Journal's Web site, significantly escalates a bitter dispute between Tobin, an ultra orthodox bishop, and Kennedy, a son of the nation's most famous Roman Catholic family."

It seems these days that standing up for key Church teachings that are quite literally matters of life and death make the good Bishop "ultra orthodox."

The article goes on to say that while Bishop Tobin is in compliance with Church Law in his decision, a "church observer" and author Michael Sean Winters states that:

"It's really bad theology. You're turning the altar rail into a battle field, a political battlefield no less, and it does a disservice to the Eucharist."

Really Mr. Winters? I would say that allowing prominent politicians that lead others into sin and encourage murder would be a "greater disservice" to the Eucharist. Representative Kennedy is fighting, quite publicly, to allow women to kill their unborn child. He is working to preserve the "right" of women to commit an incredibly grave sin. The entire world can see that there is no way he is fit to receive the Eucharist and I am personally grateful that there are still bishops out there who have the courage to stand up and do what is right.

I should add that the article does state that the Bishop's office will not confirm the order but does say that the Bishop has not discussed the matter of public officials receiving communion with pastors of the diocese as Kennedy claims.

Kennedy's response earlier in his argument with Tobin included this statement:

"While I greatly respect the Catholic Church and its leaders, like many Rhode Islanders, the fact that I disagree with the hierarchy of the church on some issues does not make me any less of a Catholic. I embrace my faith which acknowledges the existence of an imperfect humanity."

This portion of Bishop Tobin's response, which was plucked out by the AP for the article sums up a part of the response pretty well:

"Sorry, you can't chalk it up to an 'imperfect humanity.' Your position is unacceptable to the Church and scandalous to many of our members. It absolutely diminishes your Communion with the Church."

Read the entire letter here. Or learn more about the Bishop at the diocese website.

Thank heaven that we have good bishops like Bishop Tobin standing up for the rights of the unborn in this country!

Update: The letter that Representative Kennedy was talking about was sent in 2007 (funny he brings it up now when so many reporters are slamming the bishops for standing up about abortion not being a part of federally funded health care) and did not demand that he stop receiving communion but merely requested that he not receive it. To read a less biased account than much of what's being written these days, click here.

I'm still glad there are bishops who don't remain silent about this and who let their views be known!

Home At Last!

Home at last! And it is cold! Sadie and I are cuddled up in the bed because it was 42 degrees inside the cabin when we got here. It's finally warm enough to put my hands out of the covers to type, but only just barely. I would estimate it's in the fifties now. Sadie is toasty warm, bundled under the sheet, blanket, quilt and then an additional three fleece throws, but I have always been a wimp when it comes to cold and I am still chilly (I used to wear sweats and a sweatshirt when I was lifeguarding and it was in the nineties).

I was planning on blogging this entire week, but when we arrived at the hotel I was unpleasantly surprised to find that they were charging $9.99 a day for internet access. While I was actually tempted several times to insert my credit card number in the little spot that kept coming up when I'd check to see if there was, by some wonderful development, free internet, I ended up being too tired to actually do it, which saved us at least $30. Now I have some catching up to do! I have a few fun, busy days coming up responding to comments and catching up on the blogs and forums during nap time.

Sadie, in an amazing feat of endurance stayed awake for seven of the eight hours that it took to drive home from the memorial service. She didn't cry at all, but was relieved when we finally got home and ran around Nani and Grumpa's house checking on her toys to make sure that they were all still there.

Time to get some sleep! It's so good to be home, even when home is as cold as an icicle!

And since I've started typing it is starting to get warm in here! Apparently the space heater works as something other than a door stop.

Head Covering of the Week

Now that fall is upon us I've put away this hat until the sunny weather returns. It was however, the covering that really helped me get comfortable covering during Mass. I wore this hat for most of the spring (we sit in the back on Sunday's so that we can stand with Sadie if she's fussy, which means that I'm not blocking anyone's view) and for some reason I didn't feel like it stood out as much as a veil. That's kind of strange when I look at it in pictures, because it's so much bigger than a veil! Regardless of the reason, when I wear veils, snoods and scarfs these days I feel much more comfortable. And that makes this one of my favorite hats (and it was on sale at Target!).

Busy Days: Pregnancy, Morning Sickness and a Memorial Service

We've had a busy couple of days and, which have been added to by that first trimester pregnancy sleepiness that seems to hit several times a day. I dreamily look back on my pregnancy with Sadie and remember the long naps I was able to take. Back in those days I was a sports writer for our local news paper, which meant, apart from attending games, I had a very flexible schedule (that usually involved writing at the last minute on Sunday night to meet my deadline). I slept late. I took a lot of naps. And I wondered how mom's who already had kids dealt with the tiredness.

Now I know. They ignore it. A couple of times I've laid down in the middle of Sadie's play area when I've felt really sleepy and closed my eyes. Sadie takes these little, almost naps, as a personal challenge. She decides that Mommy will be the horse and she will be the rider and she jumps on my back and starts bouncing up and down (Let me say that she is not a small little girl... Yesterday she stepped on and off the scale in the bathroom twice and held still. The same weight came up twice. Sadie is weighing in at not quite seventeen months old, at 39 lbs. She's a string bean, but she's very, very tall. Taking after Daddy it seems). Or she comes around and stands directly above my head and stares down at me. I usually get a "danger" feeling when this happens and open my eyes just in time (her balance isn't great yet). It's funny how she can be playing on her own for a half hour, but if I lay down her Mommy sensor goes off and she needs me!

So the answer to my question, what do Mommies do about the first trimester tiredness when they already have one? They ignore it and keep going! I also focus on the fact that bedtime really isn't too far away (after nap time I only have seven hours until I can climb into bed!).

I am doing much better with the morning sickness this time around. When I was pregnant with Sadie I really think that I inadvertently made it much, much worse than it had to be. You see, I found out that I was pregnant with Sadie the night before we left for a pilgrimage to Israel. The flight over and Israeli airline's security checks would have been stressful enough without the morning sickness and then we were off and running with a tour group that had breakfast at 6am and lunch at 2pm with no time for snacks in between. I was hardly able to force myself to eat during most of the trip and stumbled around grouchily.

This time I've learned that if I eat every two hours on the dot I'll only be sick for about fifteen minutes in the morning (instead of all day and all night). So far it's working. I start the day with a couple ginger cookies just to settle my stomach. Within half an hour I'm usually hungry enough to eat breakfast and I feel well enough to do it. If I forget to eat in the next two hours I'll start to feel the sickness coming back, so we've stocked up on snacks and it's working amazingly well. I'm not sure if eating super frequently would have made the nausea better last time around, but it definitely would have been worth a try for anyone dealing with it. Morning sickness is not fun! I feel so grateful this time that I'm able to control it (so far) for the most part!

Right now we're traveling down the state to carry out my grandmother's last wishes. She passed away last summer, after a long battle with Alzheimer's, and the whole family is coming together to celebrate her life on what would have been her 89th birthday on Thursday. She grew up on the ranch that is now Point Lobos State Park and loved the area. I'm so glad that she got to know Sadie. She would always light up when Sadie came into the room. Sadie was named after her grandmother and we think that she may have recognized the name, since she was so clear on the names from her youth.

... Now the true test of my morning sickness cure will be the four hour boat ride that is part of the service.

It's time to get a little bit of sleep before we hop back in the car in the morning and keep driving. Less than two hours until we get to the coast.

Bishop of the Week: Bishop Juan Antonio Martinez Camino of Madrid

I've been thinking about adding a new weekly post to my blog to offset my "Idiot of the Week" posts, which take a look at the Anti-Catholic public personalities in our country (I think I can find enough of gems in that category to write a years worth of post in an afternoon). Since I've started reading many of the Catholic news sites and quite a few blogs I've been impressed with the stories I've read about many of the amazing Bishops in the Catholic Church. And since it's the Year of the Priest I've decided a "Bishop of the Week" would be appropriate. I already have several in mind for the next few weeks and the first Woman's Place Bishop of the Week will be... Auxiliary Bishop Juan Antonio Martinez Camino!

Bishop Martinez Camino is standing up to those politician's in Spain who support the slaughter of unborn children. Anyone interested in the Canon Law side of his statement that pro-death lawmakers should be kept from receiving the Eucharist may be interested in Dr. Edward Peters' explanation of just how the Eucharist can be denied to pro-abortion Catholic politicians. It's always refreshing to see strong leaders who stand up for the unborn! The Bishop also spoke out earlier in the month against the EU Court decision banning crucifixes from classrooms in Italy.

And that's what makes Bishop Martinez Camino this week's Bishop of the Week!

MADRID, November 13, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The secretary general of the Spanish bishops' conference, Auxiliary Bishop Juan Antonio Martinez Camino of Madrid, warned that Spanish Catholic legislators who vote in favor of a bill to liberalize abortion which is currently before parliament would publicly place themselves in an "objective state of sin" and therefore may not receive Communion.

"Excommunication is provided in the Code of Canon Law for those who cooperate actively in the practice of abortion," Bishop Martinez Camino stated in an AFP report.

He said Catholics cannot support the legalization of abortion and if they do "they will objectively find themselves in a public state of sin and may not be admitted to Holy Communion."

While "the Church cannot judge their subjectivity," he added, those who "directly collaborate" in or promote abortion incur excommunication.

Read Entire Story Here.

Top Obama Advisor Says President Will Have Abortion Funding Ban Removed from Bill

As if the Patriot's loss to the Colt's didn't give Sadie more than enough reason to frown, I opened my computer, nearly asleep myself after she drifted off and saw this article:

Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) --"Top Obama advisor David Axelrod on Sunday confirmed what pro-life advocates already suspected would happen. He said President Barack Obama will work with congressional Democrats to remove the abortion funding ban the House approved in its version of the government-run health care bill.

Axelrod says that, because the Stupak amendment allegedly goes beyond the status quo under the Hyde amendment (which bans abortion funding under Medicaid), Obama will make sure the amendment is yanked during the conference committee.

That's the part of the legislative process that will occur if and when the Senate approves its own health care bill, which will likely start debate with abortion funding.

"The president has said repeatedly, and he said in his speech to Congress, that he doesn't believe that this bill should change the status quo as it relates to the issue of abortion," Axelrod said today on CNN's State of the Union program.

"This shouldn't be a debate about abortion. And he's going to work with Senate and the House to try and ensure that at the end of the day, the status quo is not changed," he added. "I believe that there are discussions ongoing to how to adjust it accordingly."

Axelrod said that an agreement with ruling Democrats in Congress to remove the ban on taxpayer funding of abortions "can and will be worked through before it reaches his desk."

Axelrod's comments come after Obama's own remarks which made it appear he would favor removing or weakening the Stupak amendment."

Read full story here.

This just goes to show that even when it seems as though we're gaining ground, we can't stop fighting for a moment. There is truly great evil in this world and it is intent on normalizing the idea that killing one's own children is absolutely acceptable. And they'd like to make sure that we all take part in the slaughter when we pay our taxes (it already happens in California, I know that for sure... I can't say about other states).

Sadie Frowns

During nap time today I was looking through some old Sadie pictures and I found some brand new Sadie Frowns. Here's a preview of what will be in the Sadie Frown Line-Up in the coming months.

It's like she knew the Patriots were about to lose...

No More Easter Pictures!

Arggggggggg!

I Can't Bend My Knees in These Pants Mom!!!

A Post Dinner Frown

Outfit of the Week

Here is today's outfit of the week! I've begun going through my holiday clothes, although now that I'm expecting I'm not sure how many will actually fit once December rolls around. This skirt will, although it'll fit higher around my waist as we near the second trimester.

Sadie should still fit into the dress she's wearing in this picture this year too. It's a 2t and she still fits into most of her 2t's.

However I fear my favorite red dress is already going to be a bit snug and looks like it will be "resting" for another December. Ah well, maybe next year.