40 years of failure … start chanting …

and by the way keep smiling … we are witnesses for Christ …

um … I’m sorry but I’m a bit confused … isn’t sobbing more appropriate under the circumstances? … isn’t 40 years of failure a shameful event?

welcome to the new reality — sdrawkcabdnanwodedisputuoedisni – a real “cluster” if you ask me

http://denmotherblog.wordpress.com/2011/01/24/why-i-dont-attend-the-march-for-life/

I read on lifesite news that GOP gays would be marching and handing out pro homosexual advocacy cards that they were gay and prolife to march participants – I would NOT want my teens or children there.

http://www.lifenews.com/2013/01/24/gay-pro-life-advocates-to-join-march-for-life-against-abortion/

http://twitchy.com/2013/01/25/pro-life-and-pro-gay-gay-march-for-life-participants-threaten-liberal-media-narrative/

The march also seems to have been given a new VCII “engaging the culture” purpose which makes it much more like the world youth days or party weekend (some would like to see moving the event to Friday afternoon as a spiritual move (i.e. commemorating the Lord’s passion) but no praying is going on but a lot more entertainment & a new 5k run added the next day)):

“When hundreds of thousands of people descend upon the nation’s capital for the March for Life this year, they will be met with exciting changes aimed at young people and cultural renewal, said the event’s leader…

“The jumbotrons will also be utilized before the rally to play “interesting and engaging videos related to pro-life,” as well as to entertain those waiting for the march to begin…

“The March for Life’s digital presence has also been updated, with a new website that was launched just two weeks before the event. Monahan described the site as having “gone from a relic to a very engaging and fun website.”

“We’re trying to do a good job of commemorating the unique 55 million lives that we’ve lost in the last four decades, but at the same time, capturing the enthusiasm of the march and young people. …”

http://www.bizzyblog.com/2013/01/17/positivity-changes-to-march-for-life-focus-on-engaging-culture/

http://www.catholicnewsagency.com/news/changes-to-march-for-life-focus-on-engaging-culture/

Perhaps the Pope will twitter some sail boat confessionals to next year’s march so priests can forgive abortion on the go like at world (Catholic) youth day and “prolife” planned parenthood will attend also to distribute free condoms to the “prolife” conservative gays who want to practice “safe” sex and any other participants who want them.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/17/abortion-catholics-world-youth-day_n_929442.html

I like Michael’s peaceful protest idea. It does not need to be limited to DC. There are plenty of state laws the restrict pro-life efforts at the clinics. So, why not take the protests to state capitols?

Before I answer that, let me ask you if you’re agree that:
1. gathering middle school, high school kids and young adults to come to a party in DC — isn’t enough?
2. indoctrinating those kids into the belief that coming up with the latest foolish chant is actually doing something — isn’t enough?
3. supervising the irreverent (i.e., irreverent to the memory of the dead babies) behavior of these children giggling, laughing, screaming and yelling as they walk by pictures of aborted fetuses (which they were encouraged NOT to look at) — isn’t enough?
4. running an evening of adoration in combination with a Christian Rock concert (where the kids are obviously confused because they are more excited about getting as close as they can get to the musician than they are about being in the presence of the Eucharist) — isn’t enough?
5. scheduling a field trip to historical memorials (the tomb of the unknown soldier, Arlington Cemetery, and the Vietnam, Korean and World War II memorials) for the tens of thousand’s of American men (and some women) who GAVE THEIR LIVES FOR the principle of FREEDOM — isn’t enough?
6. discussing movies like Horton Hears a Who and not realizing (nor telling the young people) that even Horton was willing to risk his life and go to jail for something more important — isn’t enough?
7. Asking these MS, HS and YA kids to identify only the similarities between Nazi Germany, slavery, and abortion and not the differences (where it is the distinct differences that are instructive — i.e., unlike in the abortion scenario, in the first two tragedies most of the victims had the God-given ability to defend themselves and two of those three tragedies ended only after all out war) — isn’t enough?

Then what more could the Cardinal do?

Since we just celebrated the memory of Martin Luther King, Jr., let’s discuss what he might have done if he were in Cardinal O’Malley’s leadership shoes.

First, he would have never allowed a civil rights march to devolve into the laughable joke that is observable in the frivolous and cowardly (i.e., lacking in courageous attributes) behavior that the ‘Pro-Life” march has become. The other side must be afraid, because we certainly are an intimidating bunch — with our ridiculous chants and politically correct signs.

Second, he would never have promoted the lie that the Supreme Court makes law. The Supreme Court building is NOT where law is made – remember letter from the Birmingham jail – an unjust law is no law at all. And thus, MLK Jr, would not have felt compelled to perpetuate such a fraud.

Third, MLK Jr. would have marched his crowd of 600,000 (this year) right into the Capital Building without warning (in order to sit down en masse and protest peacefully, but aggressively). Good luck stopping 600000 people from entering the Capital Building, And even if they could arrest all of them, good luck arraigning them, by Monday morning.

It is great that we have moved from 20,000 people in 1974 to 600,000 people marching this year. It is not so great that over 40 years later, people have built careers over this issue and now have a direct conflict of interest. It is not great that we have yet to learn the lessons from Dr. Seuss, — that not everyone who calls himself pro-life is looking to save babies’ lives. Let’s face it, the circus is allowed to carry on because it is a money maker for certain people — including the career “lifers” who have received a “life” time of benefits — from annual dinners to tea and crumpets in the Governor’s mansion or White House. Getting a seat at the table is a highly coveted benefit that trumps calling a spade a spade. Like one of the signs read, “If it is murder, then isn’t it time to act like it.”

When I went to Boston College in the 1970s I was active in the pro-life movement. Myself and other students often marched in front of Planned Parenthood in Brookline, but we could never get any of the Jesuits to join us. The joke at the time was it was easier to get a Jesuit to demonstrate on behalf of saving the whales as opposed to saving the babies.

Since the mid- to late-1960s the church (especially in the United States) has collectively abandoned the active preaching of the realities of salvation – that the Church is necessary for salvation, and that the gift of salvation (and sanctifying grace) won for us at Calvary is forfeited by mortal sin, and that the reality the final end of a human life devoid of sanctifying grace is eternal damnation. Period, full stop. For what I think were reasons of PR and fear, the priests and bishops stopped preaching this fundamental reality, and as a result, most people today believe in universal salvation. If you don’t believe me, go to any funeral Mass and listen to the eulogy (if not even the actual homily!) and ask yourself if there has been anything mentioned that implies that the deceased needs prayers or that there’s any doubt about his or her final end.

If people (and therefore politicians) don’t fear the lack of sanctifying grace, then why should they react to being excommunicated?

The bishops (priests of the ’60s and ’70s for the most part), I’ll bet, don’t believe this article of faith themselves, because if they DID they’d preach it, for the sake of those “falling like leaves into hell.”