Life!!!

[Future_Prodigy]

For many middle-class Catholic Americans,abortion is indeed the moral issue of our time,since it is the form of evil which glares out the most and is closest at hand in middle-class society. We don’t experience widespread poverty or starvation or oppression or war.

precisely the problem…!!! THis is why education is of the most importance. People don’t even realize that our ‘day to day,’ seemingly innocent, actions actually perpetuate the chains of bondage that these people in the third world country experience. I often find it hard to talk to a lot of Canadians (which i am) and Americans about this problem precisely because everyone here seems to be followers of realism, and no one accepts globalism.

 

[Future_Prodigy]

by focusing on just ‘our’ problem we forget the bigger probems out ‘there’… its like horse blinders! I believe the fight for rights of the unborn i important though so dont get me wrong!!! It’d be interesting to see how much money is spent on the pro-life compaign in compairision to the fight against foreign poverty/starvation, etc.

I NEVER heard anything being preached about concerning the other 3/4 of the suffering population of this world. Its always so local and centralized. Whatever happened to our ‘catholic’ communal sense of doing things

 

[luvmykids]

by focusing on just ‘our’ problem we forget the bigger probems out ‘there’… its like horse blinders!

I would have to disagree that there are greater evils out there than abortion at this point. It is the DIRECT murdering of innocent victims…

WORLDWIDE

Number of abortions per year: Approximately 46 Million
Number of abortions per day: Approximately 126,000

Where abortions occur:
78% of all abortions are obtained in developing countries and 22% occur in developed countries.

Legality of abortion:
About 26 million women obtain legal abortions each year, while an additional 20 million abortions are obtained in countries where it is restricted or prohibited by law.

Abortion averages:
Worldwide, the lifetime average is about 1 abortion per woman.

© Copyright 1999-2000, The Alan Guttmacher Institute. (www.agi-usa.org)

UNITED STATES

Number of abortions per year: 1.37 Million (1996)
Number of abortions per day: Approximately 3,700

I NEVER heard anything being preached about concerning the other 3/4 of the suffering population of this world. Its always so local and centralized. Whatever happened to our ‘catholic’ communal sense of doing things

I DO hear preaching about the suffering starving population. They take collections at church for it, they bring missionaries in to speak about it every once in a while. I am actually surprised at the fact that not more is said at church about abortion. These things are happening right in our backyard. These are the things that should be top priority on our list. It’s like trying to deal with our own problems before we can deal with anyone else’s. THat’s not to say we ignore everyone else’s and “who cares about the starving population”, but when this number of innocent victims are being murdered every day, how is that not as big of a problem as starvation? Your attitude about abortion seems to be that it is trivial in comparison.

 

[anthony022071]

by focusing on just ‘our’ problem we forget the bigger probems out ‘there’… its like horse blinders! I believe the fight for rights of the unborn i important though so dont get me wrong!!! It’d be interesting to see how much money is spent on the pro-life compaign in compairision to the fight against foreign poverty/starvation, etc.

I NEVER heard anything being preached about concerning the other 3/4 of the suffering population of this world. Its always so local and centralized. Whatever happened to our ‘catholic’ communal sense of doing things

We can’t realistically expect people to be so concerned with the poverty and starvation in other countries. We don’t live our lives globally,but locally. Most people have their hands full with their own immediate concerns,like jobs,money,relationships,pastimes,etc. Most people are concerned first of all with themselves,their family and friends,then local habitation and community,then province,then country,etc.
The media has an illusion effect on our sense of distance and proportion. Viewing poor,starving people in far distant parts of the world on television or in photographs leads people to think that poverty and starvation can be solved as easily as the images are transmitted to us,as if the people we are viewing were right in front of us. We are led to think that “it’s a small world after all” even though we don’t even know our next-door neighbors.
There are plenty of Christians who go out of their way and dedicate their lives to help others in foreign countries,but most people don’t have what it takes to do that,and don’t want to live that kind of life. The evils that are nearest to us,in our immediate radius,are naturally those we are most inclined and capable to do something about. Legalized abortion is something that Christians can possibly put an end to,whereas poverty and starvation throughout the world is beyond our control.

 

[gochrist9436]

We can’t realistically expect people to be so concerned with the poverty and starvation in other countries. We don’t live our lives globally,but locally. Most people have their hands full with their own immediate concerns,like jobs,money,relationships,pastimes,etc. Most people are concerned first of all with themselves,their family and friends,then local habitation and community,then province,then country,etc.
The media has an illusion effect on our sense of distance and proportion. Viewing poor,starving people in far distant parts of the world on television or in photographs leads people to think that poverty and starvation can be solved as easily as the images are transmitted to us,as if the people we are viewing were right in front of us. We are led to think that “it’s a small world after all” even though we don’t even know our next-door neighbors.
There are plenty of Christians who go out of their way and dedicate their lives to help others in foreign countries,but most people don’t have what it takes to do that,and don’t want to live that kind of life. The evils that are nearest to us,in our immediate radius,are naturally those we are most inclined and capable to do something about. Legalized abortion is something that Christians can possibly put an end to,whereas poverty and starvation throughout the world is beyond our control.

So what do you suppose we do? Just sit in our homes, go to the occasional pro-life march(while not really doing anything to help the cause), donate money, and pretend our world is a jolly old place, and forget about the poor people eight miles down the road from our rich mansions?

 

[anthony022071]

So what do you suppose we do? Just sit in our homes, go to the occasional pro-life march(while not really doing anything to help the cause), donate money, and pretend our world is a jolly old place, and forget about the poor people eight miles down the road from our rich mansions?

You can do your Christian duty by being merciful,kind and helpful to the poor and homeless people that you come across in your everyday life. And if you want to go out of your way in doing this,no one is stopping you. But there’s no point in being exasperated by other people’s indifference or trying to bite off more than you can chew.

 

[Future_Prodigy]

You can do your Christian duty by being merciful,kind and helpful to the poor and homeless people that you come across in your everyday life. And if you want to go out of your way in doing this,no one is stopping you. But there’s no point in being exasperated by other people’s indifference or trying to bite off more than you can chew.

I love how people in the western world apply one set of standards to a issue and then a totally different set to another. I also find it funny how much homosexuality is talked about in america and porography as well. Last time i read the Gospels… Jesus had a lot more to say about the violence/oppression of the poor than he ever did about sexual sins.

 

[luvmykids]

Jesus had a lot more to say about the violence/oppression of the poor than he ever did about sexual sins.

I find this statement ironic considering that your signature mentions sodom and gomorrah both, according to the bible, were destroyed by God, because of the gross immorality in these cities. Sounds as if God meant business when it comes to sexual sins such as these, especially since sexual sins fall under the commandment “You shall not commit adultery”.

 

[anthony022071]

I love how people in the western world apply one set of standards to a issue and then a totally different set to another. I also find it funny how much homosexuality is talked about in america and porography as well. Last time i read the Gospels… Jesus had a lot more to say about the violence/oppression of the poor than he ever did about sexual sins.

Personally, I’m not involved in anti-abortion activism and I don’t make a big deal of those other issues. I do practice generosity toward the poor and homeless where I come upon them.

Again,if people make a big deal about abortion and sexual issues
it’s because those are things that glare out most offensively in middle class society,and middle class people can hold their peers to account on those issues. But violence and oppression of the poor is not the kind of sin that is characteristic of middle-class
Christian society.

 

[Future_Prodigy]

I find this statement ironic considering that your signature mentions sodom and gomorrah both, according to the bible, were destroyed by God, because of the gross immorality in these cities. Sounds as if God meant business when it comes to sexual sins such as these, especially since sexual sins fall under the commandment “You shall not commit adultery”.

Not trying to be rude but maybe you should read the bible verse that is citied!!! It has nothing to do with ‘sexual sins’!! it states that God judged Sodom because she neglected the poor.

 

[Future_Prodigy]

Again,if people make a big deal about abortion and sexual issues
it’s because those are things that glare out most offensively in middle class society,and middle class people can hold their peers to account on those issues. But violence and oppression of the poor is not the kind of sin that is characteristic of middle-class
Christian society.

I agree 100% with you and that PRECISELY is the problem. This is why i think education is of utmost importance… we have to rectify this short sighted impaired vision of ours and start looking to the larger picture. There are WAY more problems in this world than homosexuality and pornography… even though they may be the so called ‘prevalent’ issues for middle class citizens. Globalism and its negative effects on 3/4 of the world’s population needs to be studied and understood more.

 

[hasikelee]

Um, maybe abortion is a big flaming mess in American culture and politics, but overall abortion tends to be the silent killer. It is ignored and hidden beneath the surface. Millions of women live day to day with this secret. Millions of people are missing from this century. It is a noose slowly tightening around America.

Everyone has different talents and passions. My talent lies in helping women heal from the loss of their child through abortion and in helping others to see the violence and horror of abortion. It is where I am best able to use my God-given talents and it is what I care about.

I know plenty of other Catholics who are barely educated in abortion issues. Yet they have other talents, such as traveling to underdeveloped countries, teaching children, praying, giving money and food to the poor, focusing on equality issues, etc.

I know there are important human dignity issues that I am not very active in and that I don’t know a lot about. For example, war and homosexuality.

Furthermore, I truly believe that anyone who openly learns about abortive procedures, speaks with women suffering from an abortion and views the baby after he or she is killed by abortion will come to see that we are facing an atrocity that can be nothing other than the gates of hell.

In all other social injustices such as poverty, these sufferings and mistreatments are indirect and generalized. There is no other action at this time in our world that is so direct and brutal as to rip a small human into bits and suck that human into a vaccum.

 

[Future_Prodigy]

In all other social injustices such as poverty, these sufferings and mistreatments are indirect and generalized. There is no other action at this time in our world that is so direct and brutal as to rip a small human into bits and suck that human into a vaccum.

You were doing well to this point lol. You are absolutely wrong though on this last point, and this why education is a must for most of North American culture… there is a huge institutionalized bondage that is caused by our actions (i.e. are a direct cause for a lot of the suffering and injustices felt in the third world) and we are unaware of it. Our buying and consuming habits themselves fuel this sort of bondage. We can not take the easy way out and try to ignore this issue.

 

[luvmykids]

You were doing well to this point lol. .

Ok, maybe you aren’t trying to be rude, but sounds like you are laughing at the poster?

You are absolutely wrong though on this last point, and this why education is a must for most of North American culture… there is a huge institutionalized bondage that is caused by our actions (i.e. are a direct cause for a lot of the suffering and injustices felt in the third world) and we are unaware of it. Our buying and consuming habits themselves fuel this sort of bondage. We can not take the easy way out and try to ignore this issue.

Instead of telling us how wrong we are, list them so you can elighten me, and maybe I will not be so ignorant.

 

[Future_Prodigy]

i was laughing… I express how i feel when im at my computer… no fake facade here.

I honestly do not have time to write a whole dissertation (as im currently taking some intersession classes) on the topics of human geography, foreign affairs, international debt, and North American consumerism practices perpetuating international poverty but IF you really were sincere in your concern then I’d be willing to look up some sites and could even send you some documentaries and essays if you’d like.

 

[Hatter]

Of course I care about my neighbour. If someone tried to murder the people next door I would be very upset indeed. But luckily nobody has tried to murder my neighbours. On the other hand over 30 000 unborn children are killed every year in Sweden. How would you feel like if someone killed every child in your town? Just took a machine gun and mowed them down. Would that upset you? Would that make you dedicate your life to save other children?

Well in Sweden were I live one in three women has had an abortion. Over a million unborn children have been killed since 1975. That is one big massacer! Is it then so strange that I feel an obligation to try to stop the slaughter? Sure I help and care about my neighbours, but when it comes to life and death issues, well is it so strange that people get engaged?

 

[hasikelee]

You were doing well to this point lol. You are absolutely wrong though on this last point, and this why education is a must for most of North American culture… there is a huge institutionalized bondage that is caused by our actions (i.e. are a direct cause for a lot of the suffering and injustices felt in the third world) and we are unaware of it. Our buying and consuming habits themselves fuel this sort of bondage. We can not take the easy way out and try to ignore this issue.

I do see what you’re getting at, but in all actuality we give ourselves too much credit.

For example, the rainforest craze is quite bemusing. It appears that Americans are all quite concerned about the rainforest and want to dump tons of dollars into preserving it.

Now, that is hardly something I would complain about. I am an avid woodworker and nature lover.

The point to be made is simply that we have little to do with the destruction and loss of the world’s rainforest. It is rather the inhabitants responsibility. Due to their restrictive governments and warring situations, they could care less about preserving trees. They need to burn them to clear space for houses and animals, chop them down to use for cooking and literally clear thousands of acres so they can mine the land into a barren waste.

Anyways, this conversation can go back and forth for ages as much of it is relative. Suffice to say that the average American needs to get out and see they are not all that razz.

And I would end by saying everyone has a purpose here and everyone has talents that will shine in certain areas. It is my hope that in fighting to restrict abortion and by helping to create an equal structure for women, we will all have the ability to live long enough to make a difference in this world.

 

[st_lucy]

You were doing well to this point lol. You are absolutely wrong though on this last point, and this why education is a must for most of North American culture… there is a huge institutionalized bondage that is caused by our actions (i.e. are a direct cause for a lot of the suffering and injustices felt in the third world) and we are unaware of it. Our buying and consuming habits themselves fuel this sort of bondage. We can not take the easy way out and try to ignore this issue.

Future Prodigy,

I think that you are missing every one’s point. Yes, we should all do our job to help the poor and the abused. God gave each of us a talent not all all talents are the same though. It kind of like a square can be a rectangle but a rectangle cannot be a square.

When I was younger my crusade, so to speak, was date rape, since I was a victim of date rape (back when people never really considered it a crime) I made it my own personal business to put it out to all those I knew or came across. That was my talent then.

When I was college I would help out at soup kitchens because I didn’t have a family to worry about than.

Right now since God has blessed me with children I have seen the horrors of abortion. I am missing three nephews and/or nieces due to abortion. So, now my new crusade is to bring abortion to the forefront.

You see I know that there are horrors around the world right now due to child starvation, but my talents don’t lay there right now. Who knows maybe they will later on down the road, but right now I am focusing on what God has put in front of me. I feel the need to preach and do all I can to stop abortion.

What some of the previous posters have stated is that we cannot give out food to feed the hungry children in foreign countries when we have starving children in our own house. It just doesn’t make sense. I once had a teacher who said how can you tell a total stranger you love them when you continue to ignore and tell your own brother that you hate him?

In order to stop hunger in other countries you must first get your own house in order before you go and start cleaning house somewhere else. It is like the ripple affect, you touch one person near you, than you have started the ripple which could spread out through out the world.

Here is a quote by Mother Teresa that I love:

We think sometimes that poverty is only being hungry, naked and homeless. The poverty of being unwanted, unloved and uncared for is the greatest poverty. We must start in our own homes to remedy this kind of poverty.
Mother Teresa

 

[Sheeniac]

I’m not as involved as I would like to be in terms of doing things that cry out to be done. However, I do donate money to various causes, and feeding the poor in other countries is one of them. However, in terms of direct action, a single person can have more of a real impact in the abortion arena rather than in international policy.

While you say we should educate ourselves, it is very possible that many of us had. I consider Marxism to be one of the biggest evils of all time, and blame it for many of the problems of the world. But what can I do about it? Very little other than pray.

Malaria? Bring back DDT. HIV/AIDS? Yet again, we are hearing reports of the numbers being generated incorrectly.

In terms of fighting poverty, micro loans are a wonderful start. However, society needs to protect property rights and rule of law. As it may appear in Iraq, nation building is not for the timid.

 

[KathleenElsie]

I don agree with their politics. But the following advice is good for everyone.
justpeace.org/encourdistributism.htm

1. Join or start a neighborhood association.
2. Bank with a credit union.
3. Patronize locally owned stores, microenterprises, co-operatives, and worker owned businesses.
4. Grow some of your own food.
5. Eat with the season.
6. Patronize a farmers’ market, or purchase food directly from farmers/producers.
7. Form or join a housing cooperative.
8. Build a meeting hall.
9. Support local currencies.
10. Avoid corporation-debt (borrow from credit unions).
11. Home school.
12. Support a community garden.
13. Avoid commodified entertainment in favor of personalist entertainment such as local baseball, picnics, dances, social events, quilting bees, fairs, etc.
14. Support live music by listening and by making your own music.
15. Create your own job, or join with others to create a cooperative or worker owned business.
16. Organize an employee association at your work.
17. Start moving towards alternative, non-centrally generated power.
18. Write letters to the editors of secular and religious publications.
19. Write letters to politicians.
20. Volunteer at a homeless shelter.
21. Live in a Catholic Worker house. (Or start one.)
22. Invite a poor family to move in with you.
23. Reuse, recycle, reduce. Waste not, want not.
24. Spend your money wisely, prudently, and intentionally.
25. Adopt children.
26. Sponsor children and the elderly in the overseas missions.
27. Give food to a food bank or St. Vincent de Paul circle, or other program that feeds the poor.
28. Donate generously and sacrificially to the Catholic Campaign for Human Development and Operation Rice Bowl of Catholic Relief Services.
29. Shop at flea markets, swap meets, and garage sales.
30. Join a food co-op.
    31.Keep extra food on hand (typically, 2-4 months, this supports frugal shopping and household management)
31. Read the newspaper intentionally – with open eyes, ears, spirit, mind.
32. Start a justice and peace commission at your church, or join an existing one.
33. Visit those in prison and their families.
34. Plant trees.
35. Talk about distributism, justice, and peace (a lot).
36. Learn about justice and peace. Study and pray over (lectio divina) the "social justice canon"of magisterial teachings.
37. Get involved with a mentoring program such as Big Brothers/Sisters, or an after school tutoring program (or start one).
38. Teach people to read.
39. Register voters.
40. Teach English as a second language.
41. Pick up trash in public places and dispose of it properly.
42. Kill your TV, or at least, grievously wound it (apologies for the violent language). If you have a TV, don’t watch it – study it.
43. Teach logic and rhetoric and also (while you’re at it) learn how to understand, interpret, and mediate modern mass communications, especially the nature and identification and purpose of propaganda, and then tell everyone everywhere what you have learned and how you learned it.
44. Ignore most advertising, or watch it “intentionally” for what it tells us about our communities. Teach your children to ignore most advertising. Encourage them to teach their friends to ignore most advertising.
45. Practice the theological virtues (faith, hope, love), the cardinal virtues (prudence, justice, fortitude, temperance), and the civic virtues (self-discipline, respect, cooperation, responsibility, honesty, motivation, friendship, courage, non-violence, work) so you eventually will get good at them. (Practice makes perfect. If you can’t do perfect, do good. Then do better.)
46. Volunteer at a school, library, hospital, or agency/apostolate in service to the poor.
47. Tithe your time and your money (generously and sacrificially).
48. Give somebody without a car a ride.
49. Start a transportation co-operative (ride sharing, car pooling, kid picking up/delivering, etc.)
50. Avoid sweatshop clothing and products.
51. Pray the Rosary for economic justice and social peace and harmony.
52. Go to mass regularly and devoutly participate, receiving the Body and Blood of our Savior as spiritual sustenance, hearing the Real Presence of Christ in the proclamation of the Word, and fellow shipping with the Real Presence of Christ in the assembly gathered in that place.
53. Become a catechist of economic justice (distributism) and social peace and harmony.
54. Pray and publicly witness for life, beauty, and human dignity; offer practical and safe alternatives to those who feel they have no choice but to violate human life and dignity. Speak for those who have no voice or power. Respect life from the moment of conception to the time of natural death.
55. Distribute literature and information about economic justice and social peace and harmony.