This week: Women and abortion…   Where do the women presidential candidates stand? Women share their abortion experiences. Women who survived being aborted. An amazing miracle in Buenes Aires. Lutheran Satire parodies BuzzFeed’s dumb anti-Christian video. Is capitalism moral?

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Two women presidential candidates! Where do they stand on abortion? First, Hillary Clinton:

Position: strong support for abortion up to the moment of birth (a NARAL pro-abortion rating of 100%, a NRLC pro-life rating of 0).

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Next up, Carly Fiorina:

Position: pro-life (but with exceptions, unfortunately), wants Roe v. Wade overturned, Planned Parenthood defunded, and more.

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Some non-candidates talk about their personal abortion experiences:

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Other women are survivors of failed abortions. That is, they were supposed to be terminated but lived anyway. 2 weeks ago they testified before congress:

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We are in the presence of a Eucharistic miracle at every Mass. Before us ordinary bread and wine are transformed in substance to the actual body, blood, soul and divinity of our Lord. Nothing symbolic, the substance itself is changed. Very few miracles (I am thinking along the lines of the resurrection) top that!

Sometimes, not only does the Eucharistic substance change, but the appearance (accidents) do as well. One such visible Eucharistic miracle happened in recent times in Buenos Aires. This is a powerful story for Catholics and non-Catholics alike:

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Recently, BuzzFeed produced a video where poorly catechized people, claiming to be Christians, explained “I’m a Christian BUT….” The words that followed the BUT were just the opposite of the faith. A more honest tag might have been “I am not Christian because I believe….”

Anyway, the folks at Lutheran Satire have produced this parody:

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With the Holy Father’s visit, much is discussed about many topics including capitalism. Some (not Pope Francis, BTW) hold that capitalism is immoral. Is it?

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Some random thoughts or bits of information are worthy of sharing but don’t warrant their own full post. This idea was begun by Jennifer Fulwiler and is now continued by Kelly Mantoan. So, some Fridays I too participate when I have accumulated 7 worthy items. Thank you Kelly for hosting this project!

This week: Planned Parenthood’s Senior Medical Advisor is proud of their role supplying “fresh” baby organs in the 10th video to be released. The story of Sebastian Kaza’s death and his strong Catholic family. The Knights of Columbus release the results of a new poll. A young Franciscan friar starts a new video series. A TED talk on the history of the universe and a video on why so many scientists believe in God. Whole Foods co-founder shares his thoughts on capitalism.

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Planned Parenthood’s Senior Medical Advisor Dr. Carolyn Westhoff, in the 10th video exposing just how evil they are, boasts about offering “fresh” babies’ organs to “generate a fair amount of income”. She goes on to note “we’ve just been working with people who want particular tissues, like, you know, they want cardiac, or they want eyes, or they want neural…   Oh my God, gonads!”

TEN videos, hard to ignore or explain away. Incredible for top political leaders to claim they have not seen them.

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This is a heartbreaking story of the loss of 19 month old Sebastian Kaza. It is a tragedy. It is also a story about the unshakable Catholic faith of his large family. You will be touched: “The Loss of His Life is So Great – How Can it be Borne?”.

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The Knights of Columbus has published the results of a new survey. 90% of practicing Catholics say it is important to pray daily, follow the teachings of the Church, receive the sacraments and attend Mass. This is in stark contrast to the “non-practicing Catholics” where only 42% think Mass attendance is important. The National Catholic Register has the story.

Polls like this show our huge catechesis problem, even among the “practicing” Catholics. To be Catholic means (on questions asked in the poll) that we pray, fulfill our Mass obligation, accept 100% of the doctrinal teaching of the Church, receive the sacraments, believe the Eucharist is the true presence of Christ, go to confession in the very least yearly, hold that abortion is intrinsically evil, and understand there is no such thing as “same-sex marriage.” There is zero wiggle room on this. Taking any different position flat-out rejects the authority of Christ and His Church.

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This (very!) young man, Brother Casey Cole is a Franciscan friar. He blogs at Breaking In The Habit and has started a video series on our faith and his vocation. I will feature these going forward as they are interesting for Catholics and non-Catholics alike:

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I found this TED talk to be interesting. It’s claim is to tell the history of the universe in 18 minutes. While the presentation is completely secular, it shows how a long series of extremely unlikely coincidences led to the world as we know it [ — long series — extremely unlikely — ]. The hand of God is obvious, starting with the creation of something from nothing then everything that followed.

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Speaking of science and God, this video from a not specifically religious source, explores “Why So Many Scientists Believe in God”. It’s not perfect, but we would agree with many of the points.

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John Mackey is a co-founder of Whole Foods. In this recent video, he gives his thoughts on capitalism. You may be surprised.

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Some random thoughts or bits of information are worthy of sharing but don’t warrant their own full post. This idea was begun by Jennifer Fulwiler and is now continued by Kelly Mantoan. So, some Fridays I too participate when I have accumulated 7 worthy items. Thank you Kelly for hosting this project!

This week: The latest issue of New Evangelists Monthly awaits your perusal. Planned Parenthood’s lucrative revenue stream in baby parts continues to thrive. Extreme Christian persecution happening right now in the Middle East. What the secular world offers as fill leaves God’s children empty. The most important thing is for you to be on the right side of history (and accept what you are told that is). The youngest bookworm. A Benedictine monk, sunbathing atop a wind turbine.

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Issue #33, September 2015, of New Evangelists Monthly is ready for your enjoyment! Scores of faithful Catholic bloggers have contributed their very best pieces from August. Contributing authors this month include: Virginia Lieto, Matthew Coffin, Kathleen Laplante, Shannon Ball, Rick Becker, Cindy Hurla, David Wong, Susan Fox, Phoebe Wise, Larry Fox, Adam Crawford, Tracy Smith, Nancy Shuman, Leti Adams, Ellen Gable Hrkach, John Shimek, Dn. Scott Dodge, Brantly Millegan, Margaret Felice, Godwin Adadzie, Connie Rossini, Monica McConkey, Birgit Jones, Dennis McGeehan, Elizabeth Reardon, David Cooney, David Torkington, Tony Agnesi, Roxane Salonen, Michael Seagriff, Molly Oshatz, Matthew Plese, Rich Maffeo, Joseph Shaw, Barbara Szyszkiewicz, Carolyn Astfalk, Lyn Mettler, Robert Collins, John Donaghy, Blythe Kaufman, Sr. Margaret Obrovac, Larry Peterson, Christian LeBlanc, Melanie Jean Juneau, Fr. Richard DeLillio, Rose O’Donnell, Vinny Carr, Brian Gill, Stephen Korsman, Denise Hunnell, Bonnie Way, Ellen Kolb, Allison Howell, Emily Hartung, Leslie Klinger, RJ Martin, Shannon Vandaveer, Tom Perna, Sr. Maresa Lilley, Fr. Adrian Danker, Reese Cumming, Sharon Babineau, Karee Santos, Lisa Ponchak, Celeste Ciarallo, Bartimaeus Timeo, Barbara Hosbach, Dave Wanat, John Schroeder, Justin Soutar, Stephanie Calis, Rita Buettner, Kirby Hoberg, Julian Barkin, George Sipe, Jeff Walker, Fr. Errol Fernandes, Larry T, Matthew Leonard, Msgr. Charles Pope, Chibuzor Ogamba, Laura Pearl, Jenn Tatum, Melissa Overmyer, Amy Parris, Andy McNutt and Matthew Rose.

This monthly “meta-magazine” showcases faithful Catholicism from theology to family life and “everything in between.” Enjoy it now at NewEvangelists.org.

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Pro-abortion politicians are outraged over the continuing releases of videos documenting Planned Parenthood’s lucrative baby part business. They promise a thorough investigation and heads will roll. Not of PP of course, but of the non-profit who exposed it. PP on the other hand, will continue to receive the annual HALF BILLION taxpayer dollars for vital “women’s reproductive health” services.

In the latest (9th) video, new horrors are revealed (intact fetuses “just fell out”) while abortuary management receives “advisor fee” kickbacks. PP rakes in $60 for each body part. This is what Roe v. Wade has brought us.

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Unspeakable persecution of large numbers of Christians continues unabated in the Middle East. Make no mistake, they are tortured, killed, enslaved and raped – including their children – by Muslims quoting their “holy books.”

This is another issue the main stream media has chosen to hide. The Knights of Columbus hopes to raise awareness:

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This is a glimpse of the secular ideal. It is a vacuous life, filled with activity yet devoid of meaning, purpose or true happiness. This is not what God wants for us.

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Are you on the wrong side of history? You don’t want to be in that boat! Jump into the one, you are told, is on the right side. Sail with the winners!

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OK, everybody in the universe (4M anyway) has seen this already, but if you are a hermit you may have missed it. It is the saga of the “youngest bookworm.” He obviously understands the importance of reading in early development!

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Even more people (5M) have seen this video of Brother Joseph Byron, a Benedictine monk, relaxing atop the wind turbine that he maintains. The story is here.

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Some random thoughts or bits of information are worthy of sharing but don’t warrant their own full post. This idea was begun by Jennifer Fulwiler and is now continued by Kelly Mantoan. So, some Fridays I too participate when I have accumulated 7 worthy items. Thank you Kelly for hosting this project!

This week: Two more videos have been released to further document Planned Parenthood’s highly immoral and illegal practices. How would defunding Planned Parenthood actually impact women’s healthcare? Logically, from a secular and non-religious perspective, is abortion moral? Lutheran Satire looks at the “great apostasy.” Jeff Harris illustrates the key to sin’s shackle. Millennials explain the difference between Democrats and socialists. A magic carpet (sort of).

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The Center for Medical Progress has been more effective in budging public opinion on abortion and Planned Parenthood then most recent pro-life efforts. The horror is not of organ harvesting but in the taking of innocent lives. We must not forget that or accept this as business as usual.

The CMA has released the 7th and 8th videos. The 7th documents the “harvesting” of a baby’s brain (while still alive). The indifference to human life is astounding.

In the 8th video, we see how the baby organ selling business at Planned Parenthood is thriving. The buyers want to bump their order by another 50 livers per week.

Pro-aborts, particularly pro-abortion politicians, still refuse to watch these videos.

BONUS: if you know someone who has not watched these but who might watch a summary, CMA has also released such a video:

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There are SO MANY lies told by PP (and repeated by their admirers) that it is almost overwhelming. One lie is the catastrophe we will bring upon women who will lose healthcare in many areas served only by PP. Or so they claim, falsely, over and over.

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Dennis Prager looks at the morality of abortion, in a secular, logical, non-religious way. Additionally, for this argument, he also sets aside the issue of legality. This asks only: is it moral?

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Our friends at Lutheran Satire make many good points. Why they made this video confuses me. To my Catholic eyes, it indicts them almost as much as the more recent Protestant denominations.

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Jeff Harris at Sword of Peter illustrates a simple truth:

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This is an interesting video. Millennials are asked to differentiate between Democrats and socialists. I appreciate the difficulty in answering that. Draw your own conclusions.

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Segways are really cool, but expensive and not portable. The perfect Segway would be only the platform under your feet. It would be thin, easily portable, and look more like a MacBook Air than a transportation device. It might be this:

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Some random thoughts or bits of information are worthy of sharing but don’t warrant their own full post. This idea was begun by Jennifer Fulwiler and is now continued by Kelly Mantoan. So, some Fridays I too participate when I have accumulated 7 worthy items. Thank you Kelly for hosting this project!

This week: Some smart, questioning, people who became Catholic anyway – Don Johnson’s new film: Convinced. My Catholic Tube has launched a new show with interviews of converts. A look at The Sisters of Life, founded by John Cardinal O’Connor to protect and enhance the sacredness of human life. Larry D illustrates the concept of “instant Catholic.” Science can not prove God’s existence…   or explain 95% of the universe. The Iran deal accommodation – Dennis Prager explains why. Tesla gets weird in charging station design.

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Why would anyone “voluntarily” become Catholic? It is so counter-cultural, swims against the current, and sadly is increasingly despised by the world (spoiler: it is the truth). Speaking as a convert myself, let me assure you that we don’t just wake up one day and say “why not?”. Don Johnson has released a wonderful movie that will strike a chord with many who are curious. In their own words, non-Catholics who became Convinced:

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My Catholic Tube is a well executed Catholic portal / aggregator to faithful video content. They also include some of their own content, including a new show call My Catholic Conversion. The first installment features Katrina Fernandez (The Crescat) interviewed by David L. Gray.

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The Sisters of Life is a contemplative / active religious community of women founded by John Cardinal O’Connor in 1991 for the protection and enhancement of the sacredness of every human life. Like all religious communities, they take the three traditional vows of poverty, chastity and obedience. They also are consecrated under a special, fourth vow to protect and enhance the sacredness of human life.

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Those who question God’s existence often lean on science. Science, after all, gives us proof to support its claims. The problem is, science explains very little. See this video for some basic things that are beyond science.

That science can not prove God’s existence then is no surprise considering these monumental limitations. God, of course, is the uncreated creator of everything including the universe itself. It is true that science is blind to God’s existence, but it is also blind to 95% of everything in the universe. It calls these unknowns “dark matter” and “dark energy” (which loosely means “we have no idea”):

Since science acknowledges aspects of the universe it does not understand as “dark matter / energy,” perhaps it should acknowledge God as “white spirit.” Works for me.

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Nothing less than thermonuclear destruction, resulting in the deaths of hundreds of thousands (or more) is at stake with the Iran deal. This can NOT be compared to previous deals (e.g. with the Soviets) for many reasons, but particularly the EXTREMELY limited verification and Iran’s objectives. MAD (“mutually assured destruction”) is not a deterrent to them. What is being called a “deal” is an accommodation that will lead to nuclear disaster.

Dennis Prager puts this “deal” in a historical perspective:

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From the Convert Journal automotive desk, a look at EV (electric car) charging technology. Tesla was apparently inspired by either an octopus or a scene from the movie Aliens in the design of this automatic car charging station:

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Some random thoughts or bits of information are worthy of sharing but don’t warrant their own full post. This idea was begun by Jennifer Fulwiler and is now continued by Kelly Mantoan. So, some Fridays I too participate when I have accumulated 7 worthy items. Thank you Kelly for hosting this project!