January 22, What is an Apple?

January 22, 1973 - January 22, 2010

Roe v. Wade

37 Years

What does abortion do? Or rather, what is abortion? Peter Kreeft wrote an article entitled The Apple Argument Against Abortion. I am not a student of philosophy, debate, nor logic. But from my feeble attempt to understand this article, which can be found here http://www.catholiceducation.org/articles/abortion/ab0045.html, if we know what abortion is, Roe v. Wade must be overturned. So the question is, can we really know what abortion is?

Mr. Kreeft starts with, can we know what an apple is? No, REALLY know? Do we REALLY know what an apple REALLY is? If I was a student of philosophy, debate or logic, I would now reason, obviously, that if I denied that I really know what an apple really is, then I know, but not really, what an apple is, but not really. Or something like that.

Now when I look at an apple without all the analysis, philosophy, yes logic, etc, I think I can be pretty sure the I really know what an apple really is, no really.

Now I turn to a human being, can I know what human beings are? This is a much bigger question, maybe. Mr. Kreeft boils this down after 6 pages to this:

Case 1. The fetus is a person, and we know that.

Case 2. The fetus is a person, but we don’t that.

Case 3. The fetus isn’t a person, but we don’t know that.

Case 4. The fetus isn’t a person, and we know that.

What is abortion in each of these four cases?

Case 1, if the fetus is a person and we know that and we participate some way in an abortion, this is first-degree murder, the deliberate killing of an innocent human being.

Case 2, if the fetus is a person but we do not know this then participation in an abortion under these circumstances would be manslaughter. Mr. Kreeft describes this as driving over a man-shaped overcoat in the street, you’re not quite sure that there is a person there, but you are not altogether sure that there is not. There turns out to be a person in there which, of course you didn’t know that, nor did you know there wasn’t, kind of iffy.

Case 3,the fetus isn’t a person, but we don’t know that and we still drove over the man-shaped overcoat in the street. Now, if you didn’t care or didn’t take care to make sure there wasn’t a person under the man-shaped overcoat in the street and you still drove over the man-shaped overcoat in the street, this could be called criminal negligence if there did in fact turn out to be a human being under the man-shaped overcoat in the street and this human did not survive being run over.

Case 4 the fetus isn’t a person and we know that. This is the only case where abortion may be permissible. What makes it permissible is not the fact that the fetus is not a person, but that ones KNOWS it is not a person. Or as Mr. Kreeft concludes, we can pretend we do not know what an apple is and if so we have an excuse for pleading our case that we don’t know what an abortion is.

On the 37th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, on the heals of the 37th March For Life on Washington, D.C. I offer Exhibit A from the Endowment for Human Development www.ehd.org a beautiful human being 4 weeks in gestation, a little more than 1/8th of an inch, with a heart beating 113 times per minutes please witness the heart changes color as blood enters and leaves its chambers with each beat.








Do we REALLY know what an apple REALLY is? Do we REALLY know what a human being is? REALLY know? If we truly know, then abortion stops a beating heart……………….

For all those who have suffered because you did not REALLY KNOW, because you were not given the facts. You are not to blame, but those that REALLY have known all along have much to account for.

Week of Prayer for Chrisitan Unity

January 18 – January 25

Week of Prayer for Christian Unity

The theme for the annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity 2010 was announced by the Pontifical Council for Promoting Christian Unity and the Commission of Faith and Order of the World Council of Churches. This year’s theme comes from the words of Our Lord spoken to the Apostles after His resurrection, “You are witnesses of these things.” (Luke 24:48) In this gospel text Jesus resurrected appears to the disciples and calls for them to preach “repentance, for the forgiveness of sins,….preached in his name to all nations. (Luke24:27)

As followers of Jesus, this message remains with us today. We are also witnesses to the Church Jesus founded. We are called to continue to pray not just one week a year but daily the prayer of Jesus to His Father, in the garden of Gethsemane, “I pray not only for them, but also for those who will believe in me through their word, so that they may all be one, as you, Father, are in me and I in you, that they also may be in us, that the world may believe that you sent me. And  I have given them the glory you gave me, so that they may be one, as we are one, I in them and you in me, that they may be brought to perfection as one.” ( John 17:20-23) In a world, conservatively speaking, with over 20,000 Christian denominations, Jesus’ words give one something to ponder.

Martin Luther King Jr. Day

Martin Luther King Jr.

January 15, 1929 – April 4, 1968

I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."

Martin Luther King Jr., I Have A Dream
Delivered August 28, 1963, at the Lincoln Memorial, Washington D.C.

The Martin Luther King Jr. holiday opens a very busy week. January 18 – 25th is the annual Week of Prayer for Christian Unity, January 22 is the 37th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, January 18-24 features a large number of pro-life activities and programs, culminating with Walk for Life West Coast on January 22 in San Francisco, and March for Life/Walk for Life January 23 in Washington, D.C.

I found it not so much of a coincidence that Martin Luther King Jr. Day would open such a controversial week. I wonder, if he were alive today, what would be his stance on the rights of the unborn? Not that anyone actually knows for sure, I did not have to look far to find an opinion.

Dr. Alveda King, Pastoral Associate of Priests for Life and niece of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., released the following comments today on the celebration of her Uncle’s life.

“Martin Luther King, Jr. spoke of a Beloved Community where all are treated with respect and dignity,” said Dr. King. “He fought against society’s exclusion of people who were treated as less than human because of their appearance. Today, we are compelled to continue Uncle Martin’s fight by standing up for those who are treated as less than human because of their helplessness and inconvenience.

“The unborn are as much a part of the Beloved Community as are newborns, infants, teenagers, adults, and the elderly. Too many of us speak of tolerance and inclusion, yet refuse to tolerate or include the weakest and most innocent among us in the human family. As we celebrate the life of Uncle Martin, let us renew our hearts and commit our lives to treating each other, whatever our race, status, or stage of life, as we would want to be treated. Let us let each other live.”

Dr. Alveda King, is also a National Spokeswoman for, Silent No More Awareness Campaign, a heroic effort to make the public aware of the devastation abortion brings to women, men, and their families, by exposing a holocaust that has been shrouded in secrecy and silence for too long. Reminding us of the words of her uncle, “The Negro cannot win as long as he is willing to sacrifice the lives of his children for comfort and safety.” She then challenges us to keep her uncle’s “Dream” alive. “How can the “Dream” survive if we murder the children? Every aborted baby is like a slave in the womb of his or her mother. The mother decides his or her fate.”

In the following statement given on her birthday (coincidence, those who know me know that I would rather refer to this as a CHRIST-incident) on the steps of the Supreme Court, January 22, 2008, Dr. Alveda King continues to carry on in her uncle’s footsteps so that “one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal."”

In celebration of the life and dream of Martin Luther King, Jr.

Wedding At Cana

The Wedding at Cana

In today’s Gospel reading from John we hear of the third event that celebrates the epiphany of Jesus,  the wedding at Cana. Here, John tells us, “Jesus did this as the beginning of his signs [miracles] in Cana in Galilee and so revealed his glory.” (John 2:11) By performing His first miracle, Jesus manifests Himself as the Messiah, and begins down the road to the Cross.

It is interesting to note that Jesus’ first miracle is performed during a wedding, changing water into wine. “The Church attaches great importance to Jesus’ presence at the wedding at Cana. She sees in it the confirmation of the goodness of marriage and the proclamation that thenceforth marriage will be an efficacious sign of Christ’s presence.” (Catechism of the Catholic Church #1613)

The Church sees marriage as a successful sign, a symbol, or an icon of the presence of Christ. In other words, the Church sees marriage as a sacrament, an outward sign, instituted by Christ that conveys a supernatural grace.

Besides proclaiming the goodness of marriage, the wedding at Cana gives Mary a prominent roll. It is at her request, “They have no wine,” (John 2:3) that initiates the response from Jesus, “Woman, how does your concern affect me? My hour has not yet come.” (John 2: 4) This may appear to be rude, but rather it is the way one expressed “it was none of their business” in Aramaic.

Jesus also knew that if He performed this miracle He and His mother would no longer live a private and peaceful life. By changing the water to wine, His “hour of glory” would be revealed; there would be no turning back. He would begin His journey to the Cross out of His deep love for all of us.

Jesus’ use of the term “woman” is a connection back to Genesis 3:15, the Protoevangelium, or “first gospel.” Here the Lord God said, “I will put enmity between you [the serpent] and the woman, and between your offspring and hers; He will strike at your head, while you strike at his heel.” This “enmity” is between the “woman” and the serpent [Satan], this “woman” from Genesis 3:15 is the mother of Jesus.

The Church states in the “first gospel”, that this is the” first announcement of the Messiah and Redeemer, of a battle between the serpent and the Woman, and of the final victory of a descendant of hers.… Furthermore many Fathers and Doctors of the Church have seen the woman announced in the Protoevangelium as Mary, the mother of Christ, the “new Eve.”” CCC # 410-411

In Revelation 12: 1-5, this “woman” appears again, “A great sign appeared in the sky, a woman clothed with the sun, with the moon under her feet, and on her head a crown of twelve stars. She was with child and wailed aloud in pain as she labored to give birth….then the dragon stood before the woman about to give birth, to devour her child….She gave birth to a son, a male child, destined to rule all the nations with an iron rod. Her child was caught up to God and his throne.” The child is Jesus, and the woman is Mary his mother.

At the wedding of Cana Jesus connects His mother to the woman promised in Genesis and spoken of in Revelation. Jesus is reminding us of the great roll Mary will play in salvation history.

“They have no wine,” may seem of little importance, but it is symbolic of coming to the aid of those in need, and bringing that need to the attention of Christ. Mary is interceding here for the newly-weds. “Mary’s heart cannot but take pity on the unfortunate couple….it stirs her to act as intercessor and ask her Son for the miracle, even though no one asks her to…If our Lady acted like this without being asked, what would she not have done if they actually asked her to intervene?” (St. Alphonsus Liguori, Short Sermons, 48, 2, 1)

Next his mother said to the servers, “Do whatever he tells you,” and Jesus proceeds to change water into wine. Our Mother “continues in heaven to exercise her maternal role on behalf of the members of Christ.” CCC#975

There is so much more revealed in this gospel, but needless to say, the first miracle of Jesus appears to describe more than just a supernatural “wine run” to 7 Eleven because all the bottles were empty. Let us walk with Him in peace and joy. Shalom

For devotional items related to the Catholic Church, please visit Lynn's Timeless Treasures.  

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Art
Wedding at Cana by Paolo Veronese
Wedding at Cana Giotto