Pro-life Success: Pro-lifers May Not Be Sued Under RICO

I just heard about this on Yahoo News, and I found this article on Catholic Fire:

Washington, DC - Feb 28, 2006 The United States Supreme Court issued an unanimous ruling today finally clearing pro-life protesters of a 20-year old suit brought by NOW under the Federal Racketeer Influenced Corrupt Organizations (RICO) laws. Joseph Scheidler, a long- time pro-life activist from Chicago, took the lead in defending the case on behalf of over 20 defendants, including Operation Rescue.

In an historic third trip to the nation’s highest court, Justice Stephen Breyer issued the unanimous opinion clearly stating that the case is over and that pro- lifers may not be sued under RICO. This decision also puts an end to a nationwide injunction against the protesters.“We are very excited to finally see this case put behind us once and for all,” said Operation Rescue President Troy Newman. “This is a victory not only for pro-lifers, who can now exercise their First Amendment rights to speak out about abortion without fear of a RICO suit, but it is also a victory for the women and babies who are entering our nation’s abortion mills, who now will have greater access to more information and practical assistance that can help them spare the lives of their pre-born children.”

Read Fr. Frank Pavone of Priests for Life's Reaction

“The proper response to this ruling is to increase our peaceful, legal presence at killing centers everywhere, without fear of ridicule, false arrest, or persecution."

"Killing centers" - he couldn't be more true...

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Mardi Gras Prayer

Today is Shrove Tuesday, also known as Fat Tuesday or Mardi Gras. Today is the traditional day to make reparation to the Holy Face for the sins of Mardi Gras. Click here to learn more.

Fat Tuesday Prayer:

Blessed are you, Lord God of all creation, for it is from your goodness that we have this day to celebrate on the threshold of the Season of Lent.

Tomorrow we will fast and abstain from meat. Today we feast. We thank you for the abundance of gifts you shower upon us. We thank you especially for one another. As we give you thanks, we are mindful of those who have so much less than we do. As we share these wonderful gifts together, we commit ourselves to greater generosity toward those who need our support.

Prepare us for tomorrow. Tasting the fullness of what we have today, let us experience some hunger tomorrow. May our fasting make us more alert and may it heighten our consciousness so that we might be ready to hear your Word and respond to your call.

As our feasting fills us with gratitude so may our fasting and abstinence hollow out in us a place for deeper desires and an attentiveness to hear the cry of the poor. May our self-denial turn our hearts to you and give us a new freedom for generous service to others. We ask you these graces with our hearts full of delight and stirring with readiness for the journey ahead. We ask them with confidence in the name of Jesus the Lord.

(Source)

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My Lenten Schedule

This is my daily prayer schedule for the Holy Season of Lent. I'm hoping that some of you readers will be able to join me in praying and reading this Lent.

Morning:

Wake up and say the Guardian angel prayer
Listen to the daily Mass readings (if I can't go to Mass)
Pray Morning Prayer (Lauds)

Throughout the Day:

Go to Mass (if possible)
Meditate and reflect on the passion and death of Our Savior
Read The Dolorous Passion of Our Lord Jesus Christ (2 links each day)
Read the segments of the Early Church Fathers

Evening:

Pray Evening Prayer (Vespers)
Pray special prayers for the poor, sick and the souls in purgatory

Above all I'm trying to become holier and reflect more deeply on the passion and death of Our Savior for me. This realization of the ultimate love compels us to serve one another, so I will be emailing and talking this entire season about the importance of the Catholic faith. Throughout the entire season I will be giving up all sweets and "good food" while performing other voluntary acts of penance. I hope to contribute to many other good Catholic and pro-life organizations. I'll also be praying the Stations of the Cross every Friday.

Image Source: Believed to be in the Public Domain

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Prayer, Prayer, and Prayer: Lent Begins

"Pray for the wicked, pray for the lukewarm, pray even for fervent souls, but pray especially for the Supreme Pontiff, for all the Spiritual and temporal needs of Holy Church, our most tender Mother. A special prayer for all those who are working for the salvation of souls and for God’s glory" (St. Padre Pio).

Lent starts tomorrow! Let us attempt to pray each day in reparation for our sins and for sinners around the world. Lent must include daily prayer for the Holy Father, the poor, the souls in purgatory, and others that are in need. Lent is about shifting the spotlight from ourselves to others in the name and love of Christ.

Prayer:

Dear Lord, we are now in the holy season of Lent. We begin to realize anew that these are the days of salvation, these are the acceptable days. We know that we are all sinners. We know that in many things we have all offended Your infinite majesty. We know that sin destroys Your life in us as a drought withers the leaves and chokes the life from the land, leaving an arid, dusty desert. Help us now, Lord, in our feeble attempts to make up for past sin. Bless our efforts with the rich blessing of Your grace. Make us realize ever more our need of penance and of mortification.

Help us to see, in our ordinary difficulties and duties, in the trials and temptations of every day, the best opportunity of making up for past infidelities. Every day we are so often reminded in field and wood, in sky and stream, of Your own boundless generosity to us. Help us to realize that You are never outdone in generosity, and that the least thing we do for You will be rewarded, full measure, pressed down, shaken together, and flowing over. Then we shall see, in our own souls, how the desert can blossom, and the dry and wasted land can bring forth the rich, useful fruit that was expected of it from the beginning. Amen.

Prayer Source:

THE RURAL LIFE PRAYERBOOK

Imprimi Potest
Leo J. Burns, S.J.
Provincial
Wisconsin Province
Milwaukee, Wis., 17 October 1955

Imprimatur
Fr. Eduardus Caelestinus, O.P.
Episcopus Desmoinen
Des Moines, Iowa, 13 February, 1956

Written and Compiled by
Alban J. Dachauer, S.J.
In cooperation with
The National Catholic Rural Life Conference
Drawings by Tom Chouteau

Published by
The National Catholic Rural Life Conference
4625 Beaver Avenue
Des Moines, IA 50310-2199

Copyright, 1956
National Catholic Rural Life Conference

Image Source: Believed to be in the Public Domain

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A Trip to Israel

Here was a joke that couldn't apply better to this world today...

A Jewish businessman in Chicago sent his son to Israel for a year to absorb the culture. When the son returned, he said, "Papa, I had a great time in Israel. By the way, I converted to Christianity.""Oy vey," said the father. "What have I done?"He took his problem to his best friend. "Ike," he said, "I sent my son to Israel, and he came home a Christian. What can I do?""Funny you should ask," said Ike. "I too, sent my son to Israel, and heal so came home a Christian.." Perhaps we should go see the rabbi. So they did, and they explained their problem to the rabbi."Funny you should ask," said the rabbi.. "I, too, sent my son to Israel,and he also came home a Christian. What is happening to our young people?" And so they all prayed, telling the Lord about their sons. As they finished their prayer, a voice came from the heavens: "Funny you should ask," said the voice. "I, too, sent my son to Israel...."

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Prayer Request from Fatima, NJ

Requiem aeternam dona ei, Domine, et lux perpetua luceat ei. Requiescat in pace. Amen.

I received this prayer request in my Inbox, and I ask you to please say a prayer for this man's soul.

Please say a special prayer formy dad. He passed away 7 months ago today. I always thought it would get easier with time, but not a day goes by that I don't cry for him. Maybe it's because of the horrible pain I saw him go through... I truly believe my father lived his purgatory on earth. For the last six months of his life, he was semi-comatose due to an overdose of anesthesia given him for a simple out patient procedure. He was left paralyzed and couldn't communicate to us, but could see and hear us and feel pain. I tried to put myself in his position and couldn't fathom it...like being locked up in your own body! He would look me right in the eye when I would speak to him and start crying and I never felt more helpless. He ended up with these horrific bed sores on his back which eventually led to his death. He died a week before his 65th birthday. I hope and pray that he's at peace with God. Please help me ask God to let him know how much he is loved and missed.

Thank you all and God Bless,

Fatima - NJ

Image Source: Photo of Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen, Believed to be in the Public Domain

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Peter's Pence Collection

The annual collection given to the Holy Father was presented to him recently. In the closed meeting, he reminded the members of the Circle of St. Peter of his emphasis in Deus Caritas Est on Christian charity. The 2004 Peter's Pence raised $51 million, 7.4% below 2003 (Source: CWNews).

A remember that this collection given to the Holy Father to carry out his work for those in need is now online. Please visit the Vatican's Peter's Pence Page to donate to Our Holy Father online.

Photo Source: Associated Press

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St. Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows

Double (1955 Calendar): February 27 or February 28 if leap year

Today we remember St. Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows (1838-1862). At the young age of four, he lost his mother and lived in worldly pleasures. Our Lady brought him to deeper reverence, and after being cured of two serious diseases, he knew that he was called to religious life. His request to join the Jesuits was turned down because he was only 17, but after his sister died of cholera, he was accepted to the Passionists. He then took the name Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows.

He was a joyous person and a shining example that living the Catholic life, one that is centered on God, is not burdening but liberating. The regulations of the Church help us to serve Christ and this brings out greater joy. St. Gabriel possessed a strong spirit of prayer, love for the poor, and a consideration of the feelings of others.

While only four years after entering religious life, St. Gabriel developed pneumonia and on February 27, 1862, at age 24, he died. In 1920 he was canonized. Pope Benedict XVI has called him a pattern for young people.

His Words:

"Love Mary! She is lovable, faithful, constant. She will never let herself be outdone in love, but will ever remain supreme. If you are in danger, she will hasten to free you. If you are troubled, she will console you. If you are sick, she will bring you relief. If you are in need, she will help you. She does not look to see what kind of person you have been. She simply comes to a heart that wants to love her. She comes quickly and opens her merciful heart to you, embraces you and consoles and serves you. She will even be at hand to accompany you on the trip to eternity."

For more see: Gabriel of Our Lady of Sorrows: Life and Prayers.

Prayer:

O God, Who didst teach blessed Gabriel to think continually of the sorrows of Thy most sweet Mother, and didst exalt him through her by the renown of holiness and miracles; grant us through his intercession and example so to join Thy Mother in her grief that we may be saved by her maternal protection: Who livest and reignest.

Prayer Source: 1962 Roman Catholic Daily Missal

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"Jesus, at the sight of the crowds, was moved with pity."

Those words from Matthew 9:36 have been chosen by Pope Benedict XVI to be our theme as we journey through this year's Lent. This will be my first year blogging through Lent, and I want to make this a spiritually-rich time. My posts will reflect the cornerstone our our Lenten journey - Christ.

I will not make these posts "politically correct" or at times even polite; they will be the truth. And this is the truth - that Christ is the Lord and we must follow Him. His commandments do not just apply to those who follow Him now but to ever last individual sharing in his divine image. We as human beings are called to salvation - and this is done only through Our Lord. Prayer will be focal point of my posts, and I hope that my readers will not only read them but pray them. Prayer is the key to the Heart of God! Prayer is essential.

Lent is about prayer, fasting, and penance. I will try to touch on all of these issues.

Pope Benedict XVI's Lenten Message:

Lent is a privileged time of interior pilgrimage towards Him Who is the fount of mercy. It is a pilgrimage in which He Himself accompanies us through the desert of our poverty, sustaining us on our way towards the intense joy of Easter. Even in the “valley of darkness” of which the Psalmist speaks (Ps 23:4), while the tempter prompts us to despair or to place a vain hope in the work of our own hands, God is there to guard us and sustain us. Yes, even today the Lord hears the cry of the multitudes longing for joy, peace, and love. As in every age, they feel abandoned. Yet, even in the desolation of misery, loneliness, violence and hunger that indiscriminately afflict children, adults, and the elderly, God does not allow darkness to prevail. In fact, in the words of my beloved Predecessor, Pope John Paul II, there is a “divine limit imposed upon evil”, namely, mercy (Memory and Identity, pp. 19ff.). It is with these thoughts in mind that I have chosen as my theme for this Message the Gospel text: “Jesus, at the sight of the crowds, was moved with pity” (Mt 9:36)...

Keep Reading

Image Source: Believed to be in the Public Domain

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My Word Cloud

I found a really interesting website through Ma Beck's blog. The site is made to design a t-shirt, but I still went through the process just to create my word cloud. The above image is my word cloud - a list of some of the most common words in my blog. I'm quite pleased with the results. (click on it for a larger image)

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