In This Issue:
- PRI in the Media
- Ending Sex-Selective Abortion
- Demography is Destiny
- Out of Wedlock
- Communist China
- Forced Prayers
- Taliban Team-up
- New Bishop of Wuhan
- UN Misdeeds
- Sexual Autonomy for Kids
- Science Gone Mad
- IOF Joins Coalition
- Harvesting the Healthy
- Pro-Life Around the World
- Deadly Plans
- March for Aussie Life
- Pro-Life on the Home Front
- Challenging Catholic Politicians
- Supreme Court Support
- No Trade or Travel
- Good News
- Evacuation Baby
PRI in the Media
Ending Sex-Selective Abortion: Research conducted by PRI was referenced in this recent release by Pregnancy Help News. The article addressed the ongoing issue of sex-selective abortion, which PRI researchers estimated to have been the reason for 24 million abortions between 2000 and 2014. Read Here
Demography is Destiny
Out of Wedlock: Recent studies have revealed that an increasing number of college-educated women are having babies outside of marriage. From one generation to the next, this occurrence has gone from “rare event” to the commonplace.Read Here
“Congress needs to pass a ‘marriage bonus’, creating tax advantages for couples who get married,” says PRI President, Steven Mosher. “Such a bonus would help to offset the economic insecurity that dissuades many young couples from tying the knot, as well as benefit society as a whole. Children born into intact families do better across all metrics than those raised by single moms, or couples who are merely living together.”
Communist China
Forced Prayers: The CCP has released a directive to all Christian churches commanding the members to pray for “martyrs of the Red Army.” Although Chinese Christians are forbidden to mourn their own martyrs and victims of the CCP, they must obey (and submit evidence of their obedience) or else risk the consequences. Read Here
“The effort of the Chinese Communists to use Christian churches to promote their own propaganda continues,” says Mr. Mosher. “Christians are ordered to pray for dead Communist soldiers, but not allowed to pray for their own martyrs, who were in some cases killed by those same soldiers. They are ordered to pray in celebration of the victory of the Red Army over Japan, when in fact it was the Chinese Nationalists who fought the Japanese, while the Red Army cleverly bided its time.”
Taliban Team-up: The Taliban has expressed interest in relying upon Beijing’s support to rebuild war-ravaged Afghanistan. Communications have passed between members of the Islamic group and the Chinese officials, with the former promising protection for the latter’s “institutions and personnel” within the country. Read Here
“Of course China welcomes the victory of the Taliban, which it has been providing weapons to since 1996 or so,” says PRI President Steven Mosher. “In one sense the conflict in Afghanistan was a proxy war between China, its ally Pakistan and the U.S. The Chinese Communists are happy to see America, which it regards as its primary enemy, in retreat. Whether or not it can successfully exploit the natural resources of the country known as ‘the graveyard of empires,’ we will see.”
New Bishop of Wuhan: This past Wednesday, Father Joseph Cui Qingqi became the new bishop of Wuhan. This was the fourth ordination since the renewal of the Sino-Vatican agreement last Fall. Read Here
UN Misdeeds
Sexual Autonomy for Kids: UNICEF, the UN agency for children, has started revamping its strategy to focus on promoting sexual autonomy for children. In doing so, UNICEF joined the UNFPA and UN Women in their aims to sexualize children and undermine parental control. Read Here
Science Gone Mad
IOF Joins Coalition: The International Organization for the Family has become part of the newly formed, international Coalition Against Surrogacy. The coalition’s goal is to ban surrogacy, by petitioning the UN, in order to end this practice which destroys the family and contributes to human trafficking. Read Here
Harvesting the Healthy: Bioethicists have started to push for the allowance of “organ donation euthanasia”, also known as “kill via organ harvest.” In the past, this applied only to patients on the verge of death or permanently unconscious. But according to Wesley J. Smith, the idea that “healthy people be allowed to die by removal of vital organs” has now been introduced. Read Here
“In China they kill prisoners for their organs,” says Mr. Mosher. “Consent is not required. But if this proposal goes forward, we will over time wind up doing the same thing. ‘Consent’ will become just a fig leaf. Clever counselors will convince depressed or handicapped people to commit suicide by organ donation by suggesting that they can ‘give their life meaning’ by ‘giving life to others.’ And what my friend Wesley Smith is saying is that we are closer to that horror than we know.”
Pro-Life Around the World
Deadly Plans: With abortion numbers already at their second highest number ever, Scotland has decided to push the envelope farther with their recently released “Women’s Health Plan.” This plan will increase the number of locations that provide abortions between 13 and 28 weeks. It also will end the requirement of in-person consultations for medical abortions. Read Here
March for Aussie Life:
A Pro-Life rally will be held in Queensland, Australia this Saturday to protest the legalization of assisted suicide for many over the age of eighteen. With the new law, any adult resident could seek assisted suicide if they have a year or less left to live and deem their life “intolerable.” Read Here
Pro-Life on the Home Front
Challenging Catholic Politicians: Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco has released an Op-Ed on “Catholic” politicians supporting abortion. He compared their position to those that supported segregation, during the Civil Rights Movement, who then faced excommunication for not living out their faith. Today, so-called “Catholics” who support abortion should be challenged similarly. Read Here
Supreme Court Support: Texas Right to Life celebrated an amazing victory with aid from the Supreme Court this past week. The Court denied a last minute block to the Texas Heartbeat Act filed by ACLU and Planned Parenthood.Read Here
No Trade or Travel: Portland has plans under consideration that would ban trade with and state-employee business travel to Texas. This move is a direct reaction to the Texas Heartbeat Act, from Portland’s Democratic Mayor, Ted Wheeler.Read Here
Good News
Evacuation Baby: Afghan refugee, Soman Noori, gave birth to a baby girl at 30,000 feet while fleeing. With no medical personnel aboard, the crew successfully delivered the baby on their own. Both mother and baby are in good condition. Read Here
Quote of the Week:
“You cannot be a good Catholic and support expanding a government-approved right to kill innocent human beings. The answer to crisis pregnancies is not violence but love, for both mother and child.”
~ Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone, source
