I attended Kortney’s funeral in Matthews, North Carolina, on Friday.  I wanted to share with you a story about a couple who witnessed the crash Saturday night and later e-mailed the family.  It was a real encouragement, even in the middle of unspeakable grief.  These e-mails were handed out to all in attendance at the funeral, but we will change the names of the couple who originated the exchange.

About the middle of last week, the family received this e-mail:

Hello,

My name is Jason Bice. I was there last night at the scene of the accident. My wife (Amber Bice) and I came upon the accident no more than thirty seconds after it happened. There were five other people there that witnessed the crash. They were all waiting for help to arrive. Knowing the area and knowing how long it would take emergency crews to get there, my wife and I stopped the car and got out to help.

The accident was bad, one car was on top of the other. I immediately found myself out of my comfort zone, but I went ahead and climbed into the car on the bottom to check on the driver. I exited that vehicle and went to check on the one on top. The vehicle on top was in a dangerous position. It could have slid off and rolled over at any minute. As my wife and I thought about what to do, I noticed that the other drivers had come out of their comfort zones and offered help.

We pulled one young man out of the vehicle and away from the car to safety. We went back for the other who had apparently crawled out himself and we moved him away from the wreck. My wife who is an ER nurse and thirty weeks pregnant cared for them while we went back for the others. We couldn’t get to the other two people due to the position of the vehicle. One of them was Kortney, someone you all loved dearly. Someone that passed away doing something she cared so deeply for and devoted her life to.

Ten minutes after it happened, police and firemen were there and took over.

My message is this, I came out of my comfort zone to help the 5 people that were involved in the accident. The other bystanders, seeing my wife and I trying to help, came out of their comfort zones and started helping too. There were 15 of us working to care for the hurt before EMS and police even showed up. We put ourselves in harms way to help them. There were men holding the car steady while we pulled people out and away from it. It’s time for all of us to come out of our comfort zones. Kortney came out of hers a long time ago. In a world where it seems a lot of people think abortion is OK, she stood against it and gave it her all. There is one thing we can do to keep her awesome spirit alive, and that is for all of you who read this to come out of your comfort zones, to help and support those in need and to stand strong for what is good and right.

The 20 minutes I was at the scene of the accident and then reading Kortney’s story today have changed me forever. I hope her story lives on and does the same for more people.

Jason Bice

Kortney’s uncle Don Blythe, who is a long-time pro-life activist and an early inspiration to Kortney, responded for the family:

Jason,

In the midst of our deepest of grief and overwhelming sorrow, my brother, Kortney’s father, and I were having trouble working our way through our brokenness, even though we had an inner confidence of the hope of our coming reunion someday, when it would be our turn to meet our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ.

Then your email came in and the power of your careful words and testimony ministered to us and all of the family and friends we shared it with. I thank you with all of my heart for you and your wife, and the divine appointment God set for you that evening. Your information has further confirmed in us that our Lord was still there and many concerns were answered by your actions for Kortney.

We began the process of recovery of our spirits after reading your email.

I hope you have also placed your trust and faith in Jesus Christ for your souls, so we can meet you in Heaven too someday. May the God of Heaven bring an outpouring of love and grace on you and your precious baby as you live out your lives in this world.

I will never forget you and what you did for our Kortney.

In His Steps,
Don Blythe

Here was the reply from Mr. Bice:

Don,

Those words came from my heart and what I am about to tell you is, too.

My faith in God was almost completely gone before that night. I don’t think I had prayed in over five years. If I did, it was probably for something so selfish that it wasn’t worth remembering. I have prayed more in the past few days than I have at any other time in my life. God was really weighing down on me Saturday and Sunday. I felt like I had to find out who the people in that accident were. When I did, I felt like I had to send that email and to share Kortney’s story with everyone I met. I continue to tell people the story of her life and how that night changed me forever.

To say that she and the rest of the people in that accident changed my life is an understatement. They saved my life.

My wife and I have cried tears over the pain that this must be causing you and the rest of her family. I am glad that sending these emails has helped ease that pain. I love all of God’s people and hate to see anyone in pain. I hope you all find a way to make it through this tragedy.

I can safely say now that my wife and I will have that chance to meet her in heaven.

With love and hope,
Jason Bice

In a recent post, FAB wondered if the riots that started in Europe would spread to the United States.  We’re finding out.  What we are seeing in the Occupy Wall Street (OWS) mob is exactly what Ann Coulter talked about in her new book, Demonic: How the Liberal Mob Is Endangering America.  To really understand OWS, you should read Ms. Coulter’s book.

OWS mobsters can’t articulate any coherent justification for their “movement,”  other than their entitlement to OPS (other people’s stuff).  They rail against corporate America, but they communicate on i-pods and cell phones manufactured by American corporations.  Ann Coulter wrote:

George Will noted another incoherency, that Washington is too corrupt, but it should be given more power to control our lives. Citing the kind of corruption that would be promoted even more aggressively if the OWS mob gets its way:

[The Obama administration’s Solyndra episode of crony capitalism] does not validate progressivism’s indignation, it refutes progressivism’s aspiration, which is for more minute government supervision of society. Solyndra got to the government trough with the help of a former bundler of Obama campaign contributions who was an Energy Department bureaucrat helping to dispense taxpayers’ money to politically favored companies. His wife’s law firm represented Solyndra. But, then, government of the sort progressives demand — supposed “experts,” wiser than the market, allocating wealth and opportunity by supposedly disinterested decisions — is not just susceptible to corruption, it is corruption.

The list of OWS demands proves that nothing is too extravagant for the people who don’t have to pay for it:

… a “guaranteed living wage income regardless of employment”; a $20-an-hour minimum wage (above the $16 entry wage the United Auto Workers just negotiated with GM); ending “the fossil fuel economy”; “open borders” so “anyone can travel anywhere to work and live”; $1 trillion for infrastructure; $1 trillion for “ecological restoration” (e.g., re-establishing “the natural flow of river systems”); “free college education.”

And forgiveness of “all debt on the entire planet period.” Progressivism’s battle cry is: “Mulligan!” It demands the ultimate entitlement — emancipation from the ruinous results of all prior claims of entitlement.

Mark Steyn summed it up quite well:

[The] “occupy” movement has no real solutions, except more government, more spending, more regulation, more bureaucracy, more unsustainable, lethargic pseudo university with no return on investment, more more more of what got us into this hole.

Desperate for something to give energy to their upcoming 2012 election campaign, the Democrats have embraced OWS and have encouraged its continuation and growth.  This is too good to be true.  Looks like the Dems have created their very own Tar-Baby, but unlike Br’er Rabbit, they are eager to embrace it, not fight it.

The best outcome possible is that the OWS continues to expose itself and the American Left (i.e., the Democratic party) for what it truly is, an angry mob who claims entitlement to the fruits of other people’s labor.

FAB will give updates, as available, on the condition of Jon Scharfenberger, the Students for Life of America (SFLA) staff member who is fighting for his life in Macon, Georgia.  Jon was critcally injured in Saturday night’s tragic auto crash that claimed the lives of Kortney Gordon and her preborn child Sophy.

Tuesday, October 18:  We are sad to report that Jon Scharfenberger has passed away from his injuries.  He died earlier today.

10:45 pm, Monday, October 17:  Jon has spiked a fever of 108 degrees F, which can be lethal. Urgent prayers are needed as this battle has taken a terrible turn for him.

10:30 am, Monday, October 17:  The doctors have induced a 72-hour coma in Jon.  Now is the time for prayer and fasting for Jon and his family.

5:30 pm, Saturday, October 15:  No further updates.  Pray for Jon’s condition to stabilize so that he can be transferred to a hospital specializing in brain trauma.

12:45 am, Friday, October 14:  Late Wednesday, Jon’s condition destablized for a time.  Throughout the day Thursday, his condition regained some sense of stability, but the issue is still in doubt.  Please pray for God’s healing for Jon, and pray for his family’s strength and comfort as the battle rages.

1:00 pm, Wednesday, October 12:  Jon has shown significant improvement since yesterday.  His condition remains extremely critical, but he is trending in the right direction, especially over the past 15 hours.  Please continue to pray.

2:00 pm, Tuesday, October 11:  There is a ray of hope.  Jon’s neurological condition has stopped deteriorating and has held steady through the night and through the morning.  From eye movements through his closed eyes, he is showing response to meaningful people in his life.  Having lived through the day yesterday, and having no further decline today are very hopeful indicators, though he remains in extremely critical condition.  The next 24 hours are crucial.  Specific are being withheld at the Family’s request.  Please keep up the prayers.  (link to source)

Sunday, October 9:  We are stunned to learn of the death of our dear friend Kortney Blythe Gordon, who was killed (along with Sophy, her preborn child) in an automobile accident near Macon, Georgia last night.  Story here and here.  Kortney was the National Field Director for Students for Life of America (SFLA), and was in Georgia to attend the Students for Life of Georgia conference that was held yesterday.

Three passengers in Kortney’s car were seriously injured.  Updates on the passengers and their progress are given below.

Please pray.

Update, 1:00 am, Monday, October 10:  SFLA staff member Jon Scharfenberger was also seriously injured in the crash.  His prognosis is not good.  We’ve been told that the other two passengers have regained consciousness.  Updates are being posted on the SFLA Facebook page.

Update, 10:30 am, Monday, October 10:  No further word on Jon.  He is still in critical condition and is in the ICU.  SFLA is hosting a webcast at 5:00 p.m. ET tonight for those who want to pray and offer their words of support for Kortney’s family and of encouragement for Jon. David Bereit of 40 Days for Life, Reverend Pat Mahoney of Christian Defense Coalition, and Claude Allen of Gerard Health Foundation will be on the call to lead us in prayer and discussion to honor the lives of Kortney and her daughter Sophy, and to offer words of encouragement for Jon and his family. We encourage you to join the webcast by clicking here.

Update, 2:30 pm, Monday, October 10:  The other two persons injured in Saturday’s crash have been identified as Leo Buckle, President of the Students for Life group at the University of South Carolina, and Ginny Stone, a pro-life activist from a pregnancy center in Durham, NC.  Ginny’s condition has been upgraded to stable.  Both Leo and Ginny are expected to live, although they have sustained extremely serious internal injuries requiring extensive surgery.

No further word about Jon, except that he is in extremely critical condition.

More details about the accident have been published.  According to a press report, Quenby Means Jr., 56, of Irmo, SC, was southbound on Eatonton Highway (US 129), about 8 miles north of Gray Ga., when he attempted to pass two cars in his SUV.  He crashed head-on into Kortney’s northbound SUV.  Kortney and her passengers were on their way home from the Georgia Students for Life conference in Macon.

Update, 4:00 pm, Monday, October 10:  Jon’s condition is worsening.  We are told it will take a miracle for him to last until tomorrow.  Please pray for this awesome young man.

Update, 8:30 am, Tuesday, October 11:  We’ve learned that, as of last night, Jon had pulled out of the steep decline that was reported yesterday.  His condition has leveled off, which is a good news, but Jon still has a long way to go.  SFLA is asking for prayer and fasting.  A special time of prayer is requested at noon today and every day for the next 10 days (link).

FAB is coming to you today from Macon, Georgia, where CBR is co-sponsoring a state-wide conference of the Students for Life of Georgia.  Pro-life students have come from all over Georgia for a day of leadership training and networking.  In fact, a few interlopers from South Carolina may have snuck in as well.  All-told, there are about 50 students in the crowd.

As one of the speakers for this conference, your humble correspondent addressed the students on the history of social reform, and how that history can guide us as pro-lifers.  We are not the first social reform movement, and we can learn a great deal from successful reformers like William Wilberforce, Thomas Clarkson, the abolitionists in America, Lewis Hine, and Dr. Martin Luther King.

CBR Project Director Jane Bullington speaks to a student at UT Knoxville.

I found out for sure what I had always known — my mom aborted 2 children before me.

CBR staffer Jane Bullington met a young man at the UT Knoxville GAP.  Steve had a cocky look on his face.  Jane asked him what he thought — it’s our standard way of breaking the ice.

Steve started out with all the same stuff we’ve heard before:  shock value, misused use of the term genocide, pictures don’t change minds, you are turning people away from your cause, etc., etc., etc.

But then they actually started talking and Steve began to verbalize some of the bad consequences of abortion, the damage to women, the effects on families, the mental stress on women, etc.  He got tears in his eyes.  He said, “In recent months, I have been drawn to everything I see or read about abortion.  I found out for sure what I had always known: my mom aborted 2 children before me.  She treated me … well … different.  She and my dad had troubles.  My home was tense.”

Jane asked him, “Do you have other siblings besides those 2 your mom aborted?”

Steve looked at her with surprise, “I never thought of them as my siblings, but they are.  Yes, I have an older brother.”

Later in the conversation, his position began to move, “I still think women should have a choice, but so many other people get hurt that I want them to know the truth, the truth about what they are doing, and the consequences they will endure, they and their families.  I guess education like yours would be good for women.”

Jane asked Steve if his mom would go to a post-abortion healing ministry like Deeper Still.   He chuckled and said, “Absolutely no.  She believes the ends justifies the means, and she wanted what she wanted.”

Jane suggested he might want to talk to someone else later on in his journey and told him that Deeper Still could be of help to him, as a son, too.

At the end of the conversation, Steve thanked Jane for her time and she gave him a hug — Jane is a mom and moms like that sort of thing.  Steve left, but as he walked away, his eyes never left the pictures.

Dialogue with pro-abortion student. (I got the shade; I was there first.)

This is our 8th day of GAP in the last 3 weeks.  If you count our Pro Life Training Academy, travel, and prep work, it’s my 16th day of hard labor in 19 days.  By hard labor I mean up at 6:00 am and to bed at midnight or later on GAP days … with only slightly more sleep on the other days.  There would be 3 more days after this one.

But God is good.  He knew that we were all tired.  He didn’t test us.  After we got the exhibit set up, I propped myself up on a wall underneath a shade tree, right near the poll table.  They would have to come to me.

At the poll table, students answer the question, “Should abortion remain legal?”  A “no” response means pro-life; we sign them up for the Pro Life Collegians.  A “yes” response means pro-abortion; we initiate dialogue with the goal of helping them rethink their position.  For most of the day, I just quietly asked the “yes” responders, one at a time, “May I ask why you responded that way?”  If they answer, we’re off to the races.

For a nice change of pace, God didn’t send any combative people over to the table this day.  The combative types can offer awesome opportunities, especially if they draw a crowd.  But they are rarely thoughtful and it is hard work to be reasonable with somebody who is unreasonable.  I just wasn’t up to it.

So God sent to me (and all the rest of us) a steady stream of people who were willing to have civil discourse.  He also sent a number of pro-lifers who gave us encouragement.  It was very different from most GAPs, including most GAPs at UT.

Of course, a few passersby gave us the “flying buzzard” as they rushed on past, but the drive-by’s can be easily ignored.  We should aways remember that such people are often facing struggles that we probably can’t imagine.  We should also remember that God loves each and every one of them, too.  But God would have had a hard time loving them through us on this day.  The civil ones got all we had to give.

You may have heard the story about Pastor Yousef Nadarkhani, a Christian in Iran who has been sentenced to death because he is a Christian.  More about it on the Family Research Council (FRC) blog.  FRC encourages everyone to contact the Iranians on behalf of Pastor Nadarkhani, so I sent this terse e-mail to the e-mail address given by FRC (iran@un.int):

Iran,

Do not murder Yousef Nadarkhani. The world is watching to see if you are civilized human beings or just barbarians at the gate.

C. Fletcher Armstrong, PhD
Southeast Director
Center for Bio-Ethical Reform
PO Box 20115, Knoxville, TN 37940
www.ProLifeOnCampus.com
www.FletcherArmstrongBlog.com
www.facebook.com/ProLifeOnCampus
direct: 865-947-0179
mobile: 865-776-1312

I also sent an e-mail to Secretary of State Clinton here.

UTC student Madi Rose Taff stating the obvious. Nobody want's to see pictures of violence. But even fewer people want to be tortured to death.

Day 2 at UT Chattanooga (UTC) was another awesome day of GAP.  Come to think of it, I’ve participated in perhaps 150 days of GAP, and every single one of them was awesome.  Maybe that’s why we want to do even more of it.

It was another hot, hot day at UTC.  Before this week would be over, the heat would take it’s toll.  In fact, I’m typing this a full 2 weeks later, and my body hasn’t fully recovered, yet.  Please pray for healing and recovery.

We were greeted by protesters, which is always a plus.  They attracted the newspaper to come and do a story on our project.  The pro-aborts really don’t know what to do about us.  If they don’t respond at all, then we dominate the landscape.  If they do respond, they look silly.

For example, this group didn’t try to argue that abortion is OK.  No they took a very nuanced view of the First Amendment:

1. Free speech is important and should be protected.
2. We shouldn’t be allowed to show abortion pictures because it made them uncomfortable.

Oooohhhh kay.

One guy, who was not even pro-life, came by to protest the protesters.  He was there on behalf of the First Amendment.  Like we always say, “GAP is like a box of chock-lits; ya neva know WATT your gonna gay-et.”

UTC students study the GAP pictures in front of the library.

Students from Catholic High School gather for opening services for the Fall 40 Days for Life campaign. No other Christian school was represented.

Yesterday morning, about 50 Knoxville pro-lifers joined their counterparts in 300 other cities around the world by kicking off their semi-annual 40 Days for Life campaign. The opening services were held at Tyson Park, across the street from one of Knoxville’s three abortion facilities.

It was wonderful to see a number of teenagers, but it was a bit disheartening to know that they all came from one Christian school (Catholic High School).  How many Christian schools are there in this town, anyway?  How many “pro-life” pastors in Knoxville have ever attended a single 40 Days event?  Ever been at the abortion facility, even once?

We are thankful for the Diocese of Knoxville Peace and Justice Director Paul Simoneau and 40 Days Coordinator Lisa Morris for their tireless work on this campaign.  They really need your help … and they deserve your help.  There are many time slots available for the duration of the campaign.  If you’ve never been to a 40 Days vigil, now would be a great time to sign up!  It’s really very low-stress, non-confrontational.  It’s a time for prayer and presence.  I hope you will take part.  Check it out: http://www.40daysknoxville.com/.  E-mail Lisa at information@40DaysKnoxville.com.

Paul Simoneau and the National 40 Days for Life Director David Bereit will be joining me on WRJZ radio at 5:00 pm next Tuesday afernoon.  They both have inspiring stories to share and I hope you’ll join us!

Nearly 50 pro-lifers gather for opening services for 40 Days for Life campaign.

Liberty students see abortion, many for the first time.

We were disturbed but not particularly surprised at some of the reaction from Liberty University students when we took GAP there a few weeks back.  So many of them wanted to live within the fiction that since they are “pro-life,” whatever that means, that’s all they need to know.  Not trying to pick on Liberty here; Liberty is simply a microcosm of the modern American church.

A particularly disturbing comment from “LU” (his pen-name) appeard on FAB.  It read, in part, as follows:

… Abortion has been in the light of public media for years now and I would say that most adults do know what takes place.  You are not showing us anything we haven’t seen or heard before, you only anger the students of this campus with your lack of tact.  Also, it pains me to see the young children with your group being involved in this protest.  These children are way too young to be seeing these images in the first place and are only being brought up into a lifestyle of intolerance; not a true life of love as we as Christians are called to live.  Children need to be taught both sides of an issue and allowed to develop their own opinions once they are capable to do so. … We need to be able to decide for ourselves through skeptical study of the Bible and beliefs we have been taught.  It is sad to see how Christianity is being portrayed to unbelievers through your work.  I pray for you, your family, and fellow campaigners.

Note how illogical his reasoning is:

1. We shouldn’t show the pictures because everbody has seen them when they were younger.
2. Younger people shouldn’t see the picture’s, either.
3. Showing the pictures is intolerant.
4. Leaving Christians ignorant allows them to figure out for themselves what side they are on.

But wait a minute, if we all followed his advice, none of his classmates would have ever seen the pictures before and the first premise would be invalidated.

I responded as follows:

LU Student, you are mistaken on many points.  Please read my Open Letter to Liberty University, which you can link to from our website, http://www.ProLifeOnCampus.com.

You said that “abortion has been in the light of public media for years now.”  Really? I watch public media all the time.  I see unborn children dehumanized as mere blobs of tissue, masses of cells, products of conception, parasites, etc.  I see abortion euphemized as a reproductive “choice.”  A mere picture would dispel those myths, but the myths are cherished by those in power, so the pictures are suppressed.  With all the talk about “choice,” I’ve almost never seen any attention paid to what is actually being chosen.  The rare exception is when we come into town and some of the local media outlets actually show the pictures we have put on display.  Without any presentation of the reality of abortion in the media, the education system, and even the Church, most people have no idea who the preborn baby is and what abortion does to her.

You say the “shock factor” is not as effective as we would like to believe.  Your argument is not with us.  Your argument is with the countless women and men who have let us know that our pictures changed their minds.  In many cases, they tell us that our pictures saved their own children from destruction at the hands of the abortionist.  You can see many testimonials on http://www.AbortionNo.org and on http://www.ProLifeOnCampus.com.

You say that children should never be shown these pictures, but that you and everybody else at Liberty has already seen them?  How can that be?  If only a few kooks like us are letting our children see the pictures, how can it be that by the time they are 18, everybody has seen them?  We have encountered many, many students who tell us that they grew up in “pro-life” churches, had never seen abortion pictures, had come to believe abortion should be a choice, and changed their minds only after seeing our pictures.

You say that “Children need to be taught both sides of an issue and allowed to develop their own opinions once they are capable to do so.”  Really?  Whatever happened to God’s side?  Whatever happened to “Train up a child in the way he should go: and when he is old, he will not depart from it” (Proverbs 22:6)?  We are commanded not to kill their own children (Mark 10:19).  We are commanded to protect and defend the defenseless (Proverbs 24:11-12).  And finally, we are commanded to teach other believers to do the same (Matthew 28:20).  These commands are not optional.

When Christians see the horror of abortion, they are more likely to obey God’s command not to kill their own children (Mark 10:19).  Furthermore, they are more motivated to protect and defend the defenseless (Proverbs 24:11-12).  And finally, they more fully understand their duty as Christian leaders to teach other believers to do the same (Matthew 28:20).

[Note: You can read the entire discussion stream here.]

From an op-ed piece by Obama supporter David Brooks:

In reality, the top 10 percent of earners pay nearly 70 percent of all income taxes, according to the IRS.  People in the richest 1 percent pay 31 percent of their income to the federal government while the average worker pays less than 14 percent, according to the Congressional Budget Office.

The “pro-life” church is massively uninvolved in activities that have any chance at all to end abortion.  When we approach church leaders about doing much of anything, they reel in horror, hands over both hears, as if trying to keep their heads from exploding.  They exclaim, “Why are you bothering us?  We’re already pro-life.  We checked that box years ago.  Leave us alone!”

In reality, they don’t do much because they fear controversy within the church.  They say just enough to satisfy the pro-lifers in the pews—“We are a pro-life church”—but little else.  They know if they actually organize pro-life activities or even show members a brief video of what abortion is and does, they will hear complaints from people who don’t want to be reminded.  Members might leave the church.  Donations might go down.  The building program might be jeopardized.

Controversy is bad for business if your business is to appeal to the widest possible audience.  Which brings us to our “Quote of the Week”, by Gregg Cunningham of the Center for Bio-Ethical Reform:

Alas, if only killing babies were as controversial as saving them.

.

We often get comments from people who don’t want us to show abortion pictures in the public square because children will see them.  We get one such message from “Briana Richards”, who saw our trucks operating near Liberty University in Lynchburg.  She wrote:

To whom it may concern,

Let me begin by saying I am completely anti-abortion and support that cause.  However, I do not agree with the manner in which the organization is displaying the signs in areas that are heavily traveled by young children.  I do not think that it is necessary to take away my young child’s innocence by showing them graphic images of fetuses.  The only thing that is going to promote is questions too early regarding what is abortion, why are some babies not wanted and killed.  Why do YOU get to choose when the right time is to talk to MY child about abortion?

I understand making people aware of what abortion truly is so they do not make that choice, I just disagree with the method in which you are getting your point across.  After school yesterday I had to stop short of the stop light and drive up next to 2 cars just so my 6 year old wouldn’t have that image in his mind for the rest of his life!  You are not using a plane this year (from what I’ve seen) but what 18-month-old kid, or 10-year-old, does not look up at the cool airplane going over, only to be accosted with an image they have no idea about but know it’s scary looking?  I mean would you really want to have a conversation with your 6-year-old about abortion?  They don’t even understand all the ins and outs of how babies are born yet but we’re showing them what people do when they don’t want them.

I am requesting that you please take into account the large amount of parents that are driving their young children by these signs daily near the Liberty University campus and that you rethink the location of your displays for the future.  I disagree with your methods but I know it is your right to display them.  It seems there could be better ways to get your point across without effecting our innocent children.

Thank you for your time and consideration,
Briana Richard
Sent from my iPad

I responded as follows:

Dear Ms. Richards,

Thank you for registering your comment about our work at Liberty University last week.

We don’t target young children with our pictures, but with all the institutions of society (including the Church) covering up the truth of abortion, we have no choice but to take to the public square.  Otherwise, the killing will never stop.

Children are exposed to graphic images of violence all the time … on newspaper front pages, on magazine covers that are visible in the supermarket checkout lines, etc.  They even showed Schindler’s List on TV during family viewing hours a few years back.  Nobody objects because nobody feels guilty about their own complicity or complacency with respect to those acts of violence.  Many are guilty of complicity or complacency with respect to abortion.

What is worse, a born child being horrified by a picture of abortion or a preborn child being killed by the act of abortion?

You might ask if Jesus would ever put a graphic image on display where children could see them.  In fact, He did just that.  Jesus controlled every aspect of his arrest, trial and execution.  He arranged to have Himself beaten nearly to death before stumbling through the most crowed part of Jerusalem on the most crowded day of the year.  His bloody body horrified throngs of Passover pilgrims which included large numbers of families with young children.

He then permitted himself to be stripped naked and tortured to death in full view of still more passersby, including more children.  The Romans used executions to intimidate subjugated peoples.  They located crucifixion cites for maximum public exposure.  Our Lord accommodated Cesar by going out of His way to make this disturbing spectacle of His death as public as possible.  And in the process, He chose as the very symbol of our faith, a bloody instrument of torture.  His point was to disturb us with the gravity of our sin but bless us with the grace of His forgiveness, despite the fact that many children would be traumatized in the process.  Did He get this wrong?

.

Travis Barham explains how the U of Wisconsin was forced to pay $500,000 for discriminating against Christian student groups in the distribution of fee money.

Travis Barham of the Alliance Defense Fund (ADF) is giving an interesting talk.  He sues universities.  He does this when student pro-life groups and other conservative groups are denied First Amendment rights and/or equal access to university resources, including student fee money.

Pro-life and pro-family groups are missing a huge opportunity to scare the crap out of every university in the country.  Conservative groups must be treated equally to everyone else when it comes to the distribution of student fee money.  It’s big money.  Left-wing groups get it; conservative groups don’t.  It’s illegal.  But the universities don’t have to give the money to conservatives if we don’t apply!

At the U of Wisconsin, the Catholic student group applied and the U of Wisconsin denied.  ADF sued and won!  Now, the U of Wisconsin will have to pay $500,000, because they discriminated against Christian student groups in the distribution of student fee money.

Yikes!  We need to make sure our students are applying to get that money!  1-800-TELL-ADF.