By Judie Brown
In the Gospel of Luke, Christ tells the Pharisees the story of the rich man and the plight of Lazarus, including what Abraham said regarding the fickle attitudes of those who do not have the gift of faith: “If they will not listen either to Moses or to the prophets, they will not be convinced even if someone should rise from the dead.”
Christ’s words are more pertinent today than ever before.
Take the case of the Texas Democrat James Talarico, who said that the Bible supports killing babies in abortion. In his misguided understanding, the man stated, “This summer, more than half our population became second-class citizens. Every one of our neighbors with a uterus became the property of the state. And nothing, nothing is more un-Christian than that.”
Yet such perverse and ignorant thinking is not limited to the manipulation of biblical teaching to suggest that aborting one’s baby is a moral act. We see, by taking a wider look at recent events, that Talarico is not a lone wolf in his arguments against the sanctity of life. As a matter of fact, the chorus of language abusers grows daily and is now a worldwide phenomenon.
In Japan, for instance, the research on induced pluripotent stem cells is ongoing, and Japanese scientists are elated because of recent results provided by their use of “iPS cells from healthy donors,” leading the reader to believe that such practices are always ethical. But there can be drawbacks. Professor Dianne Irving warns that “the defects inherent in iPS research include not only severe, even deadly consequences to human patients who are injected with these iPS cells to ‘cure their diseases’ but also inherently involve an area (conveniently) not often discussed: the use of iPS cells as sources for IVF/ART and similar facilities to artificially reproduce new whole human embryos for both research and ‘infertility’ purposes.’”
The public remains tragically unaware of the fact that scientists often seek success without pursuing ethical foundations for their research. The result is that truly informed consent is impossible, opening the floodgates for illicit science and its progeny.
Consider also the ongoing debate regarding the ability of a person to request assisted suicide versus the moral imperative to discourage such practices. Life Legal recently argued, “In every jurisdiction where assisted suicide is legalized, the practice inevitably expands. What begins as an ‘option’ for the terminally ill gradually extends to those with chronic conditions, mental suffering, or even social challenges. What was once presented as a choice becomes an expectation—or even an obligation—especially for those who already feel like a burden because of illness, disability, age, or financial hardship.”
The clear, undeniable reality is that in our nation today, the majority of people in nearly every sphere of influence fail to heed the words of Christ, much less acknowledge the truth that we are His and that at the end of our days, He will request an accounting of our deeds.
Sharing this truth eloquently, Detroit archbishop Edward Weisenburger spoke to a congregation celebrating the entrance of newly baptized Catholics into the Church. He said, “From all eternity, it really was the Father’s will that each of us would hear His call that flows from the voice of Jesus, His Son, and only those having heard that call respond by embracing the Son in faith and sacrament.”
We pray for all those in our midst who have yet to hear the incredible value of pro-life witness grounded in the divine persuasion spoken by Christ Himself. May each of them respond by embracing Christ in every way at every moment.