Category Archives: Pro-Life

Culture of Life Report for April 2013

On March 29, “Good Friday,” the spring 40 Days for Life came to a close with a day-long pilgrimage to local abortion businesses, culminating at the Wright Street abortion business. Director Wynette Sills reports that six babies were saved from abortion in Sacramento alone. Our own Knights of Columbus Council 953 has been active in pro-life work, donating $1,000 each to the Sacramento Life Center and Bishop Gallegos Maternity Home in proceeds from our Pasta Feed for LIFE. Since a picture paints a thousand words, this month’s report will be short in order to share photographs of our two worthy donation recipients. Thank you once again to our Knights for supporting the sanctity of human life from conception to natural death!

Vivat Jesus!

Bill James
Culture of Life Director

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Culture of Life Report for March 2013

With just three weeks to go before our Pasta Feed for LIFE, seats for only three tables had been sold. Yet, by the grace of God (and some sweat of the brow by our Knights), Council 953’s first annual Pasta Feed was a whopping success, with some 180 guests in attendance! This year’s Pasta Feed fell on Thursday, February 28, the same day that a pre-born baby’s life was saved at the local Wright Street abortion business. Prayer volunteers from the 40 Days for Life collected more than enough money to pay the rent for a couple about to go through with an abortion due to financial hardship. Their generosity was sufficient to inspire the couple to choose LIFE and keep their baby! Later that very evening we had our Pasta Feed, profits from which went to the Sacramento Life Center and the Bishop Gallegos Maternity Home. One of the speakers, “Tina,” told us how she had come to the Sac Life Center homeless, with stage 2 cancer, and pregnant. A referral was made to the Bishop Gallegos Maternity Home, where Tina has found love, shelter, and transportation to her chemotherapy appointments. The day after our Pasta Feed, Tina gave birth to a healthy baby girl, whose adoptive parents had already driven up from San Diego in anticipation. Thank you to all of our Knights who made the Pasta Feed possible, especially our Worthy Grand Knight Ricardo Saldana. Approximately $1500 was raised for these worthiest of charitable organizations!

The day after our Pasta Feed was also the day that Knights from our council prayed with the 40 Days for Life on the sidewalk outside of the Wright Street abortion business. Thank you to PGK Alex Kachmar, who prayed with me on the sidewalk, and to all of our brother Knights praying for the 40 Days for Life at home. In closing, let us remember the life of former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop, who died on Monday, February 25, at the age of 96. Koop, a pro-life giant, will leave behind a legacy of helping evangelicals and the general public to understand the critical importance of fighting against abortion and euthanasia.

Vivat Jesus!

Bill James
Culture of Life Director

Pro-Life Report, February 2013

The 9th annual Walk for Life was held on Saturday, January 26, 2013. It was attended by some 50,000 pro-life witnesses. Speakers this year included the papal nuncio to the United States, who relayed a message from Pope Benedict XVI to us that we who attended the Walk represent “the best of America.” Knights of Columbus members were ubiquitous during the Walk, and proudly displayed the banners of their respective councils. While counter-demonstrators were a bit more numerous than in recent years, the Walk remained, as always, peaceful and respectful of all. It was an honor and a privilege to have been part of this powerful witness to the gospel of life. The presence of so many young people in the Walk underscored the thundering words of Reverend Childress, another speaker at the event: “We will not stand down!”

Steve Patton, Respect Life Coordinator for our Diocese, recently sent a bulletin insert to Respect Life leaders from local parishes. The insert, written by Sacramento public health physician Steve McCurdy, a Catholic and Knight of Columbus, concerns abortion and science. Excerpts include the following:

“The human fetus is a human life. This is not a religious or ethical teaching, as some would have it. It is a scientific fact. From the moment of conception, human life prior to birth differs from us only in its stage of development, not in its fundamental character as a unique human life. While some argue that the fetus is not a “person,” this represents philosophical opinion, not scientific fact, and is often used to deny the human fetus that most fundamental right to its own life. Sadly, denial of rights based on the notion that members of some groups are somehow “not really human” is common throughout history. While society has made great progress in the last centuries against such prejudice, discrimination against fetal life is a glaring exception.”

“Abortion is the most common preventable cause of loss of human life. Nearly a quarter of all recognized pregnancies end in abortion. There are approximately 1.2 million abortions in the U.S. each year, accounting for one third of all deaths. The next largest preventable cause of death, tobacco, is not even a close second at 440,000 deaths per year.”

“As informed Catholics, we have the right and obligation to participate in the debate over abortion. Some Catholics have accepted the argument that opposition to abortion is based solely on our own religious beliefs, and these should not be pressed on others. While this is true for articles of faith (e.g., belief in God, transubstantiation), it is not true regarding scientific facts and universal human values, such as the importance of human life. Just as Catholic citizens have the right to argue for speed limits on city streets, so too must we engage to protect human life.”

Fraternally in Christ,

William (Bill) James
Culture of Life Director
Knights of Columbus
Council 953

Pro-Life Report, January 2013

The Christmas month began with a victory for life. On December 4, LifeSiteNews.com reported that the US Senate fell short of the two-thirds majority vote needed to ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD). The UN treaty calls upon nations to provide free or affordable reproductive health care, including abortion, to disabled persons. The article quotes Josh Craddock of Personhood USA, who observes: “The irony of including abortion in this treaty is that abortion especially targets the disabled in the womb. Persons with disabilities should not be exposed to violence and discrimination, either before or after birth.”

Later in the month, Pope Benedict XVI addressed abortion in his Message for World Day of Peace 2013. An article in LifeSiteNews.com on December 14, offers the following excerpt from the Holy Father’s address:

“Those who insufficiently value human life and, in consequence, support among other things the liberalization of abortion, perhaps do not realize that in this way they are proposing the pursuit of a false peace. The flight from responsibility, which degrades human persons, and even more so the killing of a defenseless and innocent being, will never be able to produce happiness or peace. Indeed how could one claim to bring about peace, the integral development of peoples or even the protection of the environment without defending the life of those who are weakest, beginning with the unborn. Every offense against life, especially at its beginning, inevitably causes irreparable damage to development, peace and the environment. Neither is it just to introduce surreptitiously into legislation false rights or freedoms which, on the basis of a reductive and relativistic view of human beings and the clever use of ambiguous expressions aimed at promoting a supposed right to abortion and euthanasia, pose a threat to the fundamental right to life.”

Here in Sacramento on December 28, Bishop Jaime Soto led a candlelight Rosary procession for the sanctity of life to commemorate the feast of the Holy Innocents. Beginning at the Cathedral of the Blessed Sacrament, the procession ended at Our Lady of Guadalupe Church, where Bishop Soto presided at Mass. On January 22, Bishop Soto will lead a six-mile “Pilgrimage of Churches in Reparation for Abortion and other Sins Against Human Dignity.” The Bishop has designated January 22 as a Diocesan Day of Reparation on the 40th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, which the faithful are asked to observe by fasting, prayer, penance and works of charity. For more details, please see the diocesan website at http://www.diocese-sacramento.org/.

The 9th annual Walk for Life will be held on Saturday, January 26, 2013. The Info Faire at Civic Center Plaza will open at 11 am, followed by the main speaking event at 12:30pm, and the Walk at 1:30pm. The Walk will end at the Justin Herman Plaza. Please consider witnessing to the sanctity of life by participating in the Walk. For a bus ride, please contact Gary Hickman at (916) 806-6736. For more information about the Walk, please visit: www.walkforlifewc.com.

Fraternally in Christ,

William (Bill) James
Culture of Life Director
Knights of Columbus
Council 953

December 2012 Pro-Life Report

Council 953 donated $250 dollars recently to Tubman House, an 18-month transitional living program that serves formerly homeless youth and their children in Sacramento. Often, this work involves supporting young women in dire circumstances who choose not to have an abortion, but to keep their baby. Tubman House unexpectedly lost out on a government grant that would have provided funding for several more years, a grant which Tubman House had always received before. Council 953’s emergency donation was doubled thanks to a matching grant by Sierra Health Foundation. Tubman House extends a big “thank you” to our Knights!

The 9th annual Walk for Life will be held on Saturday, January 26, 2013. The Info Faire at Civic Center Plaza will open at 11 am, followed by the main speaking event at 12:30pm, and the Walk at 1:30pm. The Walk will end at the Justin Herman Plaza. Please consider witnessing to the sanctity of life by participating in the Walk. For a bus ride, please contact Gary Hickman at (916) 806-6736. For more information about the Walk, please visit: www.walkforlifewc.com.

In other pro-life news, Catholic World Report warns of eugenics on the rise in Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Lichtenstein. The story, dated November 27th, describes how a new pre-natal screening test for Down syndrome targeting women in their 12th week of pregnancy and beyond, could push Down syndrome abortions to 100%. Cardinal Christoph Schönborn, Archbishop of Vienna, is quoted thus: “The issue here is artificial selection or eugenics, pure and simple. Is the infernal expression ‘life not worth living’ going to become reality again?” Reaffirming the dignity of persons with Down syndrome, Life Site News on November 28th covers a student-athlete with Down syndrome, denied the chance to play, becoming a state champion. The student-athlete, Eric Dompierre, attends Ishpaming High School in Michigan, where he is a kicker for the varsity football team, the Hematites, and now the winner of Sports Illustrated’s “Underdogs” contest. During the Hematite’s championship season, Eric not only kicked several field goals, but also scored a touchdown!

President of the US Conference of Catholic Bishops, Cardinal Timothy Dolan has written an article entitled, “Looking Back on Election Day.” The article appeared on November 15th in his regular column for Catholic New York. The President of the USCCB writes: “I worry that the Democrats have gone from wanting to keep abortion ‘safe, legal, and rare’ to the party that wants abortion at every stage of pregnancy, with no defense at all of the baby in the womb, completely funded by the government.” Elsewhere the Cardinal writes: “There is no denying that the president and his party are on record in promoting guidelines that gravely intrude upon religious freedom, and in their desire to expand unfettered access to abortion at all stages. These two issues are of towering import to people inspired by the principles of human dignity and the sanctity of life.” To read the article, please go to: www.cny.org/stories/Looking-Back-at-Election-Day,8444

A blesséd Christmas to one-and-all!

William (Bill) James
Culture of Life Director, Council 953

November 2012 Pro-Life Report

The approach of Election Day has seen a number of pro-life news items.  The California ProLife Council has come out strongly in favor of Prop 32, which would ban unions from forcing employees to pay union dues that support pro-abortion candidates.  Another proposition, Prop 35, which fights human trafficking, has earned the powerful endorsement of the California Catholic Conference.  On October 12, the USCCB issued a statement on the HHS mandate to the effect that the “exemption” does not, in fact, extend to “Catholic Social Services, Georgetown Hospital, Mercy Hospital, any hospital,” or any other religious charity that offers its services to all, regardless of the faith of those served.  Vice-President Joe Biden had mistakenly suggested otherwise during the vice-presidential debate.

An online article in Cal Catholic Daily on October 30, quotes at length newly-appointed Bishop Kevin Vann of the Diocese of Orange, California on faithful citizenship. Bishop Vann writes:  “As Catholics, we are faced with a number of issues that are of concern and should be addressed, such as immigration reform, health care, the economy, the poor, and terrorism…”  The Bishop continues:  “There are many possible solutions to these issues and there can be reasonable debate among Catholics on how to best approach and solve them.  These are matters of ‘prudential judgment.’   But let us be clear:  issues of prudential judgment are not morally equivalent to issues involving intrinsic evils.  No matter how right a given candidate is on any of these issues, it does not outweigh a candidate‘s unacceptable position in favor of an intrinsic evil such as abortion or the protection of ‘abortion rights.'”  In August, Sacramento Bishop Jaime Soto got a standing ovation when he agreed with a questioner at the annual Diocesan Respect Life Ministry Meeting that more had to be done to teach the Faithful on the difference between prudential judgment and intrinsic evil.

Bill James, Bishop Soto and Ricardo Saldana praying on sidewalk during 40 Days for Life
Bill James, Bishop Soto and Ricardo Saldana praying on sidewalk during 40 Days for Life

On October 30, during the current 40 Days for Life Campaign, Bishop Soto joined Grand Knight Ricardo Saldana and Culture of Life Director William James of Council 953 in prayer on the sidewalk near the abortion business at 1750 Wright Street.  Brother Knight Dominic Ielati also joined the group, but had to leave before the Bishop arrived.  The 40 Days for Life fall campaign ends on November 4.  So far, by the grace of God, 467 babies nationwide have been saved!  Lastly, just today, October 31, our Culture of Life Director met with Emilia Calderón and Juan Ramón Chico of Sac State’s Students for Life at the Newman Center, giving them for their pro-life car wash fundraiser a $250 check and $40 in cash.  The three also said a decade of the Rosary together in English and Spanish for the end of abortion.

Fraternally in Christ,

William (Bill) James
Culture of Life Director
Knights of Columbus
Council 953