Pope John Paul II, on his recent trip to Slovakia, met with two 3-year-old twins who were born joined at the pelvis and later separated in an operation. While children with birth defects are often aborted in utero, the beautiful children were a witness to hope for those who embrace life. “The Siamese [twin] sisters were chosen to show people that the mother would have killed two beautiful, healthy children if she had decided to abort,” Roznava Bishop Eduard Kojnok told Agence France Presse.
The New York Times also reported that the Pope thanked Slovak President Rudolf Schuster for his veto of legislation which would have liberalized the abortion law to allow abortions up to 24 weeks where they are now restricted to the first twelve weeks.
See the New York Times coverage.
(This update courtesy of LifeSiteNews.com.)
Philippine Pro-Life Hero Cardinal Sin Retires
One of the world's best known and loved Catholic Cardinals, Manila's Jamie Cardinal Sin retired from active ministry last week. The pro-life hero is famous for organizing mass street demonstrations of millions of Catholics thereby crippling the government into submission on pro-life and pro-family matters. The media note that the massive demonstrations ousted two Philippine presidents.
“As I enter a new chapter in my twilight years, I can say with gratitude that I have given my very best to God and country,” Cardinal Sin said in a statement. Cardinal Sin was quick to fight the first attempts to the beginnings of the culture of death in the Philippines. In 1994, he held a mass demonstration to denounce a state policy encouraging the use of condoms and the pill, under the auspices of controlling the population.
See the Reuters coverage.
(This update courtesy of LifeSiteNews.com.)
