America’s Test of Greatness       In one week, America saw three school shootings. Over 12 students and a principal died as a result. Rightfully, our country mourned.       In one day, America was shocked by the 9-11 terrorist attack on the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and Flight 93. Over 3,000 Americans were killed by this act of brutality. Rightfully, our country mourned.       For 4 years, America lived through the horror of Civil War. Hundreds of thousands of American soldiers died as a result. Rightfully, our country mourned.       For 33 years, America has allowed the death of over 48 million innocent, helpless victims. Why isn’t our country mourning? Why aren’t we ending this tragedy? How It All Began California, 1963: Two lawyers find a poor, pregnant, unwed woman. They think she is perfect proof that abortion must be legal in America…so they take the case to the U.S. Supreme Court. This leads to the infamous “Roe versus Wade” decision: Abortion is legalized in America. Meanwhile, the young woman, Norma McCorvey, goes to a clinic to have her abortion. But there is no one at the clinic. So Norma never had the abortion. For years after, Norma worked at different abortion clinics to prove to herself that she helped America make a good decision. Finally, through God’s grace and goodness, Norma realized the truth after 32 years – abortion kills innocent human lives. She redirected her focus and became a staunch worker for the pro-life cause. Since Roe vs. Wade, abortion has become wide-spread in America. It has so desensitized our society that, three years ago, when another human life was at stake, America again chose death. Only this time, the life at stake was not that of an unborn child, but of a 41-year-old woman named Terri Shiavo. Terri had been hospitalized for 13 years as a result of brain damage. Because she couldn’t walk, talk, or swallow, the doctors diagnosed her to be in a “Persistant Vegetative State”. She was fed through a feeding tube, but could respond to family members and show emotion. For years, Terri’s legal husband pushed to have the feeding tube removed. Terri’s parents begged him not to. The legal battle waged. In 2004, Terri’s case went to the Florida Supreme Court. They ruled that Terri’s life should no longer be prolonged “artificially”. This meant that her feeding tube could be pulled, starving an innocent woman to death. The Connection How are these two cases related? Intimately. Both times man tried to define personhood, or rather, tried to define “un- personhood”. Psalm 24 states: “The earth is the Lord’s, and everything in it”. Only God knows what would have become of the children destroyed by abortion, what special blessings they would have brought to our world. When humans try to make a decision only God should make, they are asking for tragedy. Even now, certain countries are experiencing serious population imbalances as a result of systematic abortion. Furthermore, Webster’s fourth edition dictionary defines person as: a human being, especially as distinguished from a thing or lower animal; individual man, woman, or child; a living human body. Which part of this definition excludes the tiny, forming unborn child? Where does it leave out the physically challenged or elderly? Within hours of when a child is conceived, cells begin dividing. In one week, the fertilized egg implants in the uterine wall. In 21 days, the heart is beating. By 8 weeks, the tiny baby’s organs are all present, along with fingers and toes – only time is now needed to grow. Pictures of unborn children even from early development portray an intricate being, a very recognizable baby. The Bible recognizes in several places the personhood of the unborn. In Luke chapter 1, Mary goes to visit her cousin Elizabeth just days after conceiving Jesus. Upon Mary’s arrival, Elizabeth greets her: “How is it that the mother of my Lord should come to me? The moment your greeting sounded in my ears, the baby in my womb leaped for joy." From his mother’s womb, the unborn John the Baptist recognized the unborn baby Jesus just days after Jesus was conceived. In Terri’s case, the only life support she required was a feeding tube. She could still move and breathe. She was obviously a “living human body”. When Terri’s feeding tube was pulled so she would starve to death, police were stationed by her hospital door to make sure that no one even gave her a sip of water. As the days went on, her mouth became dry, cracked, and bleeding. She was not allowed to die with the dignity of a person. Words of Wisdom from Great Leaders Mother Teresa of Calcutta says beautifully: “It is a poverty to decide that a child must die so that you may live as you wish…I feel that the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion because it is a direct killing of the innocent child. Abortion is murder in the womb. A child is a gift from God. And if we accept that a mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another?” The Holy Father, Pope John Paul II, was another living example of the sanctity of human life. In a farewell address to America in 1987, he explained thus: “This is the dignity of America, the reason she exists, the condition for her survival – yes, the ultimate test of her greatness: to respect every human person, especially the weakest and most defenseless ones, those as yet unborn.” In his encyclical, “Evangelium Vitae”, the Holy Father also says “…Euthanasia is a grave violation of the law of God, since it is the deliberate and morally unacceptable killing of a human person.” For years before his death, Pope John Paul II suffered from Parkinson’s Disease. Frail, weak, unable to walk or speak well, he did not let it stop him. He did not step down from his numerous duties. Even in his end stages, Pope John Paul II was not afraid. He was not ashamed to be viewed by millions on public television, even when drool would often escape from his mouth, or he couldn’t hold his head up straight. Even so, millions would still flock to see him. It was because no matter how old or how frail, he was Christ’s living witness. In God’s timing, the Pope died a holy, beautiful, and dignified death. We must see Christ living in each of our brothers and sisters; born, unborn, aged, or impaired. I urge you, America: Let us not fail the test of greatness! Let us look at our actions. Do they violate the integrity of the human person so we may live as we wish? If so, let us stop these actions. May we strive to make America great by honoring our Creator and respecting every human person, especially the weakest and most defenseless ones. `````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````````` Sources of information: Official Vatican website – http://www.vatican.va Pro-life Search Engine – http://www.prolifesearch.com Roe No More Ministry – http://www.leaderu.com/norma Webster’s Fourth Edition Dictionary Wikipedia Online Encyclopedia – http://www.wikipedia.org