LIFE DIGEST: 40 Days for Life reports 299 saved
- Oct 20, 2009 -
A nationwide, pro-life campaign has reported 299 unborn babies have been saved from abortion since the initiative began Sept. 23.
David Bereit, national director of 40 Days for Life, issued the report Oct. 19 on the results of the effort, which concludes Nov. 1. The initiative, which became a national movement two years ago, has produced reports of 1,561 children saved from abortion in four previous campaigns, according to 40 Days for Life.
Also in this edition: Middle school student permitted to wear pro-life shirt and Canadian teen almost dies from abortion.
During the latest 40 Days for Life effort, tens of thousands of people in 212 cities in the United States, Canada and Denmark are expected to participate in peaceful prayer vigils outside abortion clinics and Planned Parenthood offices, as well as in fasting for the end of abortion.
In his daily emails, Bereit included the following reports from 40 Days volunteers:
At Manassas, Va., Ken “said a 19-year- old girl arrived at [the clinic] with her mother, fully intent on making an appointment for an abortion.”
“’They did an ultrasound and found she was 26 weeks pregnant,’ he said. ‘This abortion facility only does first-trimester abortions, so they sent her away.’
“The girl and her mother were directed to the pro-life pregnancy center, where the counselors told her about all the resources that were available.
“’The wonderful counselors helped her decide to have her baby,’ said Ken. ‘Another life saved!’”
At Planned Parenthood in Columbia, Mo., “business is certainly off,” Bereit said.
“‘They usually perform 15-20 abortions every Thursday at this location,’ said Terra. ‘But for the last two Thursdays they have averaged 6-10 abortions. Praise God! Our prayers are working!’”
Information on the initiative and the locations of this fall’s prayer vigils may be found online at www.40daysforlife.com.
Middle school student permitted to wear pro-life shirt
A Pennsylvania middle school student is free to wear pro-life T-shirts for the time being.
Administrators at Crossroads Middle School in Lewisberry, Pa., agreed to permit the unnamed student to wear his “Abortion is not Healthcare” shirt and other pro-life apparel in an Oct. 19 order issued by Federal Judge Christopher Conner.
School officials ordered the young man to remove his “Abortion is not Healthcare” T-shirt Sept. 8, when President Obama spoke by video to public school students throughout the country, according to Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), which filed a lawsuit on behalf of the student.
The school said the shirt was “inappropriate,” because it might be an insult to others, ADF reported. The school normally permits students to wear diverse messages on their clothing, according to ADF.
“Pro-life students shouldn’t be censored for their views,” ADF Senior Legal Counsel David Cortman said in a written release. “It’s clearly unconstitutional to prohibit a student’s message on the grounds that someone might not like it.”
The lawsuit will go forward under the order.
Canadian teen almost dies from abortion
A Canadian teenager nearly died from a legal abortion, a Montreal newspaper has reported.
Christelle Dupuis-Labelle, 19, underwent emergency surgery and a total blood transfusion after she continued to experience heavy bleeding following an abortion at a Quebec clinic. She told the Le Journal de Montreal Oct. 14 the clinic released her though she was bleeding heavily at the facility, LifeNews.com reported.
Doctors told her the botched abortion could have been lethal, Dupuis-Labelle said.
“They said that I had lost much blood and that five minutes later, that it could have been fatal to me,” she told the newspaper.
Severe bleeding after an abortion is “normal,” said Suzanne Carriere, the clinic’s director of services, according to the newspaper.
The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission works to protect the sanctity of human life. If you would like to learn more about this issue, additional resources are available here. If your church is interested in purchasing bulletin inserts or other materials on the sanctity of human life, please visit our online bookstore and erlc.com.
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