tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-34166776586541890302024-03-12T21:35:43.881-05:00Save the 1Save The 1's mission is to educate everyone on why all pre-born children should be protected by law and accepted by society, without exception and without compromise. Further, we wish to educate pro-life advocates, legislatures, leaders, and clergy on how to articulate a proper defense of children conceived in rape or incest, as well as those with special needs. Sarah St. Ongehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01116679830244890405noreply@blogger.comBlogger184125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-80350069971451600442018-08-14T10:30:00.002-05:002018-08-14T21:44:25.497-05:00Pregnant by Rape, I Refused Abortion Because I Knew God Had a Plan For My Baby, by PatIt was the summer of 1957. I was 17 years old and heading into my senior year. I was at a dance hall with a bunch of friends. My parents had a curfew for me, so I needed to get home, but my friends who drove me wanted to stay. A young man who was a few years older than me and whose brother lived across the street from me offered me a ride home. I didn't really know him, but his family was very nice and it seemed like a kind offer.<br />
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As we were driving home, he passed by the block I lived on and I told him right away, but he insisted he had another way to get there. He went to a back road where there was no one around -- no houses or anything. I knew something was wrong, even though he said he just wanted to talk to me. I pleaded with him to take me home, but he forced himself on me. I fought him and I thought I was okay.</div>
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I went home, washed myself off, but told no one what had happened. I'd never experienced anything like that before and neither had any of my friends as far as I knew. I was frightened and I couldn't figure out why anyone would ever want to hurt me. Having an older brother, I'd always felt protected.</div>
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Since his brother lived across the street, he was still around, and he tried to come to my house to apologize, but I slammed the door on him. Thankfully, we were moving and I wouldn't have to see him at all much longer.</div>
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At the end of the summer, I was in a car accident and was thrown from the car. I ended up in a doctor's office, complaining that my stomach was hurting. They had me examined and asked me if there was any chance I was pregnant and I just said that I don't know because I had no idea about these things. When the results came back that I was pregnant, I was in shock.</div>
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At this point, I told my mother about the rape. My mom offered to raise the baby, but I said, "No, this is my child." The doctor asked if I wanted an abortion and I said, "Absolutely not! The baby is in my womb. God has a reason and it's my baby too." I knew what abortion was, and I knew that abortion kills a baby. I'm thankful for my Catholic upbringing which taught me about the value of life.</div>
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School was starting, but I was not able to attend my senior year because I was pregnant and that was not allowed. After I had my baby, the rules were changed, but this was what I faced. Even still, abortion would never have been a consideration.</div>
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During my pregnancy, I met my future husband and I told him I was expecting a child through rape. He was very kind, gentle and compassionate. Niel told me, nevertheless, he wanted to date me. Before my baby was born, he proposed to me. I told my mother, but she said to wait until after the baby was born to make sure Niel really wanted the baby. Niel gave my son his name, Peter, and I married him after Peter was born and he raised him as his own son.</div>
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When my son was born, he was 8 lbs, 7 oz -- a big baby. From the moment I first saw Peter, I loved him. He was beautiful. I never saw the rapist in him. He was my baby.</div>
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I believe God brought my husband into my life when I needed a father for my baby. I had prayed and asked God to bring one and He did. We had six more children, but two died during my pregnancy. I know what it's like to be laying on a gurney in a hospital losing your baby. </div>
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It wasn't until my son was in his 40's that I told him the difficult story of his conception. There was a family member who had insinuated that they were going to tell him, so I made sure that he heard it from me. I told him, "I love you with my whole heart and soul, but I've kept something from you and I have something to tell you." After I told him the story, he said, "You loved me that much and wouldn't abort me," and then he hugged me.</div>
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Today I have an agency that's 12 years old called Helping Hands Caring Heart -- a Christian-based agency. I developed it through what I had endured myself and I help women who are having children. So many of them have been raped. I help them so they're not homeless and don't lose their babies. I give them clothing and diapers and network them into jobs. I help them find apartments. It's a 501 c 3 nonprofit and it's located in New York. </div>
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I use my testimony to help others realize that they're not alone and to thank God that He has a plan for them and their children, as I minister the Gospel of Jesus Christ.</div>
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BIO: Pat's husband was killed by a truck as a pedestrian a few years ago, and Pat has been a widow since. Pat is a mother to 5, grandmother and a foster mother, as well as executive director of Helping Hands Caring Heart, and now blogger for Save The 1.</div>
Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-57713460349541021722018-08-10T12:37:00.001-05:002018-08-10T12:46:50.215-05:00I'm an Adopted Daughter Born of Rape and I Celebrate My Life! by Maria de la Paz Rodríguez Coronel Dudignac, Argentina<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
Let’s go back to the 1970's. A young, newly married couple from Buenos Aires dreamed of starting a family. But instead, they suffered several failed attempts to get pregnant. Their desire increased
as the months and years passed. Treatments, prayers, . . . nothing seemed to work, until they decided to
start the adoption process.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">They endured tough
requirements, bureaucratic procedures and in-depth investigations in order to be classified </span>as good candidates. Finally, they managed to match
all the required parameters to be adoptive parents. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
However, as this couple began preparations to adopt, there was a tragedy transpiring. It was 1978 in the province
of Chaco. A teenager suffered a sexual attack in which she became pregnant by her
rapist. Alone, helpless, humiliated and without
any hope, she went to a house -- a hospice as we say. She lived through the pregnancy with
great courage. She had run away from home -- possibly because her family abandoned her, or possibly to avoid being shamed by others.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">She had her baby daughter with
a normal weight of just under 8 lbs. Afterward, she wandered everywhere with the baby
in her arms, until she finally decided to place her for adoption. She went to what we call a cradle
house and with great sadness and hope, handed her baby over with the clothes she was
wearing.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">The staff of the cradle
house gave the baby girl love and affection. No more was heard of that young teenager. . . .<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">The baby lived among
children, nurses and caregivers who struggled every day to keep the house decent and clean, given that the economic situation was unsustainable.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">One day, that couple from Buenos Aires received the call of God -- </span>the happiest news of their lives: "There is a baby who was placed for adoption. Can you travel as soon as possible to the Province of Chaco?”</div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">The future parents
were very excited. They cried and hugged for half an hour, thanking God for their
prayers being answered.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Upon arriving in the
province of Chaco, they went to the cradle house. It was fresh. When they got there,
they were received by many children with the hope of leaving that hospice with
their adoptive family. Children were running everywhere. The maintenance staff
was pleading for money for the arrangements of the property. </span></div>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Then, the young future
adoptive father went to the mall and bought them a new kitchen as a donation. W</span>hen he returned, he
went to one of the many cradles where a baby girl in diapers rested, thin and
abandoned. </div>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Without knowing which crib her awaiting baby was in, the wife had moved forward past the row of cribs with great
anxiety. As she approached crib number 22, the
baby girl opened her huge eyes and cried. With compassion in her heart, the young woman picked her up,
cradled her with a lot of love in her arms and the baby stopped crying; the
young mother did not release her anymore.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">That mother was Luz
María and that baby was ME.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">The caretakers and
nurses of the home asked my mother how she knew this was the baby she was about
to adopt and, merrily, she answered: "mother's intuition."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Then all the
procedures corresponding to the birth certificate in the Civil Registry were
carried out. T</span><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">hey named me Maria
de la Paz, consecrating me to the Virgin Queen of Peace. </span>We returned happily to
Buenos Aires. There my great-grandmother, grandparents, uncles and cousins
awaited us. They had a party and baptized me.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">When I was two years
old, I had curiously asked my mother if I had been in her tummy, and she said no. I left it at that and we followed
life normally. I went to kindergarten, I played with my cousins and friends, and I received my First Communion and Confirmation. I had a very happy childhood, enjoying many birthday parties and Christmas.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">When I began adolescence, I started to wonder everything, including my origin. </span>There was a lot of
secrecy about my pre-adoption history. I was missing 8 months of my life which were empty -- I did not know anything about that time.</div>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">When finishing secondary education, I began to work. I lived the normal life of a young girl going out to
the world, to society. But I never stopped thinking about those 8 empty months
of my life. Nobody told me anything.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Years passed, I got
married and had two daughters. I completed several specialization
courses for my career. </span>I am a therapeutic caregiver,
integrative teacher, geriatric assistant, community play director. I am also a
catechist in the Diocese of San Miguel Arcángel in Buenos Aires.</div>
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<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">It wasn't until 2007 when an aunt told me that my birthmother had been raped and, as a result of that
attack, I was born. I said nothing about this cruel truth. I went on with my life, until one day, I
could not take so much pain anymore. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I felt guilty about being born and decided
to compensate my biological mother with my life. I offered my whole being to
God and after a terrible period of depression, I took pills to relieve myself of the pain. I was hospitalized for several days as a result. </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">My parents and
family suffered a lot from this. They were angry with me, as they did not understand the
situation -- a typical reaction, I think.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I managed to recover, thanks to my prayer group, my daughters and family, my in-laws and my friends. W</span>ith the time
going by, I accepted my reality.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I had two mothers -- one
who courageously gave me life and another who gave me her life until her last
breath.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">It was the summer of 2015 as I was riding a bike through Bella Vista when I saw a sign with the image
of an 8-week-old baby asking to be born. I did not understand the claim. Then I
called the number that appeared and contacted those who organized that
campaign "El Bebito" (the little baby). </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I joined their Facebook
campaign and started a wonderful connection with Mariana Rodríguez Varela through her sister
Helena. They provided me with material to publish and I became a pro-life
warrior!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">At that time, I knew a
teenager who became pregnant, but she did not want that unborn baby. I had enough
information to teach that girl the truth that what she had in her tummy was not a bunch
of cells, but a baby. After long days of dialogue and contention, she
decided to continue with the pregnancy! That experience made me reflect and, immediately,
I applied it to my own life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nYyPJCo1VLc/W229iqolM5I/AAAAAAAAaek/0cn9FXddzgQK5xGxdC2CAvxrMJT9osI-ACLcBGAs/s1600/Maria%2BPaz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="569" data-original-width="680" height="267" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-nYyPJCo1VLc/W229iqolM5I/AAAAAAAAaek/0cn9FXddzgQK5xGxdC2CAvxrMJT9osI-ACLcBGAs/s320/Maria%2BPaz.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I still was unable to tell
publicly that I was an unwanted baby conceived during a rape . . . , u</span>ntil things became very
difficult in my country, The Republic of Argentina, with the bill of
"voluntary interruption of pregnancy" which would have legalized abortion for any reason through 14 weeks and up until birth in cases of rape.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">One day commenting on
Facebook in favor of life, I saw someone suggest that "in cases of rape" it would be
good for the rape victim to decide "with her body" by getting rid of
the fetus she carries in her womb. </span>Of course, I did not
agree with that statement. Then I commented freely -- for the first time ever. Their ignorance and cruelty liberated me!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">But then I received
frightening messages from a relative -- a close cousin -- who tried to make me feel guilty
for being born, saying that all the abandoned children should have been aborted, that
the adopted ones should not have existed. P</span>rivately she told me that I was guilty of what had happened to my biological mother and that I should not have existed. As perhaps you can imagine, I felt very badly reading all of these things from a family member.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">That afternoon I fainted. I could not get out of bed, and I cried all the time. I had the signs of that
depression again. Then I sent a message on WhatsApp to Mariana Rodríguez Varela
crying and renouncing my participation in the "El Bebito" campaign. I felt very badly for
being born thanks to that insulting cousin.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Immediately, Mariana
asked me: "Are you adopted?" </span>And I answered:
"Yes." It was at that moment
that Mariana sustained me with a lot of love, and told me that I was a
beautiful story of love.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">From that moment, I
celebrated my life. I resurrected. I had lived years of pain, but now I received the Grace of God through the
respect, kindness and affection of Mariana.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I felt very proud of
my adoptive parents (or parents of the heart as we say), and I proudly went out into the streets again with the banner of
"ElBebito."<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QIH3Z1R77NU/W2TD2CwGBdI/AAAAAAAAadE/dalsEnODpk4zeJVv9eM5hvbGhEeTBWnCgCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Karina%2BEstrella%2BEtchepare%2B1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="192" data-original-width="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QIH3Z1R77NU/W2TD2CwGBdI/AAAAAAAAadE/dalsEnODpk4zeJVv9eM5hvbGhEeTBWnCgCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Karina%2BEstrella%2BEtchepare%2B1.jpg" /></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">It was during an afternoon coffee break when I saw the speech </span>of a young woman named Karina Estrella Etchepare in the Honorable Chamber of Deputies of the
Congress of the Argentine Nation. <span lang="ES">Her words left me speechless as she shared her story of having been conceived in rape and placed for adoption.</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span lang="ES"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Then, I said to
myself: "I am also an adopted daughter who was born in rape" -- the
world has to know my humble history.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">I started posting on
all the networks that I am happily adopted and the result of a violation. I felt
that I should honor my birthmother because of how brave she was to give
me up for adoption, choosing life despite the pain she suffered. Maybe it
was not easy for her to surrender me in that cradle house, but that's what she could do, giving me the opportunity to live.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-W8egWjZJBX0/W2TDtaS9eYI/AAAAAAAAac8/seW8uLdB3GsBV70_c4m2e9iIDOQWppKKgCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Karina%2By%2BPaz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="286" data-original-width="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-W8egWjZJBX0/W2TDtaS9eYI/AAAAAAAAac8/seW8uLdB3GsBV70_c4m2e9iIDOQWppKKgCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Karina%2By%2BPaz.jpg" /></a><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Karina Estrella Etchpare and I became friends, along with many others from Salvar El 1 who were c</span>onceived in rape or became pregnant by rape. These are my sisters!</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">When they
use the pretext of aborting the baby in cases of rape, I do not agree that the
baby is condemned to death since she is an innocent being. The
father should be condemned for the crime he committed -- not the baby.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Who dares to tell me
that my life is worth less than that of anyone who was born during an act of
love? </span>I am not an
abomination of nature for having been an unwanted baby! I can love and be loved. I am irrefutable proof
that my life and my daughters lives are the result of God's triumph on earth.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">With my humble story,
I want to leave the following legacy to my daughters, to all of the daughters of Argentina, and to all the daughters of the world: Abortion is not the
solution, abortion doesn’t stop a woman from being a mother because, since
the moment of conception, the woman will always be a mother. The "choice" made is whether to be Mother to a living child or a dead child.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Sadly, here in Argentina, it has been legal since the 1920's to abort a child conceived in rape through 14 weeks. But my birthmother, with a lot of pain, continued valiantly with her pregnancy giving me the possibility of life. <span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">That's why I say yes
to life, without exception!<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Thanks to the love of
my whole family, great-grandmother, grandparents, uncles, aunts, cousins (the good ones), instead of
being an "unwanted baby" I became an "expected baby."</span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Vc5wwsv7K9Y/W22_F2XkG8I/AAAAAAAAaew/1HcluviGJQUo-1hgaagvjVu3xoVj2vuaQCLcBGAs/s1600/Maria%2Bde%2Bla%2BPaz%2BRodrigue%2BColonel%2BDudignac.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="435" data-original-width="522" height="266" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-Vc5wwsv7K9Y/W22_F2XkG8I/AAAAAAAAaew/1HcluviGJQUo-1hgaagvjVu3xoVj2vuaQCLcBGAs/s320/Maria%2Bde%2Bla%2BPaz%2BRodrigue%2BColonel%2BDudignac.jpg" width="320" /></a><span style="mso-ansi-language: EN-US;">Biography: Maria Paz </span>Rodríguez Coronel Dudignac lives in Buenos Aires, Argentina. She is the mother of two girls, a therapist, and a blogger, pro-life speaker and Facebook contributor for <a href="http://www.salvarel1.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Salvar El 1</a> -- the Spanish division of <a href="http://www.savethe1.com/" target="_blank">Save the 1</a>.</div>
<br />Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-40278573472502657092018-08-06T19:09:00.000-05:002018-08-06T19:48:43.995-05:00Is My Life Worth Less Than One Conceived In Love? by Karina Estrella Etchepare, Argentina<div class="MsoNormal">
I am a person like
anyone else. I am a lawyer, a National Public Accountant
and an adult education teacher in a humble neighborhood of Buenos Aires, but I have a different story. My right to life was
questioned, and the continuation of my life depended on the strength and tenacity of a 14-year-old girl in order that
I may now tell you my story. Today in Argentina this challenging of lives is being repeated
again. This time, for all unborn children through 14 weeks, and for children conceived in rape right up until birth.</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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People like me today
are considered disposable. What was my fault so that my right to life is
questioned? I did not steal, I did not kill and yet I was about to be killed
in utero just for having been gestated out
of the rape of a poor girl.<o:p></o:p></div>
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My biological mother,
Teresa delMilagro, lived in the Itatí de Bernal emergency village in the
Province of Buenos Aires, Argentina in a context of absolute poverty, violence
and alcoholism. She was raped and abused by her stepfather and from that
terrible situation she became pregnant with me at 14 years old.<o:p></o:p></div>
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My biological
grandmother, complicit in this situation, did the impossible for my birthmother to abort me. I believe that if RU486 -- the abortion pill -- had existed at the time, today I am not here
telling this story. However, despite my maternal grandmother's actions, pregnancy continued and one day, my biological
grandmother offered me -- before I had yet been born -- to a woman in the neighborhood who always helped the most needy. For my biological grandmother, I
was an abomination, but not for my birthmother. For her, I was the only
person in the world whom she really loved.<o:p></o:p></div>
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That is how 22 days
after I was born I was handed over to that neighbor, who was my adoptive mother, or as we say, "heart mom," Alicia. She lived with her husband Franklin and 21-year-old son Fran. I arrived at my new home in a deplorable state with smoky, dirty
clothing, hunger and third degree burns on my genitals.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
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My arrival in the
neighborhood was a revolution. That day, all the neighbors joined in looking for
clothes, milk and a cradle. My new mom immediately bathed me and I, who still did not
even open my eyes, sighed with relief, as I must have felt the sense that I'd been saved.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The next day my heart
mom started the adoption proceedings and, as required, a corresponding police report.<o:p></o:p></div>
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If I had to describe
the relationship with my adoptive parents, the two words that would summarize
our life together today would be infinite love. When I arrived into their lives,
my mother was 54 years old and my father was 49. Even though they were older, they
loved me deeply and shaped me into the woman I am today, with both defects and virtues, but always with the same values, impressing upon me the importance of helping the most
defenseless and a profound respect for life.<o:p></o:p></div>
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The last time my heart
mom saw my biological mother was when I was eight months old. My birthmother came to know about me, but she was warned of the restraining order that
the adoption judge had imposed. Teresa delMilagro, embarrassed by the
situation, took a baby cap from my mother, caressed it gently and gave it back to
her. My heart mom always waited for her to return, but Teresa delMilagro never came back.<o:p></o:p></div>
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When I was eight years
old, I learned my origin and it was hard to know, but it was always clear to me
that despite the pain, I wanted to help the weakest. There were years of
internal healing and I am grateful to have gone through all that, because I know
now that the only way to heal the pain is with love, understanding and
forgiveness.<o:p></o:p></div>
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At age 28, with my
original birth certificate in hand, I decided to look for Teresa del Milagro. I needed
to close my story but above all, I wanted to tell her, "THANK YOU FOR ALLOWING ME TO LIVE
FULLY."<o:p></o:p></div>
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Disappointed, I found
out through a governmental search page of people, that my birthmother had
died at age of 25, when I was just 11 years old.<o:p></o:p></div>
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However, I found the
family that my birthmother had formed. In spite of everything, her continuous great act
of love for me made her betting for life again. I talked to them and learned that my biological mother was sadly returned to her abuser, that he attempted to traffic her sexually to other men, and, as she refused, she was admitted to a school until she was
18 years old. </div>
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I learned that she had looked for me intensely, but my biological
grandmother denied her any information and then, without hope, Teresa committed
suicide. I'm sure it was an impulse, as her family had said she was not like that, but that she was a fighter. In a moment of weakness, she took her own life. It hurts me to know that the lack of protection and abandonment of the State killed her. I know that if we'd met, I would have been a part of her healing.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br />
My adoptive parents did not change my original names, the names which Teresa delMilagro had given me. I have a half-brother and a half-sister who she had with her partner. The surprise
was that my sister is also called Karina, like me. I knew this was a sign from my birthmother that she had never forgotten me. </div>
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<br /></div>
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Although I could not meet her, I
appreciate the strong convictions she had when she was so young. According to her partner and other children, she never saw
me as a trauma from rape or an aberration, but it was always the love of a mother for all of her children, to the point that she did not differentiate which of her
children was gestated out of love or rape.</div>
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<br /></div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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Teresa delMilagro did,
as her name says, achieve a miracle in me because she allowed me to live and she saved
me by placing me for adoption, by changing my destiny. I would not be what I am if
I had not been given to my adoptive family, the best I had.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Today my parents are
gone but their love for my life transcended theirs -- the proof of which are my sons, Manuel and Martín. They are here today because my three saviors said Yes to my
life! And now, I fight to say Yes for others who are just as deserving of love and life.<o:p></o:p></div>
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Tuesday, May 8, 2018
was not just any day in my life, but it was the day I shouted to the four
winds: ALL LIFE IS GOOD! in the Chamber of Deputies of the Nation. All the
pieces of my puzzle called "Life" were perfectly embedded. My sad
origin and my experiences over the years would serve to defend the lives of the
purest beings in the world -- unborn children, those who have no voice and cannot
defend themselves. I related my story to the legislators, then showed them the purpose of it.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QIH3Z1R77NU/W2TD2CwGBdI/AAAAAAAAadE/dalsEnODpk4zeJVv9eM5hvbGhEeTBWnCgCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Karina%2BEstrella%2BEtchepare%2B1.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="192" data-original-width="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-QIH3Z1R77NU/W2TD2CwGBdI/AAAAAAAAadE/dalsEnODpk4zeJVv9eM5hvbGhEeTBWnCgCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Karina%2BEstrella%2BEtchepare%2B1.jpg" /></a>"My story comes to an
end, but not before asking you: Could you dare to tell
me that your life is worth more than mine because I am the result of a rape? I hope you are clear
that the mother and child are victims of the rapist and that is why you have to
protect them. No one has the right to say that one life is worth less than the
other, much less that of the fruit of a rape, because that baby did NOT CHOOSE
HOW TO BE GESTATED. If the rapist, with luck, is sentenced to 15 years in
prison, why is the innocent baby sentenced to death? Without life there is
no freedom. Value life and defend the unprotected, sow love, sow peace, sow
life, honor life!"</div>
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<o:p></o:p></div>
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I will not stop
fighting to prevent abortion from being legalized in my country. I will not stop
because I have a debt to life. Teresa fought for me and gave me an opportunity to live, and now it's my turn
to fight back to ensure that every human being is guaranteed his or her first and most
precious of rights: the right to live.<o:p></o:p></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<o:p>BIO: Karina Estrella Etchepare is a wife, mother of two beautiful children, and a family law attorney </o:p></div>
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and accountant. She combines her professional work with intense pro-life activism, speaking publicly at every opportunity. Karina is a blogger, page editor and pro-life speaker for <a href="http://www.savethe1.com/" target="_blank">Save The 1'</a>s Spanish team, <a href="http://www.salvarel1.blogspot.com/" target="_blank">Salvar El 1</a>.<br />
<br />
For more stories from Argentina, please read:<br />
<h2 class="art-postheader" style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 20px; letter-spacing: 2px; margin: 12px 0px 8px; padding: 0px;">
<a href="http://savethe1.blogspot.com/2018/08/argentine-women-conceived-in-rape-and.html" target="_blank">10 Argentine Women Conceived in Rape and Mothers From Rape Speak Up! by Rebecca Kiessling</a></h2>
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: left; margin-right: 1em; text-align: left;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-W8egWjZJBX0/W2TDtaS9eYI/AAAAAAAAac8/seW8uLdB3GsBV70_c4m2e9iIDOQWppKKgCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Karina%2By%2BPaz.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="286" data-original-width="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-W8egWjZJBX0/W2TDtaS9eYI/AAAAAAAAac8/seW8uLdB3GsBV70_c4m2e9iIDOQWppKKgCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Karina%2By%2BPaz.jpg" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Maria de la Paz Rodriguez Coronel Dudignac and <br />
Karina Estrella Etchpare, both from Argentina, <br />
both conceived in rape and pro-life speakers<br />
and bloggers for Salvar El 1.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
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<o:p><br /></o:p></div>
Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-29054874470142675852018-08-03T16:10:00.000-05:002018-08-06T16:45:11.500-05:0010 Argentine Women Conceived in Rape and Mothers From Rape Speak Up! by Rebecca KiesslingMy name is Rebecca Kiessling, I am a wife, a mother of five children -- two of them adopted, and I am the president of SaveThe1 (Salvar El 1 in Spanish) an international pro-life organization which specializes in defending all of the so-called "hard cases" through sharing our personal stories.<br />
<br />
A good number of members are from Argentina, and they are outraged to see the proposed law to <br />
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expand abortion to be legal in all cases up to 14 weeks, and in cases of rape from 14 weeks to up until birth. It was bad enough when the law first began targeting the innocent child conceived in rape.<br />
<br />
For those like us who have been conceived in a rape, it is hard to know that currently the "exceptions" are allowed through 14 weeks when a pregnant woman merely says she was raped. And for those told that their child would be disabled, it's horrifying to know that if a doctor diagnoses that the baby has malformations "incompatible with life" or if it affirms that the mother is in danger of dying, then the child can be killed up to 14 weeks. These three allegations may or may not be true, but all three are discriminating against the most vulnerable people in society who are the ones who would require more effective protection.<br />
<br />
On August 8th, the Argentine Senate will vote on whether abortion will be legal in any case and up to birth for the so-called "exceptions." If approved, Argentina would be the fifth Latin American country to decriminalize abortion without these restrictions, after Cuba, Uruguay, Guyana, Chile and some parts of Mexico -- and the killing of unborn children will be rampant.<br />
<br />
Save The 1 is an organization of over 600 people who were conceived in a rape like me, mothers who conceived a child after being raped and who are raising their children, mothers who after giving birth placed the child for adoption and others, who regret aborting. In addition, we have hundreds of mothers who were advised to abort because of a poor pre-natal diagnosis. We value life and we hope that the Argentine Senate will protect life without discrimination.<br />
<br />
Our Facebook page in Spanish, Salvar El 1, now has almost 68,000 followers. Since the groundbreaking news that Argentina seeks to legalize abortion, we have received a flood of stories from Argentina from those who want to share their testimonies with us. They have been encouraged to come forward by reading my story and those of many others in our organization. Many voices are rising in Argentina, but, most importantly, the voices of the most innocent are going to be heard and the voice will be raised in defense of those Argentine unborn children who still can not raise it and who are at risk.<br />
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Like me, Karina Estrella Etchepare (whom I nicknamed "Argentine Rebecca") was conceived in rape, placed for adoption, is a family law attorney, and is now a strong voice speaking out in Argentina. Her mother was raped by her own stepfather at age 14. Karina testified recently in Congress when the new bill was up for a hearing. She asked Congress: "Does anyone dare to tell me that their life is worth more than mine because I am the result of a violation?" She explained to them that "the mother and child are both victims of the rapist. For that reason, it is necessary to protect them both. No one has the right to say that one life is worth less than the other, much less that of the fruit of a rape, because that baby does not know how she was conceived. If the rapist, with luck, is sentenced to 15 years in prison, why is the innocent baby sentenced to death?"<br />
<br />
Margarita Juncos, from Argentina, was also conceived in rape. Her mother was 17 years old when she was raped and gave birth to her daughter alone at a women's help center. Sadly, she passed away after two months as the result of a heart problem, and Margarita was raised by her maternal grandfather. As an adult, wife and mother, she learned the truth of her conception and birth. She values the gift of life that her mother gave her in the worst circumstances and has even forgiven her biological father.<br />
<br />
Adriana Shinki, from Argentina, was conceived in a rape when her mother was only 11 years old. Unable to take care of her, her mother left Adriana in an orphanage where she knew they were going to raise her and care for her. After many years, she had the good fortune to meet her mother and recounted in the blog of Save the 1: "How can I be angry with the woman who gave me life?".<br />
<br />
From the feelings of someone who was conceived in violence, but raised in love, Adriana advises all those who question the exceptions: "If there is a woman who has been raped and who is expecting a child who is the fruit of that act and who is reading my story, I would say that having that child will be the realization that something good can come from something bad, and a child is the most beautiful thing in the world and she will never regret not killing her child. That child is hers, no matter how he or she arrives, and is the one who will love her for the simple reason that she is his or her mother. To people who are the result of a violation I would say, obviously, they are not to blame for how they were conceived and their life is worth no more or less than others. They are the same because we are all human and have the right to live our lives."<br />
<br />
María de la Paz Rodríguez, also from Argentina, was conceived in a rape and placed for adoption.<br />
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Today she is happily married and is the mother of two girls. She herself explains to the world, proudly: "My daughters are pro-life -- the granddaughters of a raped grandmother, who chose not to abort and placed their mother (me) for adoption. Otherwise, my daughters would not exist!"<br />
<br />
"Happily adopted! I am a privileged person of life -- because I had two mothers: one who gave me life and another who gave me her life. Who dares to tell me that I should not be born as an unwanted baby conceived during a rape? I am not an abomination of nature because I am not begotten with love. It is better to ADOPT than to ABORT, because every life is worthy!"<br />
<br />
Anahí Retsar, also from Argentina, became pregnant after a rape at the young age of 14 years. She contacted Save The 1 to tell us her story. In her words: "It never crossed my mind to kill that child because being raped and being a murderer and blaming someone who does not deserve it, are different things. The child is not to blame for his father's wrongdoing and does not have to pay for his crime." Today Anahí is married, she is the mother of several children -- some whom she adopted and her eldest son, Catrial, has already made her grandmother!<br />
<br />
Sofia, also from Argentina, was raped five years ago. Six months after her rape and in a situation of depression and despair for what was done to her, she learned in a routine medical examination that she was expecting a child as a result of her rape. Against everything that others would expect, "That baby became my motive for life, to love my own life, and became the love of my life! My son is now 4 years old and his name is Ian, which means "sent from heaven." He is the miracle that God gave me after a misfortune and my strength to move forward. I'm still in treatment to overcome what happened, but with him, my life went from being a nightmare to being a dream."<br />
<br />
As in the case of Sofia, many mothers from rape report how that unexpected and unplanned child -- conceived through an act of barbarism, was her motive for moving forward and the only good thing that came out of that horrendous act. The baby conceived is the triumph of good against evil.<br />
<br />
Claudelina Sanabria, a resident of Argentina, was raped at age 11 and became pregnant. Without knowing what had happened, she found herself in front of the juvenile guardian judge who encouraged her to have an abortion. But when he explained what an abortion was, she knew that it meant killing the child she had in her womb. With the choppy words of a scared girl but the wisdom of a mature woman, she rejected abortion and gave birth to her baby. "If I had to advise a girl who expects a child after a rape, I would tell her to be strong and to choose life. You will not regret it. I rejected abortion, survived my rape, and there is nothing like giving birth and being a mother! I wish I could make all those people understand that nobody has the right to take the life of an innocent person."<br />
<br />
Viviana Victoria, also from Argentina, suffered sexual abuse since she was 12 years old by a family friend much older than her and was pregnant at the age of 14. But far from being defended by her family or the authorities, she was forced to marry her rapist. The forced marriage and the situation of mistreatment that she suffered almost destroyed her physical and mental health, but, again, her son conceived by violence was her savior. She related her story to Save The 1: "The child I gave birth to came to take away those desires to commit suicide that I had, along with all my unhappiness. He saved my life and gave me hope despite the way he came into this world."<br />
<br />
Akli Ahlet from Argentina became pregnant after being raped in a car and had to overcome not only the aftermath of a rape and her memory, but the contempt of society towards her son conceived in violence who was stigmatized even by the doctors themselves who pressured her to abort. She also wrote her story for Save the 1's blog: "The doctor told me that my son was disgusting -- and all for a crime he did not commit. The doctor said he was not going to survive since he already had low blood sugars. I started to cry and to say that I did not understand why he was against my son if he had not done anything wrong."<br />
<br />
Alba -- a birthmother from rape is also from Argentina and recently shared her story with us. She <br />
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was raped from the age of 7, kept from attending school, left perpetually hungry, and eventually became pregnant at 10 years old. When her father took her for an abortion, she realized that they were going to kill her child, and she managed to escape -- fleeing to her grandmother's home. Her grandmother was beaten for sheltering her and threatened not to go to the authorities to report the rape. But once Alba gave birth to her precious daughter at the age 11, the hospital reported the rapes. She and her daughter were placed with a loving family, where Alba was able to make a permanent adoption plan. She writes: "I thank God because I had a second chance to have a family, mom, dad and siblings who helped me grow up and realize that life is beautiful." Alba received an education, a degree and owns her own business.<br />
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"I know that my daughter is growing up in a good family surrounded by love and values. Thanks to the fact that I did not allow an abortion and I said yes to life, my daughter was born and her birth revealed the abuses and the situation of mistreatment that I suffered. Thanks to the fact that the Hospital made the accusation and the Juvenile Justice intervened, I was able to get out of the hell in which I lived and today I am happy."<br />
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This is what Alba has to say to the Argentine Congress: "Dear legislators, I leave you with this reflection: Why don't you transform those unwanted children, fruit of barbarism, products of rape into desired and beloved children through the bond of adoption? An evil is not remedied with another evil. I, at ten years old and illiterate, defended my daughter's life. Today I ask you who have the duty to legislate to defend life from the moment of conception. Legislate from love and not from the culture of death."<br />
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Please understand that legalizing abortion for rape cases and other exceptions only teaches that the falsity there are lives that are worth more than others. Can you imagine creating "exceptions" for Asian or African or Jewish babies? The message is that they are not worthy of life, and that you do not have to protect their lives. There would be an international outcry if, someday, this were proposed. Yes, it is the same in our case. And we feel that there is great apathy when it comes to valuing our life. Mothers who have children conceived in a rape claim that they are themselves targeted and despised and they are questioned for not having an abortion and because they love that child.<br />
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We appreciate the empathy with the victims of a rape, but they are four times more likely to die within the next year after an abortion. In the book of Dr. David Reardon, Victims and Victors, he cites the studies conducted on this. After an abortion, rape victims have a higher rate of suicide and drug addiction. Rapists, pedophiles and sex traffickers love abortion because it destroys the evidence of the crime and empowers them to continue. Often, a girl's own mother has also allowed her to be violated or left her unprotected. It is the baby in these situations who offers evidence of the rape. If we really want to protect the victim from abuse, we must defend her from her rapist and abortion, and not from her child.<br />
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Argentina, you are a great nation, much better than others, because you have established a culture <br />
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where people are loved and valued. The Argentinian women who have given their testimony above have been able to share their stories of love for life because they all love their lives and love their children no matter how they were conceived. Please, do not accept the culture of death and discrimination again. We urge you to tell your senators NOT to vote in favor of the decriminalization of abortion. Vote NO on the legalization of the death of an innocent. Do not let the blood of innocent Argentine babies be shed on your soil.<br />
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BIO: Rebecca Kiessling is a wife, mother of 5, conceived in rape, attorney, international pro-life speaker and writer, and president of Save The 1 / Salvar El 1.<br />
<br />Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-4194896465245150662018-06-25T09:49:00.001-05:002018-06-25T10:00:37.034-05:00Does anyone care about God's opinion? <span style="font-size: large;"><br /></span>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">We all have defining moments in our lives. Usually they are moments marked by the birth of a child or sadly by the death of a loved one….maybe a new job, a move to a new state and so much more.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">One of my most defining moments can be said in two words “Kunta Kinte.” For some of you that will immediately bring to mind an image of a young LeVar Burton in the tv mini series Roots and for others you may not be familiar with that TV show, but for me it was and will forever be heavily marked on my heart and in my mind.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">I loved learning about history in 4th and 5th grade. I think because history is truly people’s stories in life’s journey and how our stories impact people, nations and the world, that history has always captivated my attention as at a young age, even though not a Christian, the value of each soul was impressed upon my heart by God in a way that people’s stories and people’s pain impacted me in a very profound way. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">I had learned about slavery, of course, as any grade school student does as I studied our American history and while it impacted me, the reality of it did not hit me until I found myself watching a new TV series that would hit the air waves in 1977 while I was still in grade school. That was Roots. Kunta Kinte’s life and the lives of both the slaves and the slave owners would forever impact my life. To this day the images that I tried to erase are still clearly marked on my heart and mind.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">Even as a young girl, I sat there in disbelief that any human being could justify in any way treating ANY other human being as if they were/are not human. It made no sense to me. TRULY MADE NO SENSE TO ME. I mean of course logically I had learned the sick rationale that was used to enslave people but I could not wrap my mind around how any human being could go along with something so clearly evil beyond words. I would wrestle and wrestle how anyone could ever not only do this but allow this and allow this on a level of actual legislation supporting this in our nation and in our history.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">Fast forward to my college years….Jesus reached down and saved my undeserving soul. While I saw Him merely as fire insurance in that moment so to speak initially and did not really start following Him and engaging in a vibrant relationship with my Savior until my mid twenties, instantly I knew that being pro choice, which I had been in college, was wrong and I immediately said I would never vote for a Democrat again and would always support Republicans with my vote as I knew that Republicans by in large voted pro life. Outside of voting though I did very little to show any evidence that I was pro life. I was in word but not in deed which truly leaves one to question if I was really pro life at all as my lip service apart from any real actions hardly qualified me to call myself pro life.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">It was not until my husband and I found ourselves facing three top doctors at a top hospital in IL that my eyes were truly opened to the reality of abortion in America and how much it was and is a part of the very fabric of our nation. I remember clear as day as if just yesterday that utter feeling of horror and shock that people in medicine not only suggest, that is bad enough, but insist on parents killing their child and not only killing their child but the reasoning being because the child is sick. Since when did/does being sick become a crime and become something worthy of being killed over???? Of course, in utter shock that this would even be suggested we kindly argued with and took a STRONG, BOLD yet kind stand against this and today we have a beautiful, KIND beyond measure 20 year old daughter that lights up every room she enters and impacts lives with her kindness.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">But it would not stop there the education on abortion God was revealing to me. I was about to get an even bigger and most unexpected education yet again within a community I had always viewed as truly safe and truly pro life as I had once viewed the medical community. </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">I started to learn that EVEN IN the pro life community there were factions of people that did not really believe in PRO LIFE at all as they would advocate for or succumb to fighting for some lives but not ALL lives. This, just like with the utter shock of those in the medical community seeing abortion as a very real “solution” and “option,” was just as shocking to me that there were people within pro life life that held the same stance. I was in utter shock! And what is this stance within the pro life community where some who profess to fight for life would relegate some lives to less valuable than others…..THE EXCEPTIONS……</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">Just like with Roots, as a young girl, as I sat in front of the TV screen in utter shock and disbelief with tears running down my face uncontrollably, I would sit before God with tears running down my face asking how could this be. I fully understand the deception of someone who does not follow Jesus buying into the lie of abortion as a solution, as that was once me before I encountered Jesus. BUT …..to find out that professing believers, professing followers of Jesus Christ, professing pro life people would say that abortion is ok in any circumstance or being willing to go along with it for some so that others could live was nothing short of knock me on my bottom shocking to me.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">It would forever take me back to slavery in our history. Professing believers not only supported slavery and had slaves but would go along with legislation to support that and legislation that dehumanized an entire people group. Professing believers would justify slavery because of the economic benefit to so many which well outweighed the cost to the human lives of the slaves….sound familiar…….benefiting the many even though at great cost to the few????? Abortion…..EXCEPTIONS…….</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">As a believer, there will NEVER EVER, let me repeat this in kindness and love but so boldly, that there will never be a time that SIN IS THE SOLUTION TO ANYTHING THAT AILS MAN. The sin of slavery may have seemed like a solution to the South’s economic woes and a way for great prosperity for many but in God’s economy is SIN EVER THE SOLUTION??? Praise God enough people were willing to be hated, put their lives on the line and accept no compromises and fight for the complete end to slavery. It was a defining moment in our history……Today is no different.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: large;"><b>Sin is still never the solution</b> even though from a human standpoint it can be rationalized and not even called sin…..but as with slavery….as with the compromise of some states being free and others slave states-that would never be God’s way to say, “Well at least some states are free even if some still allow slavery.” NO! <b>God never condones sin</b>…because SIN HURTS ALL INVOLVED…….God does not compromise and neither should we……..Pro life legislation with exceptions is sin before a holy God….it is no different then when our nation made compromises allowing for some free states….That may have seemed generous and like a win win but when an entire people group was still dehumanized and enslaved in the slave states that compromise was of man and never of God.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">May the pro life community and may pro life legislators who know Jesus as Lord and Savior filter exceptions in pro life legislation through the lens of Jesus the same way that the abolitionists who would tolerate no compromises filtered their stand and their fight through the lens of Jesus. We can do what seems right to man and compromise and for a moment in time, it may appear to be the loving thing, but God will never allow anything HE does not call love to be called love and when HE calls ALL life valuable then our job is not to make excuses, not to compromise, not to make exceptions but to respond to HIS Heart and do the same by calling all life valuable as well….with no exceptions. We must not settle for exceptions…the same way those that truly took a stand against slavery would not settle for at least some states being free states, we must not settle for at least some babies being saved while others die…….</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-kerning: none;"><span style="font-size: large;">Save the 1 speaker and blogger</span></span></div>
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Unknownnoreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-84951246756706834332018-06-16T11:26:00.002-05:002022-03-09T09:15:04.382-06:00Save The 1 Intervenes in Iowa Heartbeat Case -- Our Hearts Beat Too! By Rebecca Kiessling, with Brad and Jesi Smith<br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">On May 4, 2018, Iowa Gov. Kim Reynolds signed the <a href="https://www.legis.iowa.gov/docs/publications/LGE/87/SF359.pdf" target="_blank">Heartbeat Bill</a> into law which would protect unborn children who have a detectable heartbeat, except "when the abortion is medically necessary" and defines "medically necessary" as cases of rape, incest and fetal abnormality, making the abortion provider the sole arbiter of these determinations. These exceptions were surprisingly added -- allegedly because certain legislators in the House would not sign the bill without exceptions.</span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-S47LmiPmnT4/WyU0ZjNyq3I/AAAAAAAAaZ0/aW4VTQNU0j4th3RtL__2MfqAWS1xyaw8ACEwYBhgL/s1600/Save%2BThe%2B1%2Bat%2BMarch%2Bfor%2BLife%2B2018%2BSupreme%2BCourt.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-S47LmiPmnT4/WyU0ZjNyq3I/AAAAAAAAaZ0/aW4VTQNU0j4th3RtL__2MfqAWS1xyaw8ACEwYBhgL/s400/Save%2BThe%2B1%2Bat%2BMarch%2Bfor%2BLife%2B2018%2BSupreme%2BCourt.jpg" width="400" /></a><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="http://www.savethe1.com/" target="_blank">Save The 1</a> is a global pro-life organization of over 600 of us who were conceived in rape, incest or sex trafficking and mothers who became pregnant by rape, incest or sex trafficking who are either raising their children, birth mothers, miscarried, or post-abortive and mourn the loss of their children. Additionally, we have hundreds who were told by physicians to abort due to a pre-natal diagnosis, along with their children who were targeted by doctors. We specialize in defending all of the so-called “hard cases” in the abortion debate through sharing our personal stories, and we additionally act as a support network. The deadly discrimination contained in the exceptions within the Iowa Heartbeat Law hurts us -- because our hearts beat too!</span></div>
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<div class="MsoNormal"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">I <a href="https://www.facebook.com/RebeccaKiesslingProLifeSpeaker/videos/1266847943352235/" target="_blank">testified a year earlier on a life-at-conception bill</a>. We are grateful to the Iowa Coalition for Life -- a coalition of the major pro-life organizations in Iowa who brought us in to testify and who vigorously opposed the exceptions. </span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">We discussed what our response as an organization should be. We could cooperate in order that we may have a "seat at the table" and be invited back to Iowa to speak and to testify again on a future bill. But to what end? To have another viral video which ultimately is rendered ineffective in gaining any protection for us and our children? Do we want to be popular, or protected?</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Others would like for us to roll over and play dead. Sometimes it feels like the game is fixed -- like this is the Harlem Globetrotters and we are merely the Washington Generals. We aren't supposed to cry foul when our players are thrown to the ground. Politically, many are quite used to us being the sacrificial lamb, and we are supposed to somehow be understanding and cooperative as we are lead to slaughter.</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">We are told, "It's nothing against you personally," but we are persons, the attack on our very right to life could not possibly be more personal, and of course we will take it personally!</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">If it were just us who have already been born and merely a matter of our feelings being hurt, perhaps we could somehow "let it go," but there are others who are yet at risk, who are being targeted for killing, who are just as deserving of protection as any of us, and so, we are fighting back.</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Planned Parenthood of the Heartland recently filed a lawsuit against the state of Iowa, and we are now filing a motion to intervene as necessary third party intervenors "of right" since the current Plaintiff, Planned Parenthood, clearly will not argue on behalf of our interests. The exceptions within the Iowa Fetal Heartbeat law violate our fundamental right to life, depriving us of due process and equal protection under both the Iowa and U.S. constitutions. Thankfully, there is a severability clause in the legislation so that the offending provisions can be severed and the remainder of the law upheld. We have three attorneys representing Save The 1: Erin Mersino -- a pro-life constitutional law attorney from Michigan with the Great Lakes Justice Center, Eric Borseth -- an attorney from Iowa and a board member of Personhood Iowa, and myself.</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">As a pro-life attorney, this is why I went to law school. While attending Wayne State law school, I wrote what has been for decades the #1-ranked philosophical abortion essay, "<a href="http://www.rebeccakiessling.com/rebeccas-writings/philosophical-abortion-essay/" target="_blank">The Right of the Unborn Child Not to be Unjustly Killed -- a philosophy of rights approach</a>." If I can't defend my own right to life in court, then what is the point of being a pro-life attorney? What is the point of being alive? Just to be selfish and live my life without caring about others who are yet at risk? I was protected by Michigan law when my birth mother sought to kill me at two illegal abortions. As a rape victim, she was not offered any help or hope -- just abortion. My life was spared for a purpose, and for such a time as this I will use my life, my talents, my expertise and law degree to save others.</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">The discriminatory language in the Iowa Heartbeat law defines "medically necessary" as cases in which:</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">a. The pregnancy which is the result of a rape which is reported within forty-five days of the incident to a law enforcement agency or to a public or private health agency which may include a family physician.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">b. The pregnancy is the result of incest which is reported within one hundred forty days of the incident to a law enforcement agency or to a public or private health agency which may include a family physician.<o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">c. Any spontaneous abortion, commonly known as a miscarriage, if not all of the products of conception are expelled.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">d. The attending physician certifies that the fetus has a fetal abnormality that in the physician’s reasonable medical judgment is incompatible with life. </span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Interestingly, among the bill’s
definitions, rape, incest, fetal abnormality and incompatible with life are not
included or even cross-referenced with other sections of the Iowa code, as
other definitions are cross-referenced.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> So the abortion providers get to decide what they deem to qualify as rape, incest and incompatible with life.</span><o:p></o:p></span></span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">The rape, incest and fetal abnormality
exceptions are based upon a fabrication that aborting these unborn children is
“medically necessary.”</span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"> </span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Not one witness
testified in the Senate hearing as to such a medical necessity.</span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"> </span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">This language was added to appease state representatives in the House who said they would not approve the bill without language that
excludes these children from protection.</span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">
</span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"> </span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">In other words, the legislative
intent was that they believed it was politically necessary – not medically
necessary, if they were being honest.</span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"> </span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">The
language not only excludes innocent children from protection, doing so under a
faulty premise, but really was intended merely to protect certain politicians
and nothing to do with protecting pregnant mothers.</span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">The abortion physician is given the
power to decide whether the unborn child has a fetal abnormality and whether
the living unborn child with a detectable heartbeat is somehow “incompatible
with life.” These preborn children are
actually disabled children, and as such, should be protected under the
Americans With Disabilities Act.</span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Additionally, and equally as
troubling, the report of the rape and/or incest merely needs to be made to the
“public or private health agency” – in other words, to the abortion clinic. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So the abortion clinic becomes the sole
arbiter of whether a woman was raped and whether her child is to suffer the
death penalty for the alleged crimes of his or her biological father, with no
guidelines provided within the legislation.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This clearly lacks due process and fails to provide equal protection.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 18.4px;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">The third prong of the exceptions doesn't even make sense at all, because the law only applies when there is a fetal heartbeat. So how could this possibly be a spontaneous abortion situation when there's a beating heart? In so many respects, the exception provisions are extremely poorly written law.</span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">The targeting of our people groups for
exclusion of protection, and in fact, for state-approved killing is clearly
discriminatory.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The sting of this discrimination
not only affects every unborn child who is deemed to fit into these legislative
categories of rape, incest or fetal abnormality, but is lifelong – affecting
every person born who was conceived in rape or given a challenging pre-natal
diagnosis by a physician.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Additionally,
it causes anguish to the mothers who became pregnant by rape or who were told
by doctors to abort.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They grieve at how
their children are so quickly devalued by politicians and within the law.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Permitting abortion for rape, incest and fetal
abnormalities sends a message to our people groups that our lives are worth less
than anyone else’s. Imagine having an exception in cases of Asian babies,
Jewish babies, or left-handed babies. The message sent is that these
people are not worthy of living and did not deserve to be protected like
everyone else. There would be an international outcry if such discrimination against these other people groups were even proposed. Yet, it is the same for us, and we feel the sting of
such hatred against or apathy toward our lives. </span></span><br />
<span style="color: black;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><br /></span></span>
<span style="color: black;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">The rape survivor mothers
and those told by doctors to abort grieve how their children are systematically
targeted and devalued.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The rape victim
mothers are not believed they were raped because they didn’t abort and because
they actually love their children.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">We appreciate concern for pregnant rape victims, but
they are four times more likely to die within the next year after an abortion,
as opposed to giving birth. In Dr. David Reardon’s book, <a href="http://afterabortion.org/2000/rape-and-incest-victims-reject-abortion-survey-of-192-victims/" target="_blank">Victims andVictors: Speaking Out About Their Pregnancies, Abortions and Children ResultingFrom Sexual Assault</a>, he cites the research done on the subject. After an
abortion, rape victims have higher rates of murder, suicide, drug overdose,
etc.. Rapists, child molesters and sex traffickers love abortion, which
destroys the evidence and enables them to continue perpetrating. Sexual
predators depend upon abortion clinics because the abortion protects them – not
the pregnant rape victim.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Tragically, it is at times a girl’s own mother who has
been either trafficking her or leaving her unprotected. It is always the
baby who exposes the rape, who delivers the pregnant mother out of the abusive situation,
protecting her and bringing her healing. If the legislators truly<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>care about rape victims, <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>then they must protect her from the rapist and
from the abortion, and not the baby!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Her
baby is not the enemy, despite what the legislated exceptions suggest.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: black;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">In regards to a diagnosis of “incompatible with life”
– it is impossible to be such when you are still living. Physicians who
peddle abortion are truly the ones with fatal heart defects, often failing to
treat the children of parents who refused to abort. A eugenics mentality
becomes pervasive when you allow abortion. </span></span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">For parents who are told by doctors to abort, the
pressure is tremendous – and not just during the pregnancy, but after the child
is born when doctors often refuse to treat their disabled child.</span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"> </span></div>
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">The purpose of the Americans with Disabilities Act is to guaranty
that people with disabilities have the same rights and opportunities as
everyone else. The ADA gives civil rights protections to individuals with
disabilities similar to those provided to individuals on the basis of race,
color, sex, national origin, age, and religion. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Accordingly, as a suspect class, the offending
provisions against disabled children within the Iowa Heartbeat Bill should be
subject to strict scrutiny.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">The Iowa Heartbeat bill’s bewildering
exceptions legislate extreme and inexplicable hatred toward disabled children
in the womb, as well as those conceived in rape or incest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Prenatal testing -- instead of being used to
treat and heal -- is used for search and destroy missions for those with medically
identifiable disabilities.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Iowa
legislators have now authorized doctors to commit genocide against an entire
people group, decreasing their voices and representation within society.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">This deliberate targeting and killing
of our people groups also results in doubt being cast upon rape victims for not
aborting “like a true rape victim would”, and the “blaming” of parents for not
aborting their disabled children who are seen within much of the medical
community as a burden on the health care system – much like the Nazi regime
which employed the medical designation of “lebensunwertes leben” (“life
unworthy of life”), referring to the disabled as “useless eaters.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Using terminology such as “fetal
abnormality” or “incompatible with life“ as classifications for children with
disability is deceiving and treacherous treatment from a government which clai<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a>ms its citizens have equal protection under the law.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Born children and adults are treated by some physicians
as “incompatible with life,” and doctors and hospitals point to “medical futility
policies” in order to justify discrimination against these disabled
individuals.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>This deadly eugenics is
alive and well today in the United States, and now codified in Iowa by the exceptions within this new
law.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Physicians’ predictions are not
medical certainty and denying the right to life and equal protection to entire
groups of disabled children based on an abortion doctor’s best guess is not
medical science. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Bias and arrogance of
those who wish to promote biological superiority through the destruction of
disabled children in the womb brings new meaning to the words biological
warfare.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></span></span><br />
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><br /></span></span>
<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">A child’s God-given right to
life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness should never be denied because of his
or her disability or circumstances of conception.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>His or her value is not based on what he or
she is able to do or the behavior of his or her parents; rather, it is based on
his or her humanity and that the child has been endowed by his or her Creator
with these inalienable rights. <o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">We’ve had parents within our
organization who refused to abort and were told by doctors:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>“The only further testing you will receive is
an autopsy,”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">“If your child is born not breathing,
we won’t resuscitate,” and<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">“Your child has already outlived her
life expectancy.”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Some parents have endured others looking
at their disabled child in their arms and asking, “Didn’t you get any pre-natal
testing?”<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">The clear expectation and even
obligation is to abort.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The Iowa
legislature has now codified this deadly discrimination.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Since the government has not done its
duty to protect disabled children in the womb, they are also targeted after
leaving the womb.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Many children have
medical treatments withheld and denied leading to their death simply because
they have a disability.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Children conceived in rape are often
called dehumanizing names such as:<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">“Demon seed,” “evil seed,” “horrible
reminder,” “rapist’s child” (an insult to every rape victim mother who knows
that this is her child,) “monster’s child,” “demon spawn,” “Satan’s child,”
“tainting the gene pool,” and on and on.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> The exceptions within the Iowa Fetal Heartbeat law suggest there is something inherently different about the child conceived in rape that they would be unworthy of protection. To legislate that aborting us is "medically necessary" further suggests that we are somehow medically harming our mothers -- furthering the notion that we are somehow the ones raping our mothers. But we are entirely innocent and we plead our innocence.</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">While some states like Michigan,
Georgia and Nebraska do not have a single rape exception within the law, there
are other jurisdictions where the child conceived in rape is singled-out and
systematically targeted for extermination.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>This lack of equal protection undeniably feeds into the discrimination
within the culture.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It codifies hatred,
fear and prejudice against an innocent child.</span></span></div>
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</span><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">A civilized nation must protect the
lives of the innocent and disabled child, not target them for extermination and
codify hatred. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It is barbaric to punish
an innocent child for someone else’s crime.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>The legislature should focus on punishing rapists, not babies and the
Court must focus on protecting lives of the innocent and not the careers of
politicians or interests of the abortion industry.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>More violence does not bring healing, but
only more pain, more destruction and a less empathetic society.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">Given that there was no testimony
before the Iowa legislature from physicians or expert witnesses to suggest that
denying equal protection and due process for our people groups is somehow a
“medical necessity,” it is impossible for the state to claim even a rational
basis for the violation of the most fundamental right.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For the disabled unborn child, the state
cannot claim any sort of governmental interest in codifying eugenics, and
certainly not a compelling governmental interest.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Assuming medical necessity based upon faulty
assumptions is deadly, and must not stand as a basis for violating the right to
life and equal protection of the laws.<o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">As far as we know, this is the first time in the U.S. and even globally that a group of people like us has defended our own right to life in court. To every legislator nationwide who wants to target our people group within pro-life legislation: we are united, we have a voice, and we will fight back!</span></span></div>
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<span style="line-height: 115%;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif">BIO: <a href="http://www.rebeccakiessling.com/" target="_blank">Rebecca Kiessling</a>, conceived in rape, is a pro-life attorney, international pro-life </span></span></div>
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UXa_PHkXKmk/WyU4M4Iyy0I/AAAAAAAAaZ8/8vcIWIkpjaw249IDpTIut0mcnuJzI4Y3wCLcBGAs/s1600/Rebecca%2BKiessling%2BJune%2B2018.jpg" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="957" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-UXa_PHkXKmk/WyU4M4Iyy0I/AAAAAAAAaZ8/8vcIWIkpjaw249IDpTIut0mcnuJzI4Y3wCLcBGAs/s320/Rebecca%2BKiessling%2BJune%2B2018.jpg" width="319" /></a><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"> speaker, wife and mother of 5. She is the <a href="http://www.savethe1.com/rebecca-kiessling-mi-pro-life-speaker/" target="_blank">president and founder of Save The 1</a>. </span><br />
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<span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif"><a href="http://www.savethe1.com/brad-and-jesi-smith-mi-pro-life-speakers/" target="_blank">Brad and Jesi Smith</a>, Save The 1 pro-life speakers contributed. Their youngest daughter, Faith, was born with Trisomy 18. They were behind the Good Faith Medical Act passed in Michigan -- the first of its kind in the nation.</span><br />
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<br />Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-50965587604037791632018-05-19T09:49:00.001-05:002018-05-19T09:49:27.268-05:00More False Information from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists, by Rachel Mary GuyAs I was scrolling through the Facebook page of the American Congress of Obstetrics and Gynecology I found an article done by Northwestern University.<br />
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According to a Northwestern University national survey on Teens, Technology, and Health, 84% of teens have gotten health information online. In addition to recommending teens see a Gynecologist before age 21, ACOG also has an entire patient FAQ section dedicated to questions and health concerns specific to teens.<br />
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I found it quite concerning as I looked at the flier done by ACOG also talking about the reasons why it is important for women to see a GYN before 21. Some of the topics they covered were LGBTQ, trans gender, bisexual, and "pregnancy options" (talking about abortion, adoption and parenting). The site goes on to mention women's "options" talking about the way to keep their baby safe if they are parenting or talking about the option of adoption. ACOG mentions abortion as the first listed option when going over again the "options" for a pregnant woman. They say, "If you choose to have an abortion, it should be done early in pregnancy when there are fewer risks. If you have a medical condition, pregnancy may pose risks to your health and increase the risk of complications for the baby." There are two concerns and false information given. First, abortion is not "safer" when it is done earlier. There are even more emotional effects on women who have abortions earlier particularly women who take RU-486 because they are the ones doing the abortion, their home is the abortion clinic and they often see their dead child. Also abortion is never necessary to "save a woman's life."<br />
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Also ACOG never mentions the side effects of abortion and their description of one claims the procedure to be "safe" yet they never explain what actually happens to the child and they never give the side affects of what truly happens to women after an abortion.<br />
<br />
Sarah Torez wrote this Live Action article which talks about a woman's experience at an abortion clinic. This blog talks about the effects of a late term abortion on women. In Live Action's article it states, "Studies show that post-abortive women are 65 percent more likely to suffer from depression. Two studies based on medical records found that post-abortive women were six to seven times more likely to commit suicide. Other studies have linked abortion with post-traumatic stress disorder, sleep disturbances, and substance abuse." <a href="https://www.liveaction.org/news/blogger-writes-intense-suffering-women-late-term-abortions/" target="_blank">(https://www.liveaction.org/news/blogger-writes-intense-suffering-women-late-term-abortions/)</a><br />
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Here is the description from ACOG:<br />
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"In an abortion procedure, the embryo or fetus is removed from a woman’s uterus. If you decide to have an abortion, it should be done as early as possible. After 12 weeks, an abortion requires more steps and takes longer to perform.<br />
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What are the different types of abortion procedures?<br />
Some abortion procedures are done by surgery. Some are done with medication. The type of abortion you have depends on your choice, your health, and how long you have been pregnant. See the FAQ Induced Abortion for detailed information about each type of abortion procedure.<br />
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When can each type of abortion be performed?<br />
The most common type of surgical abortion is called vacuum aspiration. It can be performed up to 14 weeks of pregnancy in a health care provider’s office or clinic.<br />
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After 14 weeks of pregnancy, the abortion procedure is called a dilation and evacuation (D&E). A D&E takes longer to perform than a vacuum aspiration and it may require more than one visit. This procedure can be done in a health care provider’s office, clinic, or hospital. You usually can go home within a few hours after the procedure is completed.<br />
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In a medical abortion, certain drugs are taken to cause an abortion. For this option, a woman usually must be no more than 9 weeks pregnant.<br />
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What are the risks associated with abortion?<br />
In general, abortion is a low-risk procedure. Risks and complications depend on how early the abortion is done and the method that is used. Fewer than 1 in 100 women have complications from an abortion performed before 14 weeks of pregnancy. For later abortions, up to 2 in 100 women have complications. In most cases, the risks from an abortion are less than the risks of giving birth to a baby. Most health care providers agree that having one abortion does not affect later pregnancies or a woman’s future health. However, the longer a woman waits to have an abortion, the more risk it carries for her.<br />
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What should I expect after having an abortion?<br />
You usually will have a follow-up visit with your health care provider after the abortion. Be aware that you can get pregnant soon after having an abortion. You should use a birth control method to prevent pregnancy right away."<br />
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Glossary<br />
<br />
Former abortionist explains to Live Action founder Lila Rose, "<a href="https://www.abortionprocedures.com/questions/" target="_blank">https://www.abortionprocedures.com/questions/</a>"<br />
<br />Charles Moncriefhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06996782367135664171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-33117677568000650202018-05-04T13:14:00.002-05:002022-03-09T09:17:48.557-06:00Iowa Heartbeat Bill: The Exceptions Speak for Themselves by Sarah St. Onge<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 16pt;">If we can ignore the glaring discrimination, the passage of Iowa’s heartbeat bill was a watershed moment in pro-life advocacy. While the bill still hasn’t been signed into law, it sent a strong message out to the rest of the country: we can pass restrictive pro-life legislation in a state which is not necessarily conservative. It would seem to be a shining achievement for the pro-life movement. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 16pt;">But with the exceptions, the bill sent another message: A message of exclusion for those conceived in rape or who have been diagnosed with a serious birth defect, and there have been some who’ve spoken out against that message.</span></div><div style="font-stretch: normal; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-family: .sfuitext;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333px;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 16pt;">Viewing the very personal video, seeing the visceral reaction the news has provoked in her, leaves the watcher feeling a bit less certain about whether the Iowa bill is as great as it seems. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 16pt;">We move on to a statement from <a href="http://rebecca%20kiessling%20pro-life%20speaker/" target="_blank">Rebecca Kiessling</a> who, with tears in her eyes and audible distress in her voice, explains the emotional toll these <table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
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exceptions take on her. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 16pt;">Watch <a href="https://www.facebook.com/RebeccaKiesslingProLifeSpeaker/videos/1670039423033083/" target="_blank">HERE</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 16pt;">As a strong and outspoken representative of those conceived in rape, her words add an element of intimacy to the proceedings which highlight the fact we’re speaking of real people: children conceived during a sexual assault aren’t just a philosophical concept -- they’re our friends, neighbors, and loved ones. They deserve equal protection under the law -- the same protections you or I deserve.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 16pt;">Last, we hear from me, <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Shebringsjoy/" target="_blank">Sarah St. Onge</a>. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 16pt;">Watch <a href="https://www.facebook.com/Shebringsjoy/videos/1507904409337947/?hc_ref=ARQ8_9W-GaOzUpIN9LdS0lEuwKxxKnqHomYhL0198XsAaF6r-dmaZrBeO9tZ1uKsEWI&fref=nf" target="_blank">HERE</a>.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 16pt;">My daughter was diagnosed with a lethal birth defect before birth. Exceptionally frustrated with the liberties lawmakers take in excluding children like mine from protection, I want to know why we continue to place these exceptions into laws we are writing. Why not leave the picking and choosing to the pro-choice side? Why ruin our reputation with an inconsistent message regarding the value of an unborn child? </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 16pt;">With the wealth of information available about the life of the unborn, it’s foolish for us to continue on the discriminatory path we are headed down. Rarely, if ever, do these exceptions get removed once they’re in place. We are sentencing valuable, wanted, and fragile innocents to death. There is no excuse for this -- the time for political maneuvering should come when we meet those who oppose us on the floor, and not before we've even put an offer on the table.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 16pt;">We beg you to continue to help us fight for our rights, and the rights of our children, to have equal protection under the law, like all other American citizens. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 16pt;">BIO: Sarah St. Onge is a mother and pro-life blogger for Save The 1. </span><span style="font-family: ".sfuitext"; font-size: 16pt;"><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif" style="background-color: transparent; color: #030303; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 1px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;"> She blogs on faith, grief, loss, and pro-life issues pertaining to continuing a pregnancy after a lethal anomaly has been diagnosed, at <a href="http://www.shebringsjoy.com/" style="color: black; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; letter-spacing: 1px; line-height: 27px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px; text-decoration: underline;">www.shebringsjoy.com</a></span><span face=""arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif" style="background-color: white; color: #030303; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: 1px; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">.</span></span></div>
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Sarah St. Ongehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/01116679830244890405noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-11469445072139473412018-05-03T12:07:00.000-05:002018-05-03T12:56:53.636-05:00Pregnant by Rape, I Threw the Abortion Pills to the Floor, by Genesis JamesI love storms -- seeing the dark clouds, watching the storms roll in, and dancing in the rain. I love to see the lightning and hear the thunder roar, shaking the Earth. But this was a storm that I had no opportunity to anticipate. . . . <br />
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About four years ago, I was studying Christian Leadership to be a chaplain at Barclay College and about ready to get married. I was on my way to work to give a therapeutic massage. Little did I know it was going to change my life forever. During that appointment, I was raped by my client. <br />
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I initially stayed silent about it because I was convinced no one would believe me. Also, I had so much going for me at the time and I thought if I told anyone, it would instantly jeopardize all of my future. So, I decided to just keep my mouth shut and pretend that it did not happen. <br />
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Exactly ten days later, I found out I was pregnant. As if living with the rape was not hard enough for me, how in the world could I deal with this? I already had three girls and I was sure I could never be able to handle four -- especially on my own, since I was certain my boyfriend would leave me. <br />
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I am a girl who has always been so strongly outspoken against abortion. There was never ever a reason to have one in my mind, but boy does your mind change when you are faced with this.<br />
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I had a handful of pills in my hand which someone told me would naturally abort the baby. I had them inches from my mouth when I threw them on the floor. What if I took these pills and instead of aborting my baby. it would cause her to have a birth defect and I would end up causing her severe problems in her life? This thought caused me to realize I could not cause harm to my baby in any way. In tears, I decided not to abort her. Little did I know, that was the start of the hardest and yet most beautiful journey I would ever take. <br />
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Finally I was able talk to David, my boyfriend, on December 10th and told him what had happened. But I was afraid he'd make me quit my job, so I told him I was raped at a club I went to a week prior. Even thinking of it that way made it somehow easier in my mind -- if he were drunk and making a poor decision while intoxicated, I could at least wrap my head around that as opposed to the premeditated evil. I was so afraid that if I told people the truth that I was raped while working, then I would lose what I felt God gave me as a means of income. <br />
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David was very angry and upset. He told me he needed some time to figure out what he wanted to do. Two days later, he told me that he loved me and he loved my daughters, and he was going to be there and support me through this.<br />
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Nevertheless, many days I felt very suicidal. It took everything I had not to drive the car off the bridge. And the tears came often. I knew I needed to get help, so I started going to a counselor at my church, which helped me a little bit. But it felt like she did not understand the pain I was going through. I never felt free to open up and share with her all my dark corners that I had. <br />
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At that point, I could hardly work at my job anymore without totally breaking down in tears and shaking. I found a group on Facebook with members who told me about <a href="http://www.anchorpoint.us/about-anchor-point.html" target="_blank">Anchor Point</a> which specializes in helping pregnant women, and how they might be the exact thing I needed. Their website said that they are "champions for the future of child by educating and empowering parents because no one is beyond hope," and I needed hope!<br />
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I called them up and made an appointment. I was told that there was a lady who used to volunteer with them and worked with women who had gone through similar situations. However, they said she was in a transition at the time, so they were unsure if she would come back and see me. I left and prayed hard about this because I was desperate for any ray of sunshine at the moment. Then God gave me Angel, who has lived up to her name for sure. <br />
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For once, I felt like I was heard. I held onto so much pain from past abuses that when I went through this rape, I never felt I was worthy of help because “who really cared?” I and everyone else beat me up all the time with the whys and why nots so much so that I felt like I was crazy. <br />
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But not Angel. She heard me as she listened to the pains and hurts I endured as I was growing up. She wanted to uncover all of that. I for once felt safe enough to tell someone my <i>whole entire</i> story of my life -- even the really dark areas which I felt would result in no one ever accepting me if I told them. She never condemned me and she never told me I was crazy, which are the things I was telling myself repeatedly. <br />
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After talking with Angel about everything, there were no more shadowy places left in my life. <i>Satan </i><br />
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<i>no longer had a foothold and I was finally free!!! </i> Angel helped me see that I was not alone on the path that I choose and that it was normal to choose the path that I took. I no longer had to travel on this path alone because now there was light on the path and I was going to be okay. I came in weekly and met with her up until my daughter was born. <br />
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If it was not for this wonderful woman at Anchor Point, who gave of her time to meet with me, I do not know if I or my beautiful daughter would even be here now. She helped me see God’s strength and the love that He had for me. She helped me see that I was not the piece of trash which I felt I was. She helped me see that God still had a meaning and purpose for my life. I for once felt like a huge weight had been lifted. I was finally able to tell David and others about the truth in the rape because I no longer took the blame and I could deal with the truth myself.<br />
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I would like to say that all the pain and struggles were finally over and everything else was easy, but after I had my daughter, I often saw the person who had raped me in her. This made it so very hard for me. I love my daughter and she did not deserve me pushing her away. I did everything I could do to make sure she had someone around her to show her love when it was hard for me to do so.<br />
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-paoGOmS8cls/Wus_AeJyOgI/AAAAAAAAaVg/zL4_nA4UvpUyqBG0o9Dj8Rdx1HtEq3kaQCLcBGAs/s1600/20180502_223353.png" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1448" data-original-width="1076" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-paoGOmS8cls/Wus_AeJyOgI/AAAAAAAAaVg/zL4_nA4UvpUyqBG0o9Dj8Rdx1HtEq3kaQCLcBGAs/s320/20180502_223353.png" width="237" /></a>I went back in to Anchor Point again to get some help through this, so that I could see God when I look at her. They listened to me and prayed with me. Each day I have been getting stronger. The days that I see him in her have been fewer and fewer. I now see a wonderful baby girl who God is going to bless and use for His glory! God has shown me a vision of being able to share my story and help other women who have or are going through the same hurt and pain as I have.<br />
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I mentioned in the beginning my love for storms because, when you are going through the storms and the clouds are so dark, it makes the light just that much brighter when the rays of sun start coming through. I just thank God that He put Anchor Point and Angel in my path to be a ray of light, to help me find God’s strength which has kept going each and every day.<br />
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My daughter is three and a half years old now. I gave her a name which means the light of Christ, and she truly is. I am a year out now to getting my masters degree in Spiritual Formation, and I am celebrating my 3rd year of owning my own massage clinic, so I can still use the gifts God has given me. My God is so good!
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-590uaV15Ohk/Wus-oJO438I/AAAAAAAAaVU/-E9Vf1jlpVwxjlUXbDUd_oNO4UaiKCOUQCLcBGAs/s1600/Dawn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1408" data-original-width="1408" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-590uaV15Ohk/Wus-oJO438I/AAAAAAAAaVU/-E9Vf1jlpVwxjlUXbDUd_oNO4UaiKCOUQCLcBGAs/s320/Dawn.jpg" width="320" /></a>BIO: "Genesis James" is a mother of four children, a professional masseuse and now a pro-life blogger for <a href="http://www.savethe1.com/" target="_blank">Save The 1</a>. She is using a pseudonym to protect her family.<br />
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Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-18585966671084574602018-04-25T20:57:00.000-05:002018-04-26T07:38:25.891-05:00She's My Shining Light Out of The Most Awful Situation, by "Malia"<div dir="ltr" style="background-color: white; color: #26282a;">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">It was the start of my junior year. I was a normal 16 year old teenager. Over the summer, my parents renewed their vows which was like a second wedding for them. I enjoyed going to the lake where my uncle lived. I did things with my friends, enjoyed my close-knit family, and was looking forward to starting another school year. Dating wasn't an interest for me since I was so focused on friends, family and studies. All of that changed when I was targeted and raped by a convicted sex offender.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">In October 2016, I was spending the night at a house behind me. We've known this family for about 8 years. My friend was a year older than me. Her older sister Paige, age 25, offered to take us for a ride and meet up with her family. As soon as we got to her family's house, there were a couple of older men there, and I was very uncomfortable -- pleading with her three times for her to take us home. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I'd prefer not to go into details of that horrific night, but it resulted in this 32 year old man, Shane R. Rodgers, raping me. After that, I was never the same. My parents knew something was wrong. I didn't want to go school. I didn't want to get out of bed or go anywhere. I couldn't sleep without my light on and I never wanted to be alone. Suffering with fear and shame, I kept it all in.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I knew pregnancy was a possibility, but was relieved when I continued to have a regular cycle. However, about six months after the rape, I began to feel distinct movement in my abdomen. So a friend and I went to the dollar store and got a pregnancy test, which showed up positive. I was a virgin when I was raped and never had relations since, so I knew right away what this meant. I went to the 25 year old neighbor who had driven me to the house that night, and told her I was pregnant. Paige took me to a clinic which confirmed my pregnancy. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">That night, I told my mom, but Paige had convinced me to say it was a stranger, because she was afraid of getting into trouble herself. I was naive and didn't know she had set me up all along -- basically, trafficking me to her cousin (with whom she was having sex) who was a convicted child molester who'd already gone to prison with a plea for attempting to rape an 11 year old girl. I thought she was trying to protect me, while all along I was just a simple pawn in her sick, twisted game.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">My mom was shocked, but showed me love and support. We told my dad when he got home from work the next morning, and I broke down and ended up telling him everything. My dad was of course furious, and we called the police. The rapist was arrested that same evening, and I'm glad to say, he's been in jail ever since. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">In fact, he was just sentenced by Judge Margaret Noe in Lenawee County with a plea deal for 3rd degree criminal sexual conduct, and will be serving out the 6 year remainder of his prior sentence, plus another 5 to 10 years for raping me. I never thought I'd share my difficult story publicly, but after seeing comments under the <a href="http://www.lenconnect.com/news/20180422/adrian-man-gets-at-least-five-years-after-he-impregnated-teen" target="_blank">news coverage of his sentencing</a>, I feel I need to speak up and not be silent any longer. This man admitted in court as to what he did to me -- he admitted it wasn't consensual and that I was lured to the home by my neighbor. I went through hell and nobody but myself will ever understand. When I realized that people were defending a man who could do something so awful and continue on without a care, I was so hurt, but now I have found my voice.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">No girl ever deserves to be raped. It is never her fault. Clearly this man has been a predator for a long time, and I'm only now learning that Paige not only trafficked me, but many other girls as well.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">As far as my daughter, she is everything to me, and she is the one who is getting me through the trauma of the rape. I've been homeschooling for my senior year. I won't be going to prom. I won't be graduating with all of my peers. We moved away because I was tormented by my neighbors after going to the police. My whole life has changed, yet, my child is not to blame -- just like Judge Noe pointed out in Court at his sentencing when she said, "The child bears none of the ugliness of what he did." She showed a lot of compassion for me and my daughter, and I was really touched when I heard what all this good judge had to say.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">My baby girl is my hero. If it hadn't been for her, this child molester would still be free raping other </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">girls. And I will do anything to protect my daughter. I wouldn't be here today if it wasn't for her. And I wouldn't be getting justice without her.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I was horrified last fall when I saw that a judge in Sanilac County, Michigan gave joint legal custody and parenting time to another two-time convicted child molester, and I was immediately afraid a judge could do the same once my rapist gets out of prison. His family was already trying to send me friend requests on social media, and I needed to be sure my child would forever be safe from all of them. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">So my mom contacted the attorney who had represented the mother in Sanilac County and ultimately got her and her child protected from the rapist. Rebecca Kiessling agreed to handle my case for free as well, and explained the law that was passed in the summer of 2016 which was intended to protect women like me who become pregnant by rape.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Fortunately, at his sentencing in Lenawee County, Shane Rodgers signed the two key court papers we needed him to sign -- the judgment of paternity and the order revoking paternity (as required by the Michigan Rape Survivor Child Custody Act.) However, I just found out that Judge Theresa Brennan in Livingston County won't just sign the consent order, but is requiring my attorney to file a motion on it. I'm so scared. I thought it would be simple if he was agreeing to the termination of his parental rights. I just want this part over with so I can have peace of mind that whatever happens in the future -- whether it's him getting out of prison, with regards to his family, or if something were to happen to me, then I could know my child will be safe and protected by the courts.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">Some people think I made the wrong decision in keeping my daughter. Some even tried to convince me to give her up for adoption. It was a tough decision for a teenager to make, but my daughter has been the shining light that came out of the most awful situation. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">When I first held my child in my arms, nothing could ever compare to that moment. I knew that she was innocent in all of this. </span><span style="font-family: inherit;">I'll never forget that she helped me get justice for the both of us. </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I'm still healing to this day, I still have trouble coping with what happened to me, and I know it will be with me for the rest of my life, as well as my daughter's. I never want someone to go through what I went through, and I want to encourage anyone who has: yes, it may be hard, but please don't be afraid to ask for help or speak out. Don't be ashamed of what happened to you as I was. You had no control. And I promise, one day, it will get better.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;">I really want to thank the Michigan legislators who passed that law so the rapist won't have any part of my child. If you ever wonder what kind of difference you can make, you are making a real difference in my life and the life of my beautiful daughter!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br />BIO: "Malia" is a 17 year old homeschool student about to graduate and is the mother of one. She's now a pro-life blogger for Save The 1, and wants to help other rape survivors.</span></div>
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Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-25339072402904364432018-04-24T12:19:00.002-05:002018-04-24T21:11:24.467-05:00Impregnated As I Was Passed Out, Raped and Filmed by My Husband, I Now Fight For My Son, by "Sarah"<div style="background-color: white; color: #454545; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; line-height: normal;">
<span style="font-size: 17pt;">Sometimes I feel like I am the person who fell between the cracks -- the lost and forgotten. I struggle in silence. I'm sharing my story here because I want to raise awareness regarding spousal rape and how serious it is. Laws have been passed here in Florida and elsewhere to terminate the parental rights of rapists -- without a marital exception. However, the judge in my particular case acknowledged the rape, but justified giving him visitation, saying, "Well, he didn't hurt the child." </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">It not just the courts who lack compassion either. When I tell someone that I was raped, they'll say, "Oh, that's terrible." But when I say it was by my husband, their tone quickly changes, as if it's not as serious of an offense. From older generations, I'll hear things like, "Oh, I didn't know it's possible that your husband could rape you." It makes me realize the misconceptions people have. I want people to know that it's at least as bad as being raped by a stranger. This was very personal -- someone I chose and trusted, and the ultimate betrayal.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">My husband and I had separated for a few months because my ex-husband was worried about him being around our daughter and there were a lot of complicated issues which led to the separation. On weekends that my ex-husband had our daughter, I did see my husband a few times. When I found out I was pregnant, I kind of thought the timing was off, and maybe I was further than the doctor was calculating, but I didn't really give it a lot of thought. Not wanting my child to be raised with divorced parents, we got back together and rented a house.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">About four or five months into my pregnancy, I was using my husband's computer, and saw a file labelled "star-porn." My curiosity was definitely piqued, wondering what my husband was up to. I clicked on it, and my mind could barely comprehend what I was seeing. I was in a state of shock and absolutely mortified by the images on the screen. Despite what felt like having an out-of-body experience, I somehow had the clarity of mind to make a copy, as my entire being was shaking in terror.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">In the three different videos, which were filmed on my husband's mobile phone, it was clear that I was either completely unconscious, or semi-conscious in one of them as I uttered the word "rape," and that my husband was clearly raping me. To my horror, he used household objects to assault me (an iPhone and a brush).</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">As I viewed these unimaginable scenes, I felt a sense of humiliation that I've never felt before. My heart was racing and I was in a cold sweat. The videos had the dates they were filmed. When I calculated the doctor's estimated date of conception, it coincided with the date of the videos, and that's when I realized that my child was conceived in rape.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">I sent him a text message saying, "You raped me." In a panic, he came rushing home from work, knowing I'd discovered the videos. He actually had the audacity to tell me I was nosy. I asked him why he did it, and he s</span><span style="font-size: 17pt;">aid he was angry with me, but that he couldn't remember why.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">He told me that if I turned in the video. the police would have to see me like that, and lots of people would see me like that. Because he was my husband, he said, </span><span style="font-size: 17pt;">"No one will believe you," and warned me, "You know how vindictive I can be. I will fight for custody." Scared, humiliated, and confused, I remained silent.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">On top of that, I was a stay-at-home mom with a daughter from a prior marriage, along with being pregnant. It wasn't like I could go job hunting with a baby showing. Who would want to hire me? I was incredibly vulnerable with nowhere to go, so I stayed in the home we had just moved into. I'd hope he would have some remorse and leave me alone.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">Things just got worse. I would wake up to him masturbating over my face. I could no longer sleep out of fear -- fear he would rape me, film me or otherwise violate me. </span><span style="font-size: 22.6667px;">He knew that I was terrified, and started threatening to kill me. He would make comments like, "You never know when you might not wake up."</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 22.6667px;">As I was in labor for my son, my husband was flirting with the mid-wife, and singing. It was awkward. Since I was delivering without pain medication, I didn't even have the energy to say anything. I wished so much he wasn't there. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 22.6667px;">When my son was born, all I felt was love. He was amazing. I'd had an abortion when I was younger, and suffered greatly from it, so I felt like my son was a second chance. It never crossed my mind that my son is the child of my rapist. He's my child, and he didn't do anything wrong. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 22.6667px;">My husband had no interest in my son. If someone was watching, he'd act like he's superdad. At times, he was even sadistic, putting hot sauce in the baby's food to laugh at his reaction, or putting a bottle of alcohol under the baby's nose. To this day, my son won't eat anything red because he's afraid it will be hot.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 22.6667px;">After the baby was born, My husband's disdain for me seemed to grow, since he resented the attention I gave to the children, and the bond I had with them. He also resented my family. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 22.6667px;">He also did a lot of little things that to most people wouldn't make much sense. He threatened to kill himself all the time. On several occasions, he would take my son for a bike ride to lull him to sleep, but then wouldn't come home until one in the morning, not answering his phone the whole time. I was terrified he would commit a murder-suicide. I always tried not to leave my son alone with him.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 22.6667px;">The abuse toward me went on, and I began getting counseling. </span><span style="font-size: 17pt;">I was diagnosed as suffering from PTSD. My therapist said I needed to get out of there, regardless of the financial devastation. By this time, my son was two years old. My father helped me to move out with my daughter and son. </span><span style="font-size: 17pt;"> </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">With courage and counseling, on the day I was planning to leave, I went to t</span><span style="font-size: 17pt;">he police with the video evidence of the rapes on my external hard drive.</span><span style="font-size: 17pt;"> Initially, the police detective told me I didn't have a case. Feeling defeated, I returned home, but the next day, I went back to the police station and demanded to see her superior, and I was told that they would take my case.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">I returned home to load up my vehicle, but somehow, my husband must have known I was planning to leave and he came home from work. He tried to get me into the garage with him, which is where he kept his gun. I called my father, who was right down street, and he left. </span><span style="font-size: 17pt;"> </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">The detective who was hostile toward me was kept on the case. She actually said to me, "Maybe you're into that sort of thing." What kind of a woman would be "into" having objects brutally forced into her?! Then the detective interviewed him, and the report she issued was extremely biased. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">However, it still went to a state attorney who explained to me that a jury wouldn't understand because he's my husband and because I didn't leave sooner. I was also told that it's very rare for juries to convict in rape cases.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">Terrified for the safety of me and my children, I fled the state and went to stay with family. On Skype, my husband was waiving a gun, so I got a photo of that. But my husband had divorce papers prepared a month before I left, and I was quickly ordered to return. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">With nowhere to go, I stayed at a domestic violence shelter, where they helped me to file for a restraining order, which was granted. I was hoping my battle to protect myself and my children was over, but the legal battle has gone on for over two years now.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 22.6667px;">At the last hearing, the judge actually watched the videos and said that he's not an expert in rape, but that it sure looks like rape, and denied my husband's request to terminate the restraining order. However, the judge is still allowing supervised visitation every other weekend, with mandatory Skyping bi-weekly. His mom, who tried to get me to delete the videos, is doing the supervision.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">Florida actually passed a law several years ago to terminate the parental rights of rapists, without requiring a rape conviction, and without a marital exception. However, I can't find an attorney who is willing to file a case for me to terminate his parental rights, saying I could somehow risk losing custody because of something called "the friendly parent" provision, which requires parents to facilitate a good relationship with the other parent. I don't understand the culture of attorneys in my county, and it's hard to know who to trust.</span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">I am on the verge of homelessness. </span><span style="font-size: 17pt;">I live in an RV now. I'm still not divorced because the court won't grant it until custody is settled. I had to arrange for my daughter from a previous marriage to stay with her father during the school year while I get on my feet. </span></div>
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">The Brevard County Family Court judge found that my husband raped me and threatened our lives with a gun. Despite that, I cannot be more than 50 miles from my rapist. I'm required by this court to find a way to be the "friendly parent" so I can "co-parent" -- all the while in fear he will kill me and/or my son to punish me for telling.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">Despite a restraining order and his past criminal record, he is now a teacher at a public middle school in Florida. If the police had done their job, he'd be a registered sex offender. </span><br />
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<span style="font-size: 17pt;">To anyone who believes that being raped by your spouse isn't as bad as stranger rape, I'm here to say it's worse. This is someone who I loved enough to say "I do." Now I see that I made a horrible judgment-call. I can no longer trust myself or anyone else. Everyone is a potential predator.<br /><br />BIO: "Sarah" is a mother of two, has been an active member of Save The 1's group for mothers who became pregnant by rape, and is now a blogger for <a href="http://www.savethe1.com/" target="_blank">Save The 1</a>. She hopes to one day be an advocate for other rape victim mothers and their children. If you are able to assist "Sarah" on her case, please contact <a href="http://www.savethe1.com/rebecca-kiessling-mi-pro-life-speaker/" target="_blank">Rebecca Kiessling</a> (an attorney only licensed to practice in Michigan, President of Save The 1.)</span></div>
Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-48301919467453625032018-04-13T14:09:00.000-05:002018-04-13T15:18:42.733-05:00My Mom and Dad Forced an Abortion On Me to Protect Him, by Joyce Ann Born<br />
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I grew between West Virginia, Ohio and Oklahoma.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The first I can remember my dad molesting me
is when I was four years old, living in Columbus, Ohio.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It was Christmastime and my mom was with my
younger brother who was in the hospital with asthma.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We almost lost him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was home alone with my dad, on the basement
steps with my back turned, and my dad was touching me inappropriately.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t like it, but I was afraid.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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My dad was a mean drunk, like the devil was in him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On one occasion, my dad had me run up and
down a hill with a little puppy, then he took that puppy and hung him right in
front of me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>On another occasion, he told
me he’d put a bunch of kittens in a bag and ran over them with his car.<br />
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Whenever my dad wanted to touch me, he was drinking whiskey
and I had a feeling of dread come over my shoulders.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I never told anyone, but my mom eventually
knew what was happening and she didn’t stop it.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>In fact, at times, she was in bed with us when he was abusing me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember it always hurt.</div>
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At the age of 11, I lost my virginity to my dad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Again, I was afraid and confused.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I didn’t even understand what was
happening.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My mom was in the room
sitting at a table.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When he was done, he
walked over to my mom and chastised her, “You let someone else get her before
me.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then he started to beat on her.</div>
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The abuse went on for years, about four or five times a
week.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When he would rape me, I would
close my eyes, my body would go numb, and I would go somewhere else in my head.
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I knew what he did to me was wrong and I
felt different from others.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>At a young
age, I just thought that this must be how daddies love their daughters.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But around the age of 13, I realized that
this is not the way things are supposed to be.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I began looking at boys and realized that normal attraction is toward
people closer to your own age.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I liked boys my own age, and my dad should have only been attracted to my mom.</div>
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From a young age, I had become a loner.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> I was a skinny little girl with long hair and sad eyes. </span>Other children made fun of me and I didn’t want to talk in front of others because I was bullied a lot.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I felt like my dad controlled me, and I felt
dirty.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
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<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5X_5m2pCuuQ/WtEAIjopBiI/AAAAAAAAaMY/mackezM_bhIPmiCcWkNAAS4MRZN-c4oiQCLcBGAs/s1600/woman%2Bsad%2B8.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1068" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-5X_5m2pCuuQ/WtEAIjopBiI/AAAAAAAAaMY/mackezM_bhIPmiCcWkNAAS4MRZN-c4oiQCLcBGAs/s320/woman%2Bsad%2B8.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
In 1965, at the age of 14, I told my mom that I missed a
period, but she just told me that it was okay and that it would come back.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But I missed it again and I knew that meant I
could be pregnant. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s when my mom and
dad took me a strange house in New Rome, a suburb of Columbus, Ohio.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I thought we were just visiting one of my dad’s
friends.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><br />
<br />
My mom told me everything would be okay.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I could hear my dad talking to this strange man.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then my parents left me alone with him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was afraid and starting crying.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He took me down into his basement.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I remember he had a cloth with a strange odor
that he put over my mouth, and then the next thing I knew, I woke up at home
bleeding profusely out of my privates.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My mom had ice in bags that she was putting on me, with towels around me
to soak up the blood.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was confused at
first and didn’t know what happened to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I didn’t know anything about abortions.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My mom never said a word to me about what was done to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Really, we never talked at all -- same thing
with my dad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We didn’t talk.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Within a week or two, he began raping me again, and it went
on for another two years until I left home at the age of 16.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I met a man who was 21 years old who wanted
to marry me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My mom helped me to leave
so that my dad would finally have sex with her.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
However, after I left home, my dad tried raping my 13 year
old sister, but she was able to fight him off with the help of my two younger
brothers and my mom, who ended up getting severely beaten by my dad.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then my sister told a neighbor lady.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Knowing he would finally face arrest, he headed
up into the hollers of West Virginia and they couldn’t find him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My parents eventually divorced. <br />
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I felt terrible when I knew that they had fought so hard to
protect my sister, but had not protected me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I talked to my brothers about it, and they just said, “We were kids when
this all started.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>What we were going to
do?”</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Looking back, I realize now that my mom and dad had forced
an illegal abortion upon me in order to protect him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>They didn’t want me to have a baby and have
the truth come out that he was the father. I feel like I missed out on a
blessing, even though this was my dad’s baby.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I grieve that I missed out on something.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I know I would have loved my baby.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It’s not the baby’s fault that my dad molested me.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My children are my life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My son was born four days before my 17<sup>th</sup> birthday and from
the beginning, I loved him completely.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My children come first in my life. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am totally pro-life.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I took my daughter to the March For Life in
Washington, D.C. when she was 14 years old.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Despite what I went through, I think I’d be pro-life regardless because
I love babies.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Abortion is the end of a life – someone who is part of
you.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It’s much better to carry a child
and put him or her up for adoption.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Every child is a blessing from God.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>My baby had a soul.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I feel sad
and angry at what my mom and dad did to me – it wasn’t their right for me to be
raped and it wasn’t their right to take that baby away from me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One day, that baby will be in my arms.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
It makes me upset when I hear people say that it’s necessary
to have abortion legal in cases of rape or incest, but you need to think about
what abortion does – it ends a life and it protects the perpetrator.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Even if a mom was taking a girl for an abortion,
that could be like my mom who was just trying to protect my dad and herself,
because she’d been letting him molest me for all of these years.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My mom and dad never apologized for everything they’d done
to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I had gone nearly a dozen years
without seeing him, but when I found out he was dying of cancer, I went to see
him because I thought that no one should have to die alone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I told him, “Dad, I forgive you for what you
did to me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I forgive you, not for you,
but for myself.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He surely heard me, but
acted like he didn’t.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eGNB_tF-7P0/WtD_qyIolnI/AAAAAAAAaMU/5Y7jw5ofQ8UGknwcc4oBQtSYJFCBVF65gCLcBGAs/s1600/Joyce%2BAnn%2BBorn.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-eGNB_tF-7P0/WtD_qyIolnI/AAAAAAAAaMU/5Y7jw5ofQ8UGknwcc4oBQtSYJFCBVF65gCLcBGAs/s320/Joyce%2BAnn%2BBorn.jpg" width="320" /></a>I still struggle.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I
have nightmares to this day and I’m still in therapy.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No one should ever have to go through what I
went through, and I just hope that my story will help someone with their life –
whether you have suffered abuse, whether you are a mom who is concerned about
her husband or boyfriend’s behavior, or whether you’ve suffered an
abortion.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>No one deserves to be
harmed.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Everyone should be able to live
a peaceful life.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
BIO:<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> A post-abortive survivor of incest, </span>Joyce Ann Born is now a mother of two and a
grandmother of six, residing in Ohio, and is now a pro-life blogger for <a href="http://www.savethe1.com/">Save The 1</a>.</div>
<br />
<br />Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-1884908771271251692018-04-10T19:28:00.000-05:002018-04-10T20:19:21.478-05:00Sudanese Refugee Who Raped Me Now Seeks Custody of My Little Miracle, by Penny<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">When I met
him in the summer of 2016, he seemed friendly, but it was clear that he didn’t understand boundaries
as he was touchy, hugged a lot and was seen asking all of the women in the
neighborhood if they needed help with their yard or in the house. He told me
and my mom that he wanted to find a white woman to marry and have kids with.
Despite these odd behaviors, the few times I had spoken with him, he still seemed
genuinely wanting to help women. I just figured he was naïve and that there
were cultural differences because he was a Sudanese refugee.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">When I heard
that he had gone to jail for a disturbing crime of “sexual contact with a
vulnerable adult,” I was shocked and confused.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I reached out to him in jail to get his side of the story. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was met there by his refugee advocate, and
they both assured me of his innocence. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Upon his
release from jail, he contacted me, asking if he could see me to thank me for
coming to see him in the jail. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>We talked
over the course of a few days and became friends. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">There was a
lot of prejudice going on in my small Idaho town about the refugees, and
befriending him was my way of being positive and welcoming. When he was soon
dismissed of the sexual assault charge, that was confirmation for me of his
innocence.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">It wasn't
very long before he began making comments about wanting to be more than
friends. At this time, my boyfriend and I were going through a hard time and in
the middle of a split, and this Sudanese man knew this. He acted concerned, but
soon started to say things about wanting to be with me, and I made it very
clear that it would never happen. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I was now
staying with a friend. My phone was going to be shut off soon because of my
inability to pay for it. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When I told him
about it, he got very sad and offered to pay so he’d be able to talk to me. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He became obsessive in calling and texting, but
I felt obligated to reply. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">He would
always ask me who I was with, what I was doing, and where I was. He would
constantly ask me to come over or if he could come where I was. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I didn't respond in time or told him I was
busy, he would become upset and tell me how lonely he was and sad.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">He began
saying things like I was his heart and he wasn't complete without me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I repeatedly told him it wasn't appropriate
and I only cared for him like a brother. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Still, this didn't stop the unwelcomed comments.
On numerous occasions out in public, he would try to put his arm around me. He
would ask, “If you and me had a baby, would they have your eyes?” <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Or he would point to a baby and say, “If we
had a baby, would it look like that?” I told him to stop saying those things,
and that it wasn't ok to ask me that because it wouldn't happen and it made me
uncomfortable. He would just laugh, and act like he was just joking around.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">But then he
tried to get me to move in with him to save money, which I refused. To avoid
seeing him, I used the excuse of not having gas, so he insisted on filling my
gas tank to make sure that wouldn't be an issue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>In hindsight, I now see how I was the one who
was naïve, still feeling sorry for him and believing he was awkward but kind.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>One night, I told him I was having a girls
night with my friend. He showed up where we were, and even though he said it
was against his Muslim faith to drink alcohol, he bought us drinks that night. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>While I was dancing with a guy, I could see he
was behaving jealous, and again, I told him his feelings were inappropriate. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">When it came
time to leave, he began begging me to come with him. He was almost in tears
because I refused and proceeded to confess his love, but in a harassing way, turning
into a scene.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My friend was concerned,
and even the bouncer had noticed, asking if I was okay. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After almost a half hour of arguing with him,
he finally stopped, and I told him it would be best for him to stay away
from me if being around me was so hard on him and he couldn't accept the way
things were. He then grabbed me and forcibly kissed me. I was so upset! <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I walked away from him and over to my friend
who saw the whole thing, along with the bouncer. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">We didn't
talk for a few days and I thought he must have finally accepted what I had
said. Then I received messages telling me that he had talked with his god and
asked for forgiveness for having such out of control feelings of love and
desire for sex.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He told me it was
against his religion to even be around me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I told him I didn't want to compromise his beliefs and I understood why
he was saying goodbye. But it wasn’t long before he began texting me again.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">A few weeks
later, my friend and I dressed up for Halloween, but decided to stay in. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He asked us to come to the bar, offering to buy
drinks, but we declined. Reluctantly, we agreed he could stop by because his
apology had seemed so sincere, so my friend drove my car to go get him. I had
already had some drinks at that point and was feeling the effects. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">It came time
for us to settle down and get ready for bed. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I aired up my mattress, but he asked that I go
with him for just a bit to the bar and he would buy me another drink. My friend
expressed that she didn't think it was a good idea because I wasn't in a good
state of mind to make decisions. He took her aside and assured her I’d be safe,
but she was adamant that I was too intoxicated.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>Regrettably, I began to argue with her, and it ended in me leaving with
him.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">He drove my
car to the store to get more beer and then drove to the canyon rim. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I drank more in the car. Then he began kissing
me while I was drunk and vulnerable. The next thing I knew, we were at his
house in the bedroom.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>As I was sobering
up, I realized what he had planned.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I said
I was tired and needed to sleep. But he would not accept that.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">He undressed
and grabbed his penis, sadistically telling me he was sure that “_____” (the developmentally
disable girl who had previously accused him of sexual assault) was scared of
how big his penis was. He had just admitted to me that he really did commit
assault upon that girl! In that moment, realizing he’d raped before and got
away with it, I was absolutely terrified.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>It was clear he said it to scare me, to let me know he was about to rape
me.<o:p></o:p></span><br />
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4ffm2Fa9Sxw/Ws1YX32c8pI/AAAAAAAAaAs/O5XdzX1wGAMgZ3ebuAi0UNKbM0TiABgUQCLcBGAs/s1600/woman%2Bsad%2Bface%2Bin%2Bhands.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" data-original-height="902" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-4ffm2Fa9Sxw/Ws1YX32c8pI/AAAAAAAAaAs/O5XdzX1wGAMgZ3ebuAi0UNKbM0TiABgUQCLcBGAs/s400/woman%2Bsad%2Bface%2Bin%2Bhands.jpg" width="400" /></span></a></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I pleaded
with him to stop -- that this wasn't ok, and he told me it wasn't ok to stop. I
started crying and pleading. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When he was
done, I sobbed and repeatedly asked, “Why would you do this?” It was bizarre as
he described the shape and feel of my insides. (I now think of the accusations in the police report of the developmentally disabled girl, which I've since read, and how
similar this was.)<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I begged him to please
leave me alone.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>After several minutes he
finally did, and left the room.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>With my
head spinning, I cried myself to sleep. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">The next
morning, he was sitting at the table and began telling me how sorry he was. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I told him if he was sorry he had to go buy me
the morning after pill. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He went and got
it quickly because he lived close to Walmart. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I took it right there and then left.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I told my
friend how he raped me, and she urged me to go to the police, but I didn't
report the rape because I was so afraid. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>He had gotten away with this once before. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>If I reported him and he got out of jail again,
he knew where my mom lived, where my friends lived, where my ex lived. . . . <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was too afraid of what he might do.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Weeks went
by and I still hadn't started my cycle, though I assumed that the morning after
pill was successful.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The box said it had
a 98% success rate at preventing pregnancy. Nevertheless, I eventually took a
pregnancy test and I couldn't believe I was pregnant! <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I hadn’t
seen him since the night he raped me.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My
mom moved out into the countryside, and I moved with her to get away from
him.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Since he didn’t have a car, I
figured he’d finally leave me alone if I was far enough away.<br />
<br />
When I first learned I was pregnant, I was even more furious with him than
before.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>So I sent him a message telling
him the consequences of what he’d done.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>He said I should marry him. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Disgusted,
I told him, “Never!” It was then that I realized he’d done this all to get a
white wife.<br />
<br />
He then said he didn't want children with a woman he wasn't married to. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I told him he should not have done what he did
then.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Then he started pressuring me to
abort. He even told me that the refugee advocate was a nurse and could get me a
pill that would cause me to lose the baby. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I told him repeatedly to stop asking me to
abort, but he kept at it. I had made up my mind that, having survived the
morning after pill, the little miracle growing in me was meant to be.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Eventually,
he left me alone and I went on with my pregnancy without hearing from him. That
was until weeks before I was about to deliver, when he messaged me over Facebook
asking me how I was -- like everything was just normal and nothing had
happened. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">He asked if
I was having a boy or girl and seemed to insinuate that my ex got me pregnant, so
I asked him, “Are you in denial?” Again, he said he wished to have kids with a
girl he was married to. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I responded that
this not a situation I’d ever thought I’d be in, but I’d accepted it and was
looking forward to the birth of my baby. I brought up the night he raped me, and
he began to lie about what happened, and kept saying, “If the baby is mine, I
will take care of it.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That freaked me
out, because he’d wanted her dead through abortion, so I was scared he’d kill
her once she’s born.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I told him she was
my baby and I didn’t want him to be a part of her life.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">After she
was born, he contacted me again asking whose she was, saying he’d have to get
DNA done and asking if I was on assistance. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>When he asked if he could see her, I told him
I wasn't comfortable with that. He began to say that we should raise her
together and that I was selfish. I was terrified!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I asked him what his religion says about all
of this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I told him he would never see
her unsupervised, but reluctantly agreed for him to see her just once, so he
could see she’s clearly biracial, just hoping this would make it easier to get
child support for her because I didn’t know how I would be able to raise her
without financial help. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>But instead of
following through with the visit, he blocked me from contacting him and I was
relieved.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hn8wAn8NDPo/Ws1Z3-AE3VI/AAAAAAAAaA4/HaX2QQHg8L4k9obZ9pSspmCZGWomdmCKQCLcBGAs/s1600/Penny%2BR.%2BTwin%2BFalls%2BCounty%2BCourthouse.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><span style="font-family: inherit;"><img border="0" data-original-height="310" data-original-width="401" height="247" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-hn8wAn8NDPo/Ws1Z3-AE3VI/AAAAAAAAaA4/HaX2QQHg8L4k9obZ9pSspmCZGWomdmCKQCLcBGAs/s320/Penny%2BR.%2BTwin%2BFalls%2BCounty%2BCourthouse.jpg" width="320" /></span></a></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">Eventually,
he was sued by the state of Idaho to establish paternity and child support in
the Twin Falls County Court. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Instead
of merely attending what I thought was a status conference for child support,
the man who raped me had hired an attorney and filed for shared custody of my
baby.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>For the first time, I was finally
willing to speak up and I asked Judge Thomas D. Kershaw Jr., “What do I need to do to get
charges filed?”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>The judge asked, “What
kind of charges?” and I replied, “Criminal charges.”<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>That’s when the judge told me that it’s not
advisable to threaten charges just because a father who has rights to his child
is asking for custody.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I assured the
judge, “It’s not like that,” but the judge told me that I have unrealistic
expectations, and “What do you expect to happen when you have a baby with
somebody?”<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I never
anticipated the Court would be like this.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I hadn’t considered that my rapist -- who wanted my baby aborted, who
said having a child out of marriage would bring shame to him -- would actually
want custody of my child!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I know now
that this is a power and control issue.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;">
</span>I have no doubt as to why he is doing this. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I have now filed a police report, but I only
wish I’d gone to the police right away. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span><o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">I’m on state
assistance, but I had to hire an attorney, which will cost $3,500 minimum.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>My mom is helping me, but it won’t be nearly
enough. I've now learned that under Idaho law, Section 16:2005, the court can terminate his parental rights, with a "rebuttable presumption" that it's in my child's best interests where the "parent caused the child to be conceived as a result of rape," and Idaho law does not require a rape conviction, like some other states still do.<br />
<br />
I protected my little miracle during my pregnancy, and the thought of him being
anywhere near my daughter has given me the courage to come forward and tell our
story of how she was conceived.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I joined
a support group a while ago for other rape victim moms, and I heard the
horror stories of others having to fight their rapist over custody, but somehow
with him claiming his religion was so important to him, I never thought he would
have the audacity to seek any parental rights, let alone custody. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;">My rapist should
never be trusted with a baby. <span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>Having
sexually assaulted a developmentally disabled girl and having raped me,
I'm terrified of what he is capable of doing to my baby girl. If he could
take advantage of two vulnerable women, then what would he do to a child? <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: inherit;"><br /></span></div>
<span style="font-family: inherit;">BIO: Penny is a mother of two, and a member of and now pro-life blogger for <a href="http://www.savethe1.com/" target="_blank">Save The 1</a>. She is hoping to advocate for laws to be changed in other states so that a rape conviction is not necessary and other moms and their children can be protected. In the meantime, Penny and her baby need to be protected by the 5th Judicial Court of Twin Falls County, and has a <a href="https://www.gofundme.com/dptcqx-custody-lawyer" target="_blank">Gofundme Account</a> set up for her by a friend.</span>Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-31582002618810710532018-03-21T10:47:00.000-05:002018-06-22T06:54:25.293-05:00Decision Reversal after Rape Conception ~by Darlene Pawlik<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uiEB9Y1oAHA/WrJ9zTV0WjI/AAAAAAAAArg/fVwRON4wz8kr96w8edbgzF73ECGqdWnYQCLcBGAs/s1600/4d%2Bultrasound%2BTabby.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="422" data-original-width="383" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-uiEB9Y1oAHA/WrJ9zTV0WjI/AAAAAAAAArg/fVwRON4wz8kr96w8edbgzF73ECGqdWnYQCLcBGAs/s320/4d%2Bultrasound%2BTabby.jpg" width="290" /></a></div>
<br />
Life long or life altering decisions should not be made while distressed.<br />
<h3>
In Case of Rape</h3>
We often hear, "What about rape," when discussing abortion. People still succumb to a confused compassion, believing that somehow, killing her baby will help a woman heal from the core violation of sexual assault.<br />
<br />
A woman traumatized by rape is often so damaged in her psyche that she doesn't even tell anyone. It is such a deep wound that talking about it can take decades. So, too, many people do not share their abortion experience for many years. They keep it a secret, an unspoken source of pain.<br />
<br />
So, how is it that anyone could think the combination of two traumatic and excruciatingly painful events will somehow bring anything good?<br />
<h3>
Rape Conception</h3>
At this time, this is still an experience exclusive to women. Men get raped, but they don't get pregnant. Fathers, husbands, and male friends are super important to this conversation, though. Men were created to be protectors and providers complimenting women in the roles of family, leadership, and society. Both have value and both have a voice in the discussion.<br />
<br />
Except are the perpetrators. Forcing a woman and penetrating her, causing her to become pregnant excludes that man from the conversation. His aggression should automatically exclude him from any part of what happens next. "Rapists love abortion," says <a href="http://www.rebeccakiessling.com/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Rebecca Kiessling</a>, president of <a href="http://www.savethe1.com/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">Save The 1.</a> They would have the evidence destroyed. The rapist should never have parental rights either. That is a whole other blog post.<br />
<br />
No one, other than the rapist, is forcing her to carry a baby. The baby, is an innocent second victim of the hideous crime of rape. Killing her baby by abortion is no different than killing her baby after he or she is born. Rape has changed her life forever, whether or not she conceives.<br />
I know it's legal -that doesn't make it right. Slavery was legal too. Still wrong!<br />
Will it be difficult? Most assuredly. Can she get through it? Absolutely. And she will be victorious. She will have protected the human rights of her baby, one of the smallest and most vulnerable of society.<br />
<h3>
She needs time to process</h3>
Pregnancy changes a woman forever. No matter the outcome. She has been a mom. Most women do not know they are pregnant for around 6 weeks. Since pregnancy is about 40 weeks, she will know about 34 weeks of pregnancy. For perspective, the average woman lives to 72 years in the USA. In reality, the impact isn't how long she's pregnant, but the fact that she has a baby.<br />
<br />
Sexual assault survivors can thrive and I know many who have, but it does take some time to process the intense emotional impact of rape. There will also be a difference between one woman to the next, if it was a simple assault of a healthy woman or a complex situation of domestic violence, continued abuses, or trafficking. Each woman needs time to work through the core violation.<br />
<br />
How much time is completely indeterminate. She may be in a healthy, sound place one day and go into a tailspin the next. Women shouldn't be expected to make decisions related to abortion or adoption without plenty counseling from neutral parties and of time to consider the implications.<br />
<h3>
Decision Reversal</h3>
Judge Lot Moroka believes as I believe, that a woman who has been raped needs stability and time to make a decision relative to placing her child for adoption. <a href="https://thevoicebw.com/mother-wins-adoption-reversal-case/" rel="noopener" target="_blank">In the case, the decision</a> was reversed because the judge recognized the "emotional rollercoaster" of rape conception.<br />
<br />
A living human being was created by a terrible assault, but that living human being had no part in the actual crime. She was a second victim and like many women I know, she was loved at first sight.<br />
<br />
A child conceived by rape is still a child, developmentally no different from any other child.<br />
<br />
Darlene Pawlik is VP of Save The 1, a speaker and blogger at <a href="http://thedarlingprincess.com/">theDarlingPrincess.com</a><br />
She lives in New Hampshire with her husband of nearly 28 years.The Darling Princesshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18116575303334695345noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-21739394751103889052018-03-14T22:06:00.000-05:002018-03-14T22:06:50.393-05:00Though Conceived in Rape and Abuse, My Daughter Deserved a Chance to Live, by Heather Hobbs<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
I don't have it all together. Often I am asked how I have it
all together. What still gets under my skin are comments such
as, "Wow! You are so strong!" Or, "Your life is so perfect
now!" These statements still get to me. If only we could all see behind
the layers of another person. I wish there was an easier way to share what I
feel; perhaps a simple shoulder touch that instantly gives a flash of my memories and
feelings? The world would be so much better if we knew the pain and suffering
of others so easily. We could empathize far more than we ever thought capable. Instead,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I am writing this here and now,
allowing the deeply pushed down emotions to come to the surface. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I have the most amazing daughter. She is perfect and
beautiful in EVERY way; inside and out, I can't even begin to express the level
of kindness and love she possesses. She came to me in a less than ideal
way -- a way many would consider wrong. I've endured a fair amount of trauma in my
life and that led me to many poor choices as a teen. This included who I
surrounded myself with. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When I was 18, I wanted so badly to escape the
life I grew up in. Though I love my parents deeply and I've forgiven all of the
things that happened, at the age of 18, I hated and resented them. I wasn't mature enough to consider their own upbringings as they parented us. My mother was
raised comparable to the book, “A Child Called It.” She was a run
away from juvenile hall at seventeen. My step-father was forced by his parents to drop out of
middle school to sell cocaine for them. He too was heavily abused and
tormented as a child. They did not know the right way to be parents. So, as a
teen I only felt anger and hatred for them. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I ended up marrying a man I barely knew who was five years
older than myself. I realize now I was trying to escape my life. This man was
newly enlisted into the U.S. Army; hence the marriage, because that was a requirement for me to be able to go with him to Germany, or
so he said. Getting married seemed like "no big deal."</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
To keep this short and simple, within weeks of arriving in Germany, I suffered the most brutal abuse I've ever endured. Violence was a
normal occurrence in the world I knew, but the extreme level that this was,
I knew was not right.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
We were roughly 50 minutes from the military base
in a small village called Arnstein. One of the neighbors heard the screams and
called the polizei (German police) and when they arrived, he had already left. The amount of blood resulted in an emergency ambulance ride and thorough testing at the hospital. This
happened shortly before Thanksgiving, 2007. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
He was given a slap on the wrist
by the military police, extra duty, and confinement to the base. The German
police were not allowed to intervene. The military refused to<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>EROD (early return of dependents) me back to
the United States. In addition,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was completely isolated given that I had no
phone, internet, bank account access, and was recently submerged into a culture
and language I knew nothing about. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
At 18 years old I was of course naive, confused, and
what felt like the most helpless person on the planet. I left out a lot of
details intentionally because I am going to bypass the period of depression and anxiety
that followed and skip to Valentine's Day, 2008. Much happened in the interim, but it's not
relevant to my purpose in sharing this story now. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Without warning or notification of any kind, my abuser was
allowed to "surprise" me for Valentine's Day. He showed up and violently
raped me repeatedly. Again, military police were involved, hospitalization was
required, but nothing came of it for him -- just another slap on the wrist. All the
other soldiers who tried to help me were reprimanded and forced to stay out of
it at risk of their own punishment. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Instead of helping me,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>I was advised to attend marriage counseling. I was told “you can't be
raped if you are married legally.” I was made to feel like the bad guy in that
situation. I was told I'm not supporting my soldier, that I don't understand
the stresses of the military. He had never deployed at that point, so my mind
couldn't even wrap around those statements. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Eventually, I felt suicidal. I didn't know that I was
suffering from severe PTSD. I didn't know how to leave Germany, and if I did manage to
escape and go, I didn't know where to go. I made some friends, learned some of
the language, but nothing that gave me a real reason to want to live. I blamed
myself for everything and I allowed myself to believe everything was my fault. If I hadn't made him angry, if I hadn't gotten married, if I hadn't left
Nebraska, if I hadn't believed all of his lies, if I were smarter or stronger -- all of these lines ran through my head over and over again. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
While planning my death -- because I didn't want to fail at
that too -- I had the worst flu-like symptoms of my life, lasting for well over
a month. I assumed all of the stress was weakening my immune system so heavily that I
just couldn't recover. I finally got myself to the hospital -- an
adventure to say the least -- relying on public transport to get to the city with
no knowledge of anything. Luckily, the Germans are lovely people and ever so
helpful even if they didn't know what I was saying. I told the bus
driver,"Krankenhaus" (hospital), and that's all he needed to hear to
help me. Other people on the bus also catered to me: offering me water, a bag
for nausea, one lady rubbed my head and sang quietly to me, which was the most
wonderful feeling in the world to feel a small amount of love in a time where
I spent months and months feeling none. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
Upon arrival at the hospital, I found out I was pregnant. I had
Hyperemesis Gravidarum,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>which is an
extreme and debilitating version of morning sickness. Though I was much further
along than most when finding out, the doctors knew my situation of abuse from the prior
hospitalizations. The physician lovingly and tenderly let me know that he can
perform an abortion, as well as assuring me that he could heavily medicate me for the days following to
help with the pain.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
My world was closing in on me. The news seemed surreal and
almost like an out of body experience. I can relive that moment as if it were
yesterday because it so strongly impacted me. I was not raised in a pro-life
home nor an environment that would shun it. Many friends in high school had
them or took morning after pills regularly. I had a friend who traveled
internationally, then sold morning after pills in school. It shouldn't have been
a big deal at all to do it right then and there. But I simply decided to think about it, then I received fluids and IV
nutrition, and went home. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br />Eventually my rapist-abuser found out through the grapevine that I was
pregnant. He came back to where I was residing -- again unannounced -- under the guise
of celebrating his news of a baby, and proceeded to try to beat the evidence of his rape out of me. The timeline perfectly matched my "alleged" rape. He had
denied everything, including any sexual encounter and this pregnancy would only
reveal the truth. As he choked me on the floor, I stared at the ceiling losing
consciousness; and that was the first time I felt my baby kick before passing
out. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
When I woke up my rapist-abuser was gone. I felt dizzy and confused. Suddenly, I recalled the kick. I cried for hours -- tears not about what happened
with him, but tears of realizing that I simply couldn't kill this child. It made no
sense to keep a baby with my circumstances. It made zero sense. Yet, I had no
way to get myself to terminate.<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DP2D3xkOAWQ/WqniF28QByI/AAAAAAAAZWk/RX1QUtj1xD8HiyM6AR6oXeIj9ljrhbmMACLcBGAs/s1600/Heather%2BHobbs%2Bwith%2Bdaughter%2Bconceived%2Bin%2Brape.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="640" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DP2D3xkOAWQ/WqniF28QByI/AAAAAAAAZWk/RX1QUtj1xD8HiyM6AR6oXeIj9ljrhbmMACLcBGAs/s320/Heather%2BHobbs%2Bwith%2Bdaughter%2Bconceived%2Bin%2Brape.jpg" width="320" /></a>This long yet extremely shortened summary of how my daughter
came to be was ultimately to bring </div>
you to where I am now. I don't hide my life. I try to
be open and honest about all that I've lived through so that maybe somewhere, someone out there will see the story and see light at the end of the tunnel.<br />
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
But, I don't have it all together. Ten years has passed and I'm not totally
over it all. I'm not anywhere close to perfect and I don't like the pressure
that the statements make me feel. I just did what every mother ought to do -- I fought for my child. I'm not a perfect example of resilience and strength. I
struggled, it hurt immensely, I still have small moments of anxiety and PTSD-related issues. The experience has given me so many good things, including my
daughter, but no, it wasn't easy. I made many mistakes following and will
continue to make them. But, I am so very happy. Today I have a wonderful husband and
four amazing children, with my oldest being the best older sister in the world. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
What I did learn?</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
1. We are stronger than we know. I didn't think I could live
through so much, but I have and continue to do so. I do so productively and in a
positive way. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qBF3bGTG3S8/WqnilIGdpTI/AAAAAAAAZWs/mVlBuiCKBHYqBaxDD7ou5Q9V3XrzzbtZwCLcBGAs/s1600/Heather%2BHobbs%2Bdaughter%2Bconceived%2Bin%2Brape.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="848" data-original-width="848" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-qBF3bGTG3S8/WqnilIGdpTI/AAAAAAAAZWs/mVlBuiCKBHYqBaxDD7ou5Q9V3XrzzbtZwCLcBGAs/s320/Heather%2BHobbs%2Bdaughter%2Bconceived%2Bin%2Brape.jpg" width="320" /></a>2. My daughter is smart, beautiful,<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>helpful, compassionate, and everything that
someone could wish for when having a child. She deserved the chance to live, whether with me or another family. She has a lot to contribute to this world
and I'm grateful I didn't deny her and the world of her presence.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
3. My suffering was not in vain. The purpose of all I endured wasn't to destroy me, but it did build me up to become a better person. I have empathy and
compassion that I never felt before. The intensity of love I feel for other
people now is indescribable.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
4. I learned to forgive easily. I forgave so many. The anger
and resentment I once felt for various people is gone. Having the bright light
of my daughter helped me recover from the trauma, and also to forgive those who
hurt me.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
5. My burdens were lightened. I can help others do the same
to the best of my ability. I spend as much time as possible helping other women
in tough situations. Post-abortive or not, women who've went through this need
love and compassion.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
6. The judicial system is severely broken and only those who try can
change it. The legal battles that followed, as well as the lack of counseling<a href="https://www.blogger.com/null" name="_GoBack"></a> and support available was tragic. I see why so many women
stay with their abusers, or why they give up hope and turn to drugs or suicide. The military system is fractured and needs major change for women to get through these
kinds of situations. Laws need to change! Children conceived in rape need to be
protected legally. There are still a handful of states which allow rapists to retain parental rights even after
rape has been proven. </div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
7. These babies not only deserve to live, but they offer a
chance at a real prosecution for the rapists and possibly a baby for a family who would be thrilled to adopt.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
I will end this by
saying I know now much more than I did then. If you need help, there are
resources, but they can be difficult to find. Do not give up. Do not allow the
abuser or rapist to take control of your life. You have to fight!<span style="mso-spacerun: yes;"> </span>It doesn't seem fair and I know this is the
scariest thing you'll ever do, but do not give up on yourself or your child. It
will always be there, but it does not define you. You are not a victim, you are
a survivor. Allow your child to be a survivor too. Allow that baby a chance to
live and help change the world.</div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p0pLDi8mFXg/WqnhxNLM9vI/AAAAAAAAZWg/H1M_pISJ0_gIR4iNi8TUmiCV-OIo0cTQgCLcBGAs/s1600/Heather%2BHobbs%2Bmother%2Bfrom%2Brape.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="412" data-original-width="412" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-p0pLDi8mFXg/WqnhxNLM9vI/AAAAAAAAZWg/H1M_pISJ0_gIR4iNi8TUmiCV-OIo0cTQgCLcBGAs/s320/Heather%2BHobbs%2Bmother%2Bfrom%2Brape.jpg" width="320" /></a>BIO: <span style="font-family: inherit;"> Heather Hobbs is a b<span style="background-color: white; color: #26282a;">usy LDS wife and mom of four beautiful children actively engaged in the community with volunteer work and writing for the pro-life movement in the little free time left. She is a pro-life blogger for <a href="http://www.savethe1.com/" target="_blank">Save The 1</a>.</span></span></div>
<br />Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-7906170459663652122018-03-10T13:31:00.000-06:002018-03-14T19:39:01.543-05:00We Are The 1% - The Shocking Reality Behind The Numbers, by Jim Sable1%. It doesn’t sound like very much. If the sales tax goes up 1% in your town, you may notice the slight increase and may shop somewhere else. If your weight goes up 1% after Thanksgiving, it’s most likely only temporary. If you buy a car with 1% better gas mileage, you may not notice anything different. But, what is the impact on human life because of abortion exceptions, which amount to about 1% of cases?<br />
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Why is the 20 week abortion ban seen as a tremendous opportunity for a pro-life victory, while eliminating the rape exception is nearly at the bottom of the priority list for ending abortion? Isn’t it shocking that the prospect of annually saving 18,000 babies' lives with the 20 week ban, a laudable goal, is enthusiastically pursued, while the chance to permanently protect the 32,000 or more babies conceived from rape every year, by eliminating all traces of the rape exception, is not supported by many in leadership positions, (both pro-life and clergy), and in political office?<br />
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The rape exception is a creation of the abortion rights movement, but is accepted and promoted by some in the pro-life community out of a false sense of compassion, because it is the popular view, or because of pro-life politics. Most of these people do not consider my life at all. To them, the rape exception is only a concept.<br />
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I was conceived when my mother was attacked on her way home from work in the late summer of 1957. It is interesting to note that at the same time in 1957, members of a prominent lawyers group, The American Law Institute, (ALI), proposed and recommended that the first exceptions policy guidelines be added to state abortion prohibition laws. The ALI exceptions were: grave physical or mental health impact to the mother, evidence that the child would be born with a grave physical or mental defect, and rape and incest.<br />
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Mississippi added a rape exception in 1966. Colorado was the first state to incorporate the ALI exceptions in 1967. Thirteen states were using the ALI exceptions template by the time Roe v. Wade was decided in 1973.<br />
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I discovered my conception story in 2005, and the news was initially devastating. I have thought about my conception every day since, but, the initial pain has been replaced by a powerful pro-life energy and purpose. What is still devastating is the constant push for “exceptions” in law. It is quite a significant betrayal when the exception efforts come from the pro-life side. Their efforts, projecting them back to 1957, would have resulted in not protecting my life. Today, the exceptions target tens of thousands of babies when they are added to pro-life legislation. Our collective efforts at Save The 1 work to end the exceptions era and explain why exceptions are bad pro-life policy.<br />
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Unfortunately, those who advocate for exceptions never tell anyone when the rape exception era will end. They never tell us what has to happen in order to permanently eliminate the exceptions. They don’t seem to believe that the exceptions strategy is a broken strategy. They don’t make the connection between the rape exception and the history of the Roe v. Wade decision. They deemphasize the rape exception by saying that it only amounts to 1% of cases. This may be the most common rationale behind the promotion of the rape exception.<br />
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What is behind the facade of that 1% deflection? How can you say to a targeted group of people, “Sorry, there just aren’t enough of you to work very hard to protect?” There is a number that beyond which no one in the pro-life community could ignore. They never tell us what that number is, if they’ve even considered what it should be. It is clear that 1% is not enough. And, it is the ultimate cruelty. It is cruel to the rape-conceived. It is saying: “Your numbers are not significant enough to make it worthwhile to fight for your protection.” It is also cruel to women. Cruel and shocking. I don’t think anyone that supports exceptions has even considered it.<br />
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Being 1% is not yet enough to achieve legal protection for the rape-conceived. In order for that number to be higher and “significant” enough to be noticed, even MORE women would have to be raped and pregnant. Can you think of anything crueler than that? Is that really what it is going to take to end the “exceptions” era? Must we add countless more traumatized women to the 1% in order to surpass the mystery magic number necessary to purge exceptions from orthodox pro-life strategy? The obvious answer is NO! 1% is way more than enough.<br />
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Our founder and President, Rebecca Kiessling, discusses how exceptions impacted the Roe v. Wade decision in this article.<br />
<a href="https://www.facebook.com/notes/rebecca-kiessling/the-trouble-with-unprincipled-incrementalism-and-allowing-for-exceptions/10150193880073154/">https://www.facebook.com/notes/rebecca-kiessling/the-trouble-with-unprincipled-incrementalism-and-allowing-for-exceptions/10150193880073154/</a><br />
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And this previous Save The 1 article expands on the point about the broken strategy.<br />
<a href="https://www.lifesitenews.com/opinion/rape-exceptions-in-congress-a-broken-record">https://www.lifesitenews.com/opinion/rape-exceptions-in-congress-a-broken-record</a><br />
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Please visit our SaveThe1.com website to learn the best responses to the defenses of the rape exception and answers to the questions you may hear. Please add the arguments presented in this short essay to bolster the information you will find on our website.<br />
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BIO<br />
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Jim Sable is a husband and father of 4 -- 3 biological sons and one recently-adopted daughter from China. He and his wife Wendy are both adopted. Conceived in rape, Jim is also a Board Member, national pro-life speaker and pro-life blogger for Save The 1.<br />
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Charles Moncriefhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06996782367135664171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-39556994205297768692018-03-05T22:07:00.004-06:002018-03-14T23:58:41.080-05:00A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing-ACOG’s not so hidden agenda, by Rachel Mary Guy<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;"><i>Obstetrics is an abortion industry disguised as women’s healthcare, safe deliveries of “some” babies and care for “some” babies.</i></span><br />
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</i></span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Few in Christendom would disagree with the reality that abortion is the single biggest human rights’ violation of our generation. The dehumanizing and devaluing of an entire people group, the preborn children, merely because of their location has cost millions of lives since the passing of Roe v Wade in 1973. In a world that has rejected God that is not altogether surprising but what is surprising is that this Holocaust is taking place in an area that was once committed to doing no harm and represents themselves as the beacon of care and that is the medical field and more specifically obstetrics.<br />
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What a curious thing that an area of medicine and not just any area of medicine but the very field that is entrusted with the care of a mother and her child is the contributing to, promoting and supporting this genocide of an entire people group-the preborn. Victor Frankel, during WWII, had a famous quote where he said, “The ovens of Auschwitz, were prepared in the classrooms of Germany.”(1) This terrifying truth is exactly the reality today that the deaths of millions of preborn children, were prepared in the classrooms of college classes that are supposed to teach on medicine, the helping and healing of others but rather teach on the systematic desensitizing of how medical students would see the child in utero.<br />
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The field of obstetrics has dehumanized the preborn child in such a manner that ob/gyns can perform an abortion and actually think they are doing some sort of good for society. How can this field that is supposed to be dedicated to the care of a mother and her child have fallen so far? It goes back to Victor Frankel’s famous quote and there is an organization that has been all too happy to make sure that those very doctors who were educated in the area of gynecology and obstetrics become removed from seeing the preborn child as a distinct individual made uniquely in God’s Image with a purpose and just as much value as the human being outside of the womb. </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: xx-small;"><br />
<span style="font-size: x-small;"> This organization is called ACOG. The wolf in sheep’s clothing. ACOG is the acronym for The American College of Obstetrics and Gynecologists. This is a 501(c)(3) organization. It is the nation’s leading group of physicians providing healthcare for women. It has about 58,000 members and they are said to strongly advocate for quality healthcare for women, promote patient education, bring awareness to issues facing women and supposedly maintain the highest standards of clinical practice and continuing education. They have a 501(c)(6) companion organization as well.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"> Most would hear the name ACOG and the description of all that they do for “women’s healthcare” and applaud this organization for having the backs of women, but this organization has a not so hidden agenda that does not care for the health and rights of all women as the precious females ( and males) in utero are not included in this quality of care but rather are targets of ACOG’s agenda to promote and encourage performing abortions as well as promoting fetal tissue experimentation. How can an educated, developed society offer its youngest members to the fires of Molech and what makes this so sinister is the fact that this education of dehumanizing and desensitizing is taking place in the classrooms that are supposed to be places of learning to do no harm, use medicine to heal and help and champion life but that is not what is happening.</span><br />
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<span style="font-size: x-small;"> ACOG must be exposed. At its foundation, ACOG is all about promoting abortion. ACOG believes that the harm of a preborn child is more important than protecting them. One of the founding fellows of ACOG, joining in 1952, Dr Jane Hodgson was a longtime abortion rights advocate. Right here we see the very foundation of ACOG was founded in a culture of death cleverly disguised as women’s healthcare. Dr. Hodgson was such a strong supporter of abortion that she received the Planned Parenthood Federation of America Margaret Sanger Award in 1995. Margaret Sanger who founded Planned Parenthood was a eugenist and this award is founded in applauding the recipient’s work in abortion advocating which of course is in essence an award applauding the furthering of the culture of death and marginalizing an entire people group's lives.<br />
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ACOG is founded in promoting abortion and they are bold in their evil views toward dehumanizing the preborn children as they promote that the sick in utero and those preborn babies seen as “inconvenient” be aborted. ACOG has openly said they believe that “personhood” for the preborn child takes away from abortion rights so like Planned Parenthood they have an abortion agenda but again the terrifying thing is that ACOG is involved with the medical field, the very field that is to be committed to helping and healing, not destroying lives. ACOG recommends integrating first trimester abortion training into family medicine training. How ironic, yet again, that “family” medicine would be an area that ACOG would want to see one of the family members destroyed merely because of the geographical location of the child. It would be criminal to suggest that a child outside of the womb be destroyed due to health status or no longer wanted, yet ACOG has open season on the preborn child’s destruction.</span></span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Let’s take the first point “Implement the Accreditation Council for Graduate Medical Education (ACGME) requirement that all obstetrics and gynecology residency programs provide training in comprehensive women’s reproductive health care, including opt-out abortion training, in which training is routinely integrated into residency but residents with religious or moral objections can opt out of participation.” This is not a mere ‘opt-out’ as stated by ACOG but a “requirement that all obstetrics and gynecology residency programs provide training in comprehensive women’s reproductive health care, including opt-out abortion training, in which training is routinely integrated into residency but residents with religious or moral objections can opt out of participation.”(1) And yet digging deeper, if medicine desires to retrain people’s views or more so sink deep into people’s minds that abortion is a mere “blob of tissue” being removed or “a woman’s right to do what she wants with her body” then is this statement of ‘opt-out’ even considered an option? If ACOG requires medicine to harm a woman by destroying her child then how can ACOG say they truly care for women?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">(ACOG. “Abortion Training and Education” PMLA no. 612, November 2014 </span><a href="https://www.acog.org/Resources-And-Publications/Committee-Opinions/Committee-on-Health-Care-for-Underserved-Women/Abortion-Training-and-Education" style="font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: small;">https://www.acog.org/Resources-And-Publications/Committee-Opinions/Committee-on-Health-Care-for-Underserved-Women/Abortion-Training-and-Education</a><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">.) They require OBs to train in abortion.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">Another statement which is a contradiction if ACOG is going to ‘opt-out’ on abortion training yet say that they will “Include abortion education in the curricula of all medical schools” then this is not a </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">“</span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">your view vs my view” but a forced agenda from ACOG misrepresenting OB/GYN care or frankly choosing to redefine what true woman and child healthcare looks like. If medicine desires to “include abortion education in curricula of all medical schools” then how can an OB/GYN learn proper medical care for a preborn child who is in the womb if one continuously says to abort this child? How then can a medical doctor in training learn that life is to be taken literally if they are being educated through a lens of ‘choice’ rather than being educated through a lens of care.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">In an article from ACOG in March of 2016, they state, “However, current attacks on fetal tissue research, part of an effort to oppose and disparage safe, legal abortion in this country, represent a significant setback in our Nation’s approach to science and our patients’ hope for future breakthroughs.”(1) This sounds like something out of a Planned Parenthood newsletter not from an organization that is a group of medical people supposedly dedicated to the care of women and families. Experimenting on fetal tissue also sounds like something out of the experiments done during Nazi Germany another time in our history where an entire people group was dehumanized and a society was brainwashed willingly into marginalizing the lives of millions to the point of sitting by silently as that people group was exterminated.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif;"><span style="background-color: white; font-size: 13px;">(DeFrancesco, Mark S., MD, MBA, President of the ACOG American College of OBGYN. “ACOG statement of fetal tissue research.” PMLA no. 1 </span></span><a class="yiv9053091348" dir="ltr" href="https://www.acog.org/About-ACOG/News-Room/Statements/2016/ACOG-Statement-In-Support-of-Fetal-Tissue-Research" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" target="_blank">https://www.acog.org/About-ACOG/News-Room/Statements/2016/ACOG-Statement-In-Support-of-Fetal-Tissue-Research</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">)</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">ACOG also promotes and advocates for fetal tissue research. In March of 2016, they sent out a letter saying, </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">“</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">As leading academic medical centers and scientific and medical societies who conduct and support life-saving research, we have grave concerns about legislative proposals to restrict the use of fetal tissue for research.”(1) This is directly linked with abortion. They say in one breath they want to do fetal tissue research to help others and yet that very help comes only through the death of an innocent victim - the preborn child.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Associate of American Medical Colleges. “AAMC." PMLA no. </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: x-small;">1 March 18</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">, 2016 </span><a class="yiv9053091348" dir="ltr" href="https://www.aamc.org/download/444248/data/statementinsupportoffetaltissueresearch.pdf" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" target="_blank">https://www.aamc.org/download/444248/data/statementinsupportoffetaltissueresearch.pdf</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">In November of 2014, in ACOG’s Committee Opinion, they say, “Safe, legal abortion is a necessary component of women’s health care. The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists supports the availability of high- quality reproductive health services for all women and is committed to improving access to abortion. Access to abortion is threatened by state and federal government restrictions, limitations on public funding for abortion services and training, stigma, violence against abortion providers and death of abortion providers.”(1) This organization is not committed to the whole health care of a women when they point blank are advocating for the death of the preborn child. This poses mammoth ethical issues when medical students are being desensitized to the life of the preborn child and educated that abortion is a form of women’s healthcare.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">ACOG. “Abortion Training and Education” PMLA no. 612, November 2014 </span><a class="yiv9053091348" dir="ltr" href="https://www.acog.org/Resources-And-Publications/Committee-Opinions/Committee-on-Health-Care-for-Underserved-Women/Abortion-Training-and-Education" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" target="_blank">https://www.acog.org/Resources-And-Publications/Committee-Opinions/Committee-on-Health-Care-for-Underserved-Women/Abortion-Training-and-Education</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">. They believe that abortion is “women’s healthcare.”</span><br />
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</i> <i class="yiv9053091348" style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue", "segoe ui", helvetica, arial, "lucida grande", sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Death of a people group should never be viewed as any form of health care, but when an organization like ACOG is endorsing and encouraging education on abortions then young medical students are being slowly lulled into believing that taking a life is actually a form of health care. How can that ever be ethical.</i><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Caring for women’s health will never mean empowering them to choose death and caring for women’s health will never mean educating future doctors that ending an innocent human being’s life is ever the answer. And what a brutal death it is for that preborn child no matter at what gestational age. And ACOG does not even present </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">the</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;"> </span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">accurate information on fetal pain as they wrongly educate and completely dismiss the horrific pain that preborn child feels during the abortion procedure. A preborn child DOES experience pain and ACOG completely denies this truth.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">ACOG said, “A human fetus does not have the capacity to experience pain until after viability. Rigorous scientific studies have found that the connections necessary to transmit signals from peripheral sensory nerves to the brain, as well as the brain structures necessary to process those signals, do not develop until at least 24 weeks gestation…”(1) This is simple scientifically not accurate hence medical students are desensitized to the horrific pain the preborn child experiences during an abortion-starved to death in the first trimester and systematically dismembered in the second and third trimesters. Is this the action of a civilized society and furthermore is this medical care? Dismembering human beings? According to ACOG this is in fact medical care of the highest order and a generation of numb, callous ob/gyns is being cultivated to see abortion as medical care. Hitler was famous for saying if you tell a lie long enough, that people will believe it and that is what is happening through the lies of ACOG.</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">American College Obstetricians and Gynecology.“Facts Are Important Fetal Pain” PMLA no. 1 (July 2013) </span><a class="yiv9053091348" dir="ltr" href="https://www.acog.org/-/media/Departments/Government-Relations-and-Outreach/FactAreImportFetalPain.pdf" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" target="_blank">https://www.acog.org/-/m edia/Departments/Government-Re lations-and-Outreach/FactAreIm portFetalPain.pdf</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">. They deny scientific proof that the babies in the womb feel pain.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">The medical field along with ACOG is to blame for making murder legal. When an organization like ACOG that is held in high esteem that has the power to influence the medical field uses the vocabulary of medical care to describe the destruction of a people group, we have used semantics yet again to lull people into thinking that that which is outrageous is normal, good and right and that is what ACOG has been doing. Slavery, Jewish genocide, and more were all founded in a dehumanizing a vocabulary used to describe these people groups.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">In Brennan’s “Dehumanizing the Vulnerable” he says so powerfully, “The power of language to color one’s view of reality is profound. In many instances, the most significant factor determining how an object will be perceived is not the nature of the object itself, but the words employed to characterize it.”( 1 ) Brennan hits the nail on the head. When an organization like ACOG champions abortion and uses the vocabulary of healthcare, not only does an entire population drink the koolaid but an entire generation of medical doctors embrace and act on that thinking and can with no moral convictions and no conviction of conscience tear a child limb from limb and stop that beating heart all in the name of women’s health care. How far have we fallen.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Doctors know that life begins at fertilization. The issue is not all about when does life begin, but will society continue to reject the evidence it has and counter argue the truth about life for a true undercut of the value of life by making up some seemingly “noble reason” to abort. If doctors advocate for abortion and society looks to doctors to have the answers then it is truly sheep being led to the slaughter.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">ACOG is unethical in every manner suggesting abortion as health care and advocating for abortion training. Abortion training is unnecessary for reasons followed. Abortion is not medical care. Abortion is a procedure to take a living child out of his home. Obstetrics is supposed to care for the child and mother regardless of what another may say. This child is as much in a physician's care as the mom. Treating an unborn with such disrespect as killing them deserves such punishment, by being racist towards someone giving or not giving certain care based on sickness. To deny a child the right to continue life because of sickness is racist and discriminatory. Because a each patient is equal they deserve equal rights to care. HIPPA-the first oath states, “first, do not harm” this harm does not specify to whom to or not to not harm, but gives a general protection to all patients. Now if OB considers can unborn their patient, then how can harm be apart of this “care” from a medical standpoint and from HIPPAs requirements. If an unborn is a child/person which has already been established then how can a physician deny care to an unborn under HIPPA as consider reconcilable as ‘healthcare’ when one is breaching the oath of care and scaring a child. No person’s “healthcare” can ever be true care if a physician takes harm as the definition for a situation medically. Take a preborn child who supposedly has Trisomy 13, a physician wants to give “healthcare” advice by suggesting abortion. Now if this child is truly the doctor’s patient how can this medical person have the moral rights to suggest that this child is degraded to the degree of death?</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">I was one of those children. 19 years ago, my parents were completely shocked when they were in for a rude awakening that the medical field sometimes uses their power to advocate for death.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Three doctors insisted that my parents abort me and the doctors’ rationale for insisting my life be ended was based on that they “assumed” I had Trisomy 18 so these doctors immediately devalued my very life, yes doctors, and relegated my life to being disposable and not worth fighting for and gave me a death sentence all because my only crime was being sick in utero. My parents to this day were and are dumbfounded that some in the medical community deem a child’s life in utero as disposable just because that child is sick. Thank heavens I have parents who allow God and the intrinsic value of all life to guide their decisions, unlike the medical field, and they fought for me and 19 years later here I am advocating for the value of ALL life and praying the medical field realizes they are not God and it is completely unethical, even without factoring in Biblical truth, to devalue ANY human life and to end human life in the name of medical care.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">In the book, Dehumanizing the Vulnerable by Brennan, he says, “Today, scores of human lives before birth are proficiently snuffed out in a display of “raw medical power” in radical opposition to the physician-as-healer principle embodied in the doctor’s most basic code of ethics, the Hippocratic Oath, an oath containing explicit condemnations of killing, both inside and outside the womb. The uterus-once a private sanctuary suited for growth and development-has been transformed into a deadly environment polluted by the invasion of destructive instruments and poisonous substances. The bodies of the undesired unborn are torn apart, dismembered, obliterated, poisoned, or subjected to lethal injections. Their remains are exploited for research, harvested as tissue and organ trans-plants, and either incinerated or dumped into the sewage and waste disposal systems.”(page 27)</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">You can see how biased they are. They have abortion as a foundation goal for all eternity for ACOG but we will change that through exposing their deeds and praying for their hearts. If I could share this with the medical field what they are buying into and what foundation they are being taught I believe that maybe people would choose. I plead with you to hear and take in everything that I am sharing with you about what they say.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">ACOG denies personhood to praise child killing. ACOG a systematic plot to take life. “Personhood” Measures: Impact on Contraception So-called “personhood” measures would establish fertilized eggs as separate legal persons under the laws of a state. These measures have qualified for the ballot in only two states—Colorado in 2008 and 2010, and Mississippi in 2011. All three failed by wide margins. These measures erode women’s right to privacy and bodily integrity, deny women access to the full spectrum of preventive health care including contraception, and undermine the doctor-patient relationship. As acknowledged by proponents, these measures would not only outlaw abortion but also embryonic stem cell research, infertility treatments, cancer treatments, and popular methods of birth control.”(2)</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">American College Obstetricians and Gynecology. “Talking Points on State Legislation “Personhood” Measures: Impact on Contraception.” PMLA no. 1 (February 10, 2012): </span><a class="yiv9053091348" dir="ltr" href="https://www.acog.org/-/media/Departments/LARC/TalkingPointsonPersonhoodMeasures.pdf?dmc=1&ts=20171114T0030062242" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" target="_blank">https://www.acog.org/-/media/Departments/LARC/TalkingPointsonPersonhoodMeasures.pdf?dmc=1&ts=20171114T0030062242</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">. They deny personhood and share why personhood is a threat.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Abortion, which is what ACOG advocates, takes away being able to focus on true healthcare which is helping the sick by helping these children in utero survive and by fighting for their lives which is what the medical field is called to do, no matter the outcome.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Please listen to this plea as the words written in this paper that are mine speak from a heart of sadness and wanting to emphasize how wrong it is for ACOG to use their power to advocate and educating for the taking of innocent lives. Please take these in as the painful truths about ACOG’s bias and protocol about who they really are. They are wolves in sheep’s clothing. My heart is to see the medical field’s foundation transformed to God’s glory. May the unethical practices of ACOG be stopped.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">American College Obstetricians and Gynecology. “ACOG today news and information important to you and your practice” PMLA no. 4 January 2007https://</span><a class="yiv9053091348" dir="ltr" href="http://www.acog.org/-/media/ACOG-Today/acogToday0107.pdf?dmc=1&ts=20171105T2112476304" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" target="_blank">www.acog.org/-/media/ACOG-Today/acogToday0107.pd f?mc=1&ts=20171105T2112476304</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">ACOG. “Abortion Training and Education” PMLA no. 612, November 2014 </span><a class="yiv9053091348" dir="ltr" href="https://www.acog.org/Resources-And-Publications/Committee-Opinions/Committee-on-Health-Care-for-Underserved-Women/Abortion-Training-and-Education" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" target="_blank">https://www.acog.org/Resources-And-Publications/Committee-Opinions/Committee-on-Healt h-Care-for-Underserved-Women/Abortion-Training-and-Education</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Bibliography</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Brennan, William, Dehumanizing the Vulnerable When Mind Games Take Lives, 1995), 27.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Conot, Robert E. Justice at Nuremberg. New York: Harper and Row, Publishers. “The Ovens at Auschwitz.” PML no. 1 </span><a class="yiv9053091348" dir="ltr" href="http://remember.org/fact-fin-ovens.html" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" target="_blank">http://remember.org/fact-fin -ovens.html</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">DeFrancesco, Mark S., MD, MBA, President of the ACOG American College of OBGYN. “ACOG statement of fetal tissue research.” PMLA no. 1 </span><a class="yiv9053091348" dir="ltr" href="https://www.acog.org/About-ACOG/News-Room/Statements/2016/ACOG-Statement-In-Support-of-Fetal-Tissue-Research" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" target="_blank">https://www.acog.org/About-A COG/News-Room/Statements/2016/ ACOG-Statement-In-Support-of-Fetal-Tissue-Research</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">1. Ensor, John, "Answering The Call”</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Dr. Condic Maureen L.. “When Does Human Life Begin?” PMLA no. 1 (October 2008)</span><br />
<a class="yiv9053091348" dir="ltr" href="https://bdfund.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/wi_whitepaper_life_print.pdf" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" target="_blank">https://bdfund.org/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/wi_whitepaper_ life_print.pdf</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">American College Obstetricians and Gynecology.“Facts Are Important Fetal Pain” PMLA no. 1 (July 2013) </span><a class="yiv9053091348" dir="ltr" href="https://www.acog.org/-/media/Departments/Government-Relations-and-Outreach/FactAreImportFetalPain.pdf" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" target="_blank">https://www.acog.org/-/m edia/Departments/Government-Re lations-and-Outreach/FactAreIm portFetalPain.pdf</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">American College Obstetricians and Gynecology. “Increasing Access to Abortion.” PMLA no. 1,3 November 2014 </span><a class="yiv9053091348" dir="ltr" href="https://www.acog.org/-/media/Committee-Opinions/Committee-on-Health-Care-for-Underserved-Women/co613.pdf?dmc=1&ts=20171114T1158133049" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" target="_blank">https://www.acog.org/-/me dia/Committee-Opinions/Committ ee-on-Health-Care-for-Underser ved-Women/co613.pdf?dmc=1&ts=2 0171114T1158133049</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">American College Obstetricians and Gynecology. “Talking Points on State Legislation “Personhood” Measures: Impact on Contraception.” PMLA no. 1 February 10, 2012https://</span><a class="yiv9053091348" dir="ltr" href="http://www.acog.org/-/media/Departments/LARC/TalkingPointsonPersonhoodMeasures.pdf?dmc=1&ts=20171114T0030062242" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" target="_blank">www.acog.org/-/med ia/Departments/LARC/TalkingPoi ntsonPersonhoodMeasures.pdf?dm c=1&ts=20171114T0030062242</a><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Associate of American Medical Colleges. “AAMC." PMLA no. </span><a class="yiv9053091348" dir="ltr" href="https://www.blogger.com/null" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;">1 March 18</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">, 2016 </span><a class="yiv9053091348" dir="ltr" href="https://www.aamc.org/download/444248/data/statementinsupportoffetaltissueresearch.pdf" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" target="_blank">https://www.aamc.org/down load/444248/data/statementinsu pportoffetaltissueresearch.pdf</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Lawrence, Hal C., MD, and Ness, Debra L., MS. “Planned Parenthood Provides Essential Services for Women’s Health.” PMLA no. 1 </span><a class="yiv9053091348" dir="ltr" href="https://www.acog.org/-/media/Departments/Government-Relations-and-Outreach/2017-CLC/2017-CLC-Recommended-Readings/Ask-2-Health-Care-Reform/2017AnnalsPP.pdf?dmc=1&ts=20171114T0029006772" rel="nofollow" style="background-color: white; color: #196ad4; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px; margin: 0px; padding: 0px;" target="_blank">https://www.acog.org/-/media /Departments/Government-Relati ons-and-Outreach/2017-CLC/2017 -CLC-Recommended-Readings/Ask- 2-Health-Care-Reform/2017Annal sPP.pdf?dmc=1&ts=20171114T0029 006772</a><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">.</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Abstract:</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">A WOLF IN SHEEP’S CLOTHING</span><br />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">The Truth about ACOG</span><br />
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</span> <span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">During WWII, Victor Frankel said, “The ovens of Auschwitz were prepared in the classrooms of Germany.” Not much has changed except there is a new target-the preborn children. The classrooms are yet again being used to educate on dehumanizing an entire people group and to desensitize an entire generation of doctors to the value and humanity of the preborn child. One of the biggest culprits behind this is an organization called ACOG. The American Congress of Obstetrics and Gynecology (“ACOG”) has been denying the value of the preborn child and promoting abortion. One would never expect the field of obstetrics and gynecology, who say they care for women and babies, to not care about preborn life and actually advocate for the termination of life inside the womb. ACOG has been advocating for the preborn to not be seen as valuable through education in medical school, articles, denying science and having a founder of ACOG who received the Planned Parenthood Margaret Sanger award which further exemplifies their bias and agenda. ACOG is using their power for that which is inherently unethical as they are stripping an entire people group of their humanity and intrinsic value. This is not ethical especially in a field that once stood on the oath to do no harm. ACOG must be held accountable and needs to educate on fighting for the lives of the unborn children rather than teaching a doctrine of extermination. What part of that is ethical?</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; font-size: 13px;">Rachel Mary Guy is a freshman at Chattahoochee Technical College. In her mid teens she created and still serves in two ministries, and is on the board of two pro-life organizations. Rachel has written for LiveAction and is a speaker for Save the 1.</span></div>
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<br />Charles Moncriefhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06996782367135664171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-5800572771237377882018-02-10T15:18:00.000-06:002018-03-14T20:01:38.388-05:00The heartbeat Bill, by Rachel Mary Guy<a href="https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/3e/db/ae/3edbaebf6ff43be42e13358984bce88c.jpg" imageanchor="1"><img border="0" data-original-height="552" data-original-width="736" height="240" src="https://s-media-cache-ak0.pinimg.com/736x/3e/db/ae/3edbaebf6ff43be42e13358984bce88c.jpg" width="320" /></a> <br />
Huge Development-Heartbeat Bill <br />
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The heartbeat bill (H.R. 490) if passed will most definitely change the course of this nation. The heartbeat bill is sponsored by Representative Steve King of Iowa. The bill was considered Wednesday, November 1st, for the full Judiciary Committee, and it is now in the subcommittee. There has not been any huge movement for this bill. This bill is the first heartbeat bill to be introduced at the Federal Level. This bill would make an abortion illegal once the heartbeat would be detectable. Most women do not find out they are pregnant until after the heartbeat has started and therefore this will impact the abortion mills. If made into a law, HR 490, would shut down every abortion clinic as when girls find out they are pregnant their baby’s heart has already started beating. This bill has no exceptions. Sadly often times there are exceptions in legislation which means that in a certain situation the law doesn’t apply to particular children to be saved from abortion. Therefore this bill has demonstrated to the subcommittee that we in the pro-life movement will never make exceptions in the fight to acknowledge that ALL life is intrinsically valuable and worth protecting. <br />
I spoke to a man in Congressman Steve King’s office. Congressman King is the sponsor of the heartbeat bill. There is such a call to action for all of us to raise up our voices and share with our congressmen that we support HR 490 and want to see this become a law.<br />
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Imagine knowing that millions of lives would be protected from the time of their heartbeat and shown the dignity of their life in society. Imagine a world that embraces every person. Imagine a world that does not discriminate against a people because of their location. If H.R. 490 were passed it would cause our nation to give protection to children as soon as there is a heartbeat. If abortion were ended at the heartbeat the Constitution would closely be restored. Our whole world will change forever! <br />
Our pregnancy crisis centers, places where girls can come to be encouraged in the empowerment of Jesus Christ and the hope in choosing life for their child/children as a girl comes in to a pregnancy crisis center, the narrative will completely change. Our pregnancy resource centers will be honored by all OBGYNs. <br />
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Preborn children who are sick will always be safe. There are sick children who every day their lives are purposely ended because they are sick or have a “defect” such as cleft palate. Every child who has Down syndrome will never be aborted. Every child will never be seen as or treated as “a burden” or “try again” or not as worthy of fighting as their life will be seen as valuable. Medicine will be used to teach how to care for the children who are sick and they will also learn what medical care looks like for the preborn child. Every person in the medical field will treat the preborn child not as a part of the woman’s body but as a separate patient. The preborn deserve as much dignity and respect and as much vigor in fighting for their own life as their moms. Medicine will not be able to only see the woman as the patient in OB or GYN care. They will be taught to realize and hopefully their hearts will know that harming a child’s life purposely can’t solve the OB problem for the child or mother or father. If and hopefully when the preborn child is seen as a person under the law they will view the preborn as equally valuable as EVERY person in the womb will receive equal rights! Every preborn child will be treated on the same level of value and dignity as the mom. The preborn child will not be seen as less valuable as the mother. The preborn child will never be harmed by a doctor through abortion as they will be seen as much a patient as their mom. Medicine will never be able to give statistics that are incorrect as a tactic to have a parent feel they are backed into a wall and must abort. The medical field will not be able to get away with neglecting the preborn child of proper care because they will be seen as a person and a patient. The medical field will not have murder charges towards them or neglect of care for a preborn child they just let die because the preborn child will be protected under the law once the heartbeat is detected. The field of doctors in OBGYN and MFM will actually be taught in depth how to care for a child who is sick, and how to sustain their life. This law will change medicine.<br />
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And lastly, we will be extremely close to personhood toward the preborn being restored. Personhood is the understanding that the preborn child is a person from the moment of fertilization. Some may bring up the concept of SLED. SLED stands for size, location, environment and degree of dependency. The law will then recognize these as developmental stages not as a manner to redefine their personhood and not to dehumanize. A zygote, embryo, fetus, newborn and so on are all names of stages of every persons’ development. These are terms that describe every person’s stage of life. A purity will be shown toward the preborn in a world that needs desperately to honor those without a voice. Charles Moncriefhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06996782367135664171noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-60326962870631664852018-01-15T15:38:00.000-06:002018-01-15T15:38:03.239-06:00My Mom Wanted Me to Live; I Want The Same For Her, by Travon Clifton<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3140MvaMCXI/Wl0eboleOCI/AAAAAAAAVzg/i2-i9tcbbDkRDK0IhhdRU4JxL5Hzv0_6QCLcBGAs/s1600/Travon%2BClifton%2Bwith%2Bmom%2B2.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; display: inline !important; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em; text-align: center;"><img border="0" data-original-height="754" data-original-width="503" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3140MvaMCXI/Wl0eboleOCI/AAAAAAAAVzg/i2-i9tcbbDkRDK0IhhdRU4JxL5Hzv0_6QCLcBGAs/s200/Travon%2BClifton%2Bwith%2Bmom%2B2.JPG" width="133" /></a><br />
This is an urgent prayer request, published with permission from Travon Clifton, and as you read it, you will see that what Travon has to say is quite profound. I hope it will move you to prayer, as it did me. <br />-- Rebecca Kiessling<br /><br />I'm reaching out to inform some and update others on my mother's health. For the last 8 months, my mom has been battling stage 4 pancreatic cancer, and it has taken a toll on her little frame. Only last week, we bid a fond farewell to my maternal grandmother Isabel Williams (78) and that caused further trauma to my mother's emotions. Some of you may recall that my grandma was an unwed teenage mother, giving birth to my mom at age 15. This had a huge effect on my mom's decision to choose life for me at age 19 when she conceived me during an awful rape. <div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-y27ZU_txd9M/Wl0d_hV6NeI/AAAAAAAAVzc/qzK1CTZahXcTAXvyb-IL1yADCFUrq6rzwCLcBGAs/s1600/Travon%2BClifton%2Bwith%2Bmom%2B-%2BCopy.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="867" data-original-width="578" height="200" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-y27ZU_txd9M/Wl0d_hV6NeI/AAAAAAAAVzc/qzK1CTZahXcTAXvyb-IL1yADCFUrq6rzwCLcBGAs/s200/Travon%2BClifton%2Bwith%2Bmom%2B-%2BCopy.JPG" width="133" /></a>My mom asked me to preach my grandmother's eulogy, and at first I declined her request. However, the Holy Spirit impressed upon me to say yes. It was in that moment of obedience, I could really see the magnitude of her decision and my grandmother's influence as I looked into my mother's face, telling the story once again. I could also see the endurance, perseverance, and her joy of seeing me share the love of Jesus and her mother's legacy. This was the first time many in my own family heard me tell it (and more) outside of the <a href="https://rtl.org/compassion/" target="_blank">Compassion Project</a> commercials and the <a href="https://www.rtl.org/lifeuninvited/" target="_blank">Life Uninvited</a> documentary produced by Right to Life of Michigan and aired on state-wide television. <br /><br />Because my mother so courageously stood with me from the womb and chose life for me, I am compelled to do the same for her as I advocate with the doctors and intercede by faith on her behalf. What I know is that I cannot bear this load alone, which is why I'm coming to you asking that you join me in prayer for my mother's complete healing. <br /><br />Since I know her eternal home is secure in Jesus Christ, I can afford to be so bold in my faith and ask the Lord for this miracle. I want to see my mother rise from her death bed and go forth in ministry, telling her side of the story so that other mothers won't feel the need to carry the shame of being raped and loving the child who they didn't ask to be conceived. </div>
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My mom wanted me to live. I want the same for her.</div>
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Will you pray with me for the healing of my mother Victoria Forté and share with other prayer warriors? Thank you in advance for your commitment. <br /><br />You can follow updates here: <a href="https://m.facebook.com/TravonPClifton/">https://m.facebook.com/TravonPClifton/</a></div>
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<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oxfrmZ7wGaY/Wl0eq4ViWjI/AAAAAAAAVzo/6NYvWcNyY90X7bWW4_HgUtfZvVmfSFFlACLcBGAs/s1600/Travon%2BClifton%2527s%2Bmom.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1200" data-original-width="1200" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-oxfrmZ7wGaY/Wl0eq4ViWjI/AAAAAAAAVzo/6NYvWcNyY90X7bWW4_HgUtfZvVmfSFFlACLcBGAs/s320/Travon%2BClifton%2527s%2Bmom.JPG" width="320" /></a>BIO: Travon Clifton is a daughter, a wife, and a mother of two. She's also an <a href="http://www.savethe1.com/travon-clifton-mi-pro-life-speaker/" target="_blank">international pro-life speaker</a> and blogger with Save The 1. Her interview, Conceived In Rape, will be re-airing with Dr. James Dobson on Family Talk Tues - Th, Jan. 16-18th.</div>
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Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-60793374706733115272018-01-11T22:33:00.002-06:002018-01-17T19:43:25.262-06:00The Rapist Was Culpable But My Birthdaughter Was Innocent, by Jerusha Klayman-Kingery<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: Times Roman;">I grew up in a Christian home. My
relationship with my father was rather difficult and ultimately, unloving. I thought I
could fill the void with the things of this world, seeking acceptance,
attention, and affection from men, drinking and partying.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times Roman";">For years this was my cover-up, yet I was
still empty. It wasn’t until the age of 17, when I had an encounter with Jesus
Christ and surrendered my life to the Lord. I was a virgin and at this time I
made a vow to God that I would remain a virgin until marriage and in addition I
would turn away from my past life of drinking, partying, and seeking affection
from men.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<br /></div>
<div class="MsoNormal">
<span style="font-family: "Times Roman";">At the age of 19 I was working as a
waitress at IHOP. Oftentimes, I had to work late shifts and take the bus home
after midnight. One night, walking home from the bus stop, I met a man who
seemed nice enough.<span style="font-size: 16pt;"><o:p></o:p></span></span></div>
<!--EndFragment--></div>
<br />
We began texting for a few weeks, then he asked me if we could hang out at my apartment. I wasn't attracted to him. I didn't want to be with him, but I never wanted to hurt people's feelings and I was so naive back then, thinking that he just wanted to hang out and be friends. For years, I struggled with the shame that I had let this man into my home without truly knowing him. Since then, I've learned how to forgive myself and how to be more cautious in my associations and decision-making.<br />
<br />
He was in a chair in my family room and pulled out a gun and set it on the table right next to him at arm's length. I was sure it was loaded. In that moment, I was terrified. I froze.<br />
<br />
For years, I struggled with questions I'd ask myself: "Why didn’t I grab the gun?" But then I think, I had never handled a gun, or even knew how to take the safety off. What if he grabbed it back and shot me? <br />
<br />
In the moment, I had all these thoughts of how to get away -- me screaming in my head, “Run! Run!” But in the physical, the fear that had taken over my body, seemed to take any muscular strength with it. I heard stories of women being raped before and I had always said what I would have done. And then, that all changed. I never predicted that I would ever be in this situation. I felt like it would never end. I felt like a little girl with all power stripped away. Time stood still, noises faded out. <br />
<br />
When he left, I ran and locked the door. I slid to the floor, sat in complete shock, my heart aching, and tears endlessly flowing. I was a virgin planning to save myself for marriage. My whole world was shattered.<br />
<br />
The only person I reached out to was my best friend. I called about 30 minutes after the rape and just sobbed and sobbed, telling her something bad had just happened. I couldn't even explain it right away.<br />
<br />
The following weeks were hardly bearable, but I did my best to carry on without any attention being brought on me. All I wanted was to move on, and act like that was all a terrible nightmare. On the outside I smiled, laughed, and acted normal, on the inside I was dealing with hidden pain. I was angry. I was hurting. I blamed myself. I blamed God. I no longer saw value in my life. I was utterly broken. I didn’t tell a single soul. I didn’t want anyone to know. I had a constant mental battle, causing me to lose sleep, and although I tried everything to set my mind on other things, my thoughts seemed to never let me rest.<br />
<br />
I began to get sick, and grew sicker by each day. I thought it was just stress or that I had come down with something. Though, after six weeks of this unrelenting sickness, I finally went to a doctor. She asked what my symptoms were and then immediately asked if it was possible that I was pregnant. I was in such denial, that I told her that I was a virgin. When the test came out positive, I finally broke my silence and told the doctor about the rape. <br />
<br />
The world suddenly got very silent. Walking out of the office was the slowest I’ve ever walked. I saw so many pregnant women around me, but it seemed too far-fetched to have happened to me. <br />
<br />
Countless tears accompanied the many emotions running through my heart. I looked down at my stomach and I put my hand across my abdomen. There was a six-week old baby in there somewhere. <br />
<br />
Soon after, I told my mom. She was heartbroken for me, but never left my side. <br />
<br />
Over the next few months, my attitude and heart began to change. I started to trust God and believe there was a purpose to this whole circumstance. Prior to all of this, my walk with Christ was very surface-level. Amazingly, during this time in my life is where my relationship with Christ grew to a deeper level than I had never known. <br />
<br />
This baby actually gave me hope -- a reason to live and march forward. There was life within me, but the reality was, this baby gave me life.<br />
<br />
I had actually always had a stance of believing abortion was morally wrong, but it wasn’t necessarily a strong stance. I had a few people very close to me telling me that they would “understand” if I chose to abort, and they even offered to help to obtain an abortion.<br />
<br />
Yes, I was in a vulnerable place, but despite my feelings, my heart stood strong on the conviction: How can it be justified to take this baby’s life because of the tragic act done by a man who knew what he was doing? The rapist was culpable. This baby was innocent. <br />
<br />
I would oftentimes hold my growing stomach and think, “I can’t feel you, see you and I don't even know if you are a boy or girl at this point, but I feel compelled to protect you. It's my duty and my duty alone, no matter what.” <br />
<br />
Whether a baby is conceived consensually or through incest or rape, it’s an innocent life. Through my journey I came to the conclusion that a life is a life no matter what stage.<br />
<br />
I chose open adoption for my daughter after much prayer and thought. I wanted a stable home for her <br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yKrM9W_ugWs/Wlg1IOCp3RI/AAAAAAAAVyo/rQ9H-2C1GVQSOz9elpjoydpJpBQltzCCQCEwYBhgL/s1600/Jerusha%2BKlayman-Kingery%2BPro-Life%2BSpeaker.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1478" data-original-width="888" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-yKrM9W_ugWs/Wlg1IOCp3RI/AAAAAAAAVyo/rQ9H-2C1GVQSOz9elpjoydpJpBQltzCCQCEwYBhgL/s320/Jerusha%2BKlayman-Kingery%2BPro-Life%2BSpeaker.jpg" width="192" /></a></div>
and a dedicated father. This was the hardest decision I’ve ever made, but I put her needs before my desire. I placed her with a beautiful family, and we have since grown into one huge family for our daughter. I gave birth to my sweet girl, and when I laid eyes on her, all I could think was how beautiful she was. I never thought she was a mistake or tragedy. I was able to give my daughter physical life, while God used her to bring me into a true and deep relationship with Christ where I could fully rely upon and trust Him, no matter what comes my way. <br />
<br />
Today, I am married to an incredible man who adores my first daughter, while we are raising two daughters and one son together. I speak internationally to schools, churches and other interested groups about adoption, pro-life issues, self-esteem and related topics. I facilitate an online birth mother support group, fight for the 1% of babies targeted for abortion due to rape or incest, and I embrace the women who lack support and are scared just like I was.<br />
<br />
The lives of those babies who are recklessly justified to be ended, deserve a chance. And so does the woman who thinks there is no hope. Grasp her hand, walk through this rough journey with her, and believe in her ability to overcome the rape, while nurturing life.<br />
<br />
"You (Satan) intended to harm me, but God intended it for good to accomplish what is now being done, the saving of many lives." -- Genesis 50:20<br />
<br />
BIO: Jerusha Klayman-Kingery is wife, mother of three, and birth mother to one. She's also a part-<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ekxjeKGoPkU/Wlg0oQXVFVI/AAAAAAAAVyk/DP-6dx0okTMsHvIAL6Zh2oU-mCwLYJEIwCEwYBhgL/s1600/Jerusha%2BKlayman-Kingery%2BPro-Life%2BSpeaker%2B2.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="247" data-original-width="370" height="213" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-ekxjeKGoPkU/Wlg0oQXVFVI/AAAAAAAAVyk/DP-6dx0okTMsHvIAL6Zh2oU-mCwLYJEIwCEwYBhgL/s320/Jerusha%2BKlayman-Kingery%2BPro-Life%2BSpeaker%2B2.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
time missionary, singer-songwriter, pro-life activist and <a href="http://www.savethe1.com/jerusha-klayman-kingery-pro-life-speaker-oh/" target="_blank">pro-life speaker</a> and blogger for Save The 1. As President and Founder of As His Miracle Grows, she and her husband speak to youth and do missions. Follow her on her Facebook page: <a href="https://www.facebook.com/JerushaKingeryprolifespeaker/" target="_blank">Jerusha Klayman-Kingery Pro-Life Speaker</a>Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-61729126161474548342018-01-11T12:39:00.000-06:002018-01-11T12:39:10.099-06:00 I Was Conceived In Rape And My Life Is Not An Exception, by Heather Ann<br />
“Your life should be an exception, you shouldn’t be born.” <br />
<br />
Sounds harsh, right? <br />
<br />
Can you imagine going up to another human being and telling them they don’t have the right to live? It’s unthinkable some people actually deem it acceptable to look into the eyes of another human being created in the image of God, and proclaim they shouldn’t have been born.
<br />
<br />
If you’re pro-life, you are probably nodding your head in agreement. <br />
<br />
But what about protecting babies conceived in rape? Shouldn’t we advocate just as fiercely to protect their lives as well?<br />
<br />
You see, I’m one of those babies who was conceived in rape. And only by the grace of God, I survived to tell my story. <br />
<br />
My birth mother decided not to have an abortion, but she also chose not to keep me. In fact, when she brought me into this world, the hospital barely let her hold me, for fear she’d get attached.<br />
<br />
I wasn’t even given a name. <br />
<br />
So there I was, a nameless baby conceived in the most horrific of circumstances, without a home. <br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="float: right; margin-left: 1em; text-align: right;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WtvcnhXtLBw/Wlb0gMC8YzI/AAAAAAAAAAk/1y9I-xLH9r0VwbzH7a88u3zihsk0T_jeACLcBGAs/s1600/10565025_10101323681339082_8469502591374472737_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="748" data-original-width="674" height="320" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-WtvcnhXtLBw/Wlb0gMC8YzI/AAAAAAAAAAk/1y9I-xLH9r0VwbzH7a88u3zihsk0T_jeACLcBGAs/s320/10565025_10101323681339082_8469502591374472737_n.jpg" title="Little Heather Ann" width="288" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heather Ann as a child. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Thankfully, she placed me up for adoption, and at two months old I was adopted by two loving parents. Since it was a closed adoption, I was told I would never be able to meet my birth mother. But through volunteers we were able to put together the pieces, and when I was 19 years old, I met her.
<br />
<br />
She wasn’t surprised I found her. She mentioned if I was anything like her, she knew I’d find her one day. Looking back, I now see it was God’s hand who orchestrated the entire thing.
<br />
<br />
As I talked with her, she began to fill in the gaps. More importantly, she answered the question I’ve wondered my whole life, -- “Why was I not wanted, why was I given up?”<br />
<br />
But nothing could have prepared me for her answer. <br />
<br />
When my birth mother was 19 years old, she was drugged and raped. <br />
<br />
As I heard her tell the story, it felt as though I were choking on glass, I felt dazed, and my heart rate increased as I listened to how I was brought into this world. <br />
<br />
<i>I was the daughter of a rapist</i>.<br />
<br />
She went on to mention how she was young, and knew she couldn’t care for me. She wanted me to have the best home possible with two parents, so she placed me up for adoption to give me a chance to thrive and succeed in life, which I have. <br />
<br />
I am thankful she did, but the inherent shame I felt concerning how I was conceived deepened, and stayed with me for many years. <br />
<br />
At the time, I wasn’t yet saved, sure I knew Jesus, but I didn’t really <i>know</i> Him. Using the gap as a stronghold, the enemy exploited my pain and shame to torment me.<br />
<br />
But 10 years later, I accepted Jesus Christ as my Lord and Savior, and my life forever changed. The Lord picked up the shattered pieces of my past, and made beauty from ashes.<br />
<br />
I understand now, my birth mother placed me up for adoption because she loved me, and wanted the best, not because I was an unwanted baby.
And today I know, I am a daughter of the King, and my identity is in Christ. <br />
<br />
I’m thankful God spared my life, and now I want to do my part to advocate for other babies who don’t yet have a voice to fight for themselves.<br />
<br />
<table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lIXLuo97P0M/Wlb1MKZinWI/AAAAAAAAAAw/HGE0T6ejS1UENtPbH2X2qe8UU1cV84OuwCLcBGAs/s1600/16298906_10102530598756902_4992822560489837762_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="720" data-original-width="960" height="300" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-lIXLuo97P0M/Wlb1MKZinWI/AAAAAAAAAAw/HGE0T6ejS1UENtPbH2X2qe8UU1cV84OuwCLcBGAs/s400/16298906_10102530598756902_4992822560489837762_n.jpg" title="2017 March For Life" width="400" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Heather Ann at the 2017 March For Life in Washington D.C.</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
<br />
But you see, if it were up to most politicians, I wouldn’t be born. I would be deemed an exception, and sentenced to die, simply because of the way I was conceived.
<br />
<br />
So pro-lifers, I want to leave you with a challenge. Babies are dying, by no fault of their own. Sitting on the sidelines is easy. It’s comfortable. It won’t cause much disruption. But we aren’t called to live comfortable lives. We are called to speak up for the voiceless, the downcast, the orphans.<br />
<br />
If not us, who?<br />
<br />
Marching for life is a wonderful thing. It’s great to show up and network with pro-lifers across the country.
<br />
<br />
But it’s not enough.<br />
<table cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto; text-align: center;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xd0EynbWc5M/Wlb8vnj7OHI/AAAAAAAAABU/so9zleIbhGARmjrjS7HOxZdCp1pyXBBiQCLcBGAs/s1600/16265510_10102528953314382_7661662574044501408_n.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="960" data-original-width="841" height="400" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xd0EynbWc5M/Wlb8vnj7OHI/AAAAAAAAABU/so9zleIbhGARmjrjS7HOxZdCp1pyXBBiQCLcBGAs/s400/16265510_10102528953314382_7661662574044501408_n.jpg" width="350" /></a></td></tr>
<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Pictured from left to right: Yohanka Reyes, mother from rape and Executive Director of Mary's Pregnancy Resource Center, Heather Ann, child from rape and pro-life writer, and Rebecca Kiessling, child from rape and Save The 1 Founder and President. </td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<br />
Once you leave the streets of D.C. or wherever you march for life, I pray you take that same passion you have for protecting babies and channel your energy towards ensuring your elected officials will pass pro-life legislation, without the rape exception.<br />
<br />
And to those of you involved in politics, who have the power to do good, do it. Don’t compromise. Don’t sell out. Don’t support legislation that has the rape exception.
<br />
<br />
Babies conceived in rape are still babies. <br />
<br />
It’s time to wake up. We can’t go on killing innocent babies, nor deeming certain lives more valuable than others.<br />
<br />
So pro-lifers, if you are really pro-life, be all in. Get off the fence. Stop compromising on life. Be unequivocally pro-life, without compromise, and without exception.<br />
<br />
As Matthew 25:40 states <i>“The King will reply, ‘Truly I tell you, whatever you did for one of the least of these brothers and sisters of mine, you did for Me.”</i><br />
<br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q-RE2ONF8VE/Wlb5ItpJ96I/AAAAAAAAABA/3at7uTNtE2gpTyRFWwdgyLT_x_PrXjG-ACLcBGAs/s1600/Heather%2BAnn%2BHigh%2BRes.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1067" height="320" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Q-RE2ONF8VE/Wlb5ItpJ96I/AAAAAAAAABA/3at7uTNtE2gpTyRFWwdgyLT_x_PrXjG-ACLcBGAs/s320/Heather%2BAnn%2BHigh%2BRes.jpg" width="213" /></a></div>
BIO:<i> Heather Ann is the Operations Manager for a non-profit which provides respite care for children with disabilities. In addition, she is a published freelance writer, and has written for various organizations, including Save The 1. Heather is a fierce advocate for unborn babies, and believes every baby has the right to be born, regardless of how they were conceived. You can follow her <a href="https://www.facebook.com/HeatherAnnProLife/">here</a></i>. Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-47180865687654255202018-01-08T13:40:00.001-06:002018-01-11T11:35:14.844-06:00Everyone in One Voice Told My Parents to Abort, by Stephen Johnson<div class="normal">
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;">My
name is Stephen Johnson. I was born in India, but raised up in Kuwait which is
in the Middle East. I’m married to a beautiful bride named Rinku Stephen. We
both serve the Lord around the world where ever the Lord leads us. I want
to share my testimony of how the Lord performed a miracle in my life and made me into the person I am today. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="normal">
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="normal">
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;">I got the privilege to be born into a
Christian family. I’m fifth generation Christian. I have two siblings -- both
older than me. My sister is the oldest and is a doctor who settled in Canada, while my older brother is a pilot and an engineer who has settled in
Australia. I completed my Audio Engineering degree. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="normal">
<br /></div>
<div class="normal">
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;">My mom
used to take birth control pills . . . , and after awhile, she had a movement in her abdomen. It continued to occur as the months passed. She went to three doctors and they
said nothing was happening of concern. Later, she saw a different doctor and he
said that my mom was pregnant.</span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif;">A few months later, she went to another
doctor and he said that my mom was pregnant -- with me.</span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;">That is when my parents
came to know of my existence, and the doctors did not have very pleasant news to tell my
parents. They said that the position of the baby was upside down and was in an
abnormal stage. After hearing this news, my parents did not know how to process
this. They were shattered. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="normal">
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;">They shared the report the doctors had told
them to their family, church, and relatives, but my parents did not get a good
response from them either. Everyone in one voice told them to abort the baby because
they already had one girl child and a boy, so they said, "Why do you want the
third child?" So my parents were not sure what to do next and were in a terrific
stage of making a major decision in their lives. </span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;">One day ,while my parents were
in the room, they said that God came into their room and told them “Do not kill the child
because I’m going to send him to the nations to proclaim the good news.” They
both heard the voice of God and that day they made the decision that whatever
happens or whoever talks negative about this matter, they are not going to be concerned about it, and they dedicated me for ministry even before I was born. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;">Months passed by. They kept hearing this terrible news. Whenever my parents would go to see the doctors, they would say that the baby was
abnormal, and "even if he comes out, he would not have legs or arms," or that "the
baby will have missing parts in his body" and also that he will be blind.
Whatever the doctors could say to try to get them to abort, they said to my parents. Of course, they were upset
with the news, but they knew that their God was able to do some miracle, so they
believed and trusted God. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;">Finally,
my mom gave birth to me, and I was born perfectly healthy, as a normal baby. Whatever the
doctors said I would be, God turned it completely opposite and blessed my life. I had perfect vision, I had both my legs and my arms. I was a normal baby boy at birth.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;">However, as
months passed by, my parents noticed that I was quiet and that I was not interacting
</span></div>
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<a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tl-IEVzFykc/WlPH9B5PoRI/AAAAAAAAVx8/XUqzOCDEUgwS4--ISOpZt8__hBscolV9gCLcBGAs/s1600/Stephen%2BJohnson%2Bas%2Ba%2Bbaby.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="240" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-tl-IEVzFykc/WlPH9B5PoRI/AAAAAAAAVx8/XUqzOCDEUgwS4--ISOpZt8__hBscolV9gCLcBGAs/s320/Stephen%2BJohnson%2Bas%2Ba%2Bbaby.jpeg" width="320" /></a></div>
much with anyone, even with my parents. They tried to communicate with me, but I
was not able to answer them. Many months passed by and years too, and finally
they figured out that I was born mute. I could not even speak one word. I could
not call my parents daddy and mommy. When they came to know about this news,
they were really broken-hearted.<br />
<div class="normal">
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="normal">
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;">Now when everybody came to know about this
matter, they started to mock my parents again, saying: “You should have
killed the baby. Now you suffer watching him not speak.” These were the words
spoken to my parents, and again my parents were reminded of the voice of the
Lord and they trusted that. So they started fasting and praying for me. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;">One
night, there was a mega-crusade happening in Kuwait, and my parents left all
the kids home and went to the crusade. Before the meeting ended, the
pastor asked the crowd if there was anyone who wanted to heal. Then he said
to raise up the hands and declare by faith the healing power of the Lord. So by
faith, my parents raised their hands and prayed for me. In that meeting, many
got healed and delivered. My parents were so happy because they thought I was
healed. They came back home with a happy face, but soon after they started
talking to me their faces were saddened because I was still the same. God did not
heal me that day. They knelt down, prayed together and confessed.<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;"> <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TtW8IJGG6AU/WlPIFmgexZI/AAAAAAAAVyA/CcCVbDKl_P4IztdXIaFpNuOd9c1r7rraQCLcBGAs/s1600/Stephen%2BJohnson%2Bas%2Ba%2Bchild.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="640" data-original-width="480" height="200" src="https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TtW8IJGG6AU/WlPIFmgexZI/AAAAAAAAVyA/CcCVbDKl_P4IztdXIaFpNuOd9c1r7rraQCLcBGAs/s200/Stephen%2BJohnson%2Bas%2Ba%2Bchild.jpg" width="150" /></a></div>
<div class="normal">
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;">The
very next day, after they came back from work, they started to hear a voice
that they had never heard before, so they checked on my siblings first, but
they were just playing with their toys. Then my parents were searching for me and what
I was doing -- I was hiding behind a door and was singing a Christian song!! That’s when they knew that God had touched my mouth and healed me. God healed
me when I was four and a half years old. From then till now, He never allowed me
to stumble. I have been talking nonstop.
<o:p></o:p></span></div>
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<br /></div>
<div class="normal">
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;">God
could have healed me when I was born, but he did not because He wanted my
parents to have faith and obedience in Him so they could see with their own
eyes that when they put their whole trust in Him, He will take care of
everything. <o:p></o:p></span></div>
<div class="normal">
<span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;"><br /></span></div>
<div class="normal">
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DTEC2SmRQT0/WlPISRdLmJI/AAAAAAAAVyE/owB9seoqEp0D9k8JflFQYLKXIRybXZX5QCLcBGAs/s1600/Stephen%2BJohnson%2Bwith%2Bwife.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="508" data-original-width="480" height="320" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-DTEC2SmRQT0/WlPISRdLmJI/AAAAAAAAVyE/owB9seoqEp0D9k8JflFQYLKXIRybXZX5QCLcBGAs/s320/Stephen%2BJohnson%2Bwith%2Bwife.jpg" width="302" /></a><span lang="EN" style="font-family: "times new roman" , serif; line-height: 115%;">BIO: Stephen Johnson is a husband, sharing the gospel globally, and a pro-life blogger for Save The 1. Stephen and his wife Rinku are missionaires to Africa and North India. Stephen can be contacted or followed on <a href="https://www.facebook.com/oj.steve15" target="_blank">Facebook</a>, <a href="https://www.instagram.com/stephen_johnsons/?hl=en" target="_blank">Instagram</a>, and <a href="https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCByFbT2IEPqatvCTbja5ZvQ?view_as=subscriber" target="_blank">YouTube</a>.</span></div>
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Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-36066609533212721922018-01-07T11:59:00.003-06:002018-01-07T12:27:26.736-06:00What Advice Should Clergy Give To a Woman Pregnant By Rape? by Rebecca Kiessling<div style="background-color: white; box-sizing: border-box; line-height: 25px; margin-bottom: 10px;">
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Clergy need to get this one right! Save The 1 has published two recent stories in which the pregnant rape victims' clergy not only advised them that's it's acceptable to abort, but actually encouraged them to do so. One rape victim went through with the abortion, and the other did not. In other words, a pastor was responsible for the death of an innocent unborn child.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Nicole W. Cooley, in her story, <a href="http://savethe1.blogspot.com/2018/01/a-tale-of-two-mothers-who-were-pregnant.html" target="_blank">A Tale of Two Mothers Who Were Pregnant By Rape</a>, writes: "<span style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;">Unfortunately, the only specific advice came from my pastor.</span><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3316" style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;"> </span><span style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;">She told me, 'Let me put your heart at ease.</span><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3317" style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;"> </span><span style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;">In the eyes of the church, any decision, prayerfully considered, is okay.</span><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3318" style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;"> </span><span style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;">In your case, I think you should have an abortion.</span><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3319" style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;"> </span><span style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;">You need to be able to move past this.</span><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3320" style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;"> </span><span style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;">You should have an abortion.'</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;">"</span><span style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;">She went on to tell me about her two daughters who had also faced unplanned pregnancies.</span><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3322" style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;"> </span><span style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;">One had chosen adoption, the other abortion, and both were equally good decisions, she said.</span><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3323" style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;"> </span><span style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;">She dismissively added, 'There's a couple in the church who want to adopt, but, no, you shouldn't talk to them.</span><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3324" style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;"> </span><span style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;">You need to have an abortion.' </span><span style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;">I remember my heart telling me, 'Isn't there something in Psalms about this?'"</span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Nicole deeply regretted her abortion, and suffered for many years as a result. She says a key component to her healing was her godly husband telling her, "I love you, but what you did was wrong." Women need to hear the truth.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;">In her testimonial, <a href="http://savethe1.blogspot.com/2017/11/from-victimhood-to-motherhood-i-chose.html" target="_blank">From Victimhood to Motherhood, I Chose Joy</a>, Paula K. Peyton explains, the morning after the rape, "</span><span style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;">I spoke to my priest who was very supportive of me as a rape victim. But she actually took me to Walgreens to buy Plan B, which I never took because it wasn't something I was comfortable with. I don't take birth control because I'm not comfortable with it. I already knew Plan B could have the effect of preventing implantation if an embryo was already created. I was worried about STDs, and of course, I was concerned about pregnancy since I knew the timing and that I could be ovulating. I'd had discussions with friends in the past about Plan B and we had talked about not knowing if you would have lost a baby or not, and I had already concluded that it would be horrible not knowing." When she found out she was pregnant, this same priest also advised her to abort.</span><span style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;"> But Paula says, "t</span><span style="color: #030303; letter-spacing: 1px;">he Lord had taken one of the worst things in my life -- something so dark and damaging -- and He had created life."</span></span></div>
<span style="letter-spacing: 1px;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></span>
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">With Save the 1, we now have a network of nearly 550 who became pregnant by rape, as well as those conceived in rape, and I've repeatedly heard other stories like this, where the pregnant rape victim sought counsel from her clergy, and the priest or pastor advised her to abort, telling her that God will forgive her -- and it wasn't just female clergy. But the issue is not whether God forgives our sins -- the critical question for clergy is this: Is it a sin to abort when the pregnancy is the result of rape? Yes, it is! Theologians, ministry leaders and pastors need to be clear on this. Abortion intentionally ends the life of an innocent living human being. Exodus 20:13 and Deuteronomy 5:17 clearly command: “You shall not murder.” Killing an innocent unborn child after rape through the premeditated act of abortion fits the definition of murder: “You have condemned and murdered the innocent one, who was not opposing you.” — James 5:6 Punish rapists, not babies.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Pastors and priests should know better -- as with any other sin, there is accountability for the shedding of innocent blood. Genesis 9:5,6 warns: “And from each human being, too, I will demand an accounting for the life of another human being. Whoever sheds human blood, by humans shall their blood be shed; for in the image of God has God made mankind.” Just do a Bible search of “innocent blood,” and you’ll see a plethora of Scripture verses -- how relevant innocence is, and how God detests the shedding of innocent blood. Here are the most common questions asked when it comes to theology of abortion in cases of rape, and clergy must get these answers right:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">1. Is abortion murder?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Yes. This is critical to know the answer to this question when being asked for biblical advice on whether to abort. While it's not helpful to condemn post-abortive friends by saying, "You're a murderer," many of our post-abortive rape victims from Save The 1 have used this kind of language toward themselves, and several sexual abuse survivors moms who contemplated abortion use that language in describing what they almost did to their child, or what others urged them to do. Certainly someone <span style="color: #333333;">who has been asked for a biblical perspective should be able to answer this question accurately. </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Abortion always involves bloodshed -- babies do not just magically disappear. No woman takes a pill and the baby just vanishes into thin air. And the unborn baby is always innocent. </span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Consider Exodus 21:22-25, which is the first place in the Bible where the law of “an eye for an eye” is declared. This passage demonstrates the seriousness with which God takes the injury to a pregnant woman or her unborn child: “If people are fighting and hit a pregnant woman and she gives birth prematurely but there is no serious injury, the offender must be fined whatever the woman’s husband demands and the court allows. But if there is serious injury, you are to take life for life, eye for eye, tooth for tooth, hand for hand, foot for foot, burn for burn, wound for wound, bruise for bruise.” I've seen liberal theologians actually argue that the verse only pertains to harm to the woman, but this standard necessarily includes harm to the unborn child, or the verse would not be talking about a pregnant woman! The injury or death to the unborn child is what’s critical here.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In Amos 1:13, God says that for Ammon’s sins, He “will not relent. Because he ripped open the pregnant women of Gilead.” So it’s clear that God expressly counts the ripping open of pregnant women as a sin. That’s exactly what abortion is. Again, the fact that the women are pregnant is relevant — not because of her autonomy, but because of the harm to her unborn child.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Abortion involves the killing of one's own children and is just another form of child-sacrifice. Making the rape exception to your pro-life views is modern-day child sacrifice. Look at Psalm 106:37-38: “They sacrificed their sons and their daughters to false gods. They shed innocent blood, the blood of their sons and daughters, whom they sacrificed to the idols of Canaan, and the land was desecrated by their blood.” The child conceived out of rape is still the rape survivor mother’s own son or daughter -- innocent blood.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I shudder when I read Jeremiah 20:17, “For he did not kill me in the womb, with my mother as my grave, her womb enlarged forever.” Abortion turns a mother’s womb into a grave.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">2. But what about in cases of rape?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The Bible is clear that only the rapist is to be punished for the rape: “But if out in the country a man happens to meet a young woman pledged to be married and rapes her, only the man who has done this shall die.” — Deuteronomy 22:25</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">However, it’s estimated that, in the United States, only 1% of rapists are ever convicted for the crime of rape. According to the U.S. Supreme Court cases of Coker v Georgia and Kennedy v Louisiana, rapists and even child molesters don’t deserve the death penalty — that it’s “cruel and unusual punishment.” So how could the innocent child conceived out of that rape deserve the death penalty?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Proverbs 17:15 warns: “Acquitting the guilty and condemning the innocent— the Lord detests them both.” And Proverbs 18:5 tell us: “It is not good to be partial to the wicked and so deprive the innocent of justice,” which is what the Supreme Court has done, along with every law passed banning or regulating abortion with a rape exception included. Clergy do the same when they encourage the innocent child to be killed, which also happens to destroy the evidence of the rape, protecting the perpetrator!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">1 Kings 8:32 and 2 Chronicles 6:23 both say: “Judge between your servants, condemning the guilty by bringing down on their heads what they have done, and vindicating the innocent by treating them in accordance with their innocence.” The rapist is guilty, while the child is innocent, yet there are some clergy and other Christians who are prepared to allow the innocent child to be put to death, but not the rapist!</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In Deuteronomy 24:16 and 2 Kings 14: 6b, God makes it very clear: “Parents are not to be put to death for their children, nor children put to death for their parents; each will die for their own sin.” As a child conceived in rape, God's word affirms that I did not deserve the death penalty for the crime of my biological father. I'm appalled that any pastor or priest would suggest otherwise.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In Ezekiel chapter 18, it’s further explained: “But suppose this son has a son who sees all the sins his father commits, and though he sees them, he does not do such things. . . . He will not die for his father’s sin; he will surely live. But his father will die for his own sin. . . . “Yet you ask, ‘Why does the son not share the guilt of his father?’ Since the son has done what is just and right and has been careful to keep all my decrees, he will surely live. The one who sins is the one who will die. The child will not share the guilt of the parent, nor will the parent share the guilt of the child. The righteousness of the righteous will be credited to them, and the wickedness of the wicked will be charged against them.” — verses 14, 17 b, 18a, 19-20</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">There is ample scripture regarding God’s concern for the fatherless, and no one is more at risk to end up fatherless than the child conceived in rape. “Do no wrong or violence to the foreigner, the fatherless or the widow, and do not shed innocent blood in this place.” Jeremiah 22:3 Clergy are "doing wrong" when they give the okay for the innocent child to be aborted.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">3. Isn’t this “the rapist’s baby” or “demon seed?”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">No! Every child is created by God, in His image, for a purpose. “So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.” — Genesis 1:27 And Job 31:15 explains: “Did not he who made me in the womb make them? Did not the same one form us both within our mothers?”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Psalm 139:13-16 is true for every child, regardless of the circumstances of his or her conception:</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">For you created my inmost being;</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">you knit me together in my mother’s womb.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I praise you because I am fearfully and wonderfully made;</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">your works are wonderful,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I know that full well.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">My frame was not hidden from you</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">when I was made in the secret place.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When I was woven together in the depths of the earth,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">your eyes saw my unformed body.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">All the days ordained for me</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">were written in your book</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">before one of them came to be."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">God is the author of life and we are not to question what He has divinely created. Isaiah 45: 9-12:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“Does the clay say to the potter,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">‘What are you making?’</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Does your work say,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">‘He has no hands?’</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Woe to him who says to his father,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">‘What have you begotten?’</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">or to his mother,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">‘What have you brought to birth?'”</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">“This is what the Lord says —</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">the Holy One of Israel, and its Maker:</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Concerning things to come,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">do you question me about my children,</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">or give me orders about the work of my hands?</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It is I who made the earth</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">and created mankind upon it.”</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Like any other child, I was created by God, in His image, for a purpose -- and that purpose was not to be aborted! I actually had a Christian woman once suggest to me that God might create some children for the purpose of being aborted. I have to wonder where she got this theology. It is the responsibility of clergy to be teaching that none of us are to question to the work of God's hands, and that's exactly what's happening when you contemplate abortion, or when you give the green light to abort.</span><br />
<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br />In Matthew 18, Jesus speaks at length about the little children, and says the following in the parable of the lost sheep: “See that you do not despise one of these little ones. For I tell you that their angels in heaven always see the face of my Father in heaven. What do you think? If a man owns a hundred sheep, and one of them wanders away, will he not leave the ninety-nine on the hills and go to look for the one that wandered off? And if he finds it, truly I tell you, he is happier about that one sheep than about the ninety-nine that did not wander off. In the same way your Father in heaven is not willing that any of these little ones should perish.” — verses 10:14 </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Jesus was specifically talking about the little ones who are despised who are at risk of perishing, and he makes it clear that God is not willing that any of them should die! In today's society, are not these despised little ones children conceived in rape? There is no other people group today that are as systematically targeted and despised as the child conceived in rape. But God isn’t about making exceptions. These children are His <i>priority</i>!</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">4. So does that mean that God intends rape?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">No! God gave people free will because love requires free will. He wants us to be obedient out of love. Tragically, against the law of God, some use that free will to harm others, as when Joseph’s brothers sold him into slavery. But what they intended for evil, God used it for good. See Genesis 50: 19-21. It’s a theme we see throughout Scripture, including the death and resurrection of our Savior. In Isaiah 63:3, we see that for those who are grieving, He will “bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of joy instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair.” It’s what God does, and what He’s famous for! Bringing good out of evil is one of His trademarks. “And we know that in all things God works for the good of those who love him, who have been called according to his purpose.” — Romans 8:28</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">God is not pro-rape, just as valuing my own life does not make me pro-rape. Mothers can love their children conceived in rape without being pro-rape. Being Christians does not make us pro-crucifixion, and neither is God. Sorry if the question seems absurd to some of you, but please keep in mind that these are actual questions I get asked.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">5. If a woman has committed the sin of abortion, is it unforgivable?</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">No! Jesus died on the cross once for all, for every sin. See Romans 6:10, 1 Peter 3:18, and Hebrews 9:28. “If we confess our sins, his is faithful and just, and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness.” 1 John 1:9 “Repent then and turn to God so that your sins may be wiped out, that times of refreshing may come from the Lord.” — Acts 3:19 </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I've been stunned over the years by how many women have come up to me after they heard me speak, confessed their abortions to me, then asked, "Do you forgive me?" I tell them "I don't feel it's my place that you would need my forgiveness." It's not my place to condemn them. Then I inquire as to whether they've asked God to forgive them, and the answer is always in the affirmative. I further ask, "Do you believe God forgives you?," and they tend to answer with shrugs, "Yeah. Yeah, I guess He forgives me." </span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When I ask the next question, "Have you forgiven yourself?," these women often have a more difficult time of it. I tell them what someone once told me when I was struggling to forgive myself for something painful I'd done: "When you fail to forgive yourself, it's like saying that what God did by sending His son to die on the Cross for you isn't good enough for you -- that it was in vain, and that what you have to say it is more important than what God has to say." Forgiving yourself is what it really means to say that God's grace is sufficient -- what He did is good enough for me.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But even when they understand this truth and are able to repent, to receive God's forgiveness and to forgive themselves, they still have asked me if I forgive them. And I know why they ask me. Because I am someone who was conceived in rape and nearly aborted by my birthmother, they see me as a surrogate for their children, and they think that if I can forgive them, then maybe -- just maybe, their children will forgive them. What they are really asking is, "Will my baby forgive me?" This is another theological question clergy better be prepared to answer when asked by a post-abortive mother. What I offer these women is, "All I know is that there will be no more tears in Heaven," and to the extent they need to hear it from me, my answer is "Yes, I forgive you."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It's important to offer grace and mercy, but please, please, don't let your good advice be a day late. Many clergy are experts at giving advice on forgiveness -- as they should be, but fail miserably in giving sound, biblical advice on life-ending sin. Murder is a sin, abortion is included in murder, which involves the shedding of innocent blood. Only the rapist is to be punished for his crime. A child is not to be punished for the sins of his or her father. Every child, including children conceived in rape, is made by God, in the image of God, for His purposes. God does not intend rape, He makes beautiful things come out of evil, and God is able to forgive those who have committed the sin of abortion.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It is clearly against the law of God to have an abortion in the case of rape or incest, and I’m thankful to be alive. I'm thankful to those who defended my life and protected me when my birth mother was vulnerable and sought to abort me. The church is often the first place where a pregnant woman will seek counsel. Clergy and the body of Christ should be the first to come to the defense of the innocent child.</span></div>
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<em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">BIO: Rebecca Kiessling is an international pro-life speaker, attorney, wife, mother of 5, </span></em><br />
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><a href="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dMiQ9MYQwQ0/VLp8q4k5phI/AAAAAAAAI2I/in0_GTjL7hcNqfAoOMe1RGmB4tIIi_pSwCPcBGAYYCw/s1600/Rebecca%2BKiessling%2BPro-Life%2BSpeaker%2B1%2B-%2BCopy.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="213" src="https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-dMiQ9MYQwQ0/VLp8q4k5phI/AAAAAAAAI2I/in0_GTjL7hcNqfAoOMe1RGmB4tIIi_pSwCPcBGAYYCw/s320/Rebecca%2BKiessling%2BPro-Life%2BSpeaker%2B1%2B-%2BCopy.jpg" width="320" /></a></span></em></div>
<em style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">founder and President of <a href="http://www.lifenews.com/2014/09/05/im-so-glad-i-had-you-she-was-raped-and-could-have-had-an-abortion/www.savethe1.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #337ab7; margin: 0px;">Save The 1</a>, co-founder of <a href="http://www.lifenews.com/2014/09/05/im-so-glad-i-had-you-she-was-raped-and-could-have-had-an-abortion/www.hopeafterrapeconception.org" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #337ab7; margin: 0px;">Hope After Rape Conception</a>, and author of the Heritage House ’76 pamphlet “Conceived in Rape: A Story of Hope.” Visit her website at <a href="http://www.lifenews.com/2014/09/05/im-so-glad-i-had-you-she-was-raped-and-could-have-had-an-abortion/www.rebeccakiessling.com" style="background-color: transparent; box-sizing: border-box; color: #337ab7; margin: 0px;">www.rebeccakiessling.com</a></span></em></div>
Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-11090924015458198692018-01-05T14:13:00.001-06:002018-01-05T14:32:16.267-06:00A Tale of Two Mothers Who Were Pregnant By Rape, by Nicole W. Cooley<div id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3224" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;">
<i id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3228" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px; font-family: "Helvetica Neue", Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;">Just touch one, Lord. . . .</i><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3229" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> M</span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">y repeated prayer ever since I first told my story almost twenty years ago has been the same -- for the Lord to somehow use my saga of shame and regret to help someone else.</span><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3230" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">He's always answered.</span><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3231" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The first time I shared my testimony publicly, a woman came up to me afterwards and said, "Thank you for sharing.</span><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3232" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">My mother forced me to have an abortion when I was sixteen.</span><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3233" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I have always felt it was wrong.</span><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3234" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">You're the first person to validate what I've always known."</span><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3235" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But, my favorite answer to that simple prayer lies in the story I'm about to tell.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">First, let me tell you my own journey.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3238" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>I grew up in a Christian home.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3239" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>As a teenager, I remember my father telling me, "Abortion is wrong.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3240" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>I'm pro-life except in cases of rape or to save the life of the mother.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3242" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> As with</span> most of my father's opinions, I took his and made it my own.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A short time later, my biology teacher told the class to write a birth plan for an unplanned pregnancy, and I refused:<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3245" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>"If I never get pregnant, there won't be an unplanned pregnancy.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3246" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Abstinence works 100% of the time."<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3247" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>I never contemplated at age 15 that just a few years later, my "plan" would be tested -- and I'd learn the hard way that this "plan" fell way short of preparing me for reality. . . .</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I met him on an airplane while traveling home for Christmas.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3250" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>He offered to get down my overhead luggage for me, and then refused to give me my suitcase.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3251" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>As I followed him off the plane, still asking for my suitcase, he said, "I'd like to carry it a while longer, if that's okay.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3252" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Would you like to get something to drink?"<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3253" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> S</span>urprisingly, I decided I liked him, and agreed to give him my phone number.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3254" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When he called a couple of weeks later, I invited him to church instead of going for a drink.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3257" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>He counter-invited me to attend <i>his</i> church.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3258" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Thrilled he was also a "Christian," I readily agreed.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3259" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>When I told him, "I'm waiting for marriage for intimacy, so if sex is what you're after, we should end this now," he assured me, "You're preaching to the choir."<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3260" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>He lied.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I'm convinced now that he was in the later stages of a significant pornography addiction.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3263" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>I can't rationally explain his behavior any other way.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3264" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>You see, a pornography addiction left unchecked, will always lead to acting out what you read about, and look at.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3265" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Over time, your conscience is seared, and just like a cocaine addict, you'll do anything to get your "fix."<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3266" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>For him, I would be his fix -- whether I agreed or not.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">When his initial attempts to lure me into bed were futile, he turned to the date rape drug.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3269" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">One night I had a horrible dream.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3270" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>In my dream, I was back on my old college campus -- only now, I was in the later stages of pregnancy.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3271" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Late at night, I went from dorm to dorm, looking for a place to sleep.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3272" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Desperately tired, everyone turned me away.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3273" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Finally, my former boyfriend let me in, but told me I'd have to use the top bunk.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3274" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>With difficulty, I climbed up, and subsequently fell into a deep sleep.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The next morning, I woke up and told my "boyfriend" about my dream.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3276" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>His eyes were as big as saucers.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3277" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>At that point, I still didn't know.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3278" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> But t</span>hen I went to the bathroom and something unusual fell out of my body. Plus I had a growing awareness of soreness, and I knew something was wrong.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3279" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>I ran out, and yelled, "I need to go to the emergency room!"<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3280" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>He convinced me nothing had happened, but two weeks later, I learned the truth.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3281" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Denial has a sedative effect.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3284" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>People who have never been there like to say, "I'd <i id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3285" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;">never</i> allow myself to be abused like that!"<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3286" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>When you have the starring role in your own horrible TV reality show, it just doesn't seem possible.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3287" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>In fact, your mind helps you to <i id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3288" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;">believe </i>it's not really happening in order to preserve your sanity.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3289" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>I couldn't believe my boyfriend -- the man my heart had set on marrying -- would rape me.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3290" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>So, I believed him instead . . . , until two weeks later when two positive pregnancy tests forced me into a reality I wasn't prepared to face.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In the days and weeks after realizing I'd been raped, I walked around in a daze.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3294" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>My dayplanner for work usually had very little "white space" due to all of my notes.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3295" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>The near-blank pages after the rape reflected my distracted and zombie-like mental state.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3296" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>I merely went through the motions of life.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3297" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">At the same time, the world's standards demanded I make a life or death decision for another human being.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3298" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>I just couldn't.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3299" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>So, I leaned on those I trusted most -- my family, my best friend, and my church.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I tell people now that if you have the honor of being asked for your opinion in the case of an unplanned pregnancy, be prepared to give a real answer.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3302" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Telling someone in crisis, "Whatever you want to do, I'll support you" is of no real help at all.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3303" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>She's asking for definitive advice.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3304" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>She needs to hear, "I know this feels horrible and you can't see how you're going to get through this, but you will.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3307" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>I'll walk with you every step. You are going to make it.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3308" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>You're strong.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3309" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>You can do this.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3310" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>I know nine months seems like forever, but it's really not.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3311" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Don't make a decision today that you will regret for the rest of your life.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3312" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Choose life.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3313" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>It's the best choice for both of you."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Unfortunately, the only specific advice came from my pastor.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3316" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>She told me, "Let me put your heart at ease.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3317" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>In the eyes of the church, any decision, prayerfully considered, is okay.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3318" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>In your case, I think you should have an abortion.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3319" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>You need to be able to move past this.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3320" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>You should have an abortion."<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3321" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She went on to tell me about her two daughters who had also faced unplanned pregnancies.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3322" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>One had chosen adoption, the other abortion, and both were equally good decisions, she said.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3323" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>She dismissively added, "There's a couple in the church who want to adopt, but, no, you shouldn't talk to them.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3324" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>You need to have an abortion."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">I remember my heart telling me, "Isn't there something in Psalms about this?"<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3327" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>My heart began to break as the door slowly closed inside.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3328" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>I felt I didn't have a choice.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3329" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> I was convinced that n</span>obody would adopt my baby with my having a 50% chance of carrying the gene for neurofibromatosis (a horrible disease my Dad battled most of his adult life.)<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3330" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>I began to steel myself for the abortion.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3331" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>I felt like a lamb being led to her death inside.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3332" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>I didn't believe I had a choice.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">After the abortion, I learned there is something worse than being raped.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3335" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> The abortion</span> felt like being raped again -- only worse, because this time, I had consented to the assault.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3336" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>In both cases, men assaulted me physically.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3337" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>The second trauma -- the abortion, shut me down emotionally, putting me over the edge.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3338" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">It took four years to begin the slow path out of denial and into healing in Christ.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3339" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>If it hadn't been for the wonderful husband God sent me, I don't know how I would be here today.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3340" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>He told me from the beginning, "I love you, but what you did was wrong."<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3341" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>That chink in my denial helped me years later, after the birth of our first son, John, to finally see the truth.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3342" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>It shattered my heart.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3343" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>But, it needed to break . . . so God could put it back together again.</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A "Divine appointment" took place a few years ago when I spoke at my church.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3346" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Plans for me to speak had been rescheduled several times over many months until the Sunday in November when I finally shared a ministry update with our church.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3347" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>I now work with the Center for Bio-Ethical Reform, sharing abortion victim images primarily on college campuses across Virginia and the Southeast.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3348" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>That day, I prefaced my talk by saying my words weren't meant to condemn anyone, and not to believe the Enemy if they felt that way.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3349" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">As a post-abortive woman myself, I understood that misplaced guilt all too well.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3350" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>I explained the reasoning behind our work, citing the work of successful historical social reformers like William Wilberforce, Lewis Hine, and Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr..<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3351" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>And, I showed pictures of first trimester abortions -- little babies, with limbs and appendages torn from their tiny bodies.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3353" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>It's devastating to see for the first time.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3354" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> And, </span>I had no idea there was a pregnant rape victim in the audience that day. . . .</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Morgan told me two months later that she'd been there.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3357" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Sitting in the audience, it had been a rare Sunday for her to be in church at all.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3358" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>She told me, "You were there for <i>me</i>." <span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3359" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The night she'd been raped, she had snuck out of her home to hang out with friends.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3362" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Gang-raped on the way home, she hid her ruined clothes, and told nobody, except a few close friends what had happened.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3363" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> When she discovered she was pregnant, h</span></span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">er high school friends arranged for her to have an abortion the following Saturday.</span><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3360" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">She had told her parents she had a sporting event in Washington D.C. so they wouldn't be suspicious when she left for the abortion.</span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">But, then, in church, she heard my testimony and saw the pictures -- and she knew she couldn't do it.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3365" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Morgan gained the courage to tell her parents what had happened -- despite feeling ashamed she had snuck out of the house and that she'd planned an abortion.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3366" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>They rallied around her, and supported her in choosing adoption for her baby instead.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3367" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span></span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">During her pregnancy, I was able to connect her to Save The 1 and she joined their private Facebook for birthmothers from rape, so she wouldn't have to be alone in this. </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">A family at the church put her in contact with the perfect family for her baby.</span><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3368" style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"> </span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Months later she gave birth, and named him "Justice."</span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">The pain from losing my son Matthew is the single greatest regret of my life.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3371" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>It crushed me.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3372" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Abortion forces a mother to turn against her own flesh and blood.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3373" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>It's self-destructive like no other trauma -- the scars run deep.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3374" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Rape is traumatic too, no doubt.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3375" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>But, compounding the trauma of rape with the second trauma of abortion is contraindicated.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3376" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Abortion hurts rape victims; it never helps them.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3377" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>The best choice for the mother who has conceived in rape is to continue the pregnancy, surrounded by supportive family and friends, or through the support of a pregnancy resource center.</span><br />
<a href="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YGr9kBlo2dQ/Wk_eDtaVmyI/AAAAAAAAVxQ/QmLWrUkm6bIrZqhUes8j9umc8zcZ3zEdgCLcBGAs/s1600/Nicole%2BCooley%2Band%2BMorgan.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="clear: right; float: right; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-left: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="515" data-original-width="720" height="228" src="https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-YGr9kBlo2dQ/Wk_eDtaVmyI/AAAAAAAAVxQ/QmLWrUkm6bIrZqhUes8j9umc8zcZ3zEdgCLcBGAs/s320/Nicole%2BCooley%2Band%2BMorgan.JPG" width="320" /></a><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><br /></span></div>
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<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3379" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">In His Word, God promises that all things will work together for good to those who are called according to His purposes (Romans 8:28).<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3380" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>For me, Morgan's story is proof of His promise.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3381" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>My baby died and broke this mother's heart.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3382" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>But, God used my pain and suffering to propel me into ministry on behalf of the pre-born.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3383" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Because I am willing to share my painful testimony of my son's death, baby Justice is alive, and his mother lives without the regret of abortion.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3384" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>Indeed, when you save the baby conceived in rape or with a fetal abnormality, you actually save two -- mother and child.<span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3385" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"> </span>We call ourselves "Save The 1," but when you save the 1 child, you save the mother too -- you save them both.</span></span><br />
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<a href="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xI2z-VF9wpc/Wk_cDzDWBkI/AAAAAAAAVxA/CE6U31B_HacZkgbnhDux8l3JpWNsTjzXgCLcBGAs/s1600/Nicole%2BCooley.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="clear: left; float: left; margin-bottom: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="528" data-original-width="520" height="320" src="https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-xI2z-VF9wpc/Wk_cDzDWBkI/AAAAAAAAVxA/CE6U31B_HacZkgbnhDux8l3JpWNsTjzXgCLcBGAs/s320/Nicole%2BCooley.jpg" width="315" /></a></div>
<span class="yiv6722377054Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"><span style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"><span class="yiv6722377054Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="yiv6722377054Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;">BIO: Nicole W Cooley is a wife, mother, </span></span></span></span><span style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="yiv6722377054Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"><span class="yiv6722377054Apple-style-span" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;">Project Director for the </span></span></span><span class="yiv6722377054Apple-style-span" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515122571924_16337" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span class="yiv6722377054Apple-style-span" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515122571924_16336" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"><span class="yiv6722377054Apple-style-span" id="yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515122571924_16335" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;">Center for Bio-Ethical Reform - Virginia, a</span></span></span><span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;"><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3730" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"><span class="yiv6722377054Apple-style-span" id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3729" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"><span class="yiv6722377054Apple-style-span" id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3728" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;">uthor of </span></span><span id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3733" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"><span class="yiv6722377054Apple-style-span" id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3732" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"><span class="yiv6722377054Apple-style-span" id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3731" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"><i>Into the Light</i>, and a pro-life speaker and blogger for <a href="http://www.savethe1.com/" target="_blank">Save The 1</a>. Her website is </span></span></span></span></span><span class="yiv6722377054Apple-style-span" id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3699" style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px;"><span class="yiv6722377054Apple-style-span" id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3698" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px;"><a href="http://www.nicolewcooley.com/" id="yiv6722377054yui_3_16_0_ym19_1_1515121084449_3700" rel="nofollow" style="-webkit-padding-start: 0px; background-attachment: initial; background-clip: initial; background-image: initial; background-origin: initial; background-position: initial; background-repeat: initial; background-size: initial; margin: 0px; outline: none; padding: 0px;" target="_blank">www.NicoleWCooley.com</a></span></span><br />
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<span style="font-family: "helvetica neue" , "arial" , "helvetica" , sans-serif;">Visit Save The 1's booth at the March for Life Expo 2018 and meet Nicole in person!</span></div>
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Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3416677658654189030.post-55261248734487018732018-01-03T17:39:00.002-06:002018-01-03T18:27:17.414-06:00Doctor Said to Abort or She Would Die, by Kirk Barker<span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif;">I didn't know I was lost until I was saved and I had no idea that the path I was living could nearly result in another person dying</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif;">. I am</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: "helvetica neue" , "segoe ui" , "helvetica" , "arial" , "lucida grande" , sans-serif;"> Kirk Barker and I am the founder of Cameron's Chance Pro-life Advocacy. I went from being a non-believer, to a believer, to a follower of Christ Jesus. Because I was a non-believer, I was blind to God's miracles -- most significantly, the miracle when God saved my wife and son 16 years ago. </span><br />
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For a good part of my life, I was a non-believer. Although I'd been raised in church until the age of 12, once my parents divorced, I turned my back on God. I denied God. My parents had stopped taking me to church. I couldn't understand why life was the way it was. One excuse I used was, "If there is a God, why does He let bad things happen to good people?" </div>
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Chassidy and I were living together for about three months before she became pregnant around Christmas, 2001. We planned on marrying, but didn't feel rushed to do it anytime soon. God was not at the forefront of our discussions. We may have talked about religion or faith from time to time, but God was not a part of our decision-making or lifestyle. On January, 12th, 2002, when we learned she was pregnant, abortion was not a consideration because we knew abortion was wrong and we knew we would be getting married anyway. We were scared, but definitely happy about it at the same time.</div>
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However, Chassidy soon became very sick. She lost 42 pounds in just one month and was hospitalized most of this time. The doctors never gave an official diagnosis, but by mid-February, the doctor told us, "There is nothing more that we can do. If you don't terminate the pregnancy, she will die." At about two months into her pregnancy, we knew that meant the baby would die too. So there was no question of her life versus the child's life. </div>
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Both of us were devastated. We were crying, sad, and scared. We had already suffered so much with her health deteriorating, then to be told to abort was even more difficult. This was not a place you would ever want to be in. I didn't want to lose the love of my life and I didn't want to lose my baby.</div>
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Unfortunately, we took the doctor's advice -- a decision we made together. We got the procedure all set up. On February 26, 2002, we went to the abortion clinic -- The Women's Center in Nashville, Tennessee. Chassidy had been released from the hospital. The clinic was about a 30-minute drive from our home. We really didn't want to go through with it. We were about to lose our son. I can't even remember the car ride.</div>
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We parked our car and as we began walking toward the clinic, we saw pro-life supporters. Chassidy was a little nervous about them because she didn't know if they were going to start yelling at her. But instead, they approached us with friendly smiles, and love and kindness. I remember them pleading with us not to go through with the procedure. We told them we didn't want to abort, but explained our situation. They apologized for our predicament, and prayed for us. I was very appreciative and thankful that they cared for us even though they didn't know us.</div>
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We can't thank God enough for the pro-life supporters He put on that sidewalk that day. I know many people call them protesters, but in my opinion, they are not protesting anything. They are there sharing God's message of life -- that every child is a blessing.</div>
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Sadly, we proceeded into the clinic anyway. Just before we were about to sign what we call "the death certificate" to our son, God answered those prayers and intervened. My wife looked at me and said, "I don't care if I die. I am not going to kill our baby." I was relieved in that moment, and just had hope that she would somehow get better.</div>
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We got up and walked out. </div>
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Afterward, we just went about our lives. I was working. She was resting at home. Two weeks later, God healed Chassidy. She stopped throwing up and was better in every respect. She never went back to that doctor who told her to abort. Thankfully, she found a new doctor who she felt took really good care of her and the baby.</div>
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The rest of the pregnancy was good once she got feeling better. Our son Cameron was <br />
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born full-term on September 16, 2002, perfectly healthy, with no complications. The first words out of Chassidy's mouth were, "Oh gosh, he looks just like Kirk!" </div>
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Three weeks later, on October 5th, we were married, but we didn't even marry in a church -- merely through a Justice of the Peace. It was years before we finally gave our lives over to Christ.</div>
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Today, we have an awesome 15 year old son. Praise God!</div>
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However, that decision to terminate our son, even though we didn't go through with it, weighed very heavily on our hearts for many years. It tore at our hearts. It made our lives very difficult. We were angry at ourselves, angry at the doctor, and angry at the decision we had made. We could barely talk about it. </div>
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We went on to have another child. This time, Chassidy lost 30 pounds at the beginning of that pregnancy. But with what we went through with the first pregnancy, we assumed she would be able to fight through it and be okay, and we were right. Our daughter Caitlin was born March 15, 2004. </div>
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Life went on. In early 2007, we ended up getting custody of our niece and nephew when they were one and two years old. We were just happy-go-lucky folks, taking things as they came.</div>
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Then in April of that year, we lost everything in a house fire. Our son Cameron at age three had climbed up high to get a box of matches, lit a match, dropped it on a chair setting fire to the chair, which rapidly spread. Thank goodness, my wife was able to quickly get all four children out of the house without any of them being harmed. The rental home burned to the ground. The only belongings we had were in the car, which included my son's t-shirt that ironically read, "Future Firefighter." Today, we can laugh about that part of it, but at the time, it was devastating.</div>
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Shortly after the house fire, we began attending church, knowing we were missing God in our lives. Initially, it was short-lived. Again we were away from God, just living our lives. But then my wife became disabled with RSD -- reflex sympathetic dystrophy, and I ended up getting custody of my 12 year old daughter from a prior relationship. We knew that all of our children needed more structure and that being in church and growing closer to God would also strengthen our marriage. </div>
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In 2012, I was baptized, but I didn't truly become a follower of Christ until God directed me to build a Christian community group for special needs teens. God moved my family and me to a land where we didn't know anyone, to build something nobody heard of. This made my faith in God even stronger. This situation made me understand that God provides for his children -- that everything we have, everything we go through, is by His grace. I now understand that God will open the doors when He sees fit, and that everything is on God's timing, not on our timing. I came to understand that I had been living my life wrong up to this point.</div>
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My redefining moment was when I was blessed to have the opportunity to share our abortion testimony at a Catholic Church. I had been in a non-denominational Bible study -- a men's group, when a priest walked in, believing God had told him to be there that day. Somehow, I began to share about our experience. I'd very rarely ever told anyone about this difficult story. The priest then asked me to share it at his parish, and this was life-changing for me, and for our family.</div>
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My son Cameron knows his story now and he's of course thankful that we didn't kill him and <br />
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he is very pro-life! He's even spoken at events with me.</div>
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Because we waited so many years to act, we can't go back and thank that person on the sidewalk. So God put it on our heart to share our story to be a light to others. Through all of this, God healed our hearts. </div>
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Last year, we wrote a post on our Facebook page Cameron's Chance Pro-life Advocacy. This post was written to thank the person on the sidewalk and to encourage others:</div>
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"We will never know your name. You may not even know that God placed you there to save our son. 14 years ago, you stood on that sidewalk and prayed for us. It was your prayers that helped save our son. Words can never express our gratitude for what you have done. Let the words of this message be a constant reminder of the great work that you do -- to be a reminder that you made a difference. We didn't know who you were, but you cared for us as if we were your own. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts. We are forever grateful. God bless!"</div>
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Bio: Kirk Barker is a husband and father of three, Founder of Cameron's Chance Pro-life Advocacy, and <a href="http://www.savethe1.com/kirk-barker-tx/" target="_blank">pro-life speaker</a> and blogger for Save The 1.</div>
Rebecca Kiesslinghttp://www.blogger.com/profile/00637614962601227887noreply@blogger.com0