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Pro-Life Update This month, our attention is called to scientific data as it informs health care and political policies. Recently, a man who had been in a coma for 19 years has regained speech and movement in his formerly paralyzed lower limbs; his brain has been regenerating once-severed nerve fibers. This drastic recovery points to the wonders of the human body, exemplifying that even life considered worthless by some is most certainly worth medical care and protection. In another development, President Bush may soon veto his first bill—one promoting embryonic stem cell research. Scientific studies continue to show the superiority of adult stem cells over life-destroying embryonic stem cell research, and President Bush will use this scientific data to promote ethical forms of research and to thwart destructive research. Finally, studies showing why women choose abortion are vitally important in shaping efforts to address women’s needs and concerns. Armed with this information, we can empower women to make life-affirming choices for themselves and their babies.
Please read this issue of the Pro-Life Update carefully to understand some of the challenges we now face and how you—an educated Pro-Lifer—can advance the Culture of Life. Please share this information with your family, friends, and church congregations. Make copies. Spread the news.
Man's Brain Repairs Itself After 18 Years in Coma
Terry was in a car accident in 1984, when he was only 19 years old. He has no memory of the last two decades but does remember his life before the accident. He was the father of a then-six week old baby girl, Amber, who now helps to care for him at his parents’s home in Arkansas. Once he made this drastic recovery, he returned to his family’s home; he had previously lived at a rehabilitation center.
Doctors at the Weill Medical College of Cornell University in New York have been studying Terry’s brain with diffusion tensor imaging (DTI), a new variation of magnetic resonance imaging. “This technique can give scientists a detailed picture of the brain's fiber tracts—the neural processes that relay messages between different parts of the brain,” according to Technology Review. “It had never been used to examine a minimally conscious patient before.” They found that Terry’s brain had been repairing itself slowly by regenerating neural connections.
Stories such as Terry’s remind us how precious all life is. Although his recovery is certainly far from what doctors consider normal, his family continues to care for him and to show unfaltering love, which has obviously encouraged his thriving. His family visited him regularly to help him exercise, and they often took him home for family meals and fishing trips, according to the London Times. Terry recently said that he was “proud” to be alive. President Bush Would Veto Bill Allowing Embryonic Stem Cell Research
President Bush has said that he would veto this bill if it came to his desk. This will most likely be his first veto, as the bill is expected to pass in the U.S. Senate. “The president is emphatic about this,” stated Karl Rove in a meeting with the editorial board of The Denver Post. As The Denver Post reported, Rove acknowledged, “We were all an embryo at one point, and we ought to as a society be very careful about being callous about the wanton destruction of embryos, of life.” Recent research, he said, shows that researchers “have far more promise from adult stem cells than from embryonic stem cells.” Why Women Choose Abortion
As the statistics show, most women choose abortion either because they are not ready for the responsibility that will change their lives so drastically or because they do not have the money and/or support to raise a child. These reasons for abortion rarely reflect the common misperception that abortions are only sought when the life or health of the mother is at stake; fewer than 5% of women undergo abortions because of rape, incest, or to prevent the death of the mother. Thus, the sobering realization: abortion is used primarily as birth control.
Another influence for women choosing abortion is the law. When women were asked, “Did the knowledge that abortion is legal influence your opinion about the morality of choosing abortion?”, 70% said the law played a major role in their moral perception. David Reardon of the Elliott Institute concluded that “[W]hile most aborting women have a negative moral view of abortion, they find comfort and grounds for rationalization in the socio-legal view of abortion. Some even doubt their own moral values, thinking, ‘If it’s legal, then it must be alright’” (Aborted Women Silent No More [1987], 13).
Finding ways to address the specific needs of women is vitally important if we want to reduce abortion in our society and move towards a true Culture of Life. Pregnancy care centers save women and children from the violence of abortion every day. Pro-Life legislation teaches women and families that their health and well-being are important while also changing their hearts and minds. Texas’s teen abortion rate dropped by 20% in 2000—the first year our “Parental Notification Act” was implemented. These are proven solutions that garner support from a majority of Americans. We must continue to fight the culture of death by promoting life-affirming choices for women.
The Pro-Life movement still has much work to ensure that all people throughout the world are welcomed into Life and respected. If you would like any additional information on the topics discussed above, please send me a note or log onto www.TexasRightToLife.com. If you ever have questions about any Pro-Life issues, please be sure to let me know. Yours for Life, Dr. Joseph M. Graham President |
