//.. JANUARY 2004 / Vol. 1 Issue 2

"A voice was heard in Ramah, sobbing and loud lamentation; Rachel weeping for her children, and she would not be consoled, since they were no more." [Mt. 2:18]

There seems to be a growing moral sentiment, spurred on by our scientific mastery of nature, that men and women of conscience should seize those moments when we can play God. There is no avoiding moral dilemmas in which all the choices may seem unsatisfactory. But how we approach such decisions will in large part determine whether we do harm or good. Certainly we must not "seize" these moments. To do so would be to lose sight of our innate limitations and the hard-won wisdom of moral tradition. Humility, awe, and a willingness to question our own motives are essential moral attitudes. We cannot make up the rules of what defines life, for that is an invitation to violence. How can we denounce the atrocities of Hitler's Germany, Stalin's Soviet Union, Mao's China and recently, Saddam Hussein's Iraq when we condone the killing of unborn babies?

The media has had several occassions where the topic of abortion has been brought to light. In this issue's media sections, instead of reviewing a particular movie or music album or television show, we're going to present a few examples of how abortion is portrayed. For the most part, there is never a defined stand as either pro-life or pro-choice, but rather an uneasy balance of the two. In the end, everything turns out alright for the characters, and the audience is left with their own conclusions about the issue. The problem is that once an issue is brought up, the way it is resolved becomes the norm for the rest of society. The thought is that if it’s okay on TV or in movies, then it’s okay in real life. Society becomes desensitized to the issue. They aren’t aware of the change in moral attitudes displayed in the media. What was once unacceptable and controversial is now something that “happens all the time.” And this is not and cannot be acceptable. -JP


In the past, it seemed as if there was a sort of gag rule that prevented characters in movies from using the A word if they didn't wish to continue a pregnancy. They could throw tantrums, make sarcastic comments, and whine, but they can't say, "I think an abortion would be best," even if they obviously feel that way.In Father of the Bride, Part 2 (1995), George (Steve Martin) is quite unhappy about the pregnancy of his wife, Nina (Diane Keaton), but he does not suggest an alternative. Instead he resorts to jokes: "Our kid will probably be more comfortable calling us Grandma and Grandpa in front of his friends. Because, let’s face it, we’re going to be in our 50s when he’s in preschool. In our 60s when he graduates college." He goes on and on with this negative speech, but nowhere does he refer to abortion. That’s against the rules. Parenthood (1989) actually does include a discussion of abortion - but only in a slippery, backhanded way. When Gil (Steve Martin) and his wife, Karen (Mary Steenburgen), conceive, he gripes about the ill-timed pregnancy without actually proposing abortion. Karen then asks him to put his cards on the table: Karen: Why don’t you just say what you’re really thinking? Gil (sarcastically): What am I thinking? Karen (sadly): That I should have an abortion? Gil: I didn’t say that. No, he hasn’t said that. Although abortion is clearly what he wants, he keeps sidestepping the issue just as a politician would. The characters also seem to only speak negatively on screen about abortion. For instance, "Well, I’m certainly not going to have an abortion!" Or, "I can’t believe you would suggest abortion." In Look Who’s Talking (1989), when Mollie (Kirstie Alley) tells her lover, Albert (George Segal), that she’s pregnant, she indicates that she wants to carry to term and adds, for extra emphasis, "I’m not getting an abortion." Albert croons, "Mollie, Mollie, I wasn’t going to ask you to do that!" Whew - they’re both off the hook. In The Opposite of Sex (1998), after Dedee (Christina Ricci) reveals that she’s expecting, Lucia (Lisa Kudrow) asks, "Do you want to get an abortion?" Dedee’s boyfriend, Matt (Ivan Sergei), answers for her with a horrified, "No! God!" However, that all changed with The Cider House Rules (1999) and High Fidelity (2000).

The first woman we see having an abortion in the Cider House Rules dies because of a gruesome illegal abortion. This sets the tone for the whole saga. All the women who have abortions are seemingly punished in one way or another. Eventually, even the doctor who performs the abortions is also killed off. Abortion seems to make everyone in this movie miserable. For the first time, there doesn't seem to be that happy ending which would satisfy both the pro-lifers and the pro-choicers.

In High Fidelity, the girlfriend of the main character has an abortion without his knowledge. He does find out later, and chastises her about it. However, he tells the movie audience later -- flatly and without melodrama -- that his response was both spineless and insincere. It wasn't a valid complaint. And then he starts talking about something else. That's it. The abortion incident becomes part of their history. It is not an event that defines who they are or what shape their relationship will take. The girlfriend is not a villain for having had an abortion. That is radical. When has a movie ever suggested that a woman can have an abortion and move on with her life?

As of yet, there hasn't been a movie that has boldly stated it's intentions of being pro-life or pro-choice, but we are slowly headed down that road. It seems as if more actors and actresses are letting their personal beliefs be reflected in the characters they play. Controversy is no longer a negative, but now a way to get free advertisement. -JP


Musicians are singing about the negative impacts of abortion. Music artists spanning the past 30 years in more than 20 genres of music have been singing a common song that may quietly be influencing society. From rap to country, heavy metal to folk, musicians confront a prevalent and personal issue: the emotional and physical turmoil of abortion. The songs are not just from women who have experienced abortion; a significant number are from men. Here are just a few examples of their lyrics:

The rap song Retrospect for Life by the group Common, says, "Turnin' this woman's womb into a tomb/I'm sorry for takin' your first breath, first step, first cry. From now on I'm gonna use self-control instead of birth control, 'cause $315 ain't worth your soul."

The song Speculum, by the heavy metal band Adema, is written by a band member whose girlfriend had an abortion. He sings to the aborted baby, "Know that I think of you, it's killing me. The guilt has lasted years, I still cry."

Ben Folds, from the rock band Ben Folds Five, describes the day that his girlfriend had an abortion. Folds' song, Brick, says, "Can't you see, it's not me you're dying for. Now she's feeling more alone, than she ever has before. She's alone, and I'm alone, now I know it." Women's songs come to the heart of the pain that they or friends have undergone through this procedure.

Country/folk singer Julie Miller expresses the lingering voice of the unborn in her song Dangerous Place. She sings, "Little ones to Him belong, you are weak and we were wrong. Tell ourselves you don't exist but your silent screams persist."

Punk folk singer Ani DeFranco describes the emotional and physical feelings of the abortion procedure in Lost Woman Song: "Through the pinch, pull, wincing/ my smile unconvincing/on that sterile battlefield that sees/only casualties/never heroes/my heart hit absolute zero. Your voice still sounds in me."

Christian heavy metal band Holy Soldier sings from the perspective of the aborted baby: "From a pail with open eyes, I see the man that I despise. He looks at me and turns his back, and my life fades."

From rock musician Graham Parker: "Did they tear it out, with talons of steel, and give you a shot, so that you wouldn't feel? And wash it away as if it wasn't real?"

From Barren Cross, a Christian heavy metal band: "The operation is over. I'm now in pieces in a garbage bag. Guilt will now take over, 'cause where is the relief you thought you had?"

DC Talk, a Christian alternative band, perfectly summed up what should be society's response to abortion in Children Can Live (Without It): "A miracle of God, now looked on as a choice. It's time for all His children to unify a voice. With influence in numbers and power in prayer, we must defend the children, and fight for what is fair."

"If music truly reflects the soul of a society, these songs reveal the intensity and violence of abortion," said Wendy Wright, senior policy director for Concerned Women for America. -MF


A generation ago, Bea Arthur's title character in the CBS comedy, "Maude," had an abortion and some network affiliates wouldn't air the program. The subject is mostly avoided in prime-time entertainment shows. Abortion was debated several years ago in the Fox show, "Party of Five," but the character had a miscarriage.

The first-year series, "Everwood," stars Treat Williams as a doctor who moves his family to a small town in Colorado after his wife dies. In Episode 20 (May 5, 2003), a man in the community asks Williams' character, Dr. Andrew Brown, to quietly perform an abortion on his 18-year-old daughter. Brown advises the woman to consider adoption or giving birth. However, she chooses to end the pregnancy, but Brown has his own moral problems. Dr. Brown made the girl realize that it was her decision and hers alone. He was very able to give Kate advice on her options, but when it came to performing an abortion he was forced to deal with conflicting emotions. He believes that it is a woman's right to choose. However, he is not comfortable being a part of an abortion. For another character, Harold, he takes the opposite side. Harold promised his father that he would continue his work. Hal Sr. obviously felt very strongly that the most important facet of the abortion issue was not whether it was right or wrong, but rather that abortions happen and they should happen safely. In the end, the girl got her abortion elsewhere.

This episode is a landmark for this reason alone. This is the first time in the history of television that the girl does get the abortion. And yet, very little was made of it. It seemed almost normal. Something that wasn’t out of the ordinary. -JP


WHAT: http://www.gravityteen.com
WHO: Gravity Teen
WHY: What is abortion? Gravityteen.com answers just that and more. At first you may think that this site is promoting abortion but in actuality they just want to inform teenagers on what abortion is. This site provides statistics and the long and short term effects of having an abortion. There are stories of teenagers whose abortions did and did not work and how that experience affected them. There are quotes from abortion doctors, counselors, and clinic workers on what they do. There are descriptions of the different types of abortion. The list goes on and on. Not only do they provide information on abortion, but they also address issues like depression and self-esteem. This site is all about helping teens. -PC


DEFENDING LIFE 101

THEY SAY: Life does not begin at conception. “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you. Before you were born I dedicated you, a prophet to the nations I appointed you” (Jeremiah 1:5). That’s straight from God. What does it mean? It means that you were a person, created in the image of God, before your parents even knew they were going to have you. Life definitely begins at conception.

THEY SAY: Women should have the right to control their bodies. Everyone has the right to control their body. They can decide how much food to eat, how often to work out, and what clothes to wear. But they do not have the right to decide the fate of another person’s body. Once a baby is conceived, we are no longer talking about one, but two people-a baby and the mother. That baby, no matter how small, has his or her own set of rights.

THEY SAY: Being Pro-Life is a Catholic thing. Being Pro-Life is not a Catholic thing; it’s a God thing. It is not our decision that abortion is murder. God says it is murder. We are just proclaiming His Truth as He has called us to do.

THEY SAY: Abortion is a political issue; it doesn’t really affect me. Look around you. Over 1/3 of Generation X is gone forever. These kids may have been friends, classmates, husbands or wives. Abortion is destroying our nation-a nation that you are very much a part of. So whether you have felt its effects or not, all our lives have been damaged by this holocaust.

THEY SAY: You’re too young to make a difference. You are never too young to spread God’s truth. Your voice is unbelievably valuable to us. You can make a difference. “Let no one disregard you because you are young, but be an example to all the believers in the way you speak and behave, and in your love, your faith and your purity.” (1 Timothy 4:12) -MF


The instinct to survive is one of the first and foremost of our human nature. God designed us with that raw instinct to live. Rarely does he bless individuals with the grace of martyrdom to give their lives to Him as a sign of love and total abandonment. Even in the case of the martyrs, they choose to give their lives freely. In all our flaws and imperfections, who are we to choose between the life and death of another being? We forget that we are merely subjects to God’s will. We are the tools He uses to create life, not creators ourselves. If God knows exactly when each leaf should fall from a tree, then He would certainly know when the moment is precisely right to create a life. Through the joining of a man and woman, whether in God’s grace or not, human life is to be created if God wills it. Many today would end a youth’s life instead of bringing the child into a hostile environment. In such trials, God would give us the graces we need to conquer any challenge. When a child is aborted, we cut ourselves short of an abundance of graces for ourselves and the child. We must understand that sometimes God allows evil to occur for a greater good which will only be revealed at a later time. -MS

Other contributors for this issue: Michelle Francisco