New Gloria, Pro-Life Even in the Case of

This past Sunday at Mass, the choir director announced that they're singing the new Gloria. Our church is slowly introducing the changes in the New Roman Missal. Did I mention that my dad and I went to a workshop at our parish about the changes? I'm good to go. I figure there will be a period of adjustment as we learn new prayers then we will know them.

Since it was Pro-Life Sunday, I'm telling you that I personally know two women who conceived children from the crime of rape, kept their babies, and raised them as single moms. Do they love their children who were conceived this way? They love their children with all their hearts. They thank God for their children despite the crime. They view their children as blessings. Sure, it would have been better had their children come into the world in a kinder way.

Did they wrestle with the decision to keep or abort their babies? No. Keeping their children and going through the pregnancy was not a decision either of them pondered. For them pregnancy equaled giving birth.

Were they emotionally hurt by the rape? Yes. It was horrible event. Yes, they had major issues and problems. The rapes and pregnancies really threw them off their respective tracks.

Fortunately, they had the love and support of their parents and siblings. Really, a shout out goes to the parents/grandparents. Social workers, lawyers, and psychiatrists were called in. I have seen them go through many difficult times. Life has been hard for them, but now they are married and each went on to have another child. I know these children (one now a teen-ager, another now an adult), and they are wonderful people.

I want you to know the good and the bad. The good: the life of these children. The bad: the horrible crime of rape and the after effects. Just in case any pro-choice people are reading this, I want you to know that I am not discounting the crime committed against them. Not at all. I'm just saying the argument of "abortion is okay in the case of rape" doesn't fly with me. It's still not okay. And how could it be okay when I know these dear women and their dear children?

A good book on this topic is Startling Beauty: My Journey from Rape to Restoration by Heather Gemmen. The author really gets personal, whereas, I'm just glossing over the details in my blog.