When the World Stopped

There are several moments in history referred to as life changing moments for society at large. The instant when something momentuous, and usually tragic, occurred. For the rest of that generation *the* question becomes: where were you when?

I can think of several since I have been alive.

Where were you when Kennedy was shot?

Where were you when the first man walked on the moon?

Where were you when Saigon fell?

Where were you when the Space Shuttle exploded?

and of course the two biggies...

Where were you when the Murrow Bldg and the Twin Towers were blown up?

Times when in one blink of the eye the world changed forever. When you feel like Alice and wonder just what would be on the other side of the looking glass.

However there are other moments when the world also stopped for you. Private moments. Ones which you may be the only person aware that for a brief second the world stopped spinning and your reality was changed forever.

Like with the ones affecting large groups of people unfortunately the majority of these are tragic occurances. The ones which years later still make you want to curl up in a corner and pull a blanket over your head. That is because tragedy seems to leave a more lasting imprint on our psyche.

Sometimes you have to stop and think to remember that others though were miracles of joy.

These are the ones which years later still bring a flutter to your heart and a smile to your face.

The moments when the world stops spinning and we pass into that black hole is a defining moment for all. Whether we are talking about a private or a public one. They are what we use to shape whom we become. T

he question is:

Do we use the joyous ones to stop having empathy for those less fortunate?

Do we make the tragic ones an excuse to stop living or to lash out at others?

or do we use them to make both ourselves and our world a better place for all?

Unfortunately the tendancy at the present in both our private worlds and our world at large is to use tragic moments as an excuse to lash out and punish others...and to use joyous ones as an excuse to think we are better and more blessed then the those less fortunate.

How can you be a Christian and anti choice?

Recently walking through a parking lot I saw a car with the following bumpersticker:

You can't be Catholic and pro abortion.

How silly. Nobody is *pro* abortion. Anyone who believes the argument about abortion is a pro or anti abortion one is either stupid or just unwilling to face reality.

I guess though for many people they have to refuse to face what the issue really is...because if they did, as a christian, they would not be able to continue with their mission.

Abortion rights are not about promoting abortions. They are about promoting knowledge. Complete knowledge about woman's individual reproductive decisions.

Personally I have never had an abortion. However I have been given the information concernign this option and asked if I would like to speak with a counselor concerning this option. No pressure was put on me. I was treated as a person who, if given the all the information, was capable of making the decision that was best for me.

Pregnancy is an intensely private affair. Nobody else can go through it with you. They can help you, they can comfort you, they can rejoice with you. But it is occuring in your body, and only you can know what it means. Something that may seem minor or unimportant to someone else may be more then you are capable of bearing or vice versa...a condition or problem that may seem overwhelming to others may not be for you.

We hear time and time again and see the billboards saying: Adoption not Abortion and 2 million couples waiting to adopt.

Why do none of those billboards mention the thousands of children awaiting adoption in this country? Why do none of those billboards mention the thousands of children in foster care, many in facilities because there are not enough foster parents. Instead of trying to force pregnancies on women, why are these people not worrying about the children already here?

Instead of focusing on making it the law that every pregnancy results in birth..why not try to make sure that every birth results in a wanted and loved child?

I had an old priest who gave a very unusual *life* sunday sermon. He talked about all life. Especially the already living. He told the parishioners that if they wanted to stop abortion to start volunteering. That more abortions are stopped by this then by all the laws in the world.
He finished by saying "If I see any of you picketing outside of Planned Parenthood today, I will stop and pick you up and take you to the food kitchen or pregnancy hotline to volunteer."

The main reason a woman has an abortion is because she feels that she has no other choice, or that this is the best choice she has available. Change that belief and you will cut the number of abortions. But you have to let go of your preconcieved decisions of what makes up a legitimate choice/option. Because you don't matter...what you believe doesn't matter....It is what the pregnant woman believes that matters.

The bumper stickers I want to see are two very simple ones:

How can you be a Christian and be anti-choice?

and

God can trust me with choices, why can't you?