Died For All

Today is Good Friday. Today's service at Church, had a simple yet profound part : veneration of the Cross. The Cross used to be a sign of torture, pain, agony, shame, death, humiliation, failure, a sign to be despised. But the death of Jesus on it, made it venerable!

Today during the service, God gave me an opportunity to stand right next to the Priest who was holding a Cross for the faithful to come forward and kiss the crucified Lord. As I stood there, I saw all sorts of people come, hold the Cross and kiss the feet of Jesus. There were infants, small kids, youngsters, elderly, poor, rich, simple, extravagant, men, women, people belonging to different region, states, race, who speak different language, dialect; religious nuns, lay faithful.... All sorts of people! And that’s when a realization filled me: Christ died for all. As St Paul says, "..we are convinced that One has died for all." (2 Corinthians 5:14) He didn’t die for any particular group of people, He didn’t discriminate or favour anyone, He loved everyone and He died for all and that includes you and me! When Jesus was on the Cross, we were on His mind.

All of us, for whom He died, are different in many ways. But there is one thing that is common in all of us. Sin. We are all sinners. We don’t need anyone to tell us that, we know it! We know the sins we commit: small one, serious ones, public ones, the ones we do in secret, the ones against God, against others, against ourselves. But Jesus didn’t let our sins come in the way of showing His love for us. "God proves His love for us in that while we were still sinners Christ died for us." (Romans 5:8) While we were still sinners!!! While we kill the soft voice within us asking us not to sin; He prays for us saying, “Father, Forgive them for they do not what they do.” While we continue to enjoy the momentary pleasure of sin; He goes through the painful way of the Cross. While we question, complain, curse, challenge, rebel against God; He stretches His hands and feet to be nailed on the Cross. While we are still sinners, He dies for us!!!

Oh Lord, help us fathom this love of yours for us!

Oh Lord, help us reciprocate at least a fraction of this love!

Oh Lord, help us to keep this love more close to our heart than anything else!

'Life Saving' Abortions!

A few weeks back, all news channels carried the headline “‘Life Saving’ Abortions” in their scrolling news ticker, the news flash etc. The breaking news referred to the bill passed in the Irish Parliament allowing abortions in case of threat to the mother’s life - a fallout of the death of Savita Halappanavar. I was taken aback by the news. What shocked me, among other things, was the headline itself – ‘Life Saving’ Abortions. I thought to myself, “Hey, isn’t that an oxymoron!”

I’m not sure how others would define abortion, but any dictionary be it Oxford or Websters or an app on my phone, can’t complete the definition of the word ‘abortion’ without mentioning words like ‘death’, ‘termination’ etc. What implies so clearly from these definitions is that the fetus inside is alive and abortion by definition is killing the fetus. In spite of this being so obvious, people still think and believe that it’s a lump of cells within the womb which doesn’t have any life!

Coming back to the headline, in view of these definitions, our headline now reads “‘Life Saving’ Murders” or “‘Life Saving’ Homicides.”!!! Now you know what I mean when I say that it’s an oxymoron - it contradicts itself! One might still say that even murders while defending oneself is justified to an extent by the law. But isn’t that the case when the person who is being killed is on an offense and trying to kill you and you defend yourself against the aggression. But in case of abortion, the one being killed is an innocent, defenseless baby, whose cries can’t be heard by anyone! The place where he is being killed, is one which is most secure for him and the one who decides to kill him is the one who is privileged with the responsibility to give him life, to love him beyond measures – his mom!

“If a human being is no longer safe in his mother’s womb, where in the world can he be safe?” – Phil Bosmans (Belgian Priest and Writer)

One can say, “Isn’t the life of the mother more important, shouldn’t we do everything to save her life?” Pope Pius XII already answered this question more than half a century ago saying. “….the demand cannot be but this: To use every means to save the life of both the mother and the child.” Sure, there might be instances where the life of mother and also that of the child as well is at risk, but these are rare. We know from the Church teachings that“… if for example, the safety of the life of the future mother, independently of her state of pregnancy, might call for an urgent surgical operation, or any other therapeutic application, which would have as an accessory consequence, in no way desired nor intended, but inevitable, the death of the fetus, such an act could not be called a direct attempt on the innocent life. In these conditions the operation can be lawful, as can other similar medical interventions, provided that it be a matter of great importance, such as life, and that it is not possible to postpone it till the birth of the child, or to have recourse to any other efficacious remedy.” [Article 14 of the Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith's Declaration on Procured Abortion. Click here]

Here Pope Pius XII was referring to rare and exceptional cases, however how flimsy the definition of ‘life saving’ is as per the new Irish law can be understood from the fact that according to it, if a panel of doctors feel that the mother might commit suicide, the same can be considered life threatening for mother and hence in that case abortion is justified. A simple excuse to abort a child, to end an innocent life. Just because no one has seen the child, heard him speak, felt his embrace, experienced his love and been in his presence, is it right to cut him, chop him, suffocate him, kill him? My apologies for being this graphic, but couldn’t help; that’s the fact anyways. Over the centuries human race has raised voice and fought against inequality and discrimination: whether it is between foreigner settlers and indigenous population, rich and poor, black and white, male and female, high caste and low caste. Now we have come down to a state where we have to raise our voice to ensure equality between different stages of life – between the born and soon-to-be born!

Mother Teresa said, “But I feel that the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a war against the child - a direct killing of the innocent child - murder by the mother herself. And if we accept that a mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another? How do we persuade a woman not to have an abortion? As always, we must persuade her with love, and we remind ourselves that love means to be willing to give until it hurts. Jesus gave even his life to love us. So the mother who is thinking of abortion, should be helped to love - that is, to give until it hurts her plans, or her free time, to respect the life of her child. The father of that child, whoever he is, must also give until it hurts. By abortion, the mother does not learn to love, but kills even her own child to solve her problems. And by abortion, the father is told that he does not have to take any responsibility at all for the child he has brought into the world. That father is likely to put other women into the same trouble. So abortion just leads to more abortion. Any country that accepts abortion is not teaching the people to love, but to use any violence to get what they want. That is why the greatest destroyer of love and peace is abortion.” [Reference: http://www.ewtn.com/New_library/breakfast.htm]

The reason one would want to justify abortion can be many, but to defend and bring forth life is just one – Love.

“Love protects all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.” – 1 Corinthians 13:7

Stand for love, Stand for life!

God Bless!

Other Related Posts:  Stand for Life;
                                  99 Balloons.

All for Love!!

All for love, He created us in His image and likeness

All for love, He carved our names on the palm of His right hand

All for love, He knit our body parts together in our mother’s womb

All for love, He called us even before we were born

All for love, He gave us the freedom to choose

All for love, He let us do what we want

All for love, He wept seeing us go away

All for love, He tried to bring us back to Him, tried over and over again

All for love, the farther we went, the closer He came

All for love, He said, “Even if your mother forgets you, I shall not forget you.”

All for love, He said, “The mountains may depart and the Hills be removed but my love shall not depart from you.”

All for love, He came to find us, who were lost

All for love, He became man

All for love, He was born in a dirty, cold manger amongst the least important

All for love, the creator lived with the created, the poor and unwanted

All for love, He who makes all the laws of the universe, grew up obeying humans

All for love, He fasted for forty days and nights

All for love, He preached repentance, forgiveness and love

All for love, He chose twelve ordinary men to be his disciples

All for love, He walked with sinners, ate with outcasts, touched the untouchables

All for love, He cured the sick, the dumb, the lame, the blind

All for love, He raised the dead

All for love, He wept for our sins and our unfaithfulness

All for love, He gave us His Body and Blood

All for love, He who is Almighty, washed the dirty feet of his disciples

All for love, He prayed for all of us

All for love, He sweat blood

All for love, He was betrayed by His closest friends

All for love, He took the insults, the allegations, the humiliation without saying a word

All for love, He was chained and put through the shame of public trial

All for love, He was chastised and whipped so that we could be healed

All for love, He was mocked and hurt, He was spat at and punched

All for love, He carried the heavy cross on His shoulders

All for love, He was stripped, lashed, pierced, crucified amongst sinners

All for love, He hung on the cross, abandoned by everyone

All for love, He prayed for the forgiveness for each one of us

All for love, He who had no sins took the sin of the whole world upon Himself

All for love, He bled every drop of blood, He died the most painful death

All for love, He lay in somebody else’s tomb

All for love, death couldn’t stop Him, the tomb couldn’t hold Him

All for love, He rose from the dead the third day

All for love, He rose in all His glory and majesty

All for love, He met His disciples, gave them courage and faith which they had lost

All for love, He gave them hope, which was shattered

All for love, He gave them peace, which the world couldn’t give

All for love, He gave them joy which they couldn’t contain

All for love, He gave them a new life

All for love, He promised “I will be with you till the end of the ages.”

All for love, for you and me.

“Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friend. And you are my friends.” – Jesus (John 15:13)

God Bless!