Russian Lawmakers Prepare
For Major Crackdown on Abortion
MOSCOW (AP) — Russia‘s Orthodox Church teamed with Conservative parliamentarians Monday to push legislation that would radically restrict abortions in a nation struggling to cope with one of the world’s lowest birthrates.
The legislation would ban free abortions at government-run clinics and prohibit the sale of the morning-after pill without a prescription, said Yelena Mizulina, who heads a parliamentary committee on families, women and children.
She added that abortion for a married woman would also require the permission of her spouse, while teenage girls would need their parents’ consent. If the legislation is passed, a week’s waiting period would also be introduced so women could consider their decision to terminate their pregnancy, Mizulina said.
During the time of the Soviet Union, abortion laws were liberal, and unrestricted termination of pregnancy became virtually the only method of family planning. Sex education was frowned upon.
Russia‘s abortion rates are still among the world’s highest, contributing to a fertility rate of only 1.4 children per woman – far below the 2.1 needed to maintain the existing population. The rate has become a serious concern for Russia as it fights to stem a steep population decline
Mizulina said she wants to see public debate on abortions before the bill is submitted to parliament, an apparent attempt to build support after similar legislation stalled last year.
A bill proposed in late 2010 called for the criminal prosecution of doctors who end late-term pregnancies, but it faced government opposition and was never put up for a vote.
(Patriarch Kirill Gundyaev of Moscow and all the Russias)
The effort to restrict abortions has strong backing from the Russian Orthodox Church, which has sought a more muscular role in society in recent years. It counts more than 100 million Russians in a population of 143 million as its congregation, although polls show that only about 5 percent of Russians are observant.
“I hope that very soon we will live in a Russia without abortions,” church spokesman Vsevolod Chaplin said at Monday’s presentation.
According to a United Nations survey in 2004, Russia had the world’s highest abortion rate: 53.7 per 100 women.
Figures from the Russian Health Ministry suggest the rate may have declined in recent years, though it remains high: In 2009, there were 74 abortions for every 100 births in Russia, a significant drop in comparison with 169 abortions per 100 births in 2000.
The total number of abortions recorded by the Health Ministry in 2009 reached nearly 1.3 million.
Mizulina claims that the official statistics do not include pregnancies terminated at private clinics, or those stopped by morning-after pills, and the true number might be closer to 6 million.
She also proposed that the law be changed to allow women to leave unwanted children at orphanages anonymously without risking criminal prosecution for child abandonment.
It was unclear how much support the anti-abortion measures would receive in parliament.
Natalya Karpovich, a lawmaker with the dominant pro-Kremlin party United Russia, who is expecting her fifth child, said she supported stricter regulation of abortions. But she said banning the procedure in Russia was unrealistic and would only lead to more children whose parents were unwilling or unable to care for them.
Do you know the evil monument in the cathedral of Brescia (Italy)?
http://gokyo.tuzikaze.com/SinisterArt/p-07.html
Posted by: Joseph Gemma | Monday, June 06, 2011 at 09:57 AM
Restriction on Abortions: GOD Bless Russia!
We often consider the scope of all of creation or of the Cosmos in terms of what exists, already. Some of us, especially forward thinking individuals like myself enjoy thinking about the apparent ever-increasing size of creation in terms of the set of creatures that will exist relative to the set of creatures that already exist. A good proof for an ever-growing spiritual creation is none other than the reality that each time a human person is conceived, a brand new human soul comes into existence by GOD’s direct creative might and which is destined to live forever, regardless of where it ends up after death.
However, in some sense, reality also includes the set of all possible creatures that will never be created. Perhaps we can change this status quo at least in part by exuberantly encouraging human conceptions by licit means within the boundaries of marriage which for Catholics is normally a full Sacramental Holy Matrimony between two baptized and confirmed Catholics.
However, we can also intuit the notion of the realities of what is impossible to be created as such impossibilities are nonetheless reality defining limits or truths about what can and cannot be. Perhaps we can skirt this seemingly unyieldable law and bringing new lives into the world through human conception thereby forever altering the specific detailed course of future creation.
Just as it would have been impossible for me or you to exist as the particular body soul combinations of ourselves if our particular parents never procreated us, being open to new life enables untold possibilities to be realized through human procreation that would otherwise never be able to materialize at least by means that are consistent with GOD’s work through the Catholic Church. I suppose GOD could have created me by zapping my body and soul into existence in the form of the middle-aged 49 year old man with all of my psychodynamic attributes and characteristics fully instilled so that I would perceive myself as having lived out childhood and adulthood up to the present as I have actually done, but GOD is a self-consistent GOD and has chosen not to operate in this manner.
Regarding human life as well as the continually evolving and growing scope of the cosmos in general, I will often pray that what is currently impossible to be created will somehow become possible, even if by ways and means not currently known to any creatures including myself and perhaps even by ways and means that no currently existing creature will ever become aware of. Quite simply, GOD is so ALL-POWERFUL that HE can make the currently impossible become possible not only for our era, but as a physicist, I also say the same for each Planck Time Unit to follow into the utter depths of physical future eternity. Note that the, relativistic quantum field theory, fundamental Planck Time Unit is very, very small, at {[h/(2 pi)] G/[C EXP 2]} EXP (1/2) = 5.39 x 10 EXP – 44 seconds. This is only 0.0000000000000000000000000000000000000000000539 second or less than one ten millionth of trillionth of a trillionth of a trillionth of a second.
We can be humble stewards of creation by asking GOD to create even in ways that are currently and/or forever veiled to our understanding. The giving of life, no matter how exotic through prayer, although not created by us but instead by GOD alone, is an absolutely selfless and perfect form of charity especially when we become aware that we might not ever know concretely and specifically the full scope of the results of our prayers hopefully thus answered.
For me as a physicist, I delight in the fact that we will have all eternity to access the wonders of all creation, perhaps an ever-growing creation.
Am I a pantheist? Definitely not! However I do see creation not as a supplement for GOD but as a compliment willed into existence by GOD. GOD’s only SON has become incarnate and has incorporated a complete created Human Nature, Body and Soul, and so the notion of creation being a complement to GOD should not be frowned upon. If GOD did not see an inherent value, goodness, purpose, or use for creation, then HE would never have begun the process of creation. After all, in the Book Of Genesis, “… GOD saw how good it was.”
Thus, even though I have definitively decided to remain single for practical and personal reasons, I cannot ever condone the use of or encourage the use of contraceptives by anyone for purposes of birth control. Parents should be open to having large families and the usual argument made by married folks and religious and clergymen of dubious intentions that I am single and so how can I speak for married folks having large families, does not hold weight to me.
I speak directly from the teaching authority of the highest levels of the Vatican and Church tradition regarding the illicitness of the use of artificial contraception for birth control. Our Lady in many of Her recent Church approved apparitions does not so much critique the so-called lack of current vocations as she is much more critical of the lack of good solid families and by corollary the homosexual smut culture, pornography, and cohabitation that has over taken our modern American civilization.
Quite frankly, I feel like an odd ball being that I am fully, solely, and completely heterosexual in a culture that is awash in effeminate non-committed heterosexual relationships that are not lived out under the strict guidelines of the Ordinary and Supreme Magisterium, the flaunting of homosexual lifestyles by folks who are gay and lesbian or bi-sexual, and the seemingly aphroditicism that wants to take everything solely heterosexual away from Catholic manhood and replace it with effeminate aphroditisism, or worse yet, with so-called progressive gayness, and which ironically attempts to make women be more like men.
I have a loud speaking voice and sometimes I admit I need to tone down my decibels (comes from being a member of a large family) but I sometimes feel that I am viewed as some primitive brute because I do not come across as a priss under the false guise of being quiet and unassuming.
You want to know why the fundamentalist Baptists are growing so quickly and taking from the ranks of non-practicing Catholics? The answer is simple, they at least are speaking their mind and not afraid to so.
I must warn once again of the possible Calamities foreseen by Our Lady Of Fatima and Our Lady Of Akita Japan. If we do not get our “****” straight, we are in for some serious trouble.
Am I a warmonger? Definately not as I once turned down a great opportuinity for military recruitement by the U.S. Navy because I thought I might instead be called to become a Catholic Priest. I am still to this day uncertain about any possible future vocation I would have and as I am getting up there in years, my chances are getting slim. Therefore, I will continue to do what I have enjoyed doing for the last 4 years and that is advocating for and concept developement regarding technologies that can literally take we humans to the stars where we can have unlimited prolife population growth. Of course, there will be a requirement that we respect the integrity and sovriegnity of any ETI or socalled UTI peoples we may encounter in our grand migration out into this wonderfull cosmos.
I have already posted these comments on my own website and so at least some folks are assured to see them. I can no longer in good conscience fail to speak out on these matters
GOD BLESS!
Jim
Posted by: James M Essig | Wednesday, June 22, 2011 at 02:49 PM
I would like to apologize to those whom I may have offended by the last few somewhat harshly worded paragraphs my above post. I mean no disrespect to those who are gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, or transgender and even though I am fully, soley, and completely heterosexual, I offer up my life’s crosses and any time I will spend in Purgatory so that at the very least, many within the gay, lesbian, bi-sexual, and transgender community will have a relatively great degree of glory in Heaven and that as many of you will become Canonized Saints as possible. By now, I will be lucky if I do not spend much time in Purgatory.
I can become overly worked up in my hot tempered zeal and thus can be led into the sin of harsh reactions where; in all honestly, the loving Mercy of Our Lord Jesus should be the only way of helping others.
I remind myself of a retired Catholic Priest who taught an Introduction to Sociology II class I enrolled in at N.V.C.C. at the Annandale Campus back in 1992 or 1991, I can’t remember for certain, where the professor yelled out something like “Get Out Now! How Dare You Walk Into My Class Late!”. after which He immeadiately stood down with all of the quickness and finesse that a well trained Navy Seal or a K-9 work dog can de-escalate. The poor young women who got yelled at seemed befuddled at first then seemed to begin to show by body language that she thought that the professor was just plain wierd. Then while the class session continued, this professor cracked some funny jokes and at one point suddenly tapped himself in the head and said loudly, “Ahhh! I could have had a V-8.”. The class including the poor women burst out into laughter. The Profesor than said something like “You See! Everyone will now remember not to walk into class late and to listen to the course instructor. I was not really mad at the young woman who walked in late but was merely trying to drive home a point.”
The point is that folks who may have been unintentionally discouraged by my occasionally strongly worded comments at E&T should not take them personally but rather be assured of my human weakness and frailty and yet my proneness to over-react, a weakness I offer up dailly for the salvation of all living gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender persons. I am at my best when helping folks grow in grace rather than yielding to impulses to condemn and harshly criticize them.
GOD BLESS!
Jim
Posted by: James M Essig | Wednesday, June 22, 2011 at 04:45 PM
I would like to inform you of an anticatholic blogger by the screen name "Thomistic", who is pretending to be Catholic inorder to lead readers of your blog down a wrong path by spewing lies about real Catholics. This blog site should not be used by dispicable anticathlolics for their own satanic pleasures. Please contact me as soon as possible so the lies this devil worshiper is promoting can be removed from your blog.
I tried to email you but your email is full.
Posted by: Mark | Monday, June 27, 2011 at 02:10 AM
interesting point of view
Posted by: Christian | Wednesday, June 29, 2011 at 01:24 PM
A human soul is a human soul just as a child is a child, whether embryonic, in fetal form, near term, or new born.
I find that the most fascinating field of inquiry regarding created spiritual realities is that of the, spiritual and immortal, directly and immediately created, human soul.
Now each human soul at the level of its natural existence retains the condition that it is naturally a human soul, for even the souls that are unfortunately consigned to Hell are immortal, regardless of whether soul immortality is an inherent natural property of the human soul or is instead an immortality by grace only.
Now we know that a human soul cannot not be a human soul in essence or substance except for the possibility that GOD would have the power to somehow transubstantiate the human soul into something else. However, GOD never takes back what HE gives in nature and GOD has decided that each Human Soul should be immortal.
Now we can inquire as to how it is that a human soul is the soul that it is and no other human soul. Affirming that each human soul is and remains only the human soul that it is for all eternity no matter where it ends up after bodily death says that there is an aspect to each human soul that transcends the property of being a human soul.
There is something that makes my soul my soul and your soul your soul where your soul is not my soul and my soul is not your soul. This personal identity further differentiates human souls above and perhaps beyond the class of ontological and substantial soul-hood.
We can also contemplate what makes my soul me, (or more correctly an aspect of me) in such a way such that this inquiry is differentiated from the question as to what makes a soul the soul that it is and no other soul.
The human soul seems to be imbued with a transcendent property of self. Each human soul has self associated with it and this self by definition can only be the person possessing said human soul.
Each human soul seems to have a dimension of self and by definition of a human person, body and soul in this life, and soul in the next life before the Final Resurrection, each human self can by definition only be the self that it is simply because the reality of a self remaining un-alterably itself is an a priori fact. If a self could not be itself, than the self becoming not itself would pose an ontological and logical contradiction since is order for a self not to be itself, it would need to become not itself at the point of transition thus resulting in the self not being itself in the transition first place. In short, there would remain no mechanism for the transition to take as the self that the self would become afterward cannot be the self that it was before thereby forcing a distinction between ontological states defined by ontological information.
Now this brief digression might seem to be somewhat of a diatribe at first, however, I can assure the reader of these comments that just as we have just barely scraped the surface of what is knowable about the physical cosmos, we have even less depth of our understanding about the wonderful reality of the human soul. The human soul seems to defy precise theological and philosophical understanding. Perhaps this is somehow related to Saint Thomas Aquinas referring to all of his theological works as empty straw after a mystical experience he underwent shortly before his passing.
Many folks in modern pop-culture, medicine, and theological studies put more focus on the human body that on the Human Soul. I have always done the reverse and must admit that I am a diehard old-school Scholastic soul freak.
Now do not get me wrong, I respect the human body as well as it will be Resurrected a spiritual and immortal body at the End of Time, however, I think we are losing something as a culture when the idea of the soul such as contemplated by like-minded folks seems immature or perhaps even psycho. I often have gotten looks of disapproval when I digress on the human soul in the instances where others or more likely I have brought the subject up for particular discussion.
Perhaps if more folks realized the mystery behind the human soul, procreations by such folks in valid marriages would not be interrupted by the sin of artificial contraception and sterilization operations. When there is something in a human embryo that seems transcendent to virtually all adult human persons and only when such occurs, the problem of figuring out how to stop legalized abortion will become tractable.
So I just thought that I would offer a token of encouragement to all those who have lost a sense of mystique pertaining to things of the soul. Saint Thomas Aquinas spent many years of intellectual contemplation regarding the natural mysteries of the human soul and for those of you who have young children, perhaps taking time to discuss the mysterious human soul with the precious little ones might result in your child(ren) becomming the next great spiritual anthropologists.
GOD BLESS!
Jim
Posted by: James M Essig | Thursday, July 28, 2011 at 03:21 AM