While out and about the other day, I saw a bumper sticker for breast cancer that really gave me pause. It said, "Everyone deserves a lifetime." My first thought was, everyone? Really? What about all the millions of babies that have been aborted? Don't they deserve a lifetime too? Why does someone with breast cancer deserve life more than someone with Down's Syndrome, or even someone who could be born perfectly healthy, had he not been conceived at an inconvenient time? Also ironic is that the Susan G. Komen Foundation, which raises funds for breast cancer research, also financially supports Planned Parenthood. I guess they don't really believe that everyone deserves a lifetime.
While searching through breast cancer paraphernalia to get the exact quote for above, I also found a shirt that was off-putting to me. I do believe that prayers can avail much in our earthly fight against illness and death, but putting a pink ribbon around the cross seems very wrong. Ultimately, Jesus died to take away our sins, not for his cross to be co-opted for the cause de jour. What do you think?
Lastly, while reading a blog's comments, the subject of religion came up, and a member of the Eastern Orthodox church declared that Orthodox believe that Jesus died to destroy death, not to pay the price for our sins. Is this really what Orthodox believe? Does anyone know?
7 comments:
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My 27-year-old brother, Carl, lives with Down Syndrome. His doctors never suggested abortion, but they did ask my mom if she wanted them to feed him. I'd like to believe that times are better now with regard to infanticide, but I'm afraid that killing babies has only undergone a time shift from post- to pre-birth.
It is one of the worst assumptions of modernity that technological progress necessarily entails moral progress. Modern science ends as many lives as it saves.
Jesus says, "I have come that you have life, and life to the full." I pray that you are well and living to the fullest in spite of (or, someday, perhaps, *because of*) your case of bipolar disorder.
Sadly, about 80 percent of the pre-born diagnosed with Down's Syndrome in this country are aborted. The percentage is closer to 90 in other countries. What is even sadder is that prenatal tests are not always accurate, and that amniocentesis can lead to miscarriage.
God is truly helping me to live with bipolar.
Everytime I see that Komen pink ribbon I think of their link to Planned Parenthood. Icky.
Hmmmm indeed. Life in a fallen world, for sure.
I didn't know the Komen connection to PP. That's really disappointing. Shouldn't all their money go to breast cancer research? Why the link to PP? If PP does free mammograms or something (have no idea if they do), that's nice & all, but it hardly washes the blood off their hands.
I had two relatives with Downs -- my Mom's youngest sister and one of my Dad's nephews (an Aunt and a cousin). Both are long passed away, since people with Downs rarely live past their forties. There has always been a lot a bigotry against these gentle people, but I think it's worse now than ever. I truly think hatred of her Downs son (and her choice to keep him) was behind a lot of the vitriol hurled at Sarah Palin.
According to the Dawn Patrol, "Since the Susan G. Komen Foundation began giving grants [to] Planned Parenthood, purportedly for breast health services, the number of women receiving breast health services from Planned Parenthood has decreased."
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