J.C.'S STRIDE

Catholic press spotlights the issue that won’t go away

By Joyce Coronel | February 3, 2009 | The Catholic Sun

One thing about journalism you can count on is that there’s always a new story simply waiting to be told. You never know what the next assignment holds, and there’s a sense that the next great interview is just around the corner.

While the mainstream media focuses on the murder and mayhem, tragedies and disasters of our time, it is the work of the Catholic press to inspire and inform readers, bringing both writer and reader closer to God.

It’s been 36 years since the infamous Roe v. Wade decision that legalized the killing of the unborn child, and while the secular press largely ignores the massive, peaceful protests that occur every Jan. 22, you’ll see lots of coverage in The Catholic Sun and similar publications.

Why? Many people wonder why this issue continues to polarize and generate debate. Why can’t we move on? The secular media long ago grew bored with abortion, yet again and again, the Catholic press points to the shame of a nation that has shed the blood of 50 million unborn babies.

As a mother and a writer, I have a unique perspective on this issue.

Five times I have known the gentle stirring within me of the unborn child.

Five times I have gazed in wonder and looked into the eyes of a fragile and fair newborn baby God allowed me to hold close, if only for a while.

In motherhood I have known both sorrow and shining moments. And I am filled with overwhelming thanksgiving for the gift of each precious life entrusted to my care.

As I watch my children grow, I can’t help but wonder how many of their peers were deliberately torn from their mothers’ wombs before they had the chance to bless their families, to share their God-given gifts with the world.

For without a doubt, every single human life is created for a purpose and has been given a unique mission. Life is precious, a beautiful gift from God, an invitation to share in His love.

I see this clearly in the people I interview week after week.

It has been my great blessing to travel around our diocese, interviewing people from all walks of life, who are living their faith in a vibrant and inspirational way. I’m always struck by how each person seems to occupy a particular niche in our community.

So when I think about lives being deliberately destroyed by abortion, I think of the great gifts thrown away, the opportunities lost, the moments that will not be shared, the interviews that will never take place.

There’s a Web site that illustrates this point beautifully (visit CatholicVote.org). The image of an unborn baby flickers on the screen as words flash: “This child’s future is a broken home… he will be abandoned by his father… his single mother will struggle to raise him.”

The next image is of President Barack Obama, the man elected on the mantra of hope and change, but whose first days in office confirm his radical pro-abortion views.

We have come to think of the victims of abortion as the babies and the women whose lives are shattered by the experience, forgetting that we ourselves have lost the God-given gifts and abilities these children represent.

Was the next musical genius among them? The scientist who would unveil the cure for cancer? We’ll never know and we’re left to wonder: Whom and what have we lost as the battle over abortion rages on?

Look to the Catholic press to continue to tell the story that won’t go away.

Joyce Coronel is a regular contributor to The Catholic Sun. Please send comments to letters@catholicsun.org.