Have Faith & Don't Lose Hope

A Catholic friend told me about his son & daughter-in-law, who have been married for ten years but couldn't have any children. Out of desperation, they decided to try in-vitro fertilization, which is contrary to Catholic belief. Instead of trying to talk them out of it, my friend asked them instead to do him a favor. Before they go through with the procedure, he asked them to make a pilgrimage to the shrine of Our Lady of Guadalupe in Mexico City, and ask for the Blessed Virgin Mary's intercession. They did, and they prayed for a miracle. Soon after returning from this pilgrimage, the daughter-in-law called my friend and informed him that she was pregnant. So she cancelled the in-vitro procedure. Now they have two lovely children. They're not alone. I've heard many stories of such miracles from childless couples that made the same pilgrimage. So the moral of the story is, don't lose hope. Pray for our Blessed Mother's intercession. Most of all, be patient. God will intervene in His time, not ours.

Commitment

I know this girl who had a boyfriend. When he got her pregnant, he told her to get an abortion or else he was going to dump her. It was at that point she realized he was merely using her. His "love" for her was conditional. He was not committed to her at all. So she told him to take a hike. She later gave birth to a beautiful, baby girl. Unfortunately, she's not alone. There are other women who end up in this situation too. But there is something women can do to prevent this situation from happening to them. Next time a guy asks a girl to "prove" her love to him (i.e. have sex), she should ask him to marry her first. If he simply wanted to use her, then this request should quickly drive him away faster than garlic breath. Women deserve something better. So by requiring commitment first, they greatly reduce the chance of ending up with losers.

Conceived Through Rape

I had a friend whose cousin was the victim of a date rape. Her cousin became pregnant and delivered a baby girl. My friend said the baby grew up to be a beautiful, happy and intelligent kid. Everyone, including the mother, loved that child. This brought to my mind some questions. How do you think this little girl feels each time someone says that it's OK to abort a baby, if the baby was conceived through rape? If you meet this child, would you tell her, straight to her face, that it would have been OK to terminate her life just because she was conceived through rape? I can only imagine the thoughts and questions going through her mind: "Why should I be terminated? What did I do wrong? Did I commit a crime worthy of death? Was this my fault?" Maybe we should remember these questions next time this issue comes up.