What the Pill Is Doing to Our Water Supply
By Rebecca Oas, Ph.D.
(Zenit.org) – In 1960, the combined oral contraceptive pill was first approved for use in the United States. Seven years later, “the Pill” was featured on the cover of Time Magazine, illustrating its enormous societal impact[1]. Roughly two generations later, statistics from the United Nations show that, within more developed nations worldwide, just under 16% of “partnered” women use contraceptive pills, a number which does not include usage among single women[2].
However, even as the popularity of oral contraceptives remains high, the drugs themselves have been evolving in response to further discoveries about the human reproductive system, as well as efforts to reduce the Pill’s negative side effects. As with any major technological or medical development, particularly one embraced very quickly by a large sector of the population, it can take years, and even decades, for the full range of effects to become evident. And as demonstrated by several recent studies, many questions remain unanswered regarding the long-term and environmental effects of the hormones used in oral contraceptives, as well as other medical treatments.
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The Cartoon World of Ayn Rand
By Donald DeMarco, Ph.D.
I do not enjoy cartoons. I did when I was a child, but that was long ago. If I am surfing the channels and Bugs Bunny pops up, I keep going. Nonetheless, strange as it may seem, when there is a child on my lap, I happily revisit my nearly forgotten days of yore.
My heart returned to and rejoiced in cartoon-land when I watched them through the eyes of my children. I found myself smiling when they smiled, laughing when they laughed. But when they outgrew their affection for cartoon characters, I once again lost mine. Then, one-by-one, the grandchildren arrived and I regained my twice lost enthusiasm for Looney Tunes, Disney, Peanuts, and sundry other animated drawings.
My children and grandchildren led me back to a world of innocence and simplicity. It is a magical kingdom, like Brigadoon and Shangri-la, where no one ages, no one dies, and everyone stays in character. The fact that it does not represent life on earth does not matter. It is a foretaste of paradise and enthralls a child’s mind and heart. It is also a world where stereotypes are permissible, as in coloring books where the policeman is always cheerful, the nurse always caring, and the schoolteacher always dedicated. The complexity of life is yet to be learned. Robert Louis Stevenson hit the mark when he said, “Character to the boy is a sealed book; for him, a pirate is a beard, a pair of wide trousers and a liberal complement of pistols.”
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Benedict’s Corner: Rejoice in the Lord Always!
By Melanie Baker
Benedict’s Corner is a weekly summary of our Holy Father’s latest words on topics related to HLI America’s mission.
As I was reading through Pope Benedict’s words for this week’s edition of “Benedict’s Corner,” it occurred to me that almost every week during this Easter season he has addressed the theme of persecution. His weekly catechesis on prayer has been progressively reviewing the prayer recorded in Acts of the Apostles. But, this prompted the realization for me that Acts, which I have always regarded as an eminently joyful book, recounting the activity and growth of the early Church, is, to a large extent, about persecution! Eastertide is an eminently joyful and triumphant time not because the cross has been removed, but because it has now been given meaning, and has become for us a privileged means of union with Jesus and transport to eternity. “In this world you will have trouble, but take courage, I have conquered the world” (Jn 16:33).
How can we deal with the cross, then, in the truly Christian way… with joy? The Holy Father provides one answer to this question in his address at last Sunday’s Regina Caeli: “In the Bible Israel is often compared to the fertile vine when it is faithful to God; but if it distances itself from him, it becomes barren, incapable of producing that ‘wine to gladden the heart of man’, as Psalm 104[103] sings (v. 15).”
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Lex Orandi, Lex Credendi: A New Prayer for Mother and Child
By Father Peter West
In English, the ancient axiom is translated “The law of prayer is the law of belief,” or the way we pray effects what we believe. In the early Church, many doctrinal disputes were settled on the basis of texts used for prayers. Before any creeds were developed there were decades of liturgical tradition.
St. Prosper of Aquitane, a disciple of St. Augustine, also said, “Legem credendi lex statuat supplicandi” which means, “The Church believes as she prays.” The prayers we use are a means of catechesis – of teaching various truths of our faith.
Thus, everyone who respects life should rejoice in the new “Rite for the Blessing of a Child in the Womb Within Mass,” just published in both English and Spanish by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB). The prayers were approved by the Vatican’s Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments on the Solemnity of the Immaculate Conception on December 8, 2011. The U.S. Bishops decreed the prayers be published on the Solemnity of the Annunciation.
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