SPUC Student Conference

With my SPUC executive committee member hat on, I'd like to invite those aged between 17 and 35 to our International Student Pro-Life Conference.

It takes place on the weekend of March 28-30 at the Carberry Tower Conference Centre, near Edinburgh, Scotland.

Civil Rights is the theme and the great niece of Dr Martin Luther King Jr, Celeste Beal is the keynote speaker. She is joined by Joan Dillon of Pro-Life Feminists International, Rock for Life musician Bryan Kemper and speakers from British Victims of Abortion (BVA) and the Silent No More Campaign.

The conference marks the 60th anniversary of the Universal Declaration for Human Rights, the most fundamental of which is the Right to Life.

This event is being organised by SPUC Scotland. It costs £70 (for food and accommodation across the weekend, £35 (without accommodation) or £25 (Saturday day rate).

For more information, contact Kaye Smith on 0141 221 2094 or Kaye@spucscotland.org/info@spucscotland.org. For more details and to book for the conference, visit http://www.spucconference.org.uk/.

HFE Bill: Abortion and disability

An amendment to reverse the UK's law allowing abortion up to birth for disabilities was reject by the House of Lords last night by 89 votes to 22.

The move, by Lady Masham of Ilton, a crossbencher, was voted against last night (Monday) during the human fertilisation and embryology bill's report stage.

During the introduction to the debate on her amendment, Lady Masham said: "This is discrimination of the worst sort.

"How can it be, in this modern world of advanced technology, that babies are allowed to go full term and then be given a lethal injection and killed just because they are still inside the womb and may have a handicap? The amendment would stop this unfair discrimination. It has become known as 'the equality amendment'."

The spoke of an example of how babies can be treated whilst they are still in the womb.
She said there was a "remarkable operation in the USA to correct a baby of 21 weeks with spina bifida while still in the mother’s womb, which shows how wonderful a surgeon’s skill can be".

"Many people, including a law don from Cambridge, have written to me to say how deeply insulting and offensive Section 5 [of the Abortion Act] is to every single member of the human race who has been born with some physical or mental disability that other people would regard as serious—whatever that may mean—since it proclaims that such people are not worth caring for, should not be treasured and should not be protected from those who wish to kill them off, provided only that the killing is done before they are born alive. I know some splendid people who were born with spina bifida and cleft pallets. Had this legislation been in force at the time they were in their mother’s womb, they might not be here today. What about such brilliant artists as Beethoven and Toulouse Lautrec? They would not be here. We would not appreciate their wonderful art and music."

Predictably, Lord Steel, the architect of the Abortion Act although not of this particular part of it (which was brought forward in 1990 as part of the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act), opposed the amendment saying it would be "denying people a free choice" on what to do in difficult circumstances.

Lord Steel said: "I believe that the noble Baroness is profoundly wrong when she suggests, as she did in Committee, that in some way the existence of this legislation is an offence to the dignity of disabled people."

Lord Alton challenged the minister to define "serious" as the particular amendment which allows abortion up to birth says:

“there is a substantial risk that if the child were born it would suffer from
such physical or mental abnormalities as to be seriously handicapped”

A very interesting but sinister interpretation of the recently implemented Mental Capacity Act was made in relation to the disability and abortion debate by Baroness Meacher:

"The Mental Capacity Act refers to the child having capacity; if they do not have capacity, it is important for the professionals to consider their best interests. If we could hold to that, we would be doing pretty well. I happen to know two tiny children who were born at 25 weeks with very severe cerebral palsy. They were natural births. Those two children cannot breathe naturally; they have to be helped to breathe. They will never talk. They lie on their backs and can do nothing. My belief is that there are children, born at those very early ages, who are not viable people. It would be in their best interests to have been aborted. There rests my case. We need to consider the best interests of these babies."

There we have it. Someone deciding on the floor of the House of Lords whether someone's life is worthy or not. Is she suggesting an even more sinister interpretation of the Mental Capacity Act? Is she saying that it should basically allow the medical profession to determine what is in the best interests of the unborn child because it "lacks capacity"? As John Smeaton points out, the Mental Capacity Act does not apply to children

Baroness Tonge, a leading supporter of the Voluntary Euthanasia Society, also had gut-wrenching comments to make. She said: “I said in Committee that we were not talking here about disabled human beings, but about some grossly abnormal human beings; many of those whom I have seen bear little resemblance to human beings.

“In Committee I mentioned the child with anencephaly that I delivered. It had no brain and a grotesque appearance...”

Here we have someone putting her human existence in a superior league to a disabled unborn child.

The Minister, Lord Darzi of Denham, confirmed that "serious handicapped" had not been defined in the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Act of 1990 and that it is left up to the doctor to determine.

He said: "The doctors must form their own opinion of the seriousness of the handicap the child would suffer if born, taking into account the facts and circumstances of the case. The existing guidance from the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists furthermore urges obstetricians to err on the side of caution when considering whether an abortion could be performed on the grounds of foetal abnormality."

On the legal status of the foetus, the minister said: "Both domestic and European law on discrimination—that includes the European Convention on Human Rights—apply only to living persons. The foetus is not regarded as a living person in domestic law and has no rights independent of its mother until it is born alive. The courts have consistently held that a foetus is not recognised as being a separate person from its mother.

"As regards the legal rights of a child, it is regarded in domestic and European law as being independent only when it is born; that is, after the birth of the child."

In summing up, Baroness Masham tried to withdraw her amendment but was shouted down by a number of members. A vote went ahead and the amendment was defeated by 89 votes to 22.

Amongst other discussions, the Lords opposed the setting up of a national bioethics commission. I hope to look through more of Hansard and give an analysis on the other topics addressed which included the bill's desire to remove the need for a father.

The last chance for peers to vote against the Human Fertilisation and Embryology bill is currently scheduled for next Monday (4 February) - the third reading.

Amongst other issues, the Lords will be debating the use of human embryos in experiments.

Dog and Partridge

During dinner whilst on holiday at the Venerable English College's summer residence Palazola in 2004, I was introduced to Ann Flynn. She's the landlady of the Dog and Partridge (D and P) pub, Trippet Lane, Sheffield, as well as the Grapes a few doors down, one of the regular venues performed in by the Arctic Monkeys before they were famous. That summer was the end of my first year at university. I had heard of the D and P, but had not gone there.

On return to Sheffield that September, I sought the place out and entered with my friend Matt. Upon arrival, Ann was there to welcome us and gave us two pints of Guinness on the house. From then on, the traditional Irish "D and P" was described as my second (or third, behind the Chaplaincy) home in Sheffield by my housemates.

On Saturday night, whilst on a weekend visit to the town of my alma mater, myself and Matt and his girlfriend, Catherine, paid a visit to our favourite pub.

It is the only public house in the land (apart from parish social clubs) that I know of which has a statue of Our Lady and a set of Rosary beads behind the bar amongst the whisky bottles. Ann used to have a picture of Pope John Paul II behind the bar as well. When Pope Benedict XVI was elected, the Sheffield Star rang Ann up as they knew she was a prominent lay Catholic of the city. She was delighted with appointment and said so quite passionately to the journalist. A few weeks later, I gave her a framed picture of the New Pontiff. It now sits in the pub's famous "Kennedy Room", dedicated to the first Catholic President of the United States. When the back room was refurbished last year, many of my friends contacted me to say that "Every single picture, newspaper cutting and piece of memorabilia of JFK had been removed whilst work went on. The only image which remained throughout the work was that of the Holy Father."


Upon arrival in the room, it was great to see "Bene" still looking down on drinkers and guitar strummers from on high in the Kennedy Room.

It was a great place for me as a student because, although some students did drink in there, it was mainly a locals' and the Sheffield Irish community's place to be. It was a welcome break from rowdy students in pubs and clubs and it was the perfect opportunity to sample a bit of proper Sheffield life.

Whilst at University, the D and P was the Catholic students' usual jaunt on a Tuesday evening after the Chaplaincy's prayer group. With guitarists Mick and Dave strumming away traditional Irish songs and a wide variety of other numbers, coupled with a pint or three of smooth, delicious Guinness, it was the perfect way to end the day. On one or two occasions, Ann put out a big spread of food, including for my 20th birthday bash there. She also sponsored the Catholic Society's football team, providing several hundred pounds in return for an advertisement on the front of our "Celtic" shirts.

It really rare to have such a "Catholic" pub in all but name. You'll see two or three of the local priests in there on occasions, who are sometimes supplied with a whisky on the house with their pint when Ann's around.

To have such a place to feel at home in, with Our Lady watching over what's actually going on, is a blessing.

I would encourage anyone reading this blog who happens to be in or passing through Sheffield to go down Trippet Lane for a tipple. It's certainly one of my first ports of call upon return to the Steel City.

New Bishop Terence Drainey Ordained

The seventh bishop of Middlesbrough was ordained at the Coulby Newham Cathedral on Friday.

Mgr Terence Drainey became Rt Rev during the Mass which packed out the Cathedral.

Two parishioners per parish joined priests, seminarians and bishops from across England for the ceremony.

I wasn't there and am still yet to get reports on how things went from people who were there.

But here is a comprehensive report by the Teeside Gazette and some decent footage from BBC Tees of the Mass. Look out for the truly horrible thing behind the altar at the Cathedral. Let's hope that one of the first things Bishop Terence does is to get rid of it.

China's human rights record

Lord Alton of Liverpool has been busy in the last few weeks - particularly with his contribution to the opposition of ghastly proposals in the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill.

But something that might have slipped you by - because proceedings in parliament are so neglected in the media these days - is the debate introduced by Alton on China's human rights abuses in the House of Lords a couple of weeks ago. And with Gordon Brown's visit to the host country of the Olympic Games this week it is pertinent to revisit the question - is China worthy of hosting the Olympics given the appalling human rights abuses it subjects its people to?#


During the debate introduced by Lord Alton, the Earl of Sandwich summed up my views on this:

"There is a deliberate policy of suppression of religious activity, and mosques and religious practices are strictly controlled. On this test alone I would fail China as a proper host of the Olympic Games.

"We do not want to become spoilsports in the run up to the Olympics. I know that Her Majesty’s Government will make their views felt through the human rights dialogue, but it is ironic that while the Olympic authorities are monitoring air pollution in China... there is, unfortunately, no monitoring of human rights."

Starting the debate on January 10, Alton paid attention to:

- the estimated 8,000 executions that take place in China each year

- the death penalty is used for 68 different offences in China, including non-violent crimes such as embezzlement and drugs-related offences.

- the treatment of journalists in China - e.g. Reporter Lan Chengzhang was beaten to death last year and journalists who then reported his case in the journal Democracy and Legal Times were dismissed

- internet censorship has intensified, with websites regularly closed down. It is estimated that there could be 187 million internet search users by the close of this year. Microsoft, Google and Yahoo have all collaborated in the censoring of the web. Microsoft blocks words such as “freedom”, “democracy” and “demonstration”, while Yahoo decided to provide to the state information about Shi Tao, a journalist with Contemporary Business News in Hunan province

- the case of Chen Guangchen, a blind self-taught lawyer, imprisoned in Shandong province in 2005 after he exposed the mass forced abortion and sterilisation of thousands of women in Shandong


- INFRINGEMENT OF RELIGIOUS LIBERTIES - In terms of the situation of the Christian Church in the country, Alton explained: "Millions of underground Christians, Catholic and Protestant, have also faced persecution for their beliefs. An article in this week's Tablet says that up to a dozen Catholic bishops remain incarcerated—under house arrest, in police custody or in hiding. Forty of China's 100 Catholic dioceses have no bishop and the Holy See remains unrecognised. Thousands of member of the underground Catholic Church and members of various illegal Protestant house churches have been arrested and tortured while in detention." He then went on to highlight the plight of four Catholic bishops who have been imprisoned or have "disappeared"

- China's ONE CHILD POLICY. Alton said: "China is the only country in the world where it is illegal to have a brother or a sister. Female foeticide has led to a population imbalance of 117 men to every 100 women, and that is leading to catastrophic social consequences."

It's the last bullet point to which I would like to pay particular attention.

During the same debate, Alton asked the minister to clarify the Government's policy of directly funding the one child policy through it's financial support to the United Nations Family Planning Association (UNFPA) and the International Planned Parenthood Federation. In 2006-07, the Department for International Development gave £25 million to the UNFPA and £7.6 million to the IPPF.

In response on the issue of the one child policy, Foreign and Commonwealth Office Minister Lord Malloch-Brown said:

"On the one-child policy, when I heard the noble Lord refer to the fact that China is the only country where by law you cannot have a brother or sister, I thought that my squabbling children would all apply to move there. But behind the policy lies a profound and dangerous social situation. The consequences for family life and the structure of the country were by no means fully understood when the policy was adopted. I fear that we will live with the consequences for some time.

"Let me assure the noble Lord, Lord Alton, that moneys given to UNFPA are not used for coercive family planning; there has been much insistence by UNFPA that its moneys are used for policies that do not breach human rights."

On that point, I'm skeptical as to whether the government is telling the truth. But surely even if none of the British government's money does go into the pot to support the policy, then this just creates a clear path for cash from other sources to be pumped into it. The British government's funding these organisations is itself flawed, not just because of their support of the one child policy, but of UNFPA and IPPF's determination to have abortion as a sexual health service for all worldwide.

Since the policy which promotes and enforces couples having only one child in rural and urban areas was started in the late 1970s, many people in China have been forced to have abortions, have had their children kidnapped and sold and have been forcibly sterilised.

Yet, with all this still going on, Gordon Brown this week swanned of to Beijing to "hail Chinese" investment and strike a deal aimed at boosting bilateral trade by 50 per cent by 2010.

It seems to me that China is not a worthy country to be staging the Olympic Games, which is supposedly meant to unite all nations in peace and friendship through competitive spirit (blah blah blah), whilst it forcibly kills its most vulnerable citizens, the unborn, just because of their sex or the fact they have a brother or sister.

Then again, for a country on the verge of legalising the creation of human-animal hybrid embryos, allowing children to be born without a father and widening the scope for more human embryos to be destroyed in the name of so-called scientific progress, I don't think the United Kingdom is much worthier to host such a world event in 2012.

Human life reduced to tools

Over the last 48 hours there have been two announcements which have effectively hit the nail in the coffin of the sanctity of life both in the UK and further afield.

First of all we have the announcement that two teams of scientists have been given the go ahead to create human-animal embryos by the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority. This is the second time I've heard big news like this whilst driving (the other instance was Tony Blair becoming a Catholic). I've really got to be careful when BBC Radio 5 Live drops these bombshells!

After almost throwing up, my first reaction was "I thought that's what parliament was currently debating whether to allow? How have they possibly been given permission to do this by parliament when the HFE Bill hasn't even been to the Commons yet? Then I remembered: We're dealing with the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Authority here!

The HFEA is one of the most undemocratic decision making bodies on the face of the planet. Since its creation in 1999, it has given the go-ahead for hundreds of thousands of embryos to be experimented on and destroyed. The creation of these sub-human beings basically means that slavery is back - and in a sick way.

This is not the first time the authority has made highly controversial decisions, often without consulting parliament. Recent decisions include:

In 2004, the HFEA granted British scientists a licence to produce cloned human cells, making it only the second country in the world to permit such a procedure

In 2005, the HFEA granted a licence to treat mitochondrial diseases by allowing researchers to attempt to create an embryo with two genetic mothers

In 2006, the HFEA approved in principle the screening of embryos for genes that may lead to certain cancers in middle age

In 2007 the Authority agreed to allow women to be able to donate their eggs to research projects, provided that there are strong safeguards in place to ensure the women are properly informed of the risks of the procedure and are properly protected from coercion.

In September 2007 the Authority decided that there is no fundamental reason to prevent cytoplasmic hybrid research.

Yesterday's announcement will give scientists at Newcastle University and King's College London permission to create hybrid embryos by merging human cells with cow or rabbit eggs, in the hope that they will be able to extract embryonic stem cells from them. They "hope" these to lead to therapies for diseases such as Alzheimer's, Parkinson's and spinal cord injuries.

All these decisions - and yet not one cure or treatment to date compared with over 70 from adult stem cell research.

A google search for "human animal hybrids" brings up some rather disturbing, far-fetched images of half women/half cows, for instance. Under the regulation, the part-animal part-human embryos must be destroyed within 14 days. Pro-life bioethicists say that, although we do not know for sure that the beings would be fully human, we have to give them the benefit of the doubt. But there is something called the slippery slope, which, when talking about ethics in the UK, is very slippery. It wouldn't surprise me that, in another generation, there will be humans with hooves or whatever strolling in the street.

With this decision, and with further setbacks in the Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill, the definition of human life has changed to a mere commodity.

The second bit of news is the claim that US scientists say they have produced embryos that are clones of two men. A team at Stemagen Corporation in La Jolla, California, claims it removed DNA from donated human eggs, and replaced it with DNA from the skin cells of two volunteers.
They produced embryos with genetic material that matched the men's, but did not go on to extract stem cells.

I need not say much about this setback after the reaction given to the other issue. Cloning violates human dignity as it throws out the window the notion that all human beings are unique. In terms of the process by which they are created, we're eventually going to end up with embryo making factories producing them for research and then discarding them like industrial waste.

All in all, these two developments are horrifying.

Bidding Prayers

I'm not a fan of disorganised prayers of intercession during Mass.

I've come across quite a few churches where the priest says a couple of prayers and then says the dreaded: "If you would like to voice a prayer, please feel free". Then there's that dreaded, cringe-worthy silence until someone plucks up the courage to say something. On occasions, people say some really good prayers - but this is a rarity. Often it can get as ridiculous as something like: "We pray for my next door neighbour's second cousin who has gangrene."

The point is - this gives people a forum to say absolutely anything - "Please can we pray for my Auntie Nelly's cat who's got a manky foot" or, even more serious, "We pray for the civil partnership of Terence and Geoffrey." Who knows what a wacky member of the congregation or non-Catholics who have little knowledge of the teachings of the church might say?

On occasions, I have heard people introduce their own (often liberal) agendas at prayer groups. For example, someone not particularly pleased with the decision of the College of Cardinals that glorious April evening said something like: "Let us pray that, in spite of what's happened today, we do not forget that we are the church." It may have been said stronger than that but I distinctly remember the tone of the voice which made me feel uncomfortable.

There have been other occasions during Mass where one of the prayers have said, "Let us pray for the work of..." - followed by the listing of several charities to which you immediately think "Ey up, what are these actually involved in or in favour of? - i.e. embryo experimentation, condom distribution, provision of "sexual health services" etc.

Certainly during Mass, bidding prayers pre-written with coherence and loyal to the Magisterium of the Church, and vetted by the parish priest.

New Blog - John Smeaton

I am delighted to pass on the news that National Director of the Society of the Protection of Unborn Children (SPUC), John Smeaton, began a blog last week on the organisation's 41st Anniversary (January 11).

It promises to be a very interesting insight into the fantastic work of the society and a useful tool to keep pro-life people updated on exactly what they should be doing and campagining on at a given time. Some of his first posts focus on the concerning Human Fertilisation and Embryology Bill (which was debated again in the House of Lords today) and details of SPUC's letter to Tony Blair asking him to repudiate certain previous political actions now that he has become a Catholic. These are two issues which I'm sure I don't need to mention in light of recent posts!

John's blog can be reached at http://spuc-director.blogspot.com/. As you are aware, SPUC is not a religious organisation and in the same sense John's blog is not defined as a Catholic one.

Nevertheless, Mr Smeaton, welcome to the world of blogging!

Weekend

I've just had a long weekend which I spent at home back in Hull. It was a welcome rarity to have Friday, Saturday and Sunday off.

The highlight of the three days, apart from Mass each day, was attending the Hull City v West Brom match. Although we lost 3-1, the match was highly entertaining. They are top of the league and we more than matched them. City had lots of chances but lacked clinical finishing and our defence was pretty awful in the first half. Our fortunes weren't helped by a somewhat naff referee who seemed to be experimenting on his new whistle, blowing up for anything whenever he felt like it. Despite the disappointment, it was good fun.

I went with my good friend Martin, who, before the match, gave me a lesson on how to bet on the afternoon's football. Accumulators work by selecting several fixtures and predicting the result of those. The odds are then accumulated and, if you guess all the results correctly, you get quite a bit of money. I suppose it's similar to the pools. It makes Saturday afternoons a lot more exciting and only costs £1. It's a bit of harmless fun, as long as it doesn't lead to a gambling addiction. Needless to say, I didn't have beginners luck.

Just before driving back to Kettering tonight, I was able to go to the Hull and East Riding SPUC branch meeting. I heard of some good initiatives, particularly that a group of pupils/students at St Mary's College, Hull, have recently started up a pro-life group, which meets every Wednesday after school. They have started small but plan to get more of their peers on board once it's established. The group is currently designing a thought-provoking display outlining their abortion. I wonder what OFSTED inspectors will think of that if and when they see it!

The new group is a fantastic development and I'm sure they'll get a lot of backing from the wider pro-life community. It takes some guts to start up such a group, even in a Catholic school, because of the sensativity of the issues. They deserve our prayers and support.

Faith Conference

I was fortunate enough to get this Thursday just gone off work in lieu for working on Saturday. It meant that I was lucky enough to get up to the Faith Conference at the picturesque Stonyhurst College in Lancashire for the Wednesday night until Thursday evening.

Since 2000, this event conference has been one of the best few days of the year for me. There's nothing like learning more about the Catholic faith, catching up with like-minded friends from across the country and drawing closer to Christ through prayer and the sacraments - all in Christmastide and at a venue steeped in history.

As I was only there for 24 hours of the 48 hour conference, I can't give you much of a write up about the talks and discussion but I'm sure Fr Hermeneutic will be in due course and Mulier already has. I also confess that, unlike most Faith events, my shorthand wasn't in action as I considered it my day off. So I'm not able to give you a detailed account of the talks that I usually do.

The theme was "Hearing God's Word". I heard two of the four talks - Fr Dominic Rolls on "Christ - the Key to understanding the Old Testament" and Fr Kevin Douglas on "The Gospels - Historical and True". Fr Dominic gave an action-packed talk about Christ's coming as the culmination of the Old Testament prophesies. Fr Douglas delivered an impressive defence of the gospels as an accurate and true account of Christ's life. He teased out a number of the details in various stories, saying many of these did nothing to advance the narrative, meaning that unlike a fictional story, the intention of the gospel writers was to give clear details including where, when and to whom Jesus performed miracles and preached to his flock etc. He pointed out that many recent archaeological finds in the Holy Land have been compatible with details outlined in the gospels. The fact that the accounts of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John are by no means identical when writing about the same moments of Christ's life dispels the claim that the authors could have collaborated to "make up" the New Testament.

The most significant thing about these conferences is that new young faces appear every time - and are all willing and prepared to give some time to God and to their friends. In the limited time I had up there, I met and spoke to quite a number of people who were at the conference for the first time. Some had even come on their own on the recommendation of others and not part of a group. That takes some guts to do.

At these sorts of events, you really do get a sense of what, I hope, the Catholic Church of the future in this country is, even if numbers will be smaller. Due to the excellent catechises given by the Faith Movement, and indeed, by other new movements, young, faithful, orthodox Catholics full of vigour for the faith are bound to come to fruition. It is indeed the new movements that are keeping the Church firmly alive in Britain.

Further comments on Blair becoming a Catholic

I've received quite a lot of feedback, including from priests, about my entry on Blair's reception into the Church.

One priest said he felt "betrayed" that the Church had accepted Blair with open arms as opposed to the many times Catholic priests have had to politely say "no, I'm afraid you can't convert" to doctors, for instance, who have expressed an interest in receiving instruction but have refused to stop referring women for abortions. Another priest said he had also felt "physically sick" upon hearing the news of Blair's conversion. He added that he had planned to preach on the issue at Christmas, but resisted because of concerns that he would not be able to stop once mentioning Blair's conversion.

To be honest, I've been a little surprised at the lack of "kicking off" about this piece of news from both the laity and clergy in the UK and further afield. Maybe I've not done an extensive enough blog search or that I'm simply a minority voice on this.

Part of the problem, I think, is the frustrating position that many of our faithful priests have been put in. They would like to kick up a fuss and demand a public statement from the former Prime Minister that he regrets effectively being one of the architects of the culture of death in the western world. But they know they themselves would be attacked from all corners for being hypocrites themselves and "not being welcoming". They might well be ticked off by their bishop, to which they, as faithful priests, want to be obedient to.

It was ironic that Blair was received into the Church just days before the Feast of the Nativity. Ironic because Our Lord was such a vulnerable baby, born in a stable, with a king out to kill Him. He was probably as vulnerable as an unborn baby close to birth, who happens to have a disability, whether it is as curable as a cleft pallet or as serious as Downs Syndrome. It is possible that such a child can legally be aborted up to the point of birth in this country, something which Blair voted three times in favour of.

So far, I don't believe that Blair has publicly commented about his "conversion". I for one will not apologise for ranting about this. I think it is truly a scandal that Blair has made it across the Tiber, with the assistance of the English hierarchy, without publicly stating that he is sorry for consistently voting in favour of killing unborn children and that he now embraces the Catholic church's teaching on abortion, embryo research, cloning, same-sex marriages - the list, as you know, is long.

I continue to pray that Mr Blair will, not only make a public statement we have talked about, but become actively involved in the pro-life movement in promoting human life from conception until natural death and in supporting the family.

Happy New Year

A very Happy New Year to readers of Bashing Secularism and, as we are still in the Octave of Christmas, Happy Christmas. It's fantastic that the Church effectively gives us eight lots of Christmas Days to celebrate the birth of Our Lord, despite the fact that, at the same time, the rest of the country is so obsessed with the sales at DFS or whatever.

I'm also a big fan of the fact that the Christmas season does not end until February 2 with the Fest of the Presentation of the Lord. Dom Prosper Gueranger explains that:

"The custom of celebrating the Solemnity of our Saviour's Nativity by a feast or commemoration of forty days duration is founded on the holy Gospel itself; for it tells us that the Blessed Virgin Mary, after spending forty days in the contemplation of the Divine Fruit of her glorious Maternity, went to the Temple, there to fulfill, in most perfect humility, the ceremonies which the Law demanded of the daughters of Israel, when they became mothers.

"The Feast of Mary's Purification is, therefore, part of that of Jesus' Birth; and the custom of keeping this holy and glorious period of forty days as one continued festival has every appearance of being a very ancient one, at least in the Roman Church."

So whilst the world rips down it's Christmas decorations in a few days, Catholics can still rejoice and celebrate the foundation stone of the Faith, Christ becoming fully God and fully Man.