Pro-Life World View | March 7, 2025

Her son taught her the value of life even as his would not extend beyond the womb
Kim Hayes – Pregnancy Help News

Her son taught her the value of life even as his would not extend beyond the womb

Here is a powerful story of how one pre-born baby boy changed the mind of his mother about abortion. Before “Mikayla” experienced her first pregnancy, she supported abortion, believing it was protecting women’s rights. But her view changed when pregnant with her son, who was stillborn at 24 weeks. Early in the pregnancy, multiple foetal anomalies were diagnosed. However, abortion was not proposed—instead, appropriate medical care and respect were shown to both her and her son.

Writing on the practice website, “Mikayla” stated, “I now find myself leaning toward a deeper appreciation for life’s sacredness, something I didn’t fully grasp before,” She went on to say, “Holding my son at 24 weeks and hearing you speak made me realise that these voices need protection as well. Your work is making an impact far beyond what words can capture.”

USAID Has Always Been About Population Control
Steven Mosher and Michael Hichborn – National Catholic Register

USAID has always been about population control

In this short, information-packed commentary, two long-time outspoken pro-lifers have written a concise article exposing how, for more than sixty years, USAID “has been operated on the morally bankrupt principle that the best way to eliminate poverty is to eliminate the children of the poor.”

They quote from the U.S. Foreign Assistance Act, 1961, which explicitly shows how funds are tied to population control, and highlight actual data revealing how widespread the distribution of contraception is by USAID and its partners.

They make a strong case as to why Catholic organisations, such as Catholic Relief Services, cannot accept funding from USAID as it is tied to population control. They cite Pope Benedict XVI’s moto proprio “On the Service of Charity.”

“[T]he diocesan Bishop is to ensure that charitable agencies dependent upon him do not receive financial support from groups or institutions that pursue ends contrary to Church’s teaching. Similarly, lest scandal be given to the faithful, the diocesan Bishop is to ensure that these charitable agencies do not accept contributions for initiatives whose ends, or the means used to pursue them, are not in conformity with the Church’s teaching” (10).”

It is a timely reminder to all Catholic-based agencies not to receive funding tied to expectations contrary to the Faith.

Examining gender-specific mental health risks after gender-affirming surgery: a national database study
Joshua E Lewis, BS, et al – Journal of Sexual Medicine

Examining gender-specific mental health risks after gender-affirming surgery: a national database study

A major retrospective study of over 107,000 adult patients who underwent so-called “sex reassignment surgery” has concluded that the body mutilating intervention is associated with an increased risk of mental health issues.  

Published in the Oxford Academic Journal of Sexual Medicine, the analysis “demonstrated that those undergoing surgery were at significantly higher risk for depression, anxiety, suicidal ideation, and substance use disorders than those without surgery.” 

The authors of the paper come to a surprising conclusion given the evidence, stating, “Gender-affirming surgery, while beneficial in affirming gender identity, is associated with increased risk of mental health issues, underscoring the need for ongoing, gender-sensitive mental health support for transgender individuals’ post-surgery.”

FLI comment:
Since mental well-being is a key reason offered in support of surgical intervention, it is pleasing to see a significant study acknowledge the harm done.  “First do no harm” is a tenet of medicine that desperately needs to be given pre-eminence again. However, it is unfortunate that the authors come to the wrong conclusion, still supporting surgical interventions for individuals experiencing gender dysphoria. The evidence clearly shows that surgery does not help but rather harms, and so such mutilating interventions should cease to be offered for the overall good of the individual.

Fertility rate reverses trend Church community works to restore hope
Agenzia Fides

South Korean fertility rate reverses trend: Church community works to restore hope

After nine years of steady decline in the fertility rate (the number of children a woman has in her lifetime), South Korea has seemingly reversed the trend.  Concerned by the catastrophic fertility rate of just 0.75 (up from 0.72) children per woman, the South Korean government has implemented various social policies to encourage couples to have children. The possible reversal of the downward trend is encouraging and is a cause for hope. However, South Korea has a long road ahead as they are a long way off the replacement level of 2.1 children per woman.

Father Oh Seok-jun, who heads the Seoul Archdiocese Committee for Life, exhorts couples to have hope and look beyond the numbers. He says, “A child is a gift of grace granted by the Lord through the perfect union of love between a man and a woman. This is why the Catholic Church, in its pastoral care with young people and couples, invites them to look to the future with hope.”

Catholic Bishop says pro-abortion politicians in Mexico will be excommunicated
Steven Ertelt – LifeNews

Catholic bishop says pro-abortion politicians in Mexico will be excommunicated

Bishop Jose Francisco Gonzalez of Mexico has declared that pro-abortion politicians should expect excommunication. The statement came after yet another state in Mexico legalised abortion. Of the 31 Mexican states, two-thirds allow induced abortion up to 12 weeks gestation.

At a press conference, Bishop Gonzalez reminded the faithful of Canon Law, which reveals that individuals who support abortion “are, as a matter of practice, outside of communion with the Church. That is, those who promote it, those who carry it out, and those who collaborate cannot participate in the sacraments.” He invited people who support abortion to “rediscover their Catholic faith” and to consider what concrete life-affirming policies are in place to support mothers.