DEACON FOR LIFE

Were there to be no support in the whole history of ethical and moral thought, were there no acknowledged confirmation from medical science, were the history of legal opinion to the contrary, we would still have to conclude on the basis of God's Holy Word that the unborn child is a person in the sight of God. He is protected by the sanctity of life graciously given to each individual by the Creator, Who alone places His image upon man and grants them any right to life which they have.

Wednesday, May 11, 2011

Matt C. Abbott: "Get serious!"

Matt C. Abbott column

Get serious!

Matt C. Abbott

Matt C. Abbott
May 11, 2011

Father James Farfaglia is no stranger to this column. He's been featured and quoted several times over the last few years, and I'm happy to report that I agree with him 99 percent of the time.
A priest of the Diocese of Corpus Christi, Texas, Father James is a member of the boards of directors of Hope House (a home for unwed mothers) and Human Life International. He has his own Internet ministry and is a contributor to Catholic Online.
Also of note: He spent 21 years in the Legionaries of Christ before leaving in May 1999 after confronting scandals within the order. Because he confronted those scandals, he was persecuted by his superiors. Allegations of sexual abuse by the order's founder, Marcial Maciel, first broke in the late 1990s with a detailed report from journalists Jason Berry and the late Gerald Renner, and Father James soon realized that Maciel was linked to the very scandals he had uncovered in Mexico. (Of course, at that time, Maciel was still being fiercely defended by most members and supporters of the Legion.)

Father James has a new book out — Get Serious! A Survival Guide for Serious Catholics. It's his second book in as many years. With a foreword by Deacon Keith Fournier and a preface by Donna-Marie Cooper O'Boyle (reprinted below), Get Serious! has endorsements from Judie Brown, Michael H. Brown (no relation), Father Samuel Medley, Steve Pokorny and, last but not least, yours truly.

Read more here: http://www.renewamerica.com/columns/abbott/110511

Get Serious! A Survival Guide for Serious Catholics

www.fatherjames.org

Matt C. Abbott is a Catholic columnist with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Communication, Media and Theatre from Northeastern Illinois University in Chicago, and an Associate in Applied Science degree in Business Management from Triton College in River Grove, Ill. He has worked in the right-to-life movement and is a published writer focused on Catholic and social issues. He can be reached at mattcabbott@gmail.com.