Tribulation Times
Keep your eyes open!…
JULY 29, 2026
(Exo 20:13) Thou shalt not kill.
There may be a legitimate diversity of opinion even among Catholics about waging war and applying the death penalty, but not however with regard to abortion and euthanasia.
OSV
US bishops call for nationwide prayer and action amid rising abortion rate
The U.S. Catholic bishops issued a nationwide call to prayer and action July 27 over the rising abortion rate and the increased availability of an abortion-inducing drug.
“Every abortion involves the death of a child and harm to the mother. Now with easier access to abortion pills, the abortion rate is tragically climbing, along with increased health risks,” Archbishop Paul S. Coakley of Oklahoma City, president of the U. S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, and Bishop Daniel E. Thomas of Toledo, chairman of the USCCB Committee on Pro-Life Activities, wrote in a joint announcement of the call to prayer and action.
A federal policy permitting distribution of mifepristone, sometimes called the abortion pill, by mail that was first issued by the Biden administration has thus far been left in place by the second Trump administration.
The Department of Justice, under the current Trump administration, has sought to block state challenges to the policy pending a promised safety review by the Food and Drug Administration. But the status and timeline of the FDA review are unclear.
Archbishop Coakley and Bishop Thomas wrote the FDA “has enabled a nationwide mail-order abortion industry by allowing abortion pills to be prescribed in telehealth appointments and sold both at neighborhood pharmacies and online, circumventing state laws that protect life in the womb.”
“This leaves women vulnerable to suffering an abortion alone at home, without any medical supervision,” they said. “It also sets up additional opportunities for exploitation by violent partners or human traffickers.”
The bishops said that now through the end of October, when the Church in the U.S. marks Respect Life Month, “the USCCB Committee on Pro-Life Activities is inviting Catholics to join a focused effort of prayer and action to stop the spread of abortion pills.”
They urged Catholics to seek “the intercession of St. Joseph, Defender of Life” as well as to send messages to pharmacies and pharmaceutical companies that are involved. The Respect Life Prayer to St. Joseph can be found here in English and here in Spanish.
EWTN NEWS
Abortion count rises as women turn to chemical abortions, per new data
CATHOLIC REVIEW
The reality of the abortion pill
CATHOLIC WORLD REPORT
Surviving the abortion pill: Women call for safety regulations
CHARLOTTE LOZIER INSTITUTE
NYC update (through 2023, published 2026): New York City's 2023 abortion statistics showed 50,052 abortions reported in the city, an 8% increase from 2022. On the racial breakdown: non-Hispanic Black women obtained the largest share of abortions (33% of the total), and among non-Hispanic Black women in NYC, 48% of pregnancies ended in abortion versus 48% in live birth — essentially at parity — while non-Hispanic white women saw 11% end in abortion versus 86% in live birth. The ratio: 993 abortions per 1,000 live births for non-Hispanic Black women, compared to 127 per 1,000 for non-Hispanic white women. So as of the latest data, NYC is essentially at the 1:1 threshold for Black women citywide, without quite crossing it — a change from 2016, when it did cross.
67% of Babies Diagnosed With Down Syndrome are Killed in Abortions
“The second commandment of the teaching: You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not seduce boys. You shall not commit fornication. You shall not steal. You shall not practice magic. You shall not use potions. You shall not procure [an] abortion, nor destroy a newborn child” (Didache 2:1–2 [A.D. 70]).
Ladder of Divine Ascent — Step 8: “On Freedom from Anger and on Meekness”
5. Wrath is a reminder of hidden hatred, that is to say, remembrance of wrongs. Wrath is a desire for the injury of the one who has provoked you. Irascibility is the untimely blazing up of the heart. Bitterness is a movement of displeasure seated in the soul. Anger is an easily changeable movement of one's disposition and disfiguration of soul.
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