Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Pelted by Gravel

St. Stephen, regarded as the first Christian martyr, was stoned to death for his faith. But he was far from the last. Today more than even people are being persecuted for living their faith.

And now the "abortion wars" are heating up. One unfortunate victim seems to be LifeSiteNews. If you've never heard of them, you have been missing out on important news stories that the mainstream media has missed. They are one of the better news agencies that covers life affecting issues, whether or not you are pro-life.

And now they are being persecuted. They are not the worst victims of persecution in this battle, but I did hear about their predicament yesterday and wanted to write a few words about the absurdity of it. It seems they are being sued by a Catholic priest! From their release:
Even though LifeSiteNews reports have overwhelmingly reported on what Fr. Gravel himself has publicly said, he is suing us for libel. Among other things, he argues that he isn’t pro-abortion, but he has said in the past that he is “pro-choice.”

He’s demanding $500,000 in damages – which, coincidentally, is a full year’s budget for us. That would put LifeSiteNews out of business!
Dictionary.com says, of libel
libel –noun
1. Law . a. defamation by written or printed words, pictures, or in any form other than by spoken words or gestures.

defamation –noun
the act of defaming; false or unjustified injury of the good reputation of another, as by slander or libel; calumny: She sued the magazine for defamation of character.
So Fr. Gravel thinks being called pro-abortion is false, and injures his reputation. Why does he think that? Would someone who advocated legal equality for women consider it libel to be called pro-women? Would someone who advocated for the legal rights of blacks consider it libel to be called pro-black? Why then, would someone who advocates for the legal right to abortion consider it libel to be called "pro-abortion?"

The fact is, he recognizes that abortion is evil, but wants to have his cake and eat it too. Let's hope and pray that justice prevails in this case. And if you can spare it, toss a coin in their legal defense fund.

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