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Threat of youth suicide drives radical, body-disfiguring “sex reassignment” surgeries on minor children–should this be legal?
Defying Nature: Emily Pascal as a teenage girl, before undergoing her transgender “sex reassignment” surgeries to appear like the male she thinks she is. Paschal, 17, now identifies as “Emmet” (see video below) after having her healthy breasts surgically removed. Both Pascal’s parents and the medical professionals at Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago cite her potential suicide as a key reason for pursuing the body-disfiguring operations as a minor.
“We don’t offer anything that would have any long-lasting negative or irreversible effect unless this is truly a kid who’s older, who can make a wise decision, whose family is supportive.”— Dr. Scott Leibowitz, child and adolescent psychiatrist with Lurie Children’s Hospital’s Gender and Sex Development program
Folks, I am stunned at what passes for science and medical care these days. Emily Paschal, a 17-year-old girl from Gurnee, Illinois featured in these WYCC (PBS-Chicago) video segments, had her healthy adolescent breasts surgically removed as part of her “transitioning” process to become her male persona, “Emmet.” Her parents allowed the radical surgery in the name of helping their daughter become like the transgender “male” she thinks she is. They were assisted by Lurie Children’s Hospital in Chicago, in a program led by an open homosexual, Dr. Robert Garofalo, who heads up the hospital’s “Gender and Sex Development Program.”
Last month I was interviewed by WYCC for this “In the Loop” segment, “Raising a Transgender Teen,” without knowing the specifics of the Emily-“Emmet” Pascal story. WYCC is the lesser known of two PBS TV stations in Chicago, and this program aired September 24, 2015. WYCC used only a tiny portion of my interview, which is a shame because the reporter who interviewed me–not “In the Loop” host Barbara Pinto, who narrates the piece–was very fair and asked no “gotcha” questions. Note:I am identified here with “Center For Morality,” which will be a project of Americans For Truth as we transition to our new home in the Washington, D.C. area.
How tragic it is that the threat of suicide drives this entire process whereby panic-stricken parents–working with doctors who double as de facto LGBTQ activists–allow their child’s confused feelings to guide and rationalize the pursuit of permanent body-disfiguring operations. Speaking of rationalizations: what would feminists say about Emily’s (“Emmet’s’) father Dirk Paschal recalling her leadership skills as a girl in the neighborhood as evidence that she was really a “boy.” Can’t girls be leaders?
The bottom line here is that doctors have become activists and pop-culture philosophers in pushing these extreme experimental “solutions” on vulnerable youth and their vulnerable parents–even though, as Dr. Garofalo admits (see 3:18 mark), the doctors are far from having all the answers. Most importantly, as he acknowledges, some kids overcome their sense of “gender nonconformity”–so why rush the operations and puberty-blocking drug “treatments”? And will we all one day as taxpaying Americans be subsidizing these horrific procedures through Obama-care? I question whether these radical “transgender” surgeries should even be legal for minors. More coming on this. — Peter LaBarbera, AFTAH
Some highlights of the video are transcribed after the videos and the page jump:
Special Sin? Has Dr. Al Mohler of the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary failed the “Sexual Sin Substitution Test” on homosexualism?
[UPDATE: to listen to Janet Mefferd’s interview with AFTAH’s Peter LaBarbera, go HERE or click play in the player above (it starts at the 24:00 mark)]
Dear Readers, once again the pro-family, Christian movement falls into “Kvetch and Retreat” mode, which is another way of saying we are constantly backing up in our interactions with the homosexual juggernaut. This is why we lose. Needless to say, homosexual activists and their fellow travelers are not appeased by Dr. Al Mohler’s high-minded retreat on pro-heterosexual Reparative Therapy, as my friend and talk show host Janet Mefferd notes with regard to the Huffington Post columnist and “liberal Christian” professor Derek Penwell below.
I appreciate that Janet applies what I am calling the “Sexual Sin Substitution Test”: simply replace “gay” with another sexual sin and see if it makes sense. This helps to lay bare the pitfalls of making special accommodations, theological caveats–and even questionable apologies–in our approach toward those caught up in the sin of (proud) homosexualism and gender rebellion. With regard to Mohler’s curious apology–on behalf of non-consulted Christians everywhere–to people caught up in homosexual behaviors and feelings, I would ask–as a flawed Ambassador of Christ myself:
Why hasn’t Mohler apologized to the porn-using “community”? The adulterous “community”? And certainly the very large but misunderstood fornicators “community” deserves an apology, too. Why are he and other guilt-ridden Christians not apologizing to these sin groups?
The practical answer to that question, I submit, is that these other sins are not the beneficiaries of a powerful lobby that has turned ungodly yet changeable behaviors into proud self-identities–and a supposedly victimized “minority” with massive media, corporate and government clout behind it. And I say to Prof. Penwell— in the spirit of Jeremiah 17:9 and 1 Corinthians 6:9-11–repent, humble yourself before Almighty God and turn away from all anti-biblical attempts to justify proud homosexuality in the lives of others. Because no amount of cultural power and liberal propaganda can turn sin into righteousness. –Peter LaBarbera, Americans For Truth; @PeterLaBarbera; americansfortruth@gmail.com
P.S. I will be appearing tonight (Oct. 7, 2015) as a guest on Janet’s new radio show, “Janet Mefferd Today” to discuss Mohler’s ill-timed criticism of pro-hetero Reparative Therapy. To listen to the interview, go HERE — it starts at the 24:00 mark.
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Mefferd writes:
Reparative Therapy, Southern Baptists and Moving the Goalposts
“When even Al Mohler is embarrassed to talk about ‘reparative therapy’ in straightforward terms everyone understands, it means that cultural standards are evolving toward greater hospitality to our LGBTQ sisters and brothers.” – Pro-homosexual liberal activist and “liberal Christian” Derek Penwell
Here is a link to a promotional, PDF flier for the AFTAH Chicago dinner banquet Saturday, October 17 featuring “Making Gay Okay” author Robert Reilly. Click the link below:
What: Americans For Truth About Homosexuality’s (AFTAH) dinner-banquet fund-raiser. Theme: “The Case Against Sodomy: How to Use Reason and Natural Law to Argue Against Homosexual Acts and ‘Gay Marriage'” Who: Keynote speaker: Robert Reilly, author, ‘Making Gay Okay: How Rationalizing Homosexual Behavior Is Changing Everything’ [get a copy with $100 gift to AFTAH] When: Saturday, October 17, 6:00 PM Central; doors open 5:30. Where: Christian Liberty Academy, 5002 W. Euclid Ave., Arlington Heights, IL 60004. Map HERE. Cost: Only $20 per person. Sponsor a Table of 10 for just $200 or 5 attendees for $100. Send check made out to “AFTAH” to: AFTAH, PO Box 5522, Naperville, IL 60567-5522. Or sign up online using our safe credit card form. More info on Reilly and the banquet HERE.
Second AFTAH Banquet in Wash., DC on Nov. 21: Americans For Truth will be hosting Robert Reilly for a second dinner-banquet in the Washington, D.C. area on Saturday, Nov. 21. Stay tuned for more details.
Folks, this is an excellent video by conservative Catholic Michael Voris, founder of ChurchMilitant.com and a leading fighter against pro-homosexual “progressives” in the Catholic Church. Voris is a Catholic, and I am an evangelical. We may disagree strongly on points of theology (and agree on others)–but let me tell you, this guy is a warrior, and I respect that.
Below the video is a transcript of Voris’ powerful remarks. As I wrote in a previous post, every American who is concerned about the homosexualist juggernaut–whether Catholic or not–should be aware of what is transpiring among Catholics, and the leftist campaign to subvert the Church’s teachings on homosexuality and marriage. That is because Catholics and the Church’s actions have such a huge influence over the overall “gay” debate, both here and abroad. We will follow the Synod of the Family–dubbed the “Sodomy Synod” by Voris below–closely through conservatives like Voris. — Peter LaBarbera, AFTAH
TRANSCRIPT
Right out of the gate, even before the Synod officially got underway, a shocking revelation from the Italian media that a high-ranking official in the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (CDF) came out as an active homosexual with a partner.
The announcement in the Italian media brought an almost instant response from the Vatican, which said the Polish priest Kryzsztof Charamsa, a Vatican theologian, was irresponsible and placing undue pressure on the Synod right from the opening bell. But in many ways, what Charamsa has done is merely bring out into the open what many have long suspected and even been discussing quite freely: that there is a major push by gay and gay-positive clergy to get the Church to accept homosexuality.
“Widespread confusion” among Catholics regarding Church teachings amidst “onslaught of lifestyles spread by anti-Christian lobbies,” says petition
“Basing itself on Sacred Scripture, which presents homosexual acts as acts of grave depravity, tradition has always declared that ‘homosexual acts are intrinsically disordered.’ They are contrary to the natural law. They close the sexual act to the gift of life. They do not proceed from a genuine affective and sexual complementarity. Under no circumstances can they be approved.” — Catechism of the Catholic Church, “Chastity and homosexuality,” 2357; see full text HERE.
Folks, I am not a Roman Catholic and I am averse to calling any man “Holy Father,” but I am reprinting this petition because you need to know that the the battle to overturn longstanding Catholic teaching against homosexualism is intensifying. Leftist “Catholics” who reject the Church’s teachings against homosexual practice are mobilizing for the Synod on the Family. Below is a petition signed by prominent Catholics (see list HERE), reprinted from the conservative group Tradition, Family, Property’s website. It is preceded by TFP’s introductory note.
The actions of the Catholic Church and the attitudes of American Catholics toward homosexualism greatly affect this cultural debate–and so all concerned citizens, regardless of their faith, must pay attention to this ongoing struggle. Many Western Catholics willfully choose to be ignorant of, or generally flout, historic Church teachings on this issue. And many a politician and pundit has used Pope Francis to justify supporting homosexuality-based “marriage” even though it is rejected emphatically by Catholic doctrine (see above). We will follow the Synod debate closely, relying on the analyses of some of our Catholic friends. — Peter LaBarbera, AFTAH
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American TFP writes:
Dissident Catholic pressure groups — aided by the liberal media — are feverishly working to dismantle vital Church teaching on marriage and family at the next Synod on the Family in Rome.
In fact, they are bombarding the Holy Father and the Synod Fathers right now with messages of revolt against traditional moral values as they clamor for “change, change, change” inside the Church.
At this critical time, we must defend the truth and ask the Holy Father to protect the future of the family.
The American TFP is joining forces with over 20 more pro-family groups around the world to collect as many signatures as possible before the next Synod starts. This prayerful petition is a worldwide effort. Everyone is invited to sign.
May God reward you.
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Filial Petition to Pope Francis:
Holy Father,
In view of the Synod on the family to be held in October 2015, we filially address Your Holiness to express our fears and hopes regarding the future of the family.
Our fears arise from witnessing a decades-long sexual revolution promoted by an alliance of powerful organizations, political forces and the mass media that consistently work against the very existence of the family as the basic unit of society. Ever since the so-called May 1968 Sorbonne Revolution, a morality opposed to both Divine and natural law has been gradually and systematically imposed on us so implacably as to make it possible, for example, to teach the abhorrent “gender theory” to young children in many countries.
For the record, I wish Pope Francis had more open and direct in his support of Kim Davis as he was in pushing the “progressive” “Climate Change” agenda. Nevertheless, the pro-LGBTQ Left is busy at work trying to nullify the significance of his meeting with Kentucky clerk Kim Davis, and it appears the Vatican through its spokesmen is adding to the obfuscation. Here is Liberty Counsel’s full news release on Davis’ meeting with the pope. — Peter LaBarbera, Americans For Truth
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Facts About Kim Davis’s Meeting with the Pope
Oct 2, 2015
Washington, DC – The facts about the meeting with Kim Davis have been told, but we will again set forth the details of the meeting with an additional fact
The meeting with Kim Davis was initiated on September 14. While we do not know everyone who was part of the invitation, we do know that The Apostolic Nuncio of the Holy See to the United States, Archbishop Carlo Maria Vigano, personally spoke with Kim Davis about the invitation. The invitation was for a private meeting with Pope Francis at the Vatican Embassy in Washington, D.C., on Thursday afternoon, September 24. This meeting was a private meeting. No other members of the public were present.
Kim Davis and her attorney, Mat Staver, Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel, originally planned to be in Washington, D.C., on Thursday afternoon. But when the unsolicited invitation was extended to Kim and her attorneys, they changed their arrival time to Wednesday evening. On the evening of September 23, Kim Davis received another call about the meeting the next day. She was instructed to wear her hair up because she was so recognizable. Around 8:00 a.m. on September 24, Kim received another call confirming the time of the pickup at 1:15 p.m.
At 1:15 p.m. Staver accompanied Kim and Joe Davis to meet two male security personnel dressed in suits and wearing earphones. Staver confirmed they were seeking Kim Davis. They spoke in heavy Italian accents. Staver accompanied Kim and Joe Davis to a waiting van and remained at the hotel and in regular contact with Kim.
Kim and Joe Davis were placed in a room with no one else present. Later Pope Francis arrived with only Vatican or Embassy personnel and security. He stretched out his hands. Kim clasped his hands, and he asked her to pray for him. She said she would, and she asked the Pontiff to pray for her, to which he said he would. Pope Francis then thanked Kim for her “courage.” They embraced. The Pope said, “Stay strong.” He then presented Kim and Joe with two Rosaries.
There was no line of people or other members of the public seen anywhere. With Kim being so recognizable, it would have been impossible to keep the visit secret if other members of the public were anywhere near the Pontiff and or Kim Davis.
Must Read: Author Robert Reilly is leading the intellectual campaign for the pro-family to return to principle in confronting the homosexual activist juggernaut. Reilly is keynoter at two upcoming AFTAH banquets, Oct. 17 in Chicago and Nov. 21 in Washington, D.C. More information HERE. Special Gift Opportunity: Make a $100 gift to AFTAH and receive Reilly’s book “Making Gay Okay” or your choice of several other outstanding resources; more info HERE.
Truth…
“For homosexual couples, the marital act is physically impossible – the pieces don’t fit – and the attempt to imitate it through sodomy is incapable in any circumstances of generating new life. One thing that same-sex couples all share is a unique disability to express either the unitive or procreative essence of conjugal relations. For these reasons, among many others, common law has held through the centuries that marriage can be only between a man and a woman….
“If sodomy is wrong, then it cannot be the basis of marriage.”— Robert Reilly, author, “Making Gay Okay”
…vs. Error:
“Our position on the constitutional issue [of homosexual ‘marriage’] was thus entirely distinct from,and did not take sides on, the social policy issue. Indeed, in my initial appearance in the District Court, I stated that if the tables were turned – if California’s voters had adopted gay marriage, as the voters of several states now have – I would be no less willing to defend their right to make that decision too.” — Charles Cooper, lead “pro-family” attorney defending Proposition 8, California’s statewide amendment preserving marriage as solely between a man and a woman — passed by voters in 2008 but struck down by (homosexual) District Judge Vaughn Walker in 2010, whose ruling was allowed to stand by the U.S. Supreme Court in 2013.
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AFTAH Dinner -Banquet Sat., Oct. 17, 2015 featuring Robert Reilly: More info and sign up HERE
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Folks, below is an excellent column by Robert Reilly–who is the keynote speaker at both AFTAH banquets, Sat., Oct. 17 in Chicago (Arlington Heights, IL) and Sat., Nov. 21 in Washington, DC (Vienna, VA). Reilly ably lays out the compromises and weakness in the pro-family legal strategy that helped pave the way for the imposition of homosexual “marriage” by the courts, culminating in the Supreme Court’s unconstitutional Obergefell ruling.
Note: Special Gift Opportunity: Make a $100 gift to AFTAH and receive Reilly’s book “Making Gay Okay” or your choice of several other outstanding resources [more info HERE]. I am reading this superb book — and learning a lot. I highly recommend that you do, also. — Peter LaBarbera, AFTAH
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Same-Sex ‘Marriage’ Goes Against the ‘Laws of Nature and Nature’s God’
By Robert R. Reilly | June 9, 2015 |
Why have the pro-natural family forces been losing in court? Intentionally or not, Judge Richard Posner explained the reason in a 7th Circuit Court ruling (Sept. 4, 2014), in which he decided against the Indiana and Wisconsin laws restricting marriage to a man and a woman:
“The state [Wisconsin] does not mention Justice Alito’s invocation [in the Windsor case] of a moral case against same-sex marriage, when he states in his dissent that ‘others explain the basis for the institution in more philosophical terms. They argue that marriage is essentially the solemnizing of a comprehensive, exclusive, permanent union that is intrinsically ordered to producing new life, even if it does not always do so.’ [U.S. v. Windsor, 133 S.Ct. 2675, 2718 (2013).] That is a moral argument for limiting marriage to heterosexuals. The state does not mention the argument because as we said, it mounts no moral arguments against same-sex marriage.” Baskin v. Bogan, 766 F.3d 648, 669 (7thCir. 2014) (emphasis added).
While Justice Alito recognizes that there is a moral argument for limiting marriage to heterosexuals, it was not only the State of Wisconsin that failed to make such a case. Neither have the States of Michigan, Kentucky, Ohio, or Tennessee in Obergefell, the decisive case now before the U.S. Supreme Court. [Editor: On June 26, 2015, the Court ruled 5-4 that homosexual “marriage” is a constitutional right.] I believe that this is one of the key reasons that the pro-natural family position has been losing in most of the cases thus far.
With the moral foundation missing, an air of unreality pervades the federal court system. Let us see how unreal by looking at a couple of examples. When invalidating Oregon’s constitutional ban on same-sex marriage (May 19, 2014), U.S. District Judge Michael McShanewrote in his opinion,
“I believe that if we can look for a moment past gender and sexuality, we can see in these [same-sex] plaintiffs nothing more or less than our own families. Families who we would expect our constitution to protect, if not exalt, in equal measure.” Geiger v. Kitzhaber, 994 F. Supp. 2d 1128, 1147 (D. Or. 2014).
This is an extraordinary remark. What Judge McShane calls “gender and sexuality” is the only means by which families are generated. Since families come from parents, you cannot look past parents and still have a family – because there would be no family there. Homosexual acts cannot generate families; therefore, their “families” cannot be the same. If there are children present, we may be sure that both parents of the children are not present in that family. That is a lot to look past.
The case against sodomy: How to use reason and natural law to argue against homosexual acts and ‘gay marriage’
Explaining Why Homosexual Behavior Is Wrong: Robert Reilly, author of ‘Making Gay Okay: How Rationalizing Homosexual Behavior Is Changing Everything,’ will speak at AFTAH’s annual dinner-banquet Saturday, October 17th at Christian Liberty Academy in Arlington Heights, IL. Sign up online HERE. Tickets are $20/person or $200 for a Table of 10. Send a check with “AFTAH Banquet” on the memo line to: AFTAH, PO Box 5522, Naperville, IL 60567-5522. For a printable PDF color flier of the event, click HERE.
What: Americans For Truth About Homosexuality’s (AFTAH) annual dinner-banquet fund-raiser
Who: Keynote speaker: Robert Reilly, author, ‘Making Gay Okay: How Rationalizing Homosexual Behavior Is Changing Everything’ [order it HERE or on Amazon]. Reilly served as a Special Assistant to President Ronald Reagan and was the Director of the Voice of America.
When: Saturday, October 17, 2015, 6:00 PM Central; doors open at 5:30.
Where: Christian Liberty Academy, 502 W. Euclid Ave., Arlington Heights, IL 60004. Map HERE.
Cost: Only $20 per person. Sponsor a Table of 10 for just $200. Or sponsor 5 attendees for $100. Send check made out to “AFTAH” to: AFTAH, PO Box 5522, Naperville, IL 60567-5522. Or sign up online using our safe credit card form (check the box for Banquet Registration or to sign up to sponsor a Table of 10).
PDF Flier: For a printable PDF color flier on the Oct. 17 event, click HERE.
UPDATE: Stellar pro-family advocate Linda Harvey of Mission America (and a WND.com columnist) will also be speaking at the AFTAH banquet Saturday, Oct. 17!)
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Second AFTAH Banquet in Wash., DC on Nov. 21: Americans For Truth will be hosting Robert Reilly for a second dinner-banquet in the Washington, D.C. area on Saturday, Nov. 21. Stay tuned for more details.
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Crafting a Principled Strategy: At a recent speaking appearance in Chicago, Reilly explained how the dominant pro-family movement strategy of the last decade of focusing on a positive defense of natural marriage and consciously avoiding discussing homosexuality is “the losing strategy. That is how we lost.” Reilly continued:
“The entire issue is based on the morality or immorality of sodomy. And once you’re no longer willing to address that issue or if you concede that issue, you have lost, and you’ll get rolled on the religious freedom issue as well.”
Amen. It is such clear and principled thinking that sets Reilly apart from many pro-family leaders. We live in bizarre times in which even some who profess to be “conservatives” are making the radical case for “marriage” based on the sexual perversion (and sin) of homosexuality. Shame on them for debasing conservatism and Christianity all at once. But I am greatly encouraged that Reilly’s well-reasoned approach is beginning to gain ground as we endeavor to rebuild the foundation for an aggressive defense of Truth on this vexing issue. We greatly look forward to Bob’s presentation October 17: please mark your calendars and tell your friends! This article below appeared in many online publications, including CNS News. – Peter LaBarbera, AFTAH; Email: americansfortruth@gmail.com; Phone: 312-324-3787
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Below is an excellent column by Robert Reilly that lays out the compromise in the pro-family legal strategy that helped pave the way for the imposition of homosexual “marriage” by the courts, culminating in the Supreme Court’s Obergefell ruling:
Same-Sex ‘Marriage’ Goes Against the ‘Laws of Nature and Nature’s God’
By Robert R. Reilly | June 9, 2015 |
Why have the pro-natural family forces been losing in court? Intentionally or not, Judge Richard Posner explained the reason in a 7th Circuit Court ruling (Sept. 4, 2014), in which he decided against the Indiana and Wisconsin laws restricting marriage to a man and a woman:
“The state [Wisconsin] does not mention Justice Alito’s invocation [in the Windsor case] of a moral case against same-sex marriage, when he states in his dissent that ‘others explain the basis for the institution in more philosophical terms. They argue that marriage is essentially the solemnizing of a comprehensive, exclusive, permanent union that is intrinsically ordered to producing new life, even if it does not always do so.’ [U.S. v. Windsor, 133 S.Ct. 2675, 2718 (2013).] That is a moral argument for limiting marriage to heterosexuals. The state does not mention the argument because as we said, it mounts no moral arguments against same-sex marriage.” Baskin v. Bogan, 766 F.3d 648, 669 (7thCir. 2014) (emphasis added).
While Justice Alito recognizes that there is a moral argument for limiting marriage to heterosexuals, it was not only the State of Wisconsin that failed to make such a case. Neither have the States of Michigan, Kentucky, Ohio, or Tennessee in Obergefell, the decisive case now before the U.S. Supreme Court. I believe that this is one of the key reasons that the pro-natural family position has been losing in most of the cases thus far.
