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Hello and welcome.
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Thank you for joining me for this episode of Saint Joseph, Protector of the Unborn.
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This podcast is dedicated to honoring and to venerating Saint Joseph and to seeking his loving protection and intercession to save the lives of unborn babies diagnosed with Down syndrome.
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I'm your host, Lori, although I prefer to think of myself as being Stacy's sister.
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Stacy was born when I was six and had Down syndrome.
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We were together for 60 years, and I am grateful for every moment we had together.
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Through the years I spent with Stacy and her friends, I understand how incredible these individuals are.
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They are kind, loving, nonjudgmental.
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They spread love and happiness, which makes it even more tragic to know that thousands of babies with Down syndrome are aborted each year.
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In my opinion, eugenics is being actively practiced in order to limit or to even eliminate this population.
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Before we further ponder this tragedy, let's start our podcast with the prayer to Saint Joseph.
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O Saint Joseph, whose protection is so great, so strong, so prompt before the throne of God, I place in you all my interest and desires.
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O Saint Joseph, do assist me by your powerful intercession and obtain for me, from your divine son all spiritual blessings through Jesus Christ our Lord, so that having engaged here below your heavenly power, I may offer my thanksgiving and homage to the most loving of fathers.
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O Saint Joseph, I never weary contemplating you, and Jesus asleep in your arms.
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I dare not approach while he reposes near your heart.
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Press him in my name, and kiss his fine head for me, and ask him to return the kiss when I draw my dying breath.
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Saint Joseph, patron of departing souls, pray for me.
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Amen.
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As I've mentioned in earlier episodes, my intense devotion to Saint Joseph began after Stacy's passing, which is almost ironic, since I have recited Bishop Fulton Sheen's prayer for an unborn baby daily for over a decade.
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And this prayer begins with the words Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, I love you very much.
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I appreciate Saint Joseph's inclusion in that prayer so much more now, and his inclusion is completely appropriate, since Saint Joseph is known as patron of the unborn through his role as foster father of the Son of God.
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Saint Joseph became the foster father, the legal father of Jesus, as a result of his marriage to Mary.
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Saint Pope John Paul II's Redemptoris Custos, guardian of the Redeemer, explores how Saint Joseph's fatherhood made him a participant in our salvation.
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According to Saint Pope John Paul II, Saint Joseph was called by God to serve the person and mission of Jesus through the exercise of his fatherhood.
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Saint John Chrysostom describes him as a minister of salvation.
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Saint Pope John Paul II includes a quote from Pope Paul VI that I want to include in its entirety because it beautifully describes Saint Joseph's fatherhood.
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His actions showed his fatherhood in his having made his life a service, a sacrifice to the mystery of the incarnation, and to the redemptive mission connected with it, and having used the legal authority which was his over the Holy Family in order to make a total gift of self, of his life and work, and having turned his human vocation to domestic love into a superhuman oblation of self, an oblation of his heart and all his abilities into love placed at the service of the Messiah growing up in his house.
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I'm completely awed by that statement, and by Saint Joseph.
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It explains why we know so little about him.
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He made himself smaller, quashed his own ego, in order to help his foster son, his legal son, the Messiah, to complete his mission of salvation for us.
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St.
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Pope John Paul II further indicates that the liturgy specifies that the beginnings of our redemption were entrusted to the faithful care of Joseph.
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Pope Leo XIII also stressed the importance of Saint Joseph's mission.
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He, among all, stands out in his august dignity, since by divine disposition he was guardian, and according to human opinion, father of God's son, whence it followed that the word of God was subjected to Joseph.
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He obeyed him and rendered to him that honor and reverence that children owe to their father.
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Now that we have again affirmed the basis for Saint Joseph's title, Patron of the Unborn, let's recite a prayer to Saint Joseph, defender of life.
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We gratefully recite this prayer with the permission of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities.
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Dearest Saint Joseph, at the word of an angel, you lovingly took Mary into your home.
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As God's humble servant, you guided the holy family on the road to Bethlehem, welcomed Jesus as your own son in the shelter of a manger, and fled far from your homeland for the safety of both mother and child.
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We praise God that as their faithful
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protector, you never hesitated to sacrifice for those entrusted to you.
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May your example inspire us also to welcome, cherish, and safeguard God's most precious gift of life.
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Help us to faithfully commit ourselves to the service and defense of human life, especially where it is vulnerable or threatened.
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Obtain for us the grace to do the will of God in all things.
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Amen.
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In our last two episodes, we explored the horrific policies of Iceland and the United Kingdom toward unborn babies diagnosed with Down syndrome.
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I wish that these two countries were an aberration, but tragically they are not.
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In our next episode, we will temporarily shift focus to the two so-called bioethicists who suggested that newborns are no more worthy of life than unborn babies.
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However, today we will spotlight one more country, Denmark, and discuss its atrocious policies regarding the abortion of babies with Down syndrome.
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Denmark has the dubious distinction of being one of the first countries in the world to offer prenatal Down syndrome screenings to every pregnant woman.
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Unlike the policy in many other countries, Denmark offers the screenings without regard to age or other risk factors.
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Almost every expected mother chooses to take the test, and if the results reveal a diagnosis of Down syndrome, 95% of the mothers choose to abort.
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Denmark's medical policies clearly encourage these abortions.
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When a pregnant woman has her first meeting with a medical professional, a screening test for Down syndrome is automatically scheduled.
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If the result is positive, abortion is the norm.
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Danish babies with Down syndrome are treated like less than human, easily eliminated financial burdens.
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In fact, Denmark has issued government documents that detail how much money is saved per aborted baby diagnosed with Down syndrome.
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There are also claims that women are being misinformed and being coerced toward abortion.
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Parents who choose to carry a baby with Down syndrome to term are seen as irresponsible and antisocial.
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Danish women supposedly have a moral and social obligation to give birth to only healthy children.
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I haven't been able to personally verify this, but it is alleged that the following headlines have appeared in Danish media.
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If we opt out those who are sick in advance, we can accommodate care for the others.
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And it's a good thing that less children with Down syndrome are being born, and in 30 years Down syndrome will be eradicated.
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And finally, I wouldn't choose to have a child with Down syndrome.
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It is not a worthy life.
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I have been able to verify that in 2019 there were 61,167 live births in Denmark.
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Of those 61,167 babies, only 18 had Down syndrome.
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So it appears that their efforts to eradicate Down syndrome in Denmark are being effective and heartbreaking.
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Now let's ask Saint Joseph for his help in saving these babies by reciting the prayer of Saint Francis de Sales.
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Glorious Saint Joseph, spouse of Mary, grant us, we beseech thee, thy paternal protection through the heart of Jesus Christ.
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O thou, whose infinite power reaches out to all our needs, rendering possible for us that which is impossible.
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Look upon the concerns of thy children with fatherly countenance.
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In the troubles and sorrows that afflict us, we have confident recourse to thee.
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Deign to take under thy loving protection this important and difficult endeavor, the cause of our worries, and dispose its success to the glory of God and to the benefit of his faithful servants.
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Amen.
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After acknowledging the tragic widespread use of abortion in order to eliminate babies with Down syndrome in Denmark and in so many other European countries, I feel the need to provide a more uplifting counterpoint, so I want to share one of my favorite Stacy stories.
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Many, many years ago, before there was a Disney cruise line, there was a big red boat, and our family, Stacy, my parents and I, took a cruise on a big red boat.
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There were two dinner seatings each night, and we were at the late seating.
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After each dinner service, there was entertainment in the main lounge.
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The first night, there was an Elvis impersonator in the lounge.
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As part of his performance, he would select an audience member to wipe off sweat with his white silk scarf.
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At the late seating that first night of our cruise, Stacy was the audience member selected, and she took her job seriously, so seriously that Elvis teased her about it being a family show.
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The cruise director joined in the fun and made sure to learn her name, as did every person at the late seating.
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As a result of her encounter with Elvis, after every dinner service, the cruise director would single Stacy out and escort her to the main lounge.
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Our parents
and I served as her entourage for the remainder of the cruise.
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As I said, I love this memory.
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It sums up the joy that Stacy experienced and spread around, and of course refutes the theory that individuals with Down syndrome lead miserable, empty lives.
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Now it's time to conclude this episode with a litany for life based on 1 Corinthians.
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We are reciting this prayer with the permission of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities.
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Lord, love is patient.
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Give to the mother who is tempted to abort her child the patience to endure the suffering that will bring forth new life.
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Lord, love is kind.
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Give to the new father whose friends tell him to abort his child the gentleness, compassion, and courage to support his wife and child, protect them from all that could harm them, and sustain them against selfishness and hate.
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Lord, love is not jealous.
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Remove from all human hearts the temptation to trade human life for advantage, convenience, or personal benefit.
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Deliver us from the expediency that values personal gain and pleasure over the dignity of human life.
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Lord, love is not pompous.
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Deliver us from the arrogance that sees our needs or wants as superior to the rights of others.
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Help us to see all our brothers and sisters as worthy of all of our love.
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Lord, love is not inflated.
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Grant us a share in the humility of your Son, who sought not to be served, but to serve.
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Help us to see in every human life, rich or poor, young or old, guilty or innocent, a reflection of your image and likeness.
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Lord, love is not rude.
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Implant a spirit of gentle compassion in the hearts of each of your sons and daughters, Lord, that no person may ever be treated as less than the child of God which you have made them through the paschal death and resurrection of your only begotten Son, Lord, love does not seek its own interests.
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Give to all who govern us, Lord, a generous spirit, that our country may not so much seek to be great as to be good, to be rich in possessions, as to be rich in mercy, or to be renowned, as to be renowned for justice and truth for all.
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Lord, love is not quick tempered.
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Grant, that by our prudence and patience we might learn to live that sacrificial love by which your Son died for us on the cross, that all men and women might know our kindness and willingness to love them unto death, after the model of our Lord and Savior.
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Lord, love does not brood over injury.
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Give us the grace of mercy, Lord, that like your Son, we might forgive those who sin against us, seeking only their redemption and eternal happiness.
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Forgive the abortionist who takes the life of an unborn child, move his heart, grant him the grace of repentance, and give us a full share in your mercy, Lord.
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Love does not rejoice over wrongdoing.
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Help us to seek only the redemption of wrongdoers, Lord, and remove from our hearts all desire for vengeance and hate.
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Help us to desire not revenge, even for the horrors of abortion, but the repentance and happiness of all your children.
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Lord, love rejoices with the truth.
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Implant deep within our hearts a sense of the joy of the gospel of life, and make us joy-filled evangelists of your great gift of life.
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Lord, love bears all things, when we are insulted or reviled for the sake of the gospel of life.
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Give us the courage and the innocence of the children of God.
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Help us, Lord, to suffer for the sake of your truth and never to seek our own good, even in the good work we do.
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Lord, love believes all things.
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Deliver us from every temptation to despair, Lord.
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When we are discouraged, give us the grace to trust in your mercy, and to know that your love is ever victorious, even in the face of darkness, death, and hate.
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Lord, love hopes all things.
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As we trust in your infinite love, O Lord, give us the trust that comes from the gospel, and help us to cling to that sure and certain hope that for those who love God all things come to good.
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Lord, love endures all things.
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In the face of death, destruction, and a culture of death.
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Never let us lose sight of the beauty of the face of your only begotten Son, our Lord, who suffered the torments of his passion and death for the sake of our sins.
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Let us trust that through his passion we will have the strength to do your will and to carry each cross that comes our way for the glory of God and the love of his little ones.
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Lord, love never fails.
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When the crusade for life seems unending, and our latest initiatives have failed, when our hearts are filled with sadness or anger or fear, come to our aid, O Lord, and give us the assurance that you are ever with us, that your mercies will not end, and that you, our creator and our God, will bring victory to all who seek to love as you have commanded them.
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Thank you for joining me today in honoring and venerating Saint Joseph, and in seeking his loving intercession on behalf of unborn babies diagnosed with Down syndrome.
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Please keep listening, and I pray that you have a hopeful and blessed day.
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So long from Stacy's sister.