Members of the 40 Days
Members of the 40 Days for Life campaign gathered at a Southfield abortion clinic on October 19. Pictured are Steven Zetouna, Lindsey Yono, Michael Yono, Alana Bahoura and Ziad Shounia. baby.’ I replied back , ‘you’re killing your child that God has given you and it’s a sin.’ I gave her my phone number and I told her I would take her to MUBC to have an ultrasound done of her baby . Thank God she left right away and I pray she kept her baby. I wish I knew what happened to her.” Gorges has worked closely with Michael Stack, who coordinated the 40 Days for Life campaign in Southfield this year — the 12th one. He is also an ultrasound technician at MUBC and is involved in Detroit Rachel’s Vineyard. Open to all faiths, Rachel’s Vineyard is a healing retreat center for those experiencing the pain of abortion. Stack has come across various Chaldean women who have had abortions over the years. “One story stands out in particular,” remembered Stack. “These two women drive up to an abortion clinic where we had been praying; they were driving in a car packed with children. We tried to talk to them, especially the one woman in particular who was there to have the abortion. She had been having an affair on her husband and got pregnant. She didn’t want anyone to find out, yet it was tragic that both women exposed their children to the situation. The children were old enough to know what was going on.” Gorges has also been asked to consult with Chaldeans contemplating abortions. “So many Chaldeans don’t want unplanned pregnancies but God plans everything,” said Gorges. “I talked to a young lady who said she had to go back after her abortion because he didn’t get all the remaining tissue out. She has depression and guilt after many years of having her abortion. She never forgets about her aborted baby. She asked God to forgive her.” “Unfortunately, there have been a lot of young Chaldean girls who have ended up pregnant and could not face their families or their families would not support an unwed woman being pregnant,” said Stack. “Those women felt they had no choice but to get an abortion.” Through ECRC and many of the Chaldean churches, pro-life Chaldeans work with Michigan Right to Life. “There is a rise in abortions among various minority populations — in particular, blacks and Hispanics,” said Kathy Crombie, director of minority outreach for Right to Life of Michigan. “Together, these two groups of people are having more than 55 percent of abortions each year in the United States. That’s a staggering figure.” The data on Chaldeans are not easily accessible or calculated. Howthe unborn A pro-life/pro-choice debate in the community By Vanessa Denha Garmo Around the country and across the globe thousands of people prayed and fasted to end abortion. During the 2013 40 Days for Life campaign — held last month — peaceful vigils were organized at abortion clinics and Chaldeans were among the participants. The mission of the campaign is to “bring together the body of Christ in a spirit of unity during a focused 40- day campaign of prayer, fasting, and peaceful activism, with the purpose of repentance, to seek God’s favor to turn hearts and minds from a culture of death to a culture of life, thus bringing an end to abortion,” according to the website. During the campaign 16,000 churches and 575,000 people participated. There were 2,480 total campaigns in 501 cities across 19 countries with 7,536 lives reported saved, 83 workers who quit their jobs at abortion clinics and 41 clinics that closed. Community members from the Eastern Catholic Re-evangelization Center (ECRC) in West Bloomfield and Saint Thomas Chaldean Catholic Church, also in West Bloomfield, were among those praying. “If there is anything 40 Days for Life has helped me with is my absolute belief in prayer,” said Lindsey Yono, 22. “Imagine this, a small group of men, women and children praying the rosary and a sidewalk counselor nearby praying as she paces back and forth. A young woman leaving the clinic approaches the sidewalk counselor to thank her because of our presence and our prayers. She felt this undying courage within when she was in the abortion clinic to change her mind. Result? An unborn child saved. This is happening all over the world and it truthfully is because of our unceasing prayers.” Long-time Mar Addai parishioner, catechism teacher and theology student Ban Gorges first became aware of the campaign in 2004 when a friend inspired her to pray at an abortion clinic. “I realized I can’t say I was prolife unless I truly got out and took a stand to end abortion,” said Gorges. The mother of three adult children today had a baby shower a few years ago for Mother & Unborn Baby Care (MUBC) and gave all the baby gifts and money away to women who decided to keep their babies. “For the past nine years Mar Addai has contributed every month financially to MUBC thanks to Fr. Stephen Kallabat who promotes life and has encouraged us to do the same,” said Gorges. The pro-life group at Mar Addai helped establish the Tree of Life — a white tree with prayer cards to spiritually adopt a baby and pray for the baby for nine months. “We would take the Tree of Life to Chaldean festivals and to ECRC’s Awake my Soul event,” said Gorges. “My friend Suham opened my eyes to abortion, I’ve been an advocate on pro-life since then and a lot of people don’t like my views regarding abortion.” Over the years, Gorges has met with Chaldeans seeking abortions. “During one prayer vigil, I saw two Chaldean women pull in. I spoke to them in Chaldean so they felt comfortable talking to me. I asked her why is she having an abortion? She replied, ‘my doctor told me to go get an abortion because I had taken medication and it would hurt the photos by david reed 20 CHALDEAN NEWS NOVEMBER 2013
ever, Crombie says from past experiences with the Chaldean community, they assess abortion is on the rise. That is not the only data Right to Life shares with others during their community outreach efforts. “The unborn child is not the only victim of abortion,” said Crombie. “Abortion affects so many more — people that we don’t often think about. The pregnant woman is a victim. She can potentially suffer one or more of the 100 physical and emotional consequences that may impact her in the future such as the inability to become pregnant, hemorrhaging, depression and sometimes death.” Men are victims and few people ever talk about post-abortive men. “I’ve met several who were pretty cavalier when their girlfriend or wife came to them and said she was pregnant, but have come to realize what they did (or did not do at the time),” explained Crombie. “Men do grieve the loss of their unborn children, and they, too, seek forgiveness and healing. Siblings are victims. When they learn of the abortion(s) in their own family, oftentimes they mourn the loss of the brothers and sisters they’ll never know. A huge branch of the family tree has been cut off.” There are several reasons why women in the community choose to have an abortion despite Catholic teachings against it. Having spoken to many of these women over the years, Crombie is able to list some of the top reasons. “A woman felt alone, scared and abandoned in her pregnancy,” she explained. The list continues: She felt ashamed and didn’t want anyone to know; the father of her child was not supportive of her or the pregnancy; she was told the unborn child was just a blob of tissue and not a baby; she was coerced; she decided it was an inconvenient time to have a baby; she thought she couldn’t financially afford to raise a child; misguided compassion by friends and family telling her abortion was the best solution. The pro-choice members say some reasons have merit. “I am in support of a woman and the family making the choice they believe would be best for all involved,” said Nida Samona, former assistant prosecutor and the mother of two boys. With that said she elaborated, “I always believed that a person has her relationship with God and when faced with such difficult decisions, she should turn to her faith for guidance.” The abortion issue has become very complicated for some people. As a state prosecutor for more than 10 years, Samona spent about four years prosecuting sex offenders who were often family or friends of the victims. “The people committing these heinous crimes preyed on their victims’ weakness, be it their age, gender, culture, shame, humiliation or by using threats,” said Samona. “As a result, I witnessed horrible cases, where a brother impregnated his sister, a grandfather his granddaughter and so on.” Those cases impacted Samona’s perspective on the issue. “I see and listen to those that hold their moral compass to measure others and can’t believe that is God’s intent,” she said. “It is very easy for a person who comes from a happy ‘normal’ home and life to say, ‘I can never do that,’ but I think we need to be empathetic to those that are facing such difficult dilemmas — young people who didn’t grow up in a loving, nurturing home and all its amenities. People who were preyed about by those that were there to protect them.” Despite efforts to reach out to women who have had abortions in the community, no one would speak to us even anonymously. However, the pro-choice side is grounded in the law. The 1973 Supreme Court ruling of Roe v. Wade made abortions legal in the United States. However, not all people view it as a one side versus the other. “I don’t believe things are black and white, and I don’t believe in extreme views one way or the other,” said “Lisa,” a Chaldean Catholic wife and mother aged 43. “I cringe at the thought of being considered ‘pro-choice,’ because I never would choose to have an abortion. Pro-life people don’t want you to have a decision. But the rape of a child? There is no way I would ever support pro-life as the law.” Over the years, the pro-life and pro-choice debate has been a political hot-button issue for platforms across the country. “I believe this issue has been used as a political wedge and campaign rhetoric and has caused more harm than good when being debated,” said Samona. “This should not be a political battle. Each of us are no one to judge on such moral issues.” As a proclaimed practicing Catholic and someone who is proud of her strong faith and a deep relationship with God, Samona has had many indepth conversations with priests and fellow Catholics about abortion. “I support Rove v. Wade and what it stands for, including no late-term abortions, except where a mother’s life is in peril. I do not believe abortion should be used as a form of birth control, but do think that the Catholic Church should denounce using birth control. That is a contradiction that I cannot wrap my head around.” The pro-life position is based on faith. “As Catholics, we have a responsibility to be a beacon of light in this culture of death society we live in currently,” said Crombie. “We need to stand for truth — always — even when it’s not easy or convenient. And it’s not always easy or convenient, is it? We need to be informed on all the life issues, not just abortion, but also on euthanasia, embryonic stem cell research, in vitro fertilization and cloning.” “Mother Teresa once said, ‘There are two victims in every abortion: a dead baby and a dead conscience,’” explained Yono. “As Catholics we are given the responsibility to speak for the unborn, to pray for the unborn, to give a neighboring hand to those in need, to those mothers who feel that their pregnancies are an overbearing burden. We’re called to be Catholics and in answering that call we have to step out of our comfort zones and do the will of God.” There is a growing number of Chaldean Catholics who support abortion in some cases. “I don’t follow everything the Catholic Church has taught, and I believe the Bible is open to interpretation and should not be taken literally,” said “Lisa.” “I believe the tide is turning with Pope Francis; I don’t think he has extremist views. I understand that there are some women out there who don’t think twice about having an abortion, and I personally think that is disgusting. But if you are talking about changing the law and making it illegal to have an abortion, I believe that is strictly a religious view.” Clergy explain that Pope Francis’ teaching are being taken out of context when people interpret what he has said as changing the church. “That’s not the case,” said Fr. Andrew Seba, associate pastor at St. Thomas. “People think that Francis is going to change the Church’s teaching. God gives us a free will, but how free are we? If we are blinded by the belief that ‘this is my body and I can do what I want with it’ are we really free or are we slaves to our body?” Fr. Andrew explained that to truly understand the evil of abortion the eyes of our hearts need to be open. “God gives us a free will, but our conscience guides our actions. If our conscience has been formed in such a way that we believe that abortion is permissible, in any situation, then we need to pray that God will help us know the objective truth.” The terms pro-life and pro-choice are also up for debate and interpretation by some. “The way I look at it, we are all ‘pro-choice,’” said Linda Kenaya Acho, 46, who is also a wife and mother. “God gave us all free will and every one of us has at some point and for whatever reason chose to sin,” she said with emphasis on the word chose. “Whether it was adultery, stealing, slander, homosexuality, abortion, etc. In the end it will be between each individual and God.” The lines between practicing the Catholic faith and beliefs on social issues are blurred. “The same way that every Catholic balances their faith with all their ‘other’ sins,” said Acho. “Abortion is wrong but so are the sins committed by ‘prolifers.’ Every Catholic has sins that go against Catholic teaching and against God’s law. If we enact and enforce laws on violations of the 10 Commandments or church teachings, the entire Chaldean community would be in prison.” Despite what others may think about her stance on abortion, Samona is not budging on the issue. “These are my beliefs and I am not here to change anyone’s beliefs on this sensitive topic and I ask for that same respect,” she said but elaborated, “When in mass and the prayer intention is to end abortion and have UNBORN continued from page 22 NOVEMBER 2013 CHALDEAN NEWS 21
