Finding Pro-life Resources: Some Tips
Resources
Features pro-life essays, articles, and information available on the web, on topics such as abortion, euthanasia, human development within the womb, and much, much more.
Abortion: Arguments, Canadian/American Resources, Post-Abortion Resources,
Abortifacients(Abortion Causing Drugs)
Euthanasia / Assisted Suicide and Life with Disability, Palliative Care
Stem Cell Research: Embryonic and Adult Stem Cells, Cloning
Fetal Development: Human life from conception to birth.
Edmonton Prolife's Collection
Edmonton Prolife's Collection: Our office has a large variety of books, videos, DVDs, and workshop materials, all of which are available for loan. See Edmonton Prolife's Collection for books, DVDs, and pamphlets that can be borrowed from Edmonton Prolife. We also have pamphlets available for distribution to the public. Give our office a call at 780-425-1637 or email us at info@edmontonprolife.org to make arrangements for picking up the resource you'd like to borrow.
Finding Pro-life Resources: Some Tips
It's sometimes difficult to find books on specific "niche" subjects, since community libraries can only handle a certain number of books and so will focus on ordering the books most in demand. University collections will handle more academic books, but most people don't have direct access to a university library. Furthermore, books can be very expensive to buy. What's a person to do?
That's where The Alberta Library Online comes in. If you have a library card with any of the network's member libraries: Edmonton Public Libraries, Strathcona County Libraries, UofA Libraries etc. you can order without cost books from forty-two other libraries in the province. If your local library doesn't have the book you're looking for, it's very likely one of the others does.
If you can't find the book you're looking for that way, consider asking the library to order it in for you. With the Edmonton Public Library, you can do this online.
If you want to buy a book that's out of print, the best place to look for reasonably priced copies is Abebooks.com
For Teachers
Thank you for taking on this challenge to bring the pro-life message to your high school! The need for the pro-life message is urgent. We know that almost a quarter of abortions in Canada are performed on teenagers. The young men and women in your school need to know the truth so that they are not duped by abortion rhetoric which denies the risks, the consequences and the realities of a decision that will leave them traumatized.
Edmonton Prolife is advancing education and learning by providing scholarships, as well as providing educational presentations to schools in the greater Edmonton area, the operation of booths at teacher’s conventions, providing mentorship and funding to the U of A Pro-Life club and providing educational material to Edmonton teachers and students.
We provide educational materials to schools and other educational institutions. Homeschooling parents are welcome to use our resource Educational Kits - we regularly lend these kits.
The Edmonton Prolife Society will be periodically offering scholarships of $500.00. To be eligible for the scholarship, applicants must be:
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Enrolled in a program leading to a certificate, diploma, or degree at any secular or religious Edmonton post-secondary school.
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A Canadian citizen
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An Alberta resident for at least 12 consecutive months prior to application
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Able to demonstrate pro-life commitment (for more information, see the 'Scholarship' page on this website
For Parents
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fTraining toddlers opens up their eyes to God’s creation.
Parents guide toddlers in understanding the world. They are awed by nature, animals, and newborn babies. It’s our job to foster this awe.
1. Next time you are at a clothing store, show your toddler the different sizes of baby clothes. Teach how a baby starts so small that we can’t see it, to being big enough to fit into those clothes.
2. If you have a pregnant friend or family member, ask her to share a photo of an ultrasound. If you have an ultrasound photo of your child, share that and rejoice over the different parts they see.
Elementary school is an age of discovery.
1. Look at the national geographic video "In The Womb". Fetal development is described in detail.
2. Write a list of interesting facts about babies within the womb such as: By week eight every organ is in place and growing, and at week twelve an embryo has fingernails.
3. Read Horton Hears a Who, by Dr. Seuss. The story is about an elephant named Horton who hears a noise and discovers there’s a colony of “Who’s” living in a dust speck. He rescues them and receives mocking from a kangaroo who thinks Horton is a fool for trying to save something that doesn’t exist. One great line from this book says:
“Should I put this speck down? …
If I do, these small persons may come to great harm.
I can’t put it down. And I won’t! After all
A person’s a person. No matter how small.”
Have your child describe how this is true for preborn babies, too.
During the teen years, children make their parents’ beliefs their own.
During your child’s teen years he or she will choose to focus on the world’s beliefs versus his/her own. Here are some ways to remind your child that beliefs mold futures.
1. Collect baby photos from family members. Look through them and discuss how each person in your family has made an impact. Discuss what life would be like without one of the family members. If someone in your family chose abortion, discuss how our low value of pre-born life impacts families … and generations.
2. Watch the movie October Baby and discuss the pain of abortion (both to the mother and the child). Together, study post-abortion syndrome and discuss the suffering women face even after they make a choice to have an abortion.
3. Print up and read through the brochure “The First Nine Months.”
4. Discuss abortion. Compare abortion with adoption. For example: Unselfish love and sacrifice for child versus covering up sin and mistakes … Ending a life versus providing a gift to another.
5. Role-play with your child how to give advice to a friend who finds herself facing an unplanned pregnancy. What hope do you have to offer? What facts does your friend need to hear?
As you can see, a parent’s role transforms from introducing your children to their place in God’s creation, to helping them understand that what they believe can impact others. Pre-born life is important and it’s beautiful. Who better than children of all ages to acknowledge and proclaim that?
Mom, Dad, I am Pregnant!
Parents and their Children's Unplanned Pregnancy
It is normal for parents to have strong feelings about their daughter’s pregnancy. As parents your first priority is to protect your daughter and her future. It is normal to feel worried, sad, angry, or frightened. What you say to your daughter (or son) who is dealing with an unexpected pregnancy is very important--your child needs you now and your involvement is valuable.
There are times in all of our lives when we have something important to share, but we can’t find the words, or the courage, to share it. Right now, your daughter(son) needs your help and support. Your first reactions may be shock, anger, disappointment, sadness, and fear. You may have suspected for a while or you may have asked and she may have denied. People in difficult situations use denial when faced with circumstances that seem overwhelming. And, you may be feeling overwhelmed, too. If you have another adult with whom you can talk and share your strong feelings, it will help. After your initial reactions, which you may want to keep private, you will be searching inside yourself for understanding, patience and compassion. Remember, your daughter has chosen to come to you with this crisis. Now you must decide how you will respond to her display of trust.
You are not alone. If you cannot discuss this with your faith community, family members or friends for "fear" of what they may think, call us! You need a safe place to share your feelings too!
For Churches
The Bible teaches that God gives life as a gift. Human life has inherent worth and must be respected and protected through all of its stages, beginning at conception.
“For you formed my inward parts; you knitted me together in my mother’s womb. I praise you, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made. Wonderful are your works; my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from you, when I was being made in secret.”
Psalm 139:13-15
Pastor Cecil Clark of True Vine Baptist Church outside an abortion clinic in Knoxville.
“Would you look at that?” he said, as we stood on the U of Louisville campus. Pastor Dave Daubenmire and I watched as professional pro-aborts desperately denied the truth staring them in the face. The students weren’t buying it.
“Every time Christians show up with the truth, we win.” But then Pastor Dave hit me where it hurts, “The only problem is, we Christians usually don’t show up.”
Jesus said the gates of Hell would not prevail against the Church (Matthew 16:18), but can we really apply that verse when the Church does nothing?
The biggest example of this is abortion. We have abortion in American because the “pro-life” church isn’t showing up. I’m not talking about the churches that are officially pro-abortion. I’m talking about just the churches you and I attend.
If you are reading this, you probably attend a church that claims to be “pro-life.” But is it really? An easy test to perform:
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Go to the nearest abortion clinic when the killing is going on. Count the number of your pastors/elders/church leaders that show up.
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Go to the next meeting of any pro-life endeavor in your community and count the number of your pastors/elders/church leaders that show up.
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Take a look at the budget of your church and add up the money spent on stopping abortion. Then add up the money spent on church-run sports programs. Then add up the money spent on making the music better on Sunday morning. If you add it up all over Knoxville, where I live, it will be a few thousand dollars to stop abortion, hundreds of thousands to run sports programming, and millions of dollars on the Sunday morning music. I’m not knocking music or sports, but I am wondering why full-time professionals are hired to run sports and music programs in almost every major church, but almost zero staff time is ever devoted to help stop killing babies. That despite the fact that approximately 1 in 5 women who aborts her baby identifies herself as a “born-again” or “evangelical” Christian.
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Take a look at the required core education curriculum of your church. It has to be on paper (or online) or it doesn’t count. Look for the mandated requirements for teaching middle and high-school students about abortion. Are there any such requirements? No? Then is it any wonder why so many of our children have abortions?
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As you evaluate the pro-life education requirements at your church, find out if photos/videos of aborted babies are mandated as part of the published curriculum. We hear from the students who grew up in “pro-life” churches all the time. Just recently, two student government leaders at Liberty University told me they were not committed pro-lifers until I showed them pictures of abortion. The “pro-life” church had hidden the truth from them, and they had never known nor cared because they had never seen.
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So, is your church “pro-life”? What are you going to do about it?
What would Jesus do?
P.S. A pastor recently told me that his church ”works through” the local CPC that some of their members helped to start 20 years ago. Not sure what that means, but I do know it ain’t much. They were not interested in doing anything more. I can tell you that babies are dying in that church, but the pastor believes that their only responsibility to those babies is to send a few dollars to a pregnancy center across town. If I ever have a heart attack, I hope I’m not sitting in that church!
Church resources
Monthly prolife prayer petitions
Prolife Bible Study
Links to other Prolife Faith and Church resources:
A Call for the local church to Respond to the Injustice of Abortion - http://speakfortheunborn.com/resources/
Every life is precious because we are all made in the image of God...http://www.heartlink.org/beavoice/
Priests for Life Canada - Working to support, inform and empower Catholic clergy to Build a culture of life - http://www.priestsforlifecanada.com/