I Am
I am 13 years old and my great story is being written and my great accomplishments and successes are to come.

I am a self-advocate speaker. I like giving Power Point presentations and answering questions. When I was six years old I read a welcoming statement in three languages at the National Down Syndrome Society Conference in St. Louis. At age 12 I spoke at the 10th World Down Syndrome Congress in Ireland and played a violin recital in front of 900 people at the Plenary Session.

I am a swimmer. I train everyday. I set six Junior Down Syndrome World Records in freestyle, long course:
• 50 meters
• 100 meters
• 200 meters
• 400 meters
• 800 meters
• 1,500 meters

I am a traveler. I have a passport. I have visited:
• Canada
• Mexico
• Honduras
• Ireland
• France

I am a violinist. I started to play when I was six years old. I am on Suzuki Book 3. I am a golfer. I learned to play when I was 8 years old. I like to practice at the driving range. I open golf events with ceremonial drives. I am a polyglot. I am good at learning foreign languages. I speak:
• English
• Spanish
• French
• and I study Latin

I am homeschooled. I know the multiplication tables. I know the Ten Commandments. I know all the presidents of the United States. I study botany and entomology. I am a reader. I learned to sight-read when I was 2 years old. I have a bookcase at home with all my books. I have a library card.

I am a cyclist. I learned to ride a bike when I was 8 years old with Dr. Dick Klein at Lose the Training Wheels bike camp in Chicago. I ride 12 miles with my father in the summer and fall. I am Catholic. I was baptized when I was a baby. I made my First Communion when I was 10 years old. I am an altar server and I am studying for my Confirmation.

I am valuable because I exist. Not because of what I do or what I have done.

I am not a burden to society. My life is worth living with respect and dignity.

I am a self-advocate so that others may understand.

I am a person.

I am Emmanuel Joseph Bishop.

Friends. This is what life is all about. God said “I Am who Am”. We are His creation, always. There is no sometimes, or not this time…God is all in for us 100% of the time. I cannot explain why this young man, and countless others, is born a little different in how they see the world, communicate, and think. I can however be certain that they are beautiful, just like you.

So, why am I posting about this? What’s the point Bob…you ask…

I read this story and my first thought was “I hope that I have the courage to love as this young man’s parents have.” There is another story on the website in which a young lady says she is glad her parents did not abort her! Have you ever had that thought?

As spouses we are expected by God to love unconditionally. Do we?

As parents we are expected by God to love unconditionally. Do we?

As siblings. As friends.

Friends in this young man I see Christ. I see pure Love. And I’ve never met him. And I probably never will. But in reading this story I learned something about me that I needed to hear…and perhaps you do to.

I have value because I am…not because I do.

Lord if we could only learn that our world would be dramatically different. Our marriages would be different. We would be different. And God would be greatly glorified.

Thank you Emmanuel for teaching me how beautiful we are in God. You are in my prayers.

Please become a fan of the IDSC for Life on Facebook: http://www.facebook.com/#!/IDSCforLIFE

Also visit their website and learn more about this great organization: http://www.idscforlife.org/p/self-advocates.html

Please take the time to read the stories of the other Self Advocates here: http://www.idscforlife.org/p/self-advocates.html

If I were aborted I would not had chance to see

Because when you are aborted The choice is made for you

If I were aborted my life would be so short

If I were aborted I would bypass Jesus’ court

Because when you are aborted there is no sin to hide

The choice was made for me, my opinion set aside

If I were aborted I’d be forgotten by many

If I were aborted my mother would not forget me

Because when I child is aborted the pain is much to strong

And this pain will rest in her soul far too long

If I were aborted the world would never know my cause

If I were aborted no one would see the greatness I could bring

Because when you are aborted, your accomplishments cannot sing

And those that would applaud you never know what you can bring

If I were aborted I shutter to think the cost

If I were aborted I cry when thinking what would be lost

Because if I were aborted my wife would have no soul mate

And the love that I now show her would never be replaced

If I were aborted I’d have no chance to be a husband

If I were aborted I’d have no chance to be a father

My children would not know this world and that is much too sad

For on the days when I see them smile I am so joy filled and glad

If I were aborted I would pray for you each day

If I were aborted I could have no other say

Because when you are aborted you come to know the Truth

That only God can fill the void in any woman’s heart

So today while you are praying please remember not who wrote this poem

But rather those that sing your prayers before the Father’s throne

For while we know not what they could have done on Earth

We know that what they are doing now is tugging on God’s heart.

I believe without question that in order for one to be “pro-life” they must love all life from conception until natural death.  I don’t believe this because the Church teaches it, though that is helpful. I have actually held this belief since before I was Catholic, before I was Christian. I believed this when I was simply, human.

To compromise this would be to compromise who I am…who God made me.

I decided tonight to look up some statistics. Often I have quoted statistics about abortion and the quantity of children lost to this tragedy of human stupidity and greed. Here they are again, to help you understand my belief.

• For 2003, approximately 848,000 legal induced abortions were reported to CDC from 49 reporting areas.

• The abortion ratio was 241 legal induced abortions per 1,000 live births. This represents a decrease from the 2002 ratio of 246 abortions per 1,000 live births. • The abortion rate was 16 legal induced abortions per 1,000 women aged 15 to 44 years. This represents no change from the 2002 report.

• As in the past, the highest percentage of abortions were obtained by white women, at fifty-five percent. Unmarried women accounted for 82% of abortions. Women under 25 years of age represented 51% of all abortions.

• Sixty-one percent of reported abortions were performed during the first 8 weeks of gestation. Approximately 88% were performed within the first 12 weeks of gestation.

If you say, well that’s only one year, perhaps it spiked that year.

A total of 839,226 legal induced abortions were reported to CDC for 2004. A big ole 1.1% decrease.

One chart from the 2004 report shows that between 700 and 800 abortions occur per 1000 births in girl 15 years of age and younger. That’s 70-80% of girls 15 and under getting pregnant have Abortions! HOW is that acceptable? HOW is that benefitting the health of the mother?

There are many more statistics in the 2004 report which I encourage you to read, especially the findings/results section. You can read it here: http://www.cdc.gov/mmwr/preview/mmwrhtml/ss5609a1.htm?s_cid=ss5609a1_e

Psalm 127:3 reads, “Behold, children are a gift of the LORD; the fruit of the womb is a reward.” How precious is this gift and yet, we squander it like everything else. In Act’s it is written, “…because he himself gives men life and breath”. I believe that when man is in conflict with God, an internal turmoil exists that cannot be forgiven or reconciled by man. Only God can resolve this war within us. This is true with abortion as well.

While in college I dated a girl shortly after she had an abortion. No, it was not my child. Though in a variety of circumstances in my life, I too could have dealt with a teenage or college girlfriend who became pregnant. Thankfully I did not. This girl was nice, fun, and we had a deep relationship. My affection for her was quickly replaced with caring and the desire for physical intimacy. Her need, while I know was in her mind a love for me, was actually a soulful need for forgiveness. There are multiple nights in which she cried in my arms. Her pain was deep and her wound was a thrashing cut on the soul. I have and continue to pray that she finds peace with her decision and reconciliation with God.

But this furthered my belief that life is precious and those that mess with it, mess with God on a personal level.  And God don’t play that.

I have to be honest.  I strongly considered not voting at all.  In fact just this evening I had that conversation again.  But 2 things have swayed me to vote. 

First, my Dad is a WWII veteran of the Navy.  I've met many of the men who fought for you and I to have the right and opportunity to decide our country's leaders.  I've attended too many memorial services for those that died for the same cause.

Second, my wife and I talked about this and she is right.  I have a moral obligation to fight for what I hold as the highest value.  That of human life.

So, I'm voting for McCain.  Failed economic policies, crappy health care ideals, stupid public policy and all, I'm voting for him because I choose life.  And while there are many uneducated and ill informed Catholics out there who think they can side step the issue and vote for Obama, let me be clear.

Immediate moral corporation occurs when the cooperator participates in circumstances that are essential to the commission of an act, such that the act could not occur without this participation.  So, because Obama has said he will do everything he can to uphold a woman’s right to kill her baby, and he will provide public funds to do so, and he will and has supported partial birth abortions…a vote for him is immediate moral cooperation with evil because Abortion is killing which for those of you who read the bulletin too much during Mass, is a commandment.

Vote McCain, save your soul.

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