Welcome to the pro-life blogosphere, Gerard!
I feel like our blog has had a baby! A few weeks ago a pro-lifer named Gerard Nadal began posting compelling, articulate, educated comments here that many noted were just great.
Turns out Gerard has a Ph.D. and is a molecular biologist and microbiologist.
And, thanks in large part to the encouragement of moderator Bethany, Gerard has now launched a blog, Coming Home, putting his “science in service of the pro-life movement” to work. Yeah!
With his background, Gerard is obviously drawn to and an expert in the scientific aspect of the Life issue. He told me in email correspondence that contraception and the stem cell issue are also “big areas of interest.” And Gerard’s Catholic faith compels his concern for the plight of the preborn.
Here’s a sampling of Gerard’s excellent work, from a December 22 post entitled, “Great news!!”…
It’s a beautiful day when the NY Times does your work for you in the pro-life movement.
Jane Brody reports in today’s NY Times on the positive developments for children born extremely prematurely in an article titled, “Risks, as well as hope for very tiny infants.” The news is very good indeed….
… [R]esearchers have been studying the survival and neurological development of extremely small babies for several decades. From the 1980s to the early 2000s, major increases occurred in the percentage of surviving babies (to 71%, from 49%) and babies who survived without neurological impairment (to 71% of survivors, from 65%) when re-examined at the corrected age of 20 months….
One psychologist following the development of these children reports, “We’ve begun to look at them again at age 9 and are finding no deterioration as they get into higher grades. Their academic skills have not declined and their behavioral functions have remained stable.”
So this is great news in a week of not-so-great news for pro-lifers. The data don’t lie, only politicians do. These data show that we are winning the personhood argument, that what are easily abortable babies are also easily saved humans who go on to lead normal lives.
We’ll be crossposting Gerard’s pieces often, I’m sure. We’ve also added him to the blogroll. Pro-life bloggers are so needed and valuable, particularly those who are as articulate as Gerry.
[Photo via the NYT]
Jill Stanek is a nurse turned speaker, columnist and blogger, a national figure in the effort to protect both preborn and postborn innocent human life.
Gerard Nadal,
It is such a pleasure to read your thoughtful and insightful comments here at Jill’s and I’m looking forward to reading your new pro-life blog! How great that it will be from a Catholic perspective! (I’m biased as a Catholic myself, nothing against the non-Catholic pro-lifers, Jill and all.) May God bless you in your new venture, Gerard.
Jill,
What a beautiful introduction. It takes quite a bit to make me speechless, but you’ve succeeded.
My thanks to you and Bethany in particular, and all who’ve pushed me off of the fence. As my blog title intimates, Coming Home is about reclaiming our rightful place, our dignity in the family. I’ve been too long gone from that place, that role in the pro-life family, and I thank you all for so warm a welcome.
I’m still getting the lay of the land and welcome any critique, any guidance that anyone thinks I may be in need of. So, rolling up my sleeves, here we go…
Merry Christmas all!
Gerry
Good luck with the blog, Gerard.
I don’t remember getting a plug for MY blog, though… :-P
I love your new blog, Gerard, and am so glad that you started it! It will be such a great resource, and I will certainly be referring to it often. I’m so glad to see that you are on Jill’s blogroll now. :)
Merry Christmas!!! :)
Gerard,
Blog on good soldier. To infinity and beyond!
I do appreciate your thoughtful informed commentary.
It is great to have more input from people with leters at the end of their name.
(The only letters that have ever attached to the end of my name are ‘a.k.a.’ on the police blotter.)
Wishing you and yours a joy filled celebration of Jesus the Christ’s conception, birth, death and resurection.
Yahooooooooooo! (That’s ‘red neck’ halaleujah!)
yor bro ken
So glad to have you here, Gerard! Funny, but ever since the first time you posted here and let someone know you were a molecular biologist with a PhD.,I’ve been looking forward to your posts. I read Jill’s articles, and I think “Now…what does Gerard have to say about that?” No disrespect to YOU Jill. It is YOUR blog, after all! ‘Jill Stanek’ is actually the first place I go when I sign on the internet in the morning. Love to you BOTH and have a BLESSED Christmas! :)
Fantastic! This is awesome Gerard! I will definitely be a faithful reader!
Dr. Nadal,
It does seems like your posts say what I always MEAN to say, but just don’t have the academic background to put into words. God bless you for using your medical and scientific knowledge for the Lord’s work.
Thank you for coming here and elevating the conversation with your input. Although my pro-life perspective has come round to a religious one, it began as purely scientific, from reading about the FACTS. It’s lovely to find someone arguing from a combination of both.
God bless and let the facts speak for themselves, too!
I am a big fan, Gerard my brutha in Christ!! Looking forward to reading more!
Ever since Gerard reminded Senator Nelson about the government-funded Herodian Slaughter of the Innocents, I figured he would be useful…;0)
Now if we can just get back John McDonnell.
Thanks for including my site in your blogroll, Gerard! I wish you the best.
Oh, this ought to be good.
:D
Megan,
I look forward to your keeping me on my toes ;-)
Merry Christmas
Mr Nadal:
I would also like to interest you in creation science which I think go hand in hand with your field of practice.
Let me know.