Giving Cave Dwellers A Bad Name

Feast of St. Mark

A bad name in the civilized world anyway. A few of quick observations on the State of Jihad Address:

If this is as "successful" as the action plan of six years ago, there's a whole lot of people who better be bucklin' up about now.

God must have a special Grace planned for Darfur to go through the hell it has and then to be faced with this.

If one side insists repeatedly that there is a clash of civilizations happening, at what point can the other side ignore those who say there isn't one?

[helmet tip: Catholic Report]

[posted by e-mail]

What Looking Beyond Government Institutions Can Do

The London School of Economics and Political Science has issued a report that finds that drug and biotechnology companies have launched more than 60 projects subsidized by charity funds, led by the Gates Foundation, in recent years to discover new treatments for a wide array of neglected diseases like malaria and tuberculosis. The report also bemoans that much of this may be all for nought if the world's richest governments don't step up to fund the expensive final stages of drug testing and provide the logistics to begin delivering these new products to those who need it in developing countries.

We've had effective TB treatments available for years and the world's governments have failed to devise a a distribution solution. Wasn't the entire 20th century irrefutable proof that governments are singularly ineffective in distributing much of anything except ordnance? The answer is for government to get out of the way on this one, including by streamlining the drug approval process. Subsidiarity, subsidiarity.

Lost a Day

Between Blogger and Haloscan, it took me the better part of yesterday (and early this morning) to get just a few things posted/re-posted (and I'm still short a comment I posted yesterday in the ID discussion). I'm not sure why the double whammy, but I guess you get what you pay for. The other effect is that I was hoping to start making real progress yesterday on the long, long overdue blogroll update and now obviously didn't. And I probably won't get started on it today, either.

Full Disclosure on Stem Cell Research and New Policy Regarding Blogging About Companies Where I Have Ownership Positions

I have been blogging about stem cell research since early last summer. My position is steadfastly against embryonic stem cell research (ESCR) and in favor of adult stem cell research (ASCR). Late last year I made a small investment in a private company that I am not at liberty to disclose that amounted to far less than a 1% position in the company's ownership. The company is developing medical treatments using adult stem cells. I consider this to be putting my money where my mouth is and plan to continue blogging in line with my long established positions. This disclosure is a practice I will maintain for private companies planning future liquidity events where I have an ownership position. Should I ever blog about such a private company, or any public company where I hold more than a 0.1% ownership interest, I will disclose my ownership at that time. Just because I think you should know.

Me Thinks They Doth Protest Too Much

[Original posted Wednesday, Apr 19, 2006, 8:21 AM]

"Scientists" are pressuring the agency of the Canadian government responsible for funding social science in Canada to declare that ID is a religious concept and not science.

Update:

There appears to be a need for additional clarity in the comment exchange with Courage Monkey. Perhaps a link to the original story will help. This post does not address the question of whether to teach ID vs. evolution, or whether ID is, or includes, legitimate science. Canadian professor Brian Alters' grant request to investigate whether the notoriety of ID has proved detrimental to Canadians was rejected by the relevant federal agency.

The committee found that the candidates were qualified. However, it judged the proposal did not adequately substantiate the premise that the popularizing of Intelligent Design Theory had detrimental effects on Canadian students, teachers, parents and policymakers. Nor did the committee consider that there was adequate justification for the assumption in the proposal that the theory of Evolution, and not Intelligent Design theory, was correct. It was not convinced, therefore, that research based on these assumptions would yield objective results. In addition, the committee found that the research plans were insufficiently elaborated to allow for an informed evaluation of their merit. In view of its reservations the committee recommended that no award be made. [emphasis added]

In other words, the grant was rejected for sloppiness. In response, Prof. Alters claims that this rejection confirms the conclusion of his as yet still unconducted study (Sidebar: Doesn't that seem a bit scant on which to base a rejection of the null hypothesis?) and he demands, now joined by other scientists, that a governmental grant review board make claims of scientific fact and religious classification. I say again, this "protest" more resembles a money-grabbing publicity stunt than a high-minded defense of the name of science.

Spreading the Flu

Memorial of St. Fidelis

In last week's edition of Science, the NIH has this report on flu epidemics:

Quantifying long-range dissemination of infectious diseases is a key issue in their dynamics and control. Here, we use influenza-related mortality data to analyze the between-state progression of interpandemic influenza in the United States over the past 30 years. Outbreaks show hierarchical spatial spread evidenced by higher pairwise synchrony between more populous states. Seasons with higher influenza mortality are associated with higher disease transmission and more rapid spread than are mild ones. The regional spread of infection correlates more closely with rates of movement of people to and from their workplaces (workflows) than with geographical distance. Workflows are described in turn by a gravity model, with a rapid decay of commuting up to around 100 km and a long tail of rare longer range flow. A simple epidemiological model, based on the gravity formulation, captures the observed increase of influenza spatial synchrony with transmissibility; high transmission allows influenza to spread rapidly beyond local spatial constraints.

So what does all that mean? It means that children are not the culprits in spreading the flu, rather it is adults going to work. Please wash your hands.

[posted by e-mail]

The Right Question

Divine Mercy Sunday

It is supposed to be something like 90% of getting the right answer. A Church of Scotland committee has approved a recommendation for the limited use of human embryos for stem cell research in a recent study. The matter will be taken up by the General Assembly next month.

Dr. Donald Bruce, the study's director, noted that it is a matter of considerable debate as to at what stage in development one can talk about human beings having the full attribute of personhood, which led it to be examined in depth in the report. This is a question worthy of examination. Let's do it rigorously and be guided where there's clarity. And where there's not, let's act with caution. Of course, my answer is obvious to the most casual observer.

But here's the thing: This isn't supposed to be some group sitting on the cha-ching of some major intellectual property, or VCs, or entrepreneurs, looking for a hot new revenue stream. These people are supposed to be part of the church. Yeah, the church... The Body of Christ... You know, the mission from God crew working to sanctify the world. Why isn't there a bias toward protecting innocent life here? Rather we are offered that because (only) a majority of the project team (not a consensus) thinks so, the distinctive traits of personhood do not exist until some time after conception. And this "some time after conception" criterion becomes the recommendation that "surplus" human embryos, up to 14 days old, arising from in-vitro fertilization, or pre-implantation genetic diagnosis, should be used in stem cells research [emphasis added]. The team did oppose the deliberate creation of human embryos for research by IVF methods, or nuclear transfer cloning, except into serious diseases and only under exceptional circumstances. Nice exception, after all, of course:

It's one thing to take an embryo that's now regarded as surplus to IVF and will be destroyed anyway and make some practical use of it. ...

It's quite a different matter to actually create one...

What? Could there be a more arbitrary conclusion? It is no wonder that the Continent is dying.

Getting to Be Almost Significant Coinage

I think the last time I checked, it was like a $1.88.

My blog is worth $31,614.24.
How much is your blog worth?

(helmet tip: Red Guy in a Blue State)

Progress for Trogling #5

Solemnity of Easter Saturday
First Day of the Novena to the Dedicated Heart of St. Joseph the Worker

Good news... As hoped, the intesinal bleeding appears to have stopped this week, and he's off antibiotics and back on a breast milk diet. And he's out of the incubator and into a newborn crib, as he's continued to gain weight and better maintain his body temperature. There may be a setback, or two, in the future, but please keep up the prayers, they are clearly working.

Oh, You Can't Be Serious

Subsidiarity in action from WaTi:

Fire departments are using Homeland Security grants to buy gym equipment, sponsor puppet and clown shows, and turn first responders into fitness trainers. The spending choices are allowable under the guidelines of the Assistance to Firefighters grant administered by the Homeland Security Department, which has awarded nearly 250 grants since February totaling more than $25 million out of the current spending pot of $545 million.

(helmet tip: FEE)

Why Again Do We Need to Fleece the Public on This Then?

Solemnity of Easter Friday

Despite the elaborate Hwang Woo-Suk hoax and eight years without success worldwide, scientists from Harvard and California announced recently in Cambridge, MA their plan to press forward with the development of so-called therapeutic human cloning to supply embryonic stem cell research. If private groups are going to press ahead in an area that continues to fail to live up to its hype, then don't require the public to fund it.

Also, in what should mark a significant milestone in the descendancy of institutional science, in response to the research being conducted in a secret location, a Harvard scientiest said that it should not be done behind closed doors because it is perfectly ethical and has an honorable goal. [emphasis added]. Let that one sink in a little bit.

Contrast the Harvard situation with this, Missouri lawmakers have taken the first steps to dedicate a portion to adult stem cell research of the 25% of the state's tobacco settlement fund that is required by law to go to "life sciences research." The difference? ASCR is perfectly ethical, and it has produced dozens of treatments and cures.

A Gentle Reminder

Now that Lent is over, dont forget that we should
still be practicing some form of penance, even though
we can again eat meat on Fridays.

How to Patch the Evangelical Crack-up

Solemnity of Easter Thursday

Jordan Ballor of Acton notes in response to a NYT article claiming and highlighting that while there never has been a movement as large, or powerful, as evangelicalism, there appear to be old fissures widening and new theological splits forming,

Ultimately the unity of any group of Christian believers must be founded on doctrinal agreement. Practice is informed by belief. ...

This is why creeds and confessional statements have enjoy such an important place in the history of Christianity...

The NYT article also notes that there are even questions of whether to rename the movement to make reference to history and orthodoxy and that this rise of disunity is occurring as the dominating figure of Billy Graham is leaving the stage for retirement.

Of course, such developments are a natural consequence of any group that 1.) grows large, and 2.) is rooted in Protestantism. So let's see, to be (maybe just a little) charitable and try to help them out... Where could the evangelicals find a single, say global, figure to bring a unity of focus to doctrine with an eye toward historical, orthodox Christianity? Hmmmmm.

[posted by e-mail]

WI Legislator Seeking to Separate ESCR facilities at UW

[original posted April 19, 2006, 8:30 AM]

Solemnity of Easter Wednesday

Wisconsin State Sen. Scott Fitzgerald is seeking to have state officials separate embryonic stem cell research conducted at the University of Wisconsin from other research by having the scientists and their privately funded projects housed in a different building to make sure taxpayer funds intended for other research are not misdirected to morally illicit studies.

The university's latest plans call for the state to build two separate facilities... This sounds good in principle, but under their plan both facilities will exist under the same roof and be connected by walkways and an atrium. To claim these are separate and distinct operations is as false as saying that the state Assembly and Senate have no contact with one another because they're in separate wings of the Capitol with the Rotunda between them.

As long as the law tolerates the willful destruction of young human life, this is a prudent measure.

Elsewhere:

A pro-ESCR Missouri group has already spent more than $6M in its campaign to get a funding initiative on this fall's ballot approved. Also, a pro-life group has filed an appeal of a decision that the initiative's wording is not misleading when it claims to be banning human cloning, but in fact only does so for reproduction, while allowing cloning for research.

An amendment to California's Proposition 71 will be on the ballot this fall. After rushing to follow the siren song of "new hopes for cures and treatments for millions of people," the law's ability to safeguard public accountability and funding transparency has proved to be riddled with holes.

Florida's vision for biomedical research is clouded in the dust being kicked up by the election year dance. The Tallahassee Democrat also has this from the same editorial:

More than 180 stem-cell bills were introduced in state legislatures last year, according to the National Conference of State Legislatures. They are as conflicting elsewhere as here [in Florida], with some encouraging stem-cell research, others criminalizing it and with a variety of approaches in between.

Many believe that abortion is at the heart of the ESCR debate. If so, then there should be no illusion as to how much work remains for a common pro-life philosophy to be adopted in any state, much less nationwide, particularly if Roe/Casey is ever overturned, or vacated.

Sea Gull Media Reviews on Benedict's First Year are Coming in

Solemnity of Easter Wednesday

There probably will be more of these later; take 'em for what they're worth. Apparently, Benedict is different from John Paul the Great.

The San Francisco Chronicle has an international round-up.
The LA Times has some predictable analysis.

Separately, LifeSite chronicles the Holy Father's focus on life and family during his first year.

[posted by e-mail]

Others from:

Washington Post, Boston Globe, AP, ABC, CBS, Der Spiegel, and Reuters,
plus Fr. Neuhaus vs. our old friend, Fr. McBrien.

What are the Chances?

Solemnity of Easter Tuesday

 

That is, the chances of creating inroads to the Culture of Death with such events as this.

The Genetics Policy Institute (GPI) and the IHEU Appignani Center for Bioethics, assisted by the Alden March Bioethics Institute, will host leading scholars in the fields of bioethics, law and medicine to address critical issues, including stem cell research, at the conference, "Is There a Global Bioethics? Moral, Legal and International Norms in Bioscience." The event will take place April 21 ? 23 and is open to members of UN missions and the interested public.

My initial reaction was irritation over a stacked conference having only ESCR proponents, or, as George Weigel put it recently, "the bioethics guild, which frequently serves as a permission-slip factory for scientists and the biotech industry." Incredulity over the predictable lack of balance is easy, but is that the right response?

 

Consider that today's sea gull media (both print and TV) are geared to the sound bite, the commercial world is geared to PowerPoint (to the point of being fatal), and even cable news and talk radio revolve around the segment. Sure it's fun, but is it any wonder there is little intellectual persuasion happening?

 

Be not afraid! The truth shall set us free! Let them develop their points. Take the time occasionally to shift the challenge from making snappy point-by-point comebacks that entertain first and persuade second to how to communicate the shredding that will happen to the other position after it has been fully developed and exhausted. The question, of course, becomes how to do that precisely. Let's put on our thinking helmets and figure out how to use this.

 

[submitted by e-mail]

Center-right Straw Polls for Iran and '08

Hugh Hewitt has an April straw poll for president and on what President Bush should do regarding Iran. The early results have Rudy Giuliani, George Allen, and Mitt Romney leading and the preferred action for the president to take being "Order military action to degrade the nuclear program as soon as the Pentagon says it is capable of conducting such a mission," rather than ask Congress for authority to take action, ask the UN Security Council for sanctions on Iran, or "wait and see." The latest results are here.

Among self-tagged Catholics, the presidential results are very similar, with Allen having the edge over Giuliani. They also prefer pre-emptive military action as soon as planned. I find these results a little disappointing.

First, regarding Iran. An authentic just war determination requires temperance in the pre-emptive use of force. Here the US bishops have it nearly right, even though they have loosened the just war framework from its historical roots. This does not mean there must be a "presumption against war," or somesuch, but that there must be due diligence prior to its exercise. Without an explicit declaration of war against particular terrorist networks, their affiliates, their sponsors, etc., the responsibility for that due diligence resides with Congress as the war-making branch on a case by case basis. Frankly, I'd rather see it reside with the Executive as the war-delivery branch, which it would after such a declaration, but it does not as of yet.

Second, regarding '08, here's a bold assertion... Early (pre-primary and primary) polls are about ideas, be they about personality/image, or issues. If people can say with a straight face that Bill Clinton was the first black president, then it is quite reasonable to say that George W. Bush is the most Catholic president, needing only to cite his ability to mobilize actively practicing Catholics away from the Democratic party. Looking at the early snapshot of the Catholic-tagged vote here shows that the common idea among the three poll leaders, however, is one of the president's traits that is not derived distinctively of Catholicity, i.e., "decisiveness," rather than doctrinally-aligned positions. This could be problematic. It will not be a question of opting for a Democrat, but whether to stay home. The three leaders also share a common loose thread that the Dictator of Relativism himself won't hesitate to pull, embryonic stem cell research. There is an hierarchy of Truth. It cannot be comparmentalized, nor can it be ignored, without things going badly--that's the funny thing about natural law. And clarity on this is at the heart of the Catholic's affinity for the president. Also, consider, when it comes to national security and prosecuting GWOT, how much real difference will there be among the three poll leaders and, for example, Brownback, Huckabee, or Santorum?

Call me a "nutter" if you like, but here's the long and the short of it: If the nominee and the Republican party's center-right heart are not aligned on the Church's five doctrinal non-negotiables, it may prove tough to keep a Democrat out of the White House in '08, no matter how dysfunctional that party is. Remembering that John Kerry received 60 million votes, now look at the Catholic populations of the midwestern purple states (Pennsylvania, Ohio, Missouri, Iowa, Wisconsin, and Minnesota) and do the electoral math.

A Most Ridiculous List

Time Magazine has two lists that become the single de facto list of most overrated senators because of the wishy-washy feel-good criterion of "making a difference," no matter how obscure, or dubious, the achievement. Here's their list of the 10 best

Thad Cochran
Kent Conrad
Dick Durbin
Ted Kennedy
Jon Kyl
Carl Levin
Richard Lugar
John McCain
Olympia J. Snowe
Arlen Specter

and 5 freshmen "up and comers"

Barack Obama
Lindsey Graham
Hillary Clinton
John E. Sununu
Mark Pryor

They also have a list of the 5 worst senators that includes our very own Mark Dayton. I am oscillating among three ways to come down on this: 1.) Sen. Dayton is so bad that not even Time Magazine can give him a pass, 2.) Sen. Dayton's not being advanced as one of the best senators because of his courageous stand to close his office in the face of national ridicule only proves what a sham this whole thing is, and 3.) Had Sen. Dayton only claimed he was closing his office because he no longer wanted his staff to be subjected to the concentration camp tactics of a Republican-controlled US Senate, then he clearly would have made the 10 best list.

2005 Charity Index

Solemnity of Easter Monday

I actually have had this analysis since December and never posted it. Because income taxes are due today, I think now is as good a time as any to trot it out. The Charity Index is a cultural tracking indicator of charitable giving among states and the various regions of the United States.

Below is the 2005 charity ranking for the states by index value. A discussion of the technical details and limitations of the Charity Index can be found here. The four-year averages of the charity rate based on IRS tax return data for the years 2000-20003 are also provided by state. Note that the four-year average of the estimated average charitable contribution rate, or the charity rate, for this period in the the United States is 3.06%.

In general, there are only slight changes from the 2004 ranking. Last year, there was a great deal of national discussion about whether individuals from Red States were giving more to charity than those from Blue states (yes, and they still do), but given the mixed bag noted last year in some regions there's a limit to how useful such observations are. Another thing that was observed last year that holds this year is that states with fewer self-identified Catholics appear to be more generous, which I think may be indicative of a blindspot in modern Catholicism, namely the reliance upon bureaucratic, institutional solutions to address social problems; perhaps more on this at a later time.

Rank. State (Index Value, Avg. Charitable Giving Rate)
1. Utah (1.00, 5.88%)
2. Alabama (2.50, 3.95%)
3. Mississippi (4.00, 3.90%)
4. Oklahoma (4.75, 3.87%)
tie. South Carolina (4.75, 3.87%)
6. Arkansas (7.00, 3.75%)
tie. Wyoming (7.00, 3.73%)
8. Georgia (7.50, 3.75%)
9. Idaho (7.75, 3.72%)
10. North Carolina (9.50, 3.62%)
11. Tennessee (10.75, 3.53%)
12. Maryland (12.00, 3.42%)
13. Nebraska (13.50, 3.35%)
14. New York (13.75, 3.29%)
15. Montana (15.00, 3.22%)
16. Kansas (16.50, 3.19%)
tie Oregon (16.50, 3.17%)
18. Kentucky (17.50, 3.15%)
19. Louisiana (19.00, 3.12%)
20. Missouri (20.75, 3.09%)
21. Florida (21.75, 3.07%)
22. Arizona (23.00, 3.03%)
23. Virginia (25.00, 2.99%)
24. Texas (25.25, 3.00%)
25. California (25.75, 2.99%)
26. Michigan (26.50, 2.98%)
27. Delaware (27.25, 2.97%)
28. New Mexico (28.25, 2.98%)
tie. Indiana (28.25, 2.96%)
30. Colorado (28.75, 2.95%)
31. Minnesota (29.25, 2.96%)
32. South Dakota (32.00, 2.87%)
33. Iowa (32.50, 2.90%)
34. Ohio (33.75, 2.87%)
35. Hawaii (34.75, 2.86%)
36. Pennsylvania (36.00, 2.82%)
37. Illinois (36.25, 2.82%)
38. Nevada (37.00, 2.79%)
39. North Dakota (39.25, 2.72%)
40. Washington (40.50, 2.73%)
41. Wisconsin (40.75, 2.68%)
42. West Virginia (42.50, 2.64%)
43. Alaska (43.25, 2.63%)
44. Maine (43.50, 2.61%)
45. New Jersey (45.25, 2.57%)
46. Vermont (45.50, 2.56%)
47. Connecticut (46.25, 2.52%)
48. Massachusetts (47.00, 2.51%)
49. Rhode Island (49.00, 2.45%)
50. New Hampshire (50.00, 2.19%)

Update

About a week ago, our newest nephew (henceforth Trogling #5 to distinguish from the Troglotykes and the other nieces and nephews), developed some intestinal bleeding, which apparently is not uncommon with premies, and had to switched back to IV nutrition and antibiotics. He seems to be responding well and continues to gain weight. We are optimistic that he will be able to return to a diet of breast milk and formula later this week. Thank you for the warm wishes and continued prayers.

A New Way That's the Same as the Old Way

Easter
Happy Birthday Troglotyke #2
Happy Belated Birthday Troglotyke #1

We have journeyed through Lent. The anniversaries of Terri Schiavo and Pope John Paul the Great have passed. Now Passion Sunday and the Easter Triduum. And still I can't get my mind off Advent. The homilies from the different parishes where I attended Mass during Advent all pointed to the similar theme that as Christ's passion, death, and resurrection is all the single event of the Triduum, the Incarnation not just points to the act of Redemption, but is in fact part of it, and, accordingly, our mission to evangelize is established in our preparation for Christmas.

Week 1 - "We are on a mission of heart and dedication."
Week 2 - "As John the Baptist used the waters of baptism to lead others to Jesus, so to are we called to use our baptisms to lead others to Christ."
Week 3 - "We often define ourselves by who we are, but it is just as important to define ourselves as Who we are not."
Week 4 - "Like Mary, we are not alone."

The humility of an outcast's death is pre-figured by an outcast's birth, while He discloses the complete truth about humanity.

Pope Benedict noted in his message for the World Day of Peace that the truth of peace calls upon everyone to cultivate productive and sincere relationships. This was the genius of my friend, Don Cook, who passed away last December (during Advent). When we met in Oklahoma nine years ago, he would not have hesitated in saying his faith was not particularly mature, but he always had a way for drawing people together--we used to somewhat-jokingly refer to him as the homeowner association's social director. However, there was nothing earth-shattering to his methods, usually some kind of game, or something social: a game of washers, or "horse," a round of golf, a spur of the moment BBQ, a day on the lake, the occasional cigar in the backyard, a neighborhood-wide crawfish boil... Conversation ranged, but always included family and almost always was casual. In those times, the ties of many friendships were made, fulfilling a fundamental need for authentic relationship, a need that even Jesus Christ shared in his full humanity; "You are my friends, and there is no greater love than to lay down one's life for a friend."

At Don's funeral, his brother-in-law noted that this gift for friendship had become a gift for evangelization. Dozens of people visited Don, or were pulled to him, really, as he was losing his struggle with melanoma and many, if not most, came away at least mentioning his faith. It was always easy to talk to Don, and he made it a natural and easy thing for his friends to pass along to other people. The sincerity, maturity, and comfort of it made it easy to share. When I last visited him in November, Don told me that my friendship had helped him with his faith formation, and he thanked me for it. Stunned, I think I said something stupid in return. I can only believe my help was in a small way because his faith, not mine, was tested in fire and showed its mettle. However, to the extent that it was true, I am humbled and forever grateful. Whether we, his familty and friends, were aware of it at the time, in a world often lost in the shadows of the twin towers of expedience and solipsism, a beacon of genuine clarity and charity shined.

So now the dawn draws near, and the challenge before us of the dictatorship of relativism remains as it ever was. Yet, He is risen! Alleluia! And now we have another example on the pre-figured Way in Don. May he rest in the truth of peace, as we take up his mantle.

Washers, anyone?

Prayer Request Update

Memorial of St. John Baptist de la Salle

After a hospital switch (because of bed availability) and some indecision
over whether to induce, or go ahead with the Caesarean, my sister delivered a
boy, 3.5 lbs. and about five weeks early, by C-section last night. So far,
so good. Thanks be to God--mother and child are doing well. And the
Troglomatrix's anxiety level has dropped dramatically.

[posted by e-mail]

Urgent Prayer Request

It sometimes feel like I've done a disproportionate number of these, but here's another. My sister's unborn baby (her first) has been experiencing growth retardation (or the more politically correct "resistance") such that the baby is a little undersized and has different parts of the body with different developmental stages ranging a couple of weeks. They've been monitoring the situation closely in the event the baby becomes too stressed and needs to be delivered early (full term is next month). Well, today, they decided, is the day--within the hour actually. Please pray for the health of the baby and her mother. And throw one in for the grandmother, the Troglomatrix, too, if you don't mind.

Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us.
Our Lady of Czestochowa, pray for us.
Our Lady of Guadalupe, pray for us.
Our Lady of the Immaculate Conception, pray for us.
St. Joseph, pray for us.
Ss. Peter and Paul, pray for us.
St. Jude, pray for us.
St. Gerard, pray for us.
St. Anne, pray for us.
St. Elizabeth, pray for us.
St. Anthony, pray for us.
St. Nicholas, pray for us.
Pope John Paul the Great, pray for us.