Got an update on Heather,<\/strong> the young pregnant woman who was diagnosed with cancer after learning of her pregnancy. On April 1 we learned that Heather had experienced something of a miraculous healing<\/a>:<\/p>\n The technicians opened her mouth to position the equipment relative to the tumor. Only\u2026this time\u2026there was nothing there. No tumor. No cancer. Nothing anywhere on her tongue, jaw, throat, mouth\u2026nothing. The only evidence that she ever had that cancer was a small cancerous patch on her lymphnode which the doctors expect to respond well to radiation. What\u2019s more\u2026well, the unborn baby grew 1.2 pounds over the last 6 days. So, all doctors are thrilled. <\/p><\/blockquote>\n Our latest update:<\/strong><\/p>\n Heather is doing MUCH better and able to eat pureed foods again! She is still doing the radiation and will complete at least the original course for the spot that remains on the one lymph node. Our current prayer focus is that she will soon be able to swallow pills so that they can remove the IV which is being used for vitamins since her food intake is still limited. Baby is growing normally and expected to go to full-term or close to full-term now. <\/p><\/blockquote>\n This is a very different state of affairs than we began with, where it looked like Heather might lose half of her jaw and the baby, with the prognosis very grim for her survival. Keep praying for Heather and her baby!<\/p>\n Also, please keep praying for Kim and her husband, as they mourn the death of their daughter, Joy. I mentioned Kim here<\/a>:<\/p>\n Kim is 7 months pregnant and has been told since her 18th week that her baby (they cannot tell for sure the sex) has no kidneys and will not live long beyond delivery. Like this young mother<\/a>, Kim and her husband have chosen to eschew the dubious \u201cblessing\u201d of abortion<\/a> and to instead pray, have faith, and experience the full-life gift and grief of allowing their child to meet them<\/a>, of allowing themselves to know and love<\/a> their child. They\u2019re open to walking through the fire. And they\u2019re open to a miracle, too. Openness is the key to everything. <\/p><\/blockquote>\n Today I received this email from Kim:<\/p>\n I wanted to update you on our situation since you have been so kind as to pray and ask for prayers for us. Joy was born on April 13th, six weeks prematurely. While she only lived two hours, she had a lot of love during her brief life. Although we did not get the miracle we prayed for, we did receive many small miracles that showed us God was with us. He has further blessed us with kind hospital staff, wonderful family and friends that are helping us through this.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n This was undoubtedly a heart-shattering experience, joy mixed with sorry, wonder immediately followed by sadness. Joy did not have a long life, but it was the life she had<\/em>, God-given and greatly loved. Her parents got to meet her, to tell her they loved her and that they would see her again. Joy was allowed to be known. Her parents were allowed to be parents, real<\/em> parents who know the intense love and devastating sorrow that comes with the job.<\/p>\n Some see nothing good, here, only pain and loss, but clearly in this situation the value of humanity (and human dignity) were given witness, and not only by Joy and her parents but by all of the people Kim mentions, who participated in the paradox of love<\/a>:<\/p>\n \u2026for all the joy it brings, [love] also brings pain. Love and pain cannot exist exclusive of each other, and joy fits itself, somehow, between the two.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n There is truly a Culture of Life and a Culture of Death. As we prayed in the antiphon of Vespers for this second week of Easter, \u201cWhat is born of the flesh is flesh, and what is born of the spirit is spirit. Alleluia.\u201d<\/p>\n Alleluia.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, Little Faith, who we have met in this blog<\/a> is two months old, now, and still a little fighter. Faith\u2019s mom shares with us the news that little Seth lived for ten hours<\/a> in the light of the love of his family.<\/p>\n I am absolutely astounded, instructed, edified and in all ways humbled<\/strong> in the face of faith this open, courageous and hearty. In a world where society encourages us to avoid the painful realities of life (and all the terrible beauty found therein) to shut ourselves off and remain comfortably anesthetized throughout our lives, these young women and their husbands \u2013 with the help of family, friends and faith \u2013 say \u201cyes\u201d to the difficult, \u201cyes to the pain, \u201cyes\u201d to what comes their way.<\/p>\n What I see, over and over again in their stories is a peace the world cannot fathom, the \u201cpeace beyond all understanding.\u201d As with the Gospels, where a rich young man was attracted to Christ but unwilling to give up his material things, we see here a peace many want, but few have the courage to pursue.<\/p>\n The headlines have very little to teach us, the sophisticates even less.<\/strong> If we are going to learn how to live the faith through challenging times (and yes, we\u2019re set to be greatly challenged in America<\/a>, as never before) we\u2019re going to have to look away from \u201cthe world\u201d and all of its bright little stars, to people like these, and these<\/a>; largely unknown, unsung and engaged in \u201cfoolishness\u201d to the world.<\/p>\n
\nKim and her husband named their little, short-lived daughter Joy<\/em>!<\/strong> They know the great secret<\/a> \u2013 that they have assisted in Creation, worked with God<\/em> in order to permit His love to enter into the world, anew, and to become part of all that is eternal, unending. They are, frankly, standing in the light<\/a>.<\/p>\n