March 1, 2005

• 
  

  Thanks to my friend Kendra, I was exposed to an amazing story.  When I first saw the picture, I was grossed out, but I read the story which left me in awe.  Especially for anybody out there considering abortion, please read this.

  
  

   

  
  

  

  
  

  Photo by Michael Clancy

  
  

   

  
  

  “For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother’s womb.”  Psalm 139:13

  
  

   

  
  

  The picture is that of a 21-week-old unborn baby named Samuel Alexander Armas, who is being operated on by surgeon named Joseph Bruner.  The baby was diagnosed with spina bifida and would not survive if removed from his mother’s womb.  Little Samuel’s mother, Julie Armas, is an obstetrics nurse in Atlanta.  She knew of Dr. Bruner’s remarkable surgical procedure.  Practicing at Vanderbilt University Medical Center in Nashville, he performs these special operations while the baby is still in the womb.  During the procedure, the doctor removes the uterus via C-section and makes a small incision to operate on the baby.  As Dr. Bruner completed the surgery on Samuel, the little guy reached his tiny, but fully developed hand through the incision and firmly grasped the surgeon’s finger.  Dr. Bruner was reported as saying that when his finger was grasped, it was the most emotional moment of his life, and that for an instant during the procedure he was just frozen, totally immobile.  The photograph captures this amazing event with perfect clarity.  The editors titled the picture, “Hand of Hope.”  The text explaining the picture begins, “The tiny hand of 21-week-old fetus Samuel Alexander Armas emerges from the mother’s uterus to grasp the finger of Dr. Joseph Bruner as if thanking the doctor for the gift of life.”  Little Samuel’s mother said they “wept for days” when they saw the picture.  She said, “The photo reminds us pregnancy isn’t about disability or an illness, it’s about a little person.”  Samuel was born in perfect health, the operation 100 percent successful. 

  
  

   

  
  

  More at http://freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1012548/posts. 

  
  

  In his testimony, Alex [the father] noted, “We were devastated.  It’s every parent’s worst nightmare to learn that something is very wrong with your child.  The doctor painted a grim picture for us and stopped just short of suggesting an abortion.”  As Alex explained to NRL News after the hearing, “Our view was that after years of trying to conceive, this was the baby God chose to give us.  Julie and I are both Christians.  Scripture is clear on the sanctity of life in the womb, so ending the pregnancy was never an option for us.” 

  
  

   

  
  

  “Considering abortion?  Abortion will not resolve the fears that you have. It will only increase the psychological issues and bring about an unbearable guilt that few talk about.  Abortion comes with great risk of complications as well. Some women have experienced infertility and reproductive problems. Some have even died. Counseling and pastoral offices are full of women who are grieving the pain and guilt of abortion.”  Lynette Hoy

  • 5:48 am
  • 16 Comments