Search

Results

Argentine baby survives icy morgue

15 Apr 2012 - Preaching the News for Sunday

In this Sunday’s reading from the Acts of the Apostles we are told that “with great power the apostles bore witness to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus.” During Holy Week a grieving Argentine couple bore witness to a powerful resurrection-like experience when they opened a small coffin and came face to face with their healthy newborn baby, who had been declared stillborn and placed in a refrigerated room at a hospital morgue some 12 hours earlier.Five doctors at Perrando Hospital in northern Argentina have been suspended for declaring the baby stillborn, nailing her inside a coffin, and placing her in the hospital morgue. The baby's mother, Analia Bouter, 29, said she never had a chance to say goodbye to her first daughter because she had been sedated during the birth, which came three months premature.Bouter said the baby was quickly put in a coffin and taken to the morgue's refrigeration room. Twelve hours passed before she and her husband were able to open the coffin to say their last farewells. She said that's when the baby trembled. She thought it was her imagination then realized the little girl was alive, and she dropped to her knees on the morgue floor in shock.Bouter's brother grabbed the baby and ran to the hospital's neonatal intensive care unit, shouting for the doctors. The baby was so cold, Bouter said, that "it was like carrying a bottle of ice."A week later the baby is strengthening and although Bouter still has many unanswered questions about what happened, she said, “I'm a believer. All of this was a miracle from God." Sources: Articles by Alyssa Newcomb for Good Morning America and the Associated Press

perrando hospital argentina babies newborns
Boom in babies born drug dependent

06 May 2012 - Preaching the News for Sunday

“Remain in me, as I remain in you,” Jesus encourages his disciples in this Sunday’s gospel, and the second reading reinforces that message: “Those who keep his commandments remain in him, and he in them.” Unfortunately, narcotics a woman takes during pregnancy also remain and are passed on through the bloodstream to the developing child. Disturbing new research indicates the number of U.S. babies born with opiate dependency has tripled in a decade because of abuse of legal and illegal narcotics such as Vicodin, OxyContin, and heroin. About 3.4 of every 1,000 infants born in a hospital in 2009 suffered from a type of drug withdrawal commonly seen in the babies of pregnant women who abuse narcotic pain medications, according to the study, published today in The Journal of the American Medical Association. That's about 13,539 infants a year, or one drug-addicted baby born every hour, said the report's lead author, Stephen Patrick, a fellow in neonatal-perinatal medicine at the University of Michigan. Treating drug-addicted newborns, most of whom are covered by the publicly financed Medicaid program, cost $720 million in 2009, the findings said. The country has an obligation to help these newborns, who "have made no choices around drug abuse and addiction" and are "the most vulnerable and the most blameless" members of society, said Marie Hayes, a psychology professor at the University of Maine who was not involved in the study. The number of pregnant women who used or abused any kind of opiate increased fivefold from 2000 to 2009, the report found. These mothers now account for 5.6 out of 1,000 hospital births a year. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention has flagged prescription-painkiller abuse as a major health threat, noting that these drugs now cause more overdose deaths than heroin and cocaine combined. Sources: Articles by Liz Szabo for USA TODAY and Lindsey Tanner for the Associated Press

babies narcotics pain killers prescription drug abuse stephen patrick marie hayes pregnant women
Baby names take on biblical proportions

20 May 2012 - Preaching the News for Sunday

Before departing from their midst in the gospel reading commemorating the Ascension, Jesus promises his disciples they will perform many powerful deeds in his name—a name, the Letter to the Ephesians reminds us, that in the heavens is above “every name that is named.” A list of the country’s most popular baby names for 2011 released Tuesday by the U.S. Social Security Administration (SSA) reveals that for new parents, biblical names rise above most others. Jacob (in the top spot for 13 years), Noah, Michael, and Daniel all make the top 10 list for boys, with Matthew and Elijah holding down spots 12 and 13. For girls, variations on biblical names are also popular, with Isabella, the Spanish version of Elizabeth, Ava, a variation on Eve, and Abigail making the top 10. Sophia, Greek for the highly praised virtue wisdom, holds the top spot for girls. What is it that compels 21st-century parents to name their kids after ancient biblical figures? Laura Wattenberg, creator of a baby-naming website, said there is a “retro vibe” to the names from the Hebrew Bible in particular that appeal to parents today. “The traditional biblical names were New Testament names—John, James, Mary, and Elizabeth. Today, the hot names are all names from the Old Testament precisely because they were neglected for so many generations.” The SSA provides lists of baby names dating to 1880 on its website. The top two names that year were John and Mary. John is now no. 27 and Mary has fallen to no. 112—the lowest rankings in history for both names. The list draws millions of viewers. The agency hopes that people go to the website to see the baby names and stay to learn about other services, said SSA Commissioner Michael J. Astrue. Sources: An article by the Associated Press and a blog post on Under God (The Washington Post)

Bible names babies social security administration biblical names
Baby cured of HIV infection, doctors claim

10 Mar 2013 - Preaching the News for Sunday

This Sunday’s second reading assures us that “whoever is in Christ is a new creation: the old things have passed away.” Something new has apparently occurred when after early intensive treatment with antiviral drugs a baby born with HIV two years ago in rural Mississippi has been cured, doctors announced Sunday.The startling development, while still being analyzed, could change how infected newborns are treated and sharply reduce the number of children living around the world with the virus that causes AIDS.The child was treated aggressively with antiretroviral drugs starting around 30 hours after birth, something that is not usually done. If further study shows this process works in other babies, it will almost certainly be recommended globally. The United Nations estimates that 330,000 babies were newly infected in 2011, the most recent year for which there is data, and that more than three million children globally are living with HIV.There may be something different about babies’ immune systems that made the cure possible, said Dr. Joseph McCune of the University of California, San Francisco. One hypothesis is that the drugs killed off the virus before it could establish a hidden reservoir in the baby. One reason people cannot be cured now is that the virus hides in a dormant state, out of reach of existing drugs. When drug therapy is stopped, the virus can emerge from hiding.Homily hint: A “seamless garment” ethics of life speaks of protecting life “from womb to tomb.” Certainly ensuring that all pregnant mothers have adequate and affordable prenatal care comes into play in such an ethics. Are families in your community able to receive the care they need? If not, might members of the faith community advocate on their behalf? Sources: Articles by Andre Pollack and Donald G. McNeil, Jr. for theNew York Times and Ron Winslow for the Wall Street Journal

aids immune system antiretroviral acquired immune deficiency syndrome human immunodeficiency virus mississippi antiviral babies hiv joseph mccune
Homily stories

16 Aug 2009 - Twentieth Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle B

My husband went to get the car while the nurse went over a few last-minute details about how to care for our newborn daughter, who had a serious heart defect and a diagnosis of Down syndrome. The nurse outlined the telltale signs of distress that would indicate a trip back to the hospital; she advised me on the best diapers and formula (“whatever’s on sale”). She reminded me how to swaddle the baby and how to use the suction syringe to clean her nose. She gently lifted my daughter out of the hospital crib and tucked her safely into her carseat. Then she walked me to the door and waited with me for my husband to pull up. She must have read the nervousness in my eyes and sensed the anguish my husband and I had gone through during the past months, withstanding the pressure from doctors to terminate the pregnancy. Suddenly she said matter-of-factly, “Good for you. And don’t let anyone tell you shouldn’t have another baby. You’re strong and beautiful and your daughter is going to be fine.” Jesus tells us that the one who feeds on him will have life. That nurse undoubtedly had life, and she shared it with me that day.

Authors Patrice J. Tuohy

life babies

Restricted
Homily stories

02 Oct 2016 - Twenty-seventh Sunday in Ordinary Time, Cycle C

The young couple told me a story. It was their first child. The baby cried every night, leaving them both exhausted. The husband woke up with his wife and watched her as she got up to walk and feed the baby. Then he would roll over and go back to sleep. One night as the baby cried, she looked at him and said, “Your turn.” So he got up and walked the baby. It didn’t help. His little son kept crying. He tried giving him the bottle. But there was more wailing than feeding. Finally, he sat down in a rocking chair and started to rock the baby gently. Even that didn’t help at all. So he said he did what was the only option he had left. The baby cried and he cried, the two of them in tears for close to an hour until they both fell asleep exhausted. “What else could I do?” he asked me. “My wife was exhausted and I just couldn’t wake her. It was a great bonding experience for me and my son. My wife, she was more than grateful. I did what I had to do.”

Authors Father Dominic Grassi

babies duty

Restricted
Quotes

02 Feb 2020 - Feast of the Presentation of the Lord, Cycle A

Every baby is an inestimable blessing. —Mark Twain The triumphant Christian does not fight for victory; [but rather] celebrates . . . a victory already won. —Reginald Wallis Have patience with all things, but, first of all with yourself. —Saint Francis de Sales

mark twain babies patience

Restricted