Year in review: Top five pro-life stories of 2016

Live Action News produced a plethora of impactful stories this year. Here are the top five pro-life articles of 2016, counting down from number five:

5. Stunning photo of Noah, miscarried at 12 weeks, will amaze you

In March, Live Action News reported that Lara, Noah’s mother, miscarried her baby boy at just 12 weeks and five days. His life was cut short, but his photo is helping people see the dignity of human life.

“Even though he only lived for 12 weeks, Noah was special to me,” Lara said. “I am blessed that I was able to hold him, to see that he was real. Just like every other mother, this first photo of my child will always be special to me. I am devastated that we lost Noah, but I know that his 12 weeks of life had a purpose. His body reveals the miracle of human life.”

Just like any preborn child at Noah’s age, he was able to move his fingers and toes, and his kidneys and liver were working. To say that Noah was just a clump of cells or a ‘potential life’ is to totally undermine his existence. Noah was a human being at a very specific stage of development. The CDC reports that 92% of abortions are committed in the first trimester (the first 13 weeks) when babies are growing and developing in amazing ways, just like Noah.

“If [Noah] could help show one mother considering abortion the beauty of her child, then our loss would be worth it,” Lara said.

4. My wife became pregnant from rape, but we chose life

In a powerful testimony originally published on Save the 1, Jeff Christie shared why he and his wife, Jennifer, chose life for their son conceived in rape.

“I really don’t like thinking about this time. Just saying the words are hard: My wife was raped.”

Christie could’ve easily asked his wife to get an abortion to take away the ‘problem.’ But instead of choosing that path, he embraced the opportunity to love his wife and the child she was pregnant with.

“People always seem surprised by my reaction, and I never understand it. I didn’t think, ‘What do we do now?’ I knew what was right already. She just told me the news. I thought, ‘Okay. This is what we’re doing now.’”

Christie’s testimony gives hope to fathers everywhere, whatever situation they’re in. (For men who are unsure what to do when their wife or girlfriend considers abortion, here’s a guide.)

“When I look in my baby’s eyes I see innocence and trust. And a lot of love. He IS my son. He knows me as Daddy. He calls me Daddy. That’s the best feeling in the world, and I wouldn’t have it any other way!”

Pregnant from rape - Jennifer shares her powerful story

3. Nurse: Infant who survived abortion cried while left alone in steel pan to die

Mrs. L.M., a former anesthetic nurse, shared her firsthand account of what happened to a helpless 28-week-old baby who was left to die in a box while medical experts looked on.

Gynecologists convinced [the mother] to abort but the baby was born alive. Midwives simply put it in an empty box, naked in a stainless steel tub, cold, without any care. His mother was conscious during labor and delivery of the baby; she was crying and wanted to see her little one but the doctors decided that this child should die. They did not give the child to the mother to spare her. This baby was viable, he was breathing on his own and cried vigorously. I honestly think it was just left to die of cold… it was horrible…! We were harnessed in our gloves, overshirts, headwear, masks, “overshoes” because we were afraid of getting AIDS, and the baby, naked, abandoned by all, and so vulnerable. He took a long time to stop whining.

That was last abortion L.M. helped with.

2. Baby Adam, whom others called a curse, shares why every child is precious

In a heart-warming story about love and hope, Baby Adam proves that no matter how you were born, what abilities you were given, or even how you look, your life has dignity.

Soon after Adam’s birth, his parents abandoned him. He was born with a cleft lip and palate, no eyelids, and fused legs — to name a few of his physical deformities. His birth parents vowed to kill Baby Adam if forced to take him home. Thankfully, his adoptive parents were just around the corner in the same hospital.

Adam’s adoptive parents, Raja Paulraj and Jessica Cooksey Paulraj, loved and cared for him, even though they were told he wouldn’t live long. More than four years later, Adam is enjoying life just like any other child.

Live Action News reported back in February the amazing transformation Adam has gone through since his birth in India: “Since his adoption he has also become the big brother to two little brothers. Since his palate surgery, Adam has become vocal and loves to laugh. He has also learned to hop on two legs and prefers that method of travel to crawling. He goes on hikes with his family.”

Regardless of the situation we’re born into, our lives are worth living. And Adam can teach us all a lesson about the beauty of life.

1. If late-term abortion isn’t torture, it’s hard to imagine what is

This article is Live Action News’ most-read story of 2016. Garnering more than 1.3 million shares on Facebook, Adam Peters’s analysis is an insightful piece on late-term abortion, the number of abortion facilities that commit late-term abortions, and the importance of shifting the way we look at the horrendous acts done to innocent preborn children.

If our societal culture can be repulsed by the CIA torturing suspected terrorists, then why can’t our society find late-term abortions disturbing and repulsive? After all, second trimester surgical abortions literally tear apart the limbs of preborn children — many of whom can scientifically feel pain.

Dr. Anthony Levatino has performed over 1,200 abortions. In this video, he explains the process of a dilation and evacuation, or D&E, one of the most common abortion procedures in the U.S.:

2nd Trimester Surgical Abortion: Dilation and Evacuation (D & E)

According to the article, “There are currently 162 facilities in the U.S. that perform abortions past 20 weeks. Forty will perform them after 24 weeks while some, like Southwestern Women’s Options, will do them after 28 weeks.”

Of the 162 abortion facilities, 18 belong to Planned Parenthood, America’s largest abortion chain. Planned Parenthood receives $500 million each year in taxpayer dollars, although the majority of Americans oppose such funding.

Live Action News would like to thank you for your continued support and readership. We’re looking forward to what 2017 has to bring in the efforts to defund Planned Parenthood and make abortion unthinkable.

Editor’s Note: Live Action works to maintain the highest standards of journalistic integrity. Live Action has looked into key elements of Ms. Christie’s testimony and personal story and has found them to be credible.