The Telemachus Moment: "In the name of Jesus Christ, Stop!"

In the year 402 A.D., a diminutive monk named "Telemachus," then living in the hinterland of the Roman Empire, felt a call to leave his obscure monastery and visit the city of Rome. He didn’t know why, but he believed he was following God's leading. Upon entering the city, Telemachus was pushed along by the crowds into the Colosseum where gladiatorial contests were being held to celebrate the recent victory over the Gauls.

Telemachus had never witnessed a gladiator game, and was quickly appalled by the spectacle of men brutally killing each other to the amusement of the spectators. Telemachus could not help himself, and began to yell, "In The Name of Jesus Christ, Stop!" But nobody paid him any attention. He then jumped into the gladiator arena near the fighting gladiators and again yelled, "In The Name of Jesus Christ, Stop!" The crowd initially laughed at Telemachus, believing he was part of the show as some kind of amusement. The gladiators then turned their attention to Telemachus, and began to chase him down as he yelled, "In The Name of Jesus Christ, Stop!" Finally, a gladiator stabbed Telemachus in the chest, and as he died, Telemachus yelled one last time, "In The Name of Jesus Christ, Stop!" (some versions of the story have him being stoned to death by the crowd.) At any rate, a hushed silence fell over the Colosseum. Then one-by-one, the spectators began leaving the great sports theater. As legend has it, the emperor, Honorius, seeing his people leave also left in silence and within an hour signed an edict ending the gladiator games. This was the last time the games were ever held. With the recent release of videos exposing the reality of abortion and the selling of body parts at Planned Parenthood, I believe we are witnessing another "Telemachus moment" in our time.

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First, about the videos. These videos, recorded over a two-year period of time and being published now on YouTube, were produced by a pro-life group. Members of this group posed as those seeking to purchase fetal body parts, and videotaped their conversations with leaders of Planned Parenthood. The videos primarily involve discussing the sale of fetal body parts as residue from abortions. In the videos, those associated with Planned Parenthood coolly and nonchalantly speak about the best methods used to obtain "intact" body parts, like livers, during abortion procedures. This includes clinical descriptions of the crushing of baby skulls (while the abortionist sips wine in a restaurant!) and other such topics. The early videos are disturbing, and a wake-up to many Americans who have never faced the reality of abortion and the selling and disposal of body parts. But it gets worse. It was the fifth video, which becomes the "Telemachus moment" of hushed silence before walking out of the proverbial stadium of support for abortion. Having served in combat, I have been exposed to gruesome sights. And with ISIS’s videos of beheadings and worse, many of us have seen terrible sights of death. However, nothing I have seen matches the horror of the fifth video exposing Planned Parenthood. In it, the medical staff of an abortion clinic displays a plastic box of baby parts (parts they call "line items" in the video), including intact arms, legs, lungs, eyeballs, etc. Heartbreaking, particularly when considering the vulnerability of these babies as they were dismembered for their parts hours beforehand. Despite the horrid sights, the abortion staff was not fazed and seemed to care more about punching off of work to head home to family. They had seen so many of these body parts they were hardened in heart and soul. After the fifth video was released, Obama White House Press Secretary Josh Earnest was asked about the video. Earnest claimed the video was "troubling" to the White House, but also admitted not seeing it (a 15 minute video clip available to anyone with access to internet). Keep in mind, Pres. Obama is a huge supporter of Planned Parenthood, and has even publicly exclaimed, "God Bless Planned Parenthood." Democratic Congressional leaders and Planned Parenthood supporters like Harry Reid have called anti-abortionists "crazies," and vehemently defended Planned Parenthood. They have criticized those seeking to end taxpayer funding for the organization. Reid also admitted not viewing the video. Sen. Elizabeth Warren chastised Republicans seeking to end taxpayer support for Planned Parenthood while on the floor of the Senate, even going so far as to yell about a "War on Women." However, when asked, Warren admitted not seeing the video. At the very least, taxpayer support for Planned Parenthood must end. At best, maybe America is finally ready to end the practice of abortion once and for all. Regardless, I think it the duty of the White House and Congressional leaders supporting Planned Parenthood to watch the video. If they continue to support the practice after watching the video, voters will have a much better evaluation of the heart, soul, and character of those leaders.

As hard as it might be, I would encourage all Americans to watch the video and face the stark reality of a practice we are funding. Roman Spectators of the gladiatorial games in the early 5th century faced something similar in witnessing the actions of Telemachus. Watch the videos and consider a new Telemachus moment:  IN THE NAME OF JESUS CHRIST, STOP!