Calligrapher of Life

    A few weeks ago, I attended the world premier of “Tomo ni Ikiru: Shoka Kanazawa Shoko,” a documentary about the life and work of Kanazawa Shoko, the world’s greatest living calligrapher. The title means “Living Side by Side.” During opening remarks, the film’s...
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Calligrapher of Life

  A few weeks ago, I attended the world premier of “Tomo ni Ikiru: Shoka Kanazawa Shoko,” a documentary about the life and work of Kanazawa Shoko, the world’s greatest living calligrapher. The title means “Living Side by Side.” During opening remarks, the film’s director...
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Targeting Down’s Today, Autism Tomorrow

As I went through the paperwork, I was aware of a familiar hollow feeling in my chest. It was the one I had when my older son was diagnosed with autism. This past March, while the world was still in COVID-crisis mode, my husband and I were in a crisis of our own. We had applied...
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Down Syndrome and Social Media: Will Visibility Save Lives?

  Most of us by now have our favorite social-media stars; mine are an irrepressible pair of youngsters named Ollie and Cameron, identical twins who have Down syndrome, born March 2013 in Dundee. They’re basically my favorite Scotsmen, excepting David Tennant. Their mum’s...
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human chromosomes

State Laws are Targeting Eugenic Abortion

Abortion is often referenced today in the context of the healthcare of the mother. Despite the fact that, as groups like Live Action have persuasively pointed out, abortion is never necessary for the health of the mother (early labor might be needed, and the fetus may not...
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Glimpsing God in Down Syndrome

My eight-year-old daughter Maggie, who has Down syndrome, made her First Confession last month. And therein lies a story. It had been scheduled rather last minute. Communication with the parish during the past year has been challenging, and with vacation, etc., I lost track of...
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A “Symphony of Two Hearts”

This past Sunday, March 21, was World Down Syndrome Day, celebrated widely on social media, even with a new original song from celebrity Sting. My thoughts turned to the scientist and physician who discovered the genetic cause of Down syndrome, Dr. Jérôme Lejeune, a heroic...
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APPENDIX: Magdalena

  [Matthew Hennessey is associate editorial-page features editor at the Wall Street Journal. The following article was published in the January 2021 issue of First Things (firstthings.com) and is reprinted with the magazine’s permission.] Magdalena loves potatoes. Doesn’t...
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A Miracle for Life

  Did you ever see a miracle walking? Or running, jumping, laughing, and hugging like any active five-year-old? This is the story of the miraculous healing of a child in the womb attributed to the intercession of Venerable Father Michael McGivney, founder of the Knights of...
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