Posted on 01/10/2024 2:43:03 AM PST by Morgana
A baby boy born in Missouri last month has made a lasting impact though he only lived for four minutes after birth. His parents have called him a “fighter.”
Baby Alexander was diagnosed at 22 weeks with anencephaly, in which his skull did not properly form. Most children with anencephaly will die shortly after birth, though there has been at least one well-known case in which the child survived for three years and nine months.
Alexander’s parents, Abraham and Christine Jacobs, were heartbroken. Already parents to one son, Ezekiel, they were told that if Alexander survived to birth, he would likely die soon after. After researching the condition, the couple decided that they would carry him to term despite Christine’s initial thought that she would have an abortion. Their hope was that Alexander would survive long enough to be able to donate his organs to other children with health conditions once he had passed away.
Alexander’s mother said that their doctor had “a discussion” with them after the diagnosis.
“Our doctor gave us our options. She didn’t persuade us either way, but she told us what our options were. For Abe, it was like a no-brainer decision. For me it was a lot more complicated because I guess up until that point I guess I thought I probably would terminate because of my age and the risks.”
But then, Christine learned about the process of aborting a child at 22 weeks — and this knowledge changed her mind:
… What was most impactful for me was when our doctor told us the process. She said that in order to terminate at that point, at 22 weeks, it means that the doctors have to inject his heart with potassium chloride and they have to stop his heart before a delivery.
I’m a forensic psychiatrist. I’ve worked in prisons and with inmates and all I could think was, ‘Potassium chloride — that’s a lethal injection that we give to death row inmates.’ And I just, I don’t know, I couldn’t handle the idea of that being how this innocent life ends.”
Abe said he was against an abortion right away “because of our other son. He’s such a good kid.” He added, “I don’t want to lose that chance of [Alexander] being able to actually do something for others or prove himself. We thought possibly the instrumentation that was being used [the ultrasound], it could be faulty. There was always that chance, but more than likely it wasn’t. But I did not want to play the role of God and stop my own son’s heart from beating.”
Dr. Noria McCarther, maternal-fetal medicine fellow at The University of Kansas Health System, said they monitored Christine closely. Increased amniotic fluid can be a complication of anencephaly, but doctors were able to drain some of that extra fluid during the pregnancy to help keep Christine comfortable. She said, “I’ll never forget Alexander. He is really special.”
Alexander survived to birth, and lived for four minutes after birth. His parents donated all of his organs. According to KCTV, his four heart valves were each donated to other newborns who needed them.
Dr. Sean Kumer, a transplant surgeon and associate chief medical officer at The University of Kansas Health System explained, “We were prepared in advance for this particular situation because it takes a lot of coordination to make the successful transplants. Alexander’s other organs were donated for research, which could potentially save even more lives down the road.”
Alexander’s father and his mother are immensely proud of their son. They knew Alexander’s life was valuable and mattered.
“The hope that we had came true,” Abraham said in an interview with Medical News Network. “And I was beaming because he was still my son and he made it. He made it.”
Christine said, “Alexander means protector of men, and he has lived up to this name. And as far as I’m concerned, he’s not with us today because he’s just too good for this world.”
I know they will be blessed in the future because of this.
If they baptized him properly, he is a saint in Heaven.
Baby baptism does nothing. Children have a grace period.
What a blessing Alexander brought to his parents & to the world!
Oh please use your Holy Spirit led common sense, not stick in the mud, dead church traditions of men! So what if the baby might not have gotten baptized(story doesn’t say)...his body and blood were “given up” to help other lives by his Godly parents in which the mother carried the birth thru full term.. That is Christ in action and thus “baptism” enough! I believe God will resurrect him with a wonderful brain added!
My wonderful mom passed away at the age of 101 and a half a few months ago. Next to her grave is that of a baby boy by the name of Preston who passed away on the day of his birth, January 1, 2021. I always marvel at the wonder of God who knows that one should live a century and more and another whose time is up on this earth in a day or less. The baby’s family are Christians and his dear grave is decorated. one little cross on his grave says “God Keeps His Promises.” I like to think that my mom and little Preston have met in heaven.
Had a niece with that. Same situation. Mom and dad got to rock her for a few minutes before she passed.
Someone needed to inject the pertinent teaching of Holy Mother Church.
It certainly wasn’t going to be either of you.
Somebody needed to remind you that there is a Holy Spirit that also takes care of such contingencies that don’t always fit one’s rigidly held church dogma! Christ wants to save us,,,not bite us, even when occasionally, we get an amen or a rosary bead out of place!
The kid will make it to heaven...just fine!
Ezekiel 18 destroys the doctrine of original sin.
Remind me?
To be clear, it’s the One True Faith your indicting here, not this bag-o-bones.
you’re
The one True faith is sourced from the Word that was with and is God the Father and the Word that was made flesh and the Holy Spirit that guides us!
I’ve been indicting nothing but your stuffy belief that God might not accept a baby without a brain who in death brought life to others, into Heaven because he may or may not have gotten a few drops of Holy Water on his forehead prior to burial! You are wrong and you know it...deep down you know it! It must be hard for you to kick against the goads!
Your argument is with Holy Mother Church, not with This Guy.
Kindly redirect your verbal fire.
“Let it not be said that the sins of the Father set the teeth of the children at edge”.”Every soul that sins shall die”. “The ax is laid at the root”
The leftists especially those who speak in the name of religion of Christ “in name only”...conveniently ignore Ezekiel 18 and a similar Passage in Isaiah that says the same thing. Modern white people must pay the blood guilt caused by the slavery sins of their ancestors. Ezekiel 18 does away with such thinking. Yes we are abliged to work against injustices we encounter in our own life spans but our individual sins our own to be accounted for, not for our children to account for.
My argument is with “the guy” who hides behind what he is calling the “The Holy Mother” church. You...(not “that guy”...what are you Bod Dole?) made the original accusation that I was in a place of error! You back it up!
Bergolio Frances isn’t going to support you...he’s too busy blessing Homosexual unions!
Are you not Catholic?
Small “c” catholic as in one Christian out of the whole body of Christians who might not all share the same denominations but have been saved by Jesus. I don’t necessarily discount all Catholics as not being saved. I assume you are saved, just that we are in disagreement!. I also know history that before the Reformation...the only way people could learn about Christ was either thru Roman Catholicism or thru the Eastern Orthodox Churches or thru some pre-reformation Anabaptist sects.
There’s hope for all of us!
You’ve got more reading to do, mad dog.
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