Politics More Important Than Faith: Should “Catholic” Rebecca Long-Bailey Win Labour Leadership Race? Really?
Rebecca Long-Bailey has appeared to suggest her politics are more important than her Catholic faith, as she attempted to extinguish a major row over her stance on abortion.
Amid a mounting backlash over her objection to later terminations on the grounds of disability, the Labour leadership frontrunner said that although she prayed to God every day she disagreed with “many” of the Church’s teachings.
Ms Long-Bailey’s attempts to distance herself from the Church carries echoes of the dilemma faced by Tony Blair, who was told by his advisers not to discuss his faith publicly because “We don’t do God” Source – The Telegraph: Labour leadership: Rebecca Long-Bailey says politics comes before her Catholic faith as she tries to extinguish abortion row
Comment:
Before we give Rebecca Long-Bailey a hard time, reflect on two key issues: firstly, she is very young and has grown up at a time when the Church has been – and continues to be – in major crisis. Thus, she clearly does not understand the nature and purpose of the Church, specifically, the role of the Church to protect and proclaim the natural moral law. She doesn’t get it. She doesn’t understand that “The Church” hasn’t made up the moral law. God did that, and authorised His Church to teach, preach, protect and proclaim the moral law.
Secondly, this attitude – that politics is more important than our Catholic Faith – is embedded in many Catholic souls. I’ve had many discussions, some bordering on attempted murder, trying to convince Catholic friends that they cannot go out canvassing for local politicians standing for election for a Party which condones the killing of unborn babies. They think nothing of working to get such MPs elected and then present for Holy Communion at Mass. Incredible. No conflict of conscience whatsoever.
It might be worth contacting Ms Long-Bailey to suggest that she re-consider her priorities because, Christ warned us to be ready for death at any moment – “you do not know the day nor the hour…” and it will not go well for her at her judgment, if she has put her political beliefs and aspirations before the Catholic Faith, given to us by God, so that we may be saved. Click here for contact details...
St Thomas More, pray for her…
Comments (41)
This is nonsense. If you don’t know abortion is wrong when there are pictures of murdered babies all over the internet, then you are heading to Hell. Let’s stop messing around here. Murder of the completely innocent is one of the sins that “cries out to Heaven for vengeance”. She is not just accepting of it in rare circumstances. She wants easy free access to abortion for anyone, at any time and for any reason.
Tony Blair and Rebecca Long Bailey are very likely to burn in Hell for all eternity. As are MANY other people.
History will judge them as evil…
Greg Grimer,
“This is nonsense” – what is nonsense? I don’t understand what you mean.
Michaela,
Long Bailey’s attitude and beliefs are nonsense.
This is very typical of Catholic politicians today. There’s no sign of a new St Thomas More among them. They think they can change the world through politics, but even if they did make improvements in society, they are not guaranteed to last. Even at the next election, their “gains” can be lost. It’s tragic that any Catholic doesn’t realise that.
I could see that Rebecca Long Bailey was weak even before this news, because she was supposed to be so close to Jeremy Corbyn and defended him to the hilt – until the leadership race began. Now she is doing her best to distance herself from him. It’s not surprising because if she is disloyal to God she is not going to be loyal to anyone else, unless it suits her.
Rebecca Long -Bailey has felt the burn of the far looney left ….they are furious with her because she made a comment that wasnt really pro life just a suggestion about poor disabled babies ..and of course horrors of horrors she had spoken to Catholic Clergy …she professes to be Catholic but last night on Channel 4 news it was a very different story like a Rabbit caught in the proverbial headlights i have to ask how does or why does The Catholic Church allow these pick and mix types who want to twist the Churches teachings into what THEY want …she has now joined Pelosi,The Blairs, Melinda Gates of Hell,and many others whose mouths and lips should NEVER touch the Holy Bread and Wine appalling
Wendy Walker,
I seem to recall Editor saying the you aren’t a Catholic, but in case she was wrong (perish the thought, LOL!) I feel I need to point out that Catholics don’t speak of the Blessed Sacrament as “Holy Bread and Wine” – but as Holy Communion, because when the priest prays the words of consecration over the bread and wine, they become, really and truly, the Body, Blood, Soul and Divinity of Christ, although they remain under the appearance of bread and wine.
I hope it’s OK to post one of my favourite hymns to the Blessed Sacrament here – if Rebecca Long Bailey visits this thread it might remind her that she is adding to Our Lord’s Passion by her public rejection of God’s law, and by abusing her position as a Catholic in public life, giving the impression that we can pick and choose the bits of faith and morals we want to accept. That’s not faith!
Dear Margaret Mary thank you for the information regarding Holy Communion…and no I am not a Catholic I am grateful to you
https://www.channel4.com/news/long-bailey-and-thornberry-launch-labour-leadership-bids
Wendy Walker 95
That video of Rebecca Long Bailey speaking to Channel 4 News is very revealing indeed. She is obviously a politicians first and puts religion second – she really isn’t a Catholic.
https://www.politicshome.com/news/uk/political-parties/labour-party/opinion/house-commons/109176/mike-kane-and-conor-mcginn-anti
“Should Rrebecca Long Bailey win the Labour leadership race?”
No, no, no!
Anyone who is wrong thinking on an issue as basic as the right of the unborn child to continue his/her journey into the world, isn’t going to be right thinking about other major issues.
I didn’t know she was a Catholic. That really says it all – none of the so-called Catholic MPs stand out for their Catholicism, and that, really, is what we are supposed to do.
There are only a handful of pro-life Labour MPs, Rachael Maskell, Mike Kane and Mary Glindon. Formerly, Joe Benton, Jim Dobbin and the Mahon brothers were fine pro-life Catholic MPs. The former three voted against extending abortion and same sex ‘marriages’ to Ulster. There are more pro-life Tory MPs, but there are some, such as Bernard Jenkin, who wants decriminalisation. I think the Lib Dems are the same.
On this side of the pond, the “mainstream” Church is full of Catholics who vote for pro-abortion politicians, as well as being full of Catholic politicians who think they can separate their “private” beliefs from their “public” beliefs. Pro-abortion, by the way, is a permanent plank in the agenda of the Democrat Party.
I’ve had several discussions with some Catholic Democrat voters at the food pantry where I volunteer. They are blind to the evil of their position, and the eternal danger to their souls. Part of the problem appears to be that they think the Democrat Party is still the party of the working man, whereas the Republican Party is allegedly the party of the rich and the cold-hearted conservative.
This false separation started with John Kennedy, I believe, in his response to those who claimed that if he were elected, the presidency would be controlled by the Vatican.
To append to St Thomas More’s sentiments above, I’d like to add something else said by George MacDonald (not a Catholic but a religious man, not to mention, a grossly underrated and under-valued Scottish writer). He said, “It is not in the nature of politics that the best man should be elected. The best men do not want to govern their fellow men”. I find much truth in these attitudes. I remember a few years back, a LibDem MP and Government Minister, Sarah Teather, gave up politics after some spiritual guidance whilst attending a Jesuit retreat. She said that she simply could not continue to be an MP whilst following Christ. It really begs the question: can a true follower of Christ also be a politician? I don’t think so. You simply cannot have it both ways. You are either of the world, or in the world. Long-Bailey has chosen the latter. Let’s hope and pray she has a re-think.
Marc,
Sarah Teather also voted against same sex marriage, as it was incompatible with her Catholic Faith.
CC,
Eventually, if my memory serves me correctly. Only “eventually” – I think she ducked and dived for a bit, to try to appease the LGBT+ brigade.
CC1
If i remember correctly, Ruth Kelly MP did likewise and for the same reason. I can’t recall if Secretary of State for Scotland Des Browne did but, I do remember all three voting in favour of reducing the abortion limit from 24 to 12 weeks which, although not ideal, would have been a step in the right direction. Alas, the motion failed.
Yes, Paul Murphy did too, as he was also one of the 22 Labour MPs who opposed same sex marriage. Anyway, here is my email to Rebecca Long Bailey:
I am sending you this email regarding your recent comments on abortion and your Catholic Faith. In an election Q and A with the the Deanery of St John the Evangelist, you stated that you are Catholic and that your faith “when I wonder if I am making the right decisions, my faith is often the only thing that keeps me going”. Later, you were asked about abortion, and you stated that Labour supported a woman’s reproductive rights and decriminalise abortions. Labour’s proposals would have allowed abortions up to birth. This is the manifesto you supported, and yet you questioned the disparity between the time limit for disabled and non-disabled babies, for which you were hounded by the pro-abortion side. You claim to be a Catholic and yet you support legalised abortion. I do not understand how a Catholic could say such a thing. Your Catholicism motivates you to create a society based on love, but abortion is the most hateful and ugly crime on earth.
Wilful murder, according to Catholic doctrine, is a sin that cries out to Heaven for vengeance. Abortion is the deliberate extinction of an innocent human life, which begins at conception. Countless scientists have attested to this, notably Keith L Moore, who said “Human development begins at fertilization, the process during which a male gamete or sperm (spermatozoon development) unites with a female gamete or oocyte (ovum) to form a single cell called a zygote. This highly specialized, totipotent cell marked the beginning of each of us as a unique individual.” The Bible expresses in beautiful language the life in the womb. Psalm 126 says “Behold the inheritance of the Lord are children: the reward, the fruit of the womb” and Jeremiah 1 says “Before I formed thee in the bowels of thy mother, I knew thee”. Likewise, when the Blessed Virgin visited her cousin St Elizabeth, and greeted her, Elizabeth’s unborn child, St John the Baptist ‘leaped for joy’ in her womb. Abortion has been denounced by the Popes, notably Pius IX, Paul VI, John Paul II and recently Pope Francis as murder and a grave moral evil. The Catechism states that abortion and infanticide are abominable crimes and canon law states that one who partakes of a grave moral evil and is in a state of mortal sin should abstain from Holy Communion.
Motivated by charity and concern for your soul and it’s eternal fate, I appeal to you to withdraw from the leadership election as your salvation is at stake. Your moral compass should compel to oppose abortion if you are a Catholic. These are not man-made doctrines. They are the laws of God and are immutable. The Pope could not change them if he wanted. The Labour Party cannot come before Catholicism. One changes with the times and may lead you away from God, but the other is necessary for Salvation and outside of which none can be saved.
I ask you to reflect on this.
CC,
Excellent! That is a spectacular email and one which, I hope and pray, touches Rebecca’s heart and makes her think seriously about her position.
Either, as you say, withdraw from the race or – and this would be marvellous – state openly and very publicly that, on reflection, she realises that she cannot support the so-called “woman’s right to choose” and if she is elected leader, she will institute a national survey of public opinion to see what people NOW think of abortion. This is, in fact, not really anything to do with her religion – it is about morality and people of every religion and none are opposed to the murder of the unborn. Because the Catholic Church speaks out in adherence to the moral law, it is referred to as a “Catholic” issue. It’s not. So, arguing for a re-think, an examination of the issues surrounding the legalisation of abortion, might, in fact, help her leadership pitch. I have a hunch that the majority of people are against this “procedure” and if I’m wrong, then being presented with the facts, with visual evidence of the reality of the humanity of the unborn child, would certainly win many to the pro-life cause.
After all, those who campaigned for a second referendum on Brexit, did so because, they claimed, we have more information now, three years on, than we had when we voted in the EU referendum in 2016. Well, we definitely DO know more now about life in the womb than we did over 50 years ago when the 1967 Abortion Act came into law.
Again – well done. Your email is truly thought-provoking and I know we will all pray that it has the intended effect.
Catholic Convert 1,
Did you get a reply from Rebecca Long Bailey?
Marc,
My memory of Ruth Kelly is that, shockingly, she publicly stated that her Catholic faith would not interfere with her duties as Secretary of State of Education, and this in the context of questions about sex education:
Asked whether her religious beliefs would affect her stance on the Government’s sex education programme, which includes advocating condoms and contraception, Miss Kelly told the Daily Mirror: “We have an established Government policy on that. I came here to do a job, which is about raising standards in schools.
https://www.telegraph.co.uk/education/educationnews/3348967/Kelly-plays-down-Opus-Dei-link.html
This “it’s established government policy” is the same excuse used by the “traditional” Catholic Jacob Rees Mogg MP in TV interviews with Sky News, GMB (Piers Morgan) and Jeremy Vine (channel 5) – all available to watch on this blog somewhere (!) and on YouTube – when he assured viewers that he would not be seeking to change either the abortion laws (though he personally disapproves) or the law on same-sex marriage. Yet, no doubt he could recount the history of Sir Thomas More’s bravery in accepting martyrdom rather than deny Christ’s authority; he forgets, sadly, that this authority extends to the Church’s duty to defend and proclaim God’s moral law. .
Not one Catholic politician with the moral courage to say that, if elected to Government, (s)he would work to test public opinion on abortion and same-sex “marriage” – it’s really very sad and shows a lack of faith that God is never outdone in generosity. He would reward such a politician richly, who showed such courage.
Ed on so called Homosexual Marriage, my then MP called me up and asked if I would be Voting for Him in the upcoming General Election at that time . I said no as He had Voted for so called Homosexual Marriage. His excuse was that his conscience told him to Vote No but that the Party Whip had ordered him to Vote yes . I told him that that was no Reason or Excuse and that He should have Voted according to his Conscience for after all he was a Catholic. The same applies to this Woman ( to be Honest though I had never heard of Her until now ) and personally don’t think very much of mealy mouthed answers that so called Catholic Politicians give especially on Abortion . There is as we know no ambiguity as far as Abortion is concerned it’s Either Yes or No . On a final script my Daughter is Pregnant and will have to give up a very good and well paid job . Will it be Easy , no it will not . Will it be Hard most certainly Yes . No one in Life said anything that is good will be easy . Staying on the same subject I just read on LSN where 44 so called Catholic Professors at a so called Catholic University objected to the Film Unplanned being shown on campus. Most if not all of these Professors are Young and Childless. It would do them good to ponder their Future. Pardon the Pun but like Me You also know that if we’re lucky We all get Old . It would do these Professors good at least on the physical side to ponder that when they get too old someone will have to look after them as we all know Nature can be cruel at times. If the Old Professors cannot get someone to look after them in extreme Old Age they’ll know it’s because they all wanted them Aborted.
Marc,
That’s a brilliant quote from George MacDonald – and it is very true.
Years ago, I found a terrific quote about the futility of politics, but, try as I have done (I’ve Googled the subject to death) but I just can’t find it.
Thanks to all who have commented so far… All very interesting, indeed.
I’ve emailed Rebecca Long-Bailey now, so for the record – and to help would-be plagiarists! – Here it is:
Dear Ms Long Bailey,
For your interest and, I hope, information, we are discussing the publicity surrounding your recent comments as a Catholic who supports abortion, on the Catholic Truth blog. You can read the comments at the following link.
https://catholictruthblog.com/2020/01/18/politics-more-important-than-faith-should-catholic-rebecca-long-bailey-win-labour-leadership-race-really/
A number of key points have already been made (the thread is only a few hours old) and our poll queries whether or not it is actually possible for a person of true integrity to be a politician. The majority of voters think “no” at this point.
The example of Sir/Saint Thomas More reveals that it is, indeed, possible to be faithful to God and His Laws, but only, it seems if the politician is convinced of the truths of the Faith and willing to sacrifice self-interest. Sir/Saint Thomas More is remembered because he stood out from the rest of the lawyers and politicians of his day because of his integrity and strong Catholic Faith.
As I noted in my comment piece (see link above), Christ warned us to be prepared always to meet God at our judgment, because death can come at any time: “…you do not know the day nor the hour” (Matthew 24:42). Thus, with all due respect, Ms Long Bailey, no Catholic should prioritise a mere job, however apparently important in worldly terms, over fidelity to God’s natural moral law, which requires the protection of human life from conception to natural death. All the human rights on offer, from jobs to housing to state benefits and pensions, are of no use whatsoever to those most vulnerable of human beings – the babies at risk from being killed in their mother’s womb. Without the basic right to be born, other rights are of no importance whatsoever and it is noteworthy that no unborn child has ever had the chance to choose or reject his/her right to life. Future generations will look back in sheer horror at the fact that we permitted the state sanctioned killing of vulnerable human beings (and who are more vulnerable?) for no other reason than the mother wanted rid of the child – the so-called “woman’s right to choose”.
Pope John Paul II, in his encyclical Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life) wrote that the time has come to call things by their proper name: abortion is murder. I will provide the link to that encyclical below, but I hope you don’t mind if I quote a chunk of that passage (#58) for ease of reference:
58. Among all the crimes which can be committed against life, procured abortion has characteristics making it particularly serious and deplorable. The Second Vatican Council defines abortion, together with infanticide, as an “unspeakable crime”.54
But today, in many people’s consciences, the perception of its gravity has become progressively obscured. The acceptance of abortion in the popular mind, in behaviour and even in law itself, is a telling sign of an extremely dangerous crisis of the moral sense, which is becoming more and more incapable of distinguishing between good and evil, even when the fundamental right to life is at stake. Given such a grave situation, we need now more than ever to have the courage to look the truth in the eye and to call things by their proper name, without yielding to convenient compromises or to the temptation of self-deception. In this regard the reproach of the Prophet is extremely straightforward: “Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness” (Is 5:20). Especially in the case of abortion there is a widespread use of ambiguous terminology, such as “interruption of pregnancy”, which tends to hide abortion’s true nature and to attenuate its seriousness in public opinion. Perhaps this linguistic phenomenon is itself a symptom of an uneasiness of conscience. But no word has the power to change the reality of things: procured abortion is the deliberate and direct killing, by whatever means it is carried out, of a human being in the initial phase of his or her existence, extending from conception to birth.
The moral gravity of procured abortion is apparent in all its truth if we recognize that we are dealing with murder and, in particular, when we consider the specific elements involved. The one eliminated is a human being at the very beginning of life. No one more absolutely innocent could be imagined. In no way could this human being ever be considered an aggressor, much less an unjust aggressor! He or she is weak, defenceless, even to the point of lacking that minimal form of defence consisting in the poignant power of a newborn baby’s cries and tears. The unborn child is totally entrusted to the protection and care of the woman carrying him or her in the womb. And yet sometimes it is precisely the mother herself who makes the decision and asks for the child to be eliminated, and who then goes about having it done. (emphasis added.)
http://www.vatican.va/content/john-paul-ii/en/encyclicals/documents/hf_jp-ii_enc_25031995_evangelium-vitae.html
I sincerely hope that you will re-think your position, and I offer the prayerful support of our bloggers to that end.
God bless you – and He will, if you end the scandal of a Catholic betraying His Moral Law.
Kind regards.
[Name],
Editor
Catholic Truth
Editor,
Did you get a reply from Rebecca Long Bailey?
It seems that I am in the minority when I voted that it is possible for a Catholic to be also a politician. I was thinking of the likes of St. Thomas Moore. I know that I would be most unlikely to be elected because I would make my Catholicism crystal clear to the electorate.
May I add a particular bit to some of your commenters above and that is, that it is not a very good idea to say outright that X or Y or Z is going to hell. We don’t know who is going to hell. That judgement is made by God alone. We can say that a particular point of view or a particular action is putting someone in danger of being sent to hell unless they mend their ways and conform to God’s Law. But that is not the same as saying that they are going to hell.
I had to say to someone only a couple of days ago that a young man who threw himself in front of a train at the beginning of the week may very well not be judged by God as a suicide since he was a very outspoken pro-life student, well known for his generosity and his care of the poor and his volunteering for working in a soup-kitchen at weekends. He had just received an enormous amount of hate-mail after he had had a large run-in with a transgenderite who was reading stories to very young children in a public library. It appears that all this was preying on his mind and he just jumped in front of a train. We don’t know how God judged him but I have no hesitation in praying for the repose of his soul. By the way he was a very good practicing Catholic and a mid-week Mass attender.
John
I remember the days when a fatal accident enquiry would have come up with the verdict that a person who took his own life had the “balance of his mind disturbed”.
I’m sure that God, in his justice, will have taken that into consideration when judging
this poor soul and many others.
I hope so anyway.
John,
I have searched the thread to see who said that X, Y or Z is going to Hell but the closest I can find is a mention of two pro-abortion Catholic politicians “who are very likely” to go to Hell.
That’s the case, sadly, without genuine repentance – “very likely” is not a definitive judgment. Not the same as saying “IS” going to Hell.
And the fact is, an awful lot of so-called Catholics are, indeed, very likely to end up in Hell.
St Leonard of Port Maurice preached a powerful sermon on the “little number of those who are saved” -and we can take it, that was even before legalised abortion and infanticide became the norm.
https://www.olrl.org/snt_docs/fewness.shtml
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7903179/Rebecca-Long-Baileys-clashes-aide-regressive-abortion-views.html
I’ve seen Rebecca several times being interviewed on television and she comes across as a nice person. I think that the problem with her generation is that they have never been properly formed in the Faith. They think that the Catholic church makes up the rules and they are then free to pick and mix. They simply don’t realise that the Church is simply passing on what Jesus preached and also developing (inspired by the Holy spirit) on that same doctrine as the age requires. Therefore it follows that a Catholic is NOT free to pick and mix but must except the teachings of Jesus, passed down through the apostolic succession.
I hope Rebecca looks into this and and aligns her beliefs to those of Our Lord.
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/debate/article-7906023/DOMINIC-LAWSON-surprising-Im-feeling-sympathy-Rebecca-Long-Bailey.html
Wendy Walker,
That’s a fabulous article by Dominic Lawson, speaking about his Down’s Syndrome daughter. I’ve met parents of Down’s children and they all say the same – that they are very happy children. I was gob-smacked to read the findings of a study into the lives of DS and I picked out this extract to quote here:
” 99 per cent of people with DS indicated that they were happy with their lives, 97 per cent liked who they are, and 96 per cent liked how they look.’ You wouldn’t get anything like such positive feelings from a similar questionnaire among ‘normal’ people.”
That’s just beyond belief given the way doctors treat DS as a “must be aborted” category when it’s detected before birth. Shame on them.
That whole article is well worth reading – it’s so refreshing to read the opposite of what we are always told by medics and the media about DS, as if it was a total disaster and means a terrible existence, not a life worth living, ahead. Like I say, they should be ashamed.
I am sorry to say that our Editor is having problems with her compute and will be offline for the next two days.
People like Long-Bailey have no credibility. Even before she was attacked over this, she had already voted for abortion on occasions and so had already surrendered as such. These attacks are not to challenge her opinion as much as they are to remind her that she is not permitted to dissent even privately.
Crofterlady makes a good point in that people who have not been properly formed in the faith (i.e. most people today) often genuinely do believe that it is possible to be a Catholic ‘privately’ while publicly supporting all kinds of evil.
However, whatever the reason so-called Christian politicians have for running with the hares and hunting with the hounds, it is unacceptable and untenable.
I am sure the first Catholic politician to unashamedly affirm the Christian position and the value of human life would be well received. People tend to respect sincerity, even if they do not agree. But they do not respect cowardice, hesitancy or double-speak (look at the fate of evangelical Tim Farron).
The actor Laurence Fox showed a few days ago (on ‘Question Time’) that it is possible to openly rubbish taboos and speak the truth plainly. His open disdain for “woke culture” and the contrived rubbish it thrives on has been warmly received, not least by the public.
Gabriel Syme,
I totally agree with you that a Catholic politician who showed integrity and was not afraid to state the truth about abortion or anything else, would get public support. There was a time when Jacob Rees-Mogg was getting huge support from the public to stand for PM, even as a back-bencher, so much so it was mentioned in Parliament. It’s a pity Rebecca Long Bailey can’t see that, which is because spiritual blindness comes when a person rejects God’s Laws – they fail to trust in Divine Providence.
I actually hope that Long-Bailey does win. Not because of her views on abortion – all of the candidates are pro-abortion, you can be sure of that. The reason I want her to win is that with her at the helm, Labour will definitely be consigned to the dustbin of history. She’s a raving Corbynite and we saw how well he and his policies fared at the last election.
Westminster Fly,
That’s sound very Machiavellian LOL!
LOL – yes, that definitely is Machiavellian from Westminster Fly!
I’ve just checked the voting poll and still a majority saying no, you cannot be a true person of integrity and a politician. It means that any true person of integrity will be hounded out of office. However, Christ warned us of that danger when he said “What does it profit a man if he win the whole world and suffer the loss of his own soul.” Not worth the highest office in the world, IMHO.
I agree that Rebecca Long Bailey is “nice” but that is not going to get her into Heaven, unfortunately. There are plenty of “nice” sinners but maybe now that she’s read this thread (and I’m sure she will have done) she will be closer to putting her soul right before God asap.
https://catholicherald.co.uk/magazine/misogynistic-thugs-of-the-vatican-labours-extraordinary-abortion-row/
https://www.abc.net.au/radionational/programs/religionandethicsreport/rebecca-long-baileys-views-on-abortion/11931892
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