Trisomy 13 and the grace of God Veronica Hale was a very dedicated woman to her family and to God as well. In 1998, she gave birth to a baby girl with a rare disease known as Trisomy 13. Also referred to as Patau’s syndrome, is holoprosencephaly due to an extra chromosome 13, in which central nervous system defects are associated with mental retardation, along with cleft lip and palate, polydactyly, and dermal pattern anomalies, and abnormalities of the heart, viscera, and genitalia. This genetic disorder is caused by a person having three copies of genetic material from chromosome 13, instead of the usual two copies (V.Hale 2) Veronica was told by many physicians and other medical personnel that ‘these babies don’t live’. Veronica believed all along that her daughter, Molly, would be okay regardless of what the doctors or what anyone else said (V.Hale 1). Veronica began to pray, and ask that God’s will be done in her situation. She asked God to allow her to hold a live baby in her arms when the baby arrived. Veronica did her homework, asking questions of medical personnel, and reading everything she could find about Trisomy babies. She obtained enough knowledge to know that Trisomy 13 babies rarely live to be teenagers, although a small number have been known to do so. She hoped and prayed that her child would be one that survived. She knew that caring for her baby would be very difficult, but she would gladly give of herself and of her time to see this baby survive (O.Lester). The baby would need numerous surgeries, adding to the worrying about the possibility of death. Medical professionals advised Veronica to abort her child, lest something happen to her during labor and delivery. However, her Christian beliefs clearly define abortion as murder; Veronica still chose to carry her child to term and let God be the judge of the outcome. If it was his will, the