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KNIGHTSOFCOLUMBUS

january 2018 ♦ V o l u M e 9 8 ♦ n u M B e r 1 COLUMBIA

FEATURES 8 A Movement Is Born 22 The Converts of Roe v. Wade From a grassroots meeting in a Washington living Two pivotal figures who fought for rights room, the has helped mobilize became passionately pro-life. generations to defend human life. BY CAROLEE MCGRATH BY JOHN BURGER 30 Life, We Stand on Guard for Thee 18 Pro-Life From Coast to Coast On Parliament Hill and across the provinces, Dozens of annual marches demonstrate the momen- Canadians stand together in defense of life. tum of the pro-life movement across the United States. BY COLLEEN ROULEAU BY JOSEPH PRONECHEN 32 Marches for Life Go Global 21 San Francisco’s Witness to Life Undaunted by challenges, the international pro-life The annual Walk for Life West Coast thrives — and heals movement grows in strength and solidarity. — in a hostile environment. BY CORINNA TURNER BY GIBBONS COONEY

DEPARTMENTS 34Building a better world Learning the faith, 6 Knights of Columbus News The teachings of living the faith Knights Provide Kids With and advancements in the science of Reflecting on questions about the Warmth on Black Friday • Francis- fertility can help us build a culture dignity of life can lead us to God’s cans Honor Order’s Work for Per- of life. goodness and love. secuted Christians • K of C Short BY SUPREME KNIGHT CARL A ANDERSON . BY SUPREME CHAPLAIN Films Win Emmy Awards • Order ARCHBISHOP WILLIAM E. LORI Sponsors Week of Awareness Cam- PLUS: Catholic Man of the Month paign for Persecuted Christians Photo by Matthew Barrick

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EDITORIAL COLUMBIA

PUBLISHER Knights of Columbus The Momentum of the March ______IT WAS a bitterly cold January morn- couple of days in January. For exam- SUPREME OFFICERS Carl A. Anderson ing. We had hardly slept. Our hands ple, every Saturday morning, rain or SUPREME KNIGHT and feet were growing more numb by shine, we prayed the rosary outside of Most Rev. William E. Lori, S.T.D. the minute. Still, there was no place we an abortion facility in Lansing, and I SUPREME CHAPLAIN Patrick E. Kelly would rather be — standing on the used my first marathon as an opportu- DEPUTY SUPREME KNIGHT National Mall, waiting for the March nity to raise money for a local preg- Michael J. O’Connor for Life to begin. nancy help center. SUPREME SECRETARY Ronald F. Schwarz It has now been more than 15 years Each year, tens of thousands of SUPREME TREASURER since I first participated in the annual young people are similarly inspired to John A. Marrella SUPREME ADVOCATE march. Our relatively small group, in- greater witness as a result of attending ______cluding a handful of early 20-some- the March for Life or other pro-life EDITORIAL things like me, had arrived the previous marches throughout North America Alton J. Pelowski afternoon after a 10-hour van ride from and the world. This is one reason why EDITOR Andrew J. Matt Michigan. We then participated in the the pro-life movement, especially in the MANAGING EDITOR Vigil Mass for Life at the Basilica of the United States, has seen such tremen- Anna M. Bninski National Shrine of the Immaculate dous growth. ASSOCIATE EDITOR Conception, and I was deeply struck by A few years ago, the abortion facility the sight of hundreds of bishops and where my friends and I used to pray priests processing in, while the basilica permanently closed, and, with the dio- was filled to capacity. cese’s permission, it then became a pro- Following the Mass, an energetic un- life clinic. Young people from the area derclassman named Rachel ran ahead of now fill charter buses, not vans, to come our van, leading us to The Catholic to the annual march in Washington. Venerable Michael McGivney (1852-90) Apostle to the Young, University of America’s athletic center. And Rachel, the CUA student who Protector of Christian Family Life and There, after a bite to eat and a period of helped us find our way, is now a pro- Founder of the Knights of Columbus, Intercede for Us. eucharistic adoration, we managed to fessed member of the . ______find some remaining floor space for our In anticipation of the 45th anniver- HOW TO REACH US sleeping bags among hundreds of other sary of Roe v. Wade Jan. 22 and the 44th MAIL young people. Following a joyful and March for Life in Washington Jan. 19, COLUMBIA 1 Columbus Plaza prayerful March for Life the next day, this issue of Columbia is dedicated to New Haven, CT 06510-3326 we packed into the van and drove back telling the story of this growing, increas- ADDRESS CHANGES 203-752-4210, option #3 to Michigan through the snow. ingly global movement. It is a story that [email protected] My friends and I were inspired by has not yet reached its climax, as pro-life PRAYER CARDS & SUPPLIES what we experienced during our brief marches have become larger, younger 203-752-4214 COLUMBIA INQUIRIES trip to Washington. We had a better and more dynamic, imbued with the joy 203-752-4398 sense of our calling to be truly pro-life and creativity of a new generation ded- FAX — and we became more strongly com- icated to defending human life.♦ 203-752-4109 K OF C CUSTOMER SERVICE mitted to promoting the dignity of 1-800-380-9995 every human person in our words and ALTON J. PELOWSKI E-MAIL actions throughout the year, not just a EDITOR [email protected] INTERNET kofc.org/columbia ______Pledge to Our Lady of Guadalupe Membership in the Knights of Columbus is open to men 18 years of age or older who are practical (that is, practicing) THE VIRGIN MARY, under her title Our Lady of Catholics in union with the Holy See. This means that an applicant or member accepts the teaching authority of the Guadalupe, is widely recognized as patroness of the pro-life Catholic Church on matters of faith and morals, aspires to movement. A folded prayer card featuring a Prayer for Life live in accord with the precepts of the Catholic Church, and is in good standing in the Catholic Church. that concludes and a Pledge to Our Lady of ______Guadalupe to defend human life is available from the Knights Copyright © 2018 All rights reserved of Columbus Supply Department (#9754). Signed copies of ______the pledge may be sent to the Basilica of Our Lady of ON THE COVER Guadalupe in Mexico City via the Supreme Council. Mary Forr, director of the Department of Life Issues for

the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C., is pictured in COVER: Photo by Greg Gibson front of the U.S. Supreme Court building.

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BUILDINGABETTERWORLD The Gift of Life The teachings of Humanae Vitae and advancements in the science of fertility can help us build a

by Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson

AS WE PREPARE to observe the 45th boundaries of even the most imagina- anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court’s tive science fiction writers. Roe v. Wade decision, another anniver- Pope Francis, in his encyclical Laudato sary comes to mind. July will mark 50 Si’, wrote this: “The acceptance of our years since Blessed Pope Paul VI’s 1968 bodies as God’s gift is vital for welcoming Drs. John and Evelyn Billings welcomed encyclical, Humanae Vitae, on the regu- and accepting the entire world as a gift Humanae Vitae and supported its teach- lation of birth. from the Father and our common home, ing with a natural method of fertility The legacies of both are related to ex- whereas thinking that we enjoy absolute management now known as the Billings traordinary scientific advances that power over our own bodies turns, often Ovulation Method. opened up new technological means to subtly, into thinking that we enjoy ab- Just last year, the European Union control the transmission of human life. solute power over creation” (155). certified a new mobile app that uses an When the Supreme Court revisited Science and technology will confront algorithm developed by a Nobel Prize- Roe in the 1992 Planned Parenthood v. us with new questions about what it winning physicist to measure a woman’s Casey decision, the 5-4 majority body temperature to accurately argued that Roe could not be predict ovulation. According overturned because, for two Humanae Vitae proclaims to one English news source, decades, people had made the app, known as Natural Cy- choices about their lives and in- that each person is worthy cles, “could spell the end for timate relationships “in reliance to be loved and respected hormonal and intrusive birth on the availability of abortion control measures.” in the event that contraception for his own sake. Such a result would come should fail.” not a moment too soon. The Pope Paul had a very different World Health Organization response to such challenges — one that means to be human. And the answers will has classified estrogen-progestogen oral has been described as “Christian person- be increasingly difficult as the line be- contraceptives as Group 1 carcinogens. alism.” In Humanae Vitae, he wrote this tween reality and virtual reality is blurred. That means they are known to be car- about married love: “Husband and wife Today, as in 1968, Humanae Vitae is cinogenic for women, increasing their become in a way one heart and one soul, an important part of the Church’s re- risk of liver, cervical and breast cancer. and together attain their human fulfill- sponse. Unfortunately, some will use the Natural family planning methods ment. It is a love that is total. … Who- occasion of the anniversary to reignite encourage women to better under- ever really loves his partner loves not only old controversies, but this approach will stand the delicate natural processes of for what he receives, but loves that part- miss its enduring value. their bodies. They encourage better ner for the partner’s sake” (9). St. John Paul II promoted Humanae communication and respect between Humanae Vitae proclaims that each Vitae, though he thought that further husbands and wives. person is worthy to be loved and re- explanation was needed for its teach- Perhaps this new “science” of the spected for his own sake and possesses a ings to gain wider acceptance. That is body will enable a new generation of dignity that is inviolable. This procla- one reason why he developed a “theol- Catholic spouses to live an authentic mation is more necessary today than ogy of the body,” and why he devoted theology of the body in their marriages ever as scientific experiments in areas so much time to it. and will help the world rediscover the such as artificial intelligence, robotics But already in 1968, natural family dignity of human life and love. and genetic manipulation push past planning advocates such as my friends Vivat Jesus!

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LEARNING THE FAITH, LIVING THE FAITH

Conversion to the Gospel of Life Reflecting on questions about the dignity of life can lead us to God’s goodness and love

by Supreme Chaplain Archbishop William E. Lori

THE SPIRIT of the annual March this process of conversion takes place for Life in Washington, D.C., is ex- within us on three levels — intellec- traordinary. It is not only peaceful but tual, moral and religious. also full of hope and joy. It is forward- looking as it seeks to create a culture SEEKING TRUTH question the rhetoric and hype that of life and love. And while it draws We commonly think of conversion we hear and see. people of all ages, the crowd tends to solely as a religious experience, such as Many people who once considered be young, including many millennials coming to faith in Christ or convert- themselves avidly “pro-choice” arrived and young families. Standing in the ing to Catholicism. Yet conversion has at a point in their lives when they crowd, you feel as though you’re at a other meanings as well. In general, it started asking questions about argu- version of World Youth Day — filled is a change of direction in our lives ments for abortion, leading them to with the conviction that human life is that takes us beyond ourselves, beyond ultimately change their minds. At a God’s precious gift and that each per- our limited point of view, beyond our certain point, they took seriously the son, from the moment of conception, purely personal interests — or, as Pope philosophical arguments and scien- is endowed by the Creator with tific evidence advanced in favor inviolable dignity and, indeed, of the humanity of the unborn “a right to life.” Once life is understood as a child. For others, the break- When I attend the March for through experience came when Life each January, I invariably precious gift, many are struck they actually saw an unborn catch a cold, but it’s worth it. I child via an ultrasound ma- come home with a renewed de- by the thought that God loves chine. Indeed, this is the case termination to resist what Pope what he has made. for many as a result of the Francis calls “the throwaway Knights of Columbus Ultra- culture” and to foster genuine sound Initiative. love and respect for human life, espe- Francis would say, beyond our com- cially when it is defenseless. fort zone. It is a shift that leads us to MOVED TO GRATITUDE I often ask myself what draws so strive to be better, more authentic ver- A change of mind often leads to a many people to this event. What sions of ourselves. change in one’s actions, to moral makes them travel great distances, Conversion is thus a common conversion — to a different way of spend sleepless nights on buses, and human experience. And as noted understanding, judging and acting. stand for hours on cold, soggy above, it often occurs on three levels As a rule, people see themselves as ground? Is it merely a political move- in our lives. Let’s look at all three to reasonable and conscientious. When ment, or is it something more? The understand more deeply the ways in individuals take that view of them- answer, I think, is that the Lord is at which people can be converted to the selves seriously, they may arrive at a work in the minds and hearts of these truth and beauty of the Gospel of Life. point when they become uncomfort- good people and many more like First, intellectual conversion begins able making decisions and acting them. The word for it has to be “con- when we start asking questions and solely on the basis of what they think version” — the Lord is converting challenging assumptions. We begin to is in their best interest. They start minds and hearts to the Gospel of wonder whether what we had as- thinking not only about their own Life. And I would further offer that sumed to be true is in fact true. We problems, comfort or convenience.

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LEARNING THE FAITH, LIVING THE FAITH

They start asking about what really thing deeper may be going on in the humanity; thanking him for calling us matters, what is really important in depths of their being — namely, a to friendship with himself. life. In other words, they become genuine religious conversion. After Thus, intellectual convictions and concerned about virtues and values. all, once life is understood as a pre- moral choices in favor of life become When people become convinced of cious gift, many are struck by the surrounded by God’s grace and love. the value of human life, they may be thought that God loves what he has This experience transforms us deeply led to make difficult choices. Their made. From there, it is a short step and fills our pro-life advocacy with newfound support for the cause of life to thank the Creator for the gift of genuine love of God and neighbor. may alienate friends and colleagues. A life and, in so doing, to fall in love We then become not only advocates woman experiencing a difficult preg- with him. for life but also witnesses to the God nancy may find the courage to bring We are prompted to believe in, of love who created and redeemed us. her child to term in spite of her fam- trust and worship the living God, This, I think, explains the joy I ex- ily’s opposition. thanking him for creating each person perience each year when I take part in Even as individuals undergo intel- in his image; thanking him for send- the March for Life. I hope you’ll ex- lectual and moral conversion, some- ing his Son to assume and redeem our perience that same joy!♦

HOLY FATHER’S CATHOLICMANOFTHEMONTH PRAYER INTENTION St. Gerard Majella Offered in (1726-1755) Solidarity with Pope Francis GERARD MAJELLA was born April 6, 1726, to devout Catholic parents in RELIGIOUS MINORITIES IN Muro Lucano, Italy, east of Naples. ASIA: That Christians, and other Left fatherless at age 12, Majella be- religious minorities in Asian coun- came a tailor’s apprentice to help sup- tries, may be able to practice their port his mother and three sisters. He faith in full freedom. eventually opened his own shop and divided his earnings between his fam- ily and the poor. Majella was drawn to religious life from a young age. At 14, he was de- nied admission to the Capuchins be- during his lifetime, and many sought cause of his youth. He later tried to his spiritual direction. When a woman join the Redemptorists, who were falsely accused him of breaking his conducting parish missions in the re- vow of chastity, he did not defend gion, but the superior rejected him himself but obediently accepted the due to frail health. Undeterred, he penance assigned him by St. Alphon- pursued the missioners for 12 miles as sus until his accuser recanted. they left his town. “Take me on, give Majella died of tuberculosis Oct. 16, me a try,” he urged, “and then send 1755, at age 29. Many turned to him me away if I’m no good.” The superior as a powerful intercessor after his relented and sent him to the Redemp- death. Most famously, a young preg- torist novitiate. nant woman having a very difficult Majella joyfully served the commu- labor prayed with a handkerchief that nity as a porter, sacristan, tailor and in- he had given to her. Her pain immedi- firmarian. In 1752, he made final ately ceased, and her child was born religious vows in the presence of the healthy. Canonized in 1904 by Pope order’s founder, St. Alphonsus Liguori. Pius X, St. Gerard Majella is a patron Brother Gerard became widely of expectant mothers, unborn children known as a miracle worker and mystic and the pro-life movement.♦ POPE FRANCIS: CNS photo/Paul Haring

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KNIGHTSOFCOLUMBUSNEWS Knights Provide Kids With Warmth on Black Friday

Supreme Treasurer Ron Schwarz helps a girl try on a new winter coat at St. John the Baptist Church in New Haven, Conn. The Knights of Columbus Coats for Kids event was one of several to take place in Connecticut on Black Friday, Nov. 24, making it a day for charity rather than consumerism. Similar events took place on Black Friday in eight other states and Washington, D.C., with additional distributions in the weeks that followed. Since the Coats for Kids program began in 2009, K of C councils in cold weather cities throughout the United States and Canada have given more than 400,000 new coats to children in need.

Franciscans Honor Order’s Work K of C Short Films for Persecuted Christians Win Emmy Awards

TWO KNIGHTS of Columbus- produced documentary shorts earned recognition at the 59th an- nual Chicago/Midwest Emmy Awards Dec. 2. The winning films Father Francesco Patton, O.F.M., custos of the Holy Land, and Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson were produced for World Youth Day display the Grato Animo Award in Washington, D.C., Nov. 11. 2016 and featured at the Mercy Centre, the K of C-sponsored inter- IN RECOGNITION of the work of Father Dunham said he was grate- national English-language catechet- the Knights of Columbus to end the ful that the Knights of Columbus ical and youth festival site at the persecution of Christians and other took up the cause of Middle Eastern Tauron Arena Kraków. religious minorities in the Middle Christians in addition to the Order’s The Emmys were awarded in two East, Supreme Knight Carl A. Ander- many other charitable activities. categories: Outstanding Achievement son was awarded the Custody of the “We Franciscans sometimes feel a for Interview/Discussion Program- Holy Land’s Grato Animo Award. little bit alone,” he said. “Who is pay- ming for The Testimony of Father Father Larry Dunham, guardian of ing attention to us? Who is going to Donald Calloway and Outstanding the Franciscan Monastery of the help us? And suddenly I find that the Achievement for Human Interest Holy Land in Washington, D.C., Knights of Columbus are in this also.” Programming Program/Special/Se- presented the award Nov. 11. The Since 2014, the Knights of Columbus ries/Segment for Witness of Mercy: monastery is the U.S. home of the Christian Refugee Relief Fund has com- The Story of Jennifer Trapuzzano. Franciscans who have cared for the mitted more than $17 million for hu- Both videos can be viewed online people and the sacred shrines of the manitarian assistance primarily in Iraq, through the Supreme Council’s chan- Holy Land for 800 years. Syria and the surrounding region.♦ nel on youtube.com.♦ COATS FOR KIDS: photo by Tom Serafin — FRANCISCAN AWARD: Photo by Paul Felters

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KNIGHTSOFCOLUMBUSNEWS Order Sponsors Week of Awareness Campaign for Persecuted Christians

Participants of a U.N. conference Nov. 30 titled “Preserving Pluralism and Diversity in the Nineveh Region” included (left to right) Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson; Mohammed Hussein Moh’d Ali Bahr Aluloom, Iraqi ambassador to the U.N.; Archbishop Bashar Matti Warda of Erbil, Iraq; Archbishop Bernardito Auza, the Vatican’s permanent observer to the U.N.; Father Salar Kajo, a parish priest in Teleskof, a town in the Nineveh region of Iraq recently liberated from ISIS’ control; and Stephen Rasche, legal counsel and director of the IDP (internally displaced persons) Resettlement Programs for the Chaldean Catholic Archdiocese of Erbil.

THE KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS joined the U.S. Con- “They could have kept it all if they simply denounced ference of Catholic Bishops and other Catholic groups in their faith, but they did not do that,” he said. “They sponsoring a Week of Awareness for Persecuted Christians chose Christ.” Nov. 26-Dec. 2. This campaign drew attention to the plight Nov. 30: The Knights of Columbus and the Holy See’s of Christians who are suffering, especially the Middle East. Mission to the United Nations sponsored a conference at The number of Christians in Iraq has declined by as the U.N. headquarters in New York, emphasizing the need much as 90 percent over the last several years — from 1.5 for pluralism and democracy in the Middle East and else- million before 2003 to about 200,000 today. The number where. The event focused on improving the conditions for of Christians in Syria has declined by as much as 70 percent. minority communities in the Nineveh Plain region, home Since 2014, Chaldean Catholic Archbishop Bashar to a historically large Christian community. Matti Warda of Erbil, Iraq, has overseen a massive human- Supreme Knight Anderson explained that without a no- itarian operation with K of C support to shelter and care tion of pluralism, in which different political and religious for thousands of Christians and other religious minorities beliefs are upheld, “the need to respect the rights of mi- targeted for genocide by ISIS. The archbishop traveled to norities is lost, and this often affects members of the ma- the United States to urge his audience to pray for and fi- jority as well. … Without minorities, rights often vanish nancially support the persecuted Christians. for everyone.” Nov. 26: The Week of Awareness began with a Day of Archbishop Bernardito Auza, the Holy See’s permanent Prayer, in which Catholics worldwide joined in praying observer to the United Nations, chaired the meeting. for persecuted Christians and world peace. For more information or to make a donation, visit Nov. 27: Archbishop Warda joined Supreme Knight christiansatrisk.org.♦ Carl A. Anderson and other leaders for a press conference at the National Press Club in Washington. D.C. “We are not asking for a privileged life. We are asking A message from Archbishop Warda of Erbil for a sense of security and stability,” Archbishop Warda “The Knights of Columbus has engaged strongly in said. “What we are really requesting is the minimum to helping of the Christians from the beginning of the live a dignified life.” crisis — providing food and shelter and other mate- Nov. 28: Archbishop Warda celebrated a Chaldean rial help to the needy, for the children in so many Catholic Memorial Mass at the Saint John Paul II Na- areas. ... When a crisis goes so long, people tend to tional Shrine in Washington, D.C., in memory of the vic- forget or tend to be tired of helping the same cause. tims of genocide. He noted in his homily that, despite the So we are here to remind everyone that we are facing threat of exile or death, persecuted Christians refused to a difficult time. We need your help; we need your give up their faith. voice; we need your support.” Photo by Tom Serafin

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A Movement Is B rn

From a grassroots meeting in a Washington living room, the March for Life has helped mobilize generations to de fend human life

by John Burger

ince it began 44 years ago, the annual March for Life in in October 1973. But first, she sat in on another gathering SWashington, D.C., has grown into the largest annual civil made up of right-to-life advocates from the D.C. area. Many rights demonstration in the world. It has also inspired scores expressed hesitation with planning a march, believing that if of similar marches across North America and around the globe. they didn’t do it well it would be worse than not doing any- But it almost didn’t happen. thing at all. Following the U.S. Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision “It was all the ‘What ifs’ — ‘What if we have an ice storm? Jan. 22, 1973, there was a period of shock and disbelief among What if nobody comes?’” said Vogel. pro-life advocates. “When that meeting was over, I’m “Most of the people involved in this sure they thought they had settled the issue didn’t believe the decision would issue,” she mused. “But we were just be- come down as it did. It was almost un- ginning, and there was no way we were thinkable,” explained William V. Devlin, not going to do this.” 82, a member of the St. Frances de Following dinner at her home, Nellie Chantal Council 6526 in Wantagh, N.Y. Gray turned to the grassroots organizers About six months after Roe, Devlin seated at her table and said, “I’d like you said, discussions began about how the to tell me why you think we should pro-life community should mark the have a march.” first anniversary of the decision. “I remember saying that it didn’t mat- Fellow Long Island native Lew Gard- ter how many people showed up,” Vogel ner, 78, who with his wife, Helen, was said. “If there were only 10 of us, his- a member of Families for Life, recalled, tory would have to record that there was “We wanted to commemorate the an- a voice of protest against the killing of niversary, and it was simply a question innocent babies.” of how we were going to do it. We Because of Gray’s experience with couldn’t just let the date go by.” Washington, the group put her in Devlin, Gardner and several others charge. were then put in contact with a Catholic attorney in Washing- “Nellie was enthusiastic about it, but she was also a little bit ton named Nellie Gray, who had recently retired from the De- reluctant,” said Gardner, who now serves as financial secretary partment of Labor. of Ecumenical Council 5632 in Red Hook, N.Y. In a 2010 Catholic News Service profile, two years before Gray and the rest of the planners stepped out in faith and her death, Gray recalled, “I received a call from [some] Knights agreed to hold a demonstration at the U.S. Capitol, which would of Columbus. I didn’t even know who they were, but they ex- include political and religious leaders and musicians. It would be plained their stance against abortion and needed a place to meet followed by a march, envisioned as a “circle of life” around the to discuss plans for a march. That place was my living room.” congressional offices and the Supreme Court building. Eileen Vogel of Women Concerned for the Unborn Child The group formulated key “life principles,” articulating the in Pennsylvania was among those who attended that meeting moral and legal responsibility to preserve and protect the life Photo courtesy of Bill Devlin

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TOP: Photo courtesy of Bill Devlin — BOTTOM: Photo courtesy of March for Life Education & Defense Fund Above: The first March for Life, which took place Jan. 22, 1974, drew some 20,000 participants, including groups from hundreds of miles of hundreds from groups including participants, 20,000 some drew 1974, 22, Jan. place took which Life, for March first The Above: away. • Opposite page: Nellie Gray (1924-2012), the event’s founder, speaks at the rally before a March for Life. for March a before rally the at speaks founder, event’s the (1924-2012), Gray Nellie page: Opposite • away. 8 1 0 2 Y R A U N A J ♦ A I B M U L O C ♦ 9 JAN 18 E 12_18 FINAL.qxp_Mar E 12 12/19/17 9:40 AM Page 10

of every human being, and they began the work of raising going to D.C., and we’d like you to come with us.’” money, securing permits and publicizing the Jan. 22 event. In the end, more than 20,000 people, including busloads Live roses were sent to legislators in the name of people mak- from as far away as Illinois, participated in the first March for ing donations, and Devlin, a commercial artist, designed the Life on Jan. 22, 1974. logo for the march, which showed the Capitol surrounded by Though naysayers had been concerned about holding an a long-stemmed rose. outdoor demonstration in the middle of winter, it turned out Another Knight from Long Island, John Mawn, who died in to be 70 degrees and sunny. 2002, helped facilitate transportation. The owner of a charter “It was divine providence,” Vogel said. “I don’t think we ever bus company, he served with his wife, Marie, as the pro-life had a day like that again.” chair couple of St. Regis Council 4651 in Ronkonkoma, N.Y. Nonetheless, the size of the crowd grew exponentially each “John told us, ‘Don’t wait until you have 50 people to fill year for the next several years, and the March for Life took on the bus,’” Vogel recalled. “‘Instead, say that we have a bus a life of its own. A number of annual events have sprung up CLOCKWISE, FROM LEFT: Photos by Jaclyn Lippelmann, Spirit Juice Studios, CNS photo/Chaz Muth, © Renata Grzan Wieczorek / FortheLoveofBeauty.com, Jeffrey Bruno

A Brief in America

1850s American Medical Association (AMA) 1937 The National Federation of Catholic Physi- 1969 The National Association for the Repeal of presses state and territorial legislatures to cians’ Guilds denounces efforts to loosen Abortion Laws (now called NARAL Pro- outlaw elective abortion. abortion restrictions, writing that this would Choice America) is co-founded by Dr. “make the medical practitioner the grave- Bernard Nathanson. The same year, 1860s Susan B. Anthony, Elizabeth Cady Stanton digger of the nation.” Canada passes the Criminal Law Amend- -70s and other leaders of the suffragist and aboli- ment Act, 1968-69, allowing abortion for se- tionist movements condemn abortion as a 1959 The American Law Institute advocates le- lective reasons. social evil in speeches and writings. galizing abortion for mental or physical health of the mother, pregnancy due to rape 1970 New York allows abortion on demand up to 1890 Statutes advocated by the AMA ban abortion and incest, and fetal deformity. 24 weeks. Alaska, Hawaii and Washington unless necessary to save a mother’s life. pass similar laws. 1967 Colorado loosens its abortion restrictions, 1916 Margaret Sanger opens the first birth con- the first of a wave of states to repeal pro-life 1973 Roe v. Wade strikes down state laws trol clinic in the United States in Brooklyn, legislation. Similar laws are passed in Cali- against abortion in the United States. Doe v. N.Y. Planned Parenthood traces its origins fornia, Oregon and North Carolina. Bolton, the companion to Roe v. Wade, to this event. makes abortion on demand legal through all

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to complement the march, such as various conferences and the fense Fund. Her leadership has marked a new chapter in the National Prayer Vigil for Life at the Basilica of the National organization’s history as the pro-life movement continues to Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. gain momentum. Hundreds of political and religious figures have graced the “You are the pro-life generation,” Mancini said, addressing rally’s stage on the National Mall and linked arms with the throngs of millennials assembled on the National Mall dur- marchers. Issues such as partial-birth abortion and post-abortion ing last year’s March for Life Rally. “I believe that you are the regret have taken center stage. At times, marchers have had to generation that will bring to an end the greatest social injustice trudge through snow or shield themselves from biting wind and of today!”♦ pelting rain, but growing numbers of young people, making their presence felt from the beginning, have swelled the crowd. JOHN BURGER is news editor of Aleteia.org and a member Following the death of Nellie Gray in 2012, Jeanne Mancini of Metropolitan Andrey Sheptytsky Council 16253 in New was named president of the March for Life Education & De- Haven, Conn. CLOCKWISE, FROM TOP LEFT: Photos by Alton Pelowski, CNS/Gary Cameron/Reuters, Matthew Barrick, Courtesy of the Sisters of Life, Matthew Barrick

nine months of pregnancy by expanding the 1980s Grassroots pro-life work on the local level 2007 The Supreme Court upholds the federal ban definition of a woman’s health. includes the opening of pregnancy resource on partial-birth abortion. The first nationally centers to help women with unplanned coordinated 40 Days for Life campaign 1974 The first March for Life takes place in Wash- pregnancies. takes place in 89 cities. ington, D.C., on the anniversary of Roe. 1988 In Canada, R. v. Morgentaler allows unregu- 2010s Dozens of state-level laws are passed to 1976 Congress adopts the Hyde Amendment bar- lated abortion in all circumstances. limit abortion, including many states which ring Medicaid and other federal funds from have successfully banned after being used for abortion. 1989 Webster v. Reproductive Health Services 20 weeks. upholds a Missouri law stating that human 1980 The Hyde Amendment is upheld by the life begins at conception and bars state 2016 In the case of Whole Women’s Health v. Supreme Court. funds and facilities from providing abortions. Hellerstedt, the U.S. Supreme Court strikes down laws requiring abortionists to have 1984 President Ronald Reagan institutes the 1992 Planned Parenthood v. Casey reaffirms the admitting privileges at a local hospital Mexico City policy denying federal funding core holdings of Roe v. Wade but upholds and for abortion facillities to meet minimal for groups that promote or perform abor- several new restrictions on abortion. medical standards. tions in other nations. The policy was re- scinded and reinstituted in turn by 2003 The “Partial-Birth Abortion Ban” is passed Today Pro-life marches calling for an end to legal- Presidents Clinton (1993), Bush (2001), by Congress and signed by President ized abortion are held in all 50 states and in Obama (2009) and Trump (2017). George W. Bush. countries throughout the world.

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Above: Supreme officers and their wives join Jeanne Mancini (center) in leading the 2017 March for Life in Washington, D.C.: (left to right) Supreme Advocate John Marrella; Amey Marrella; Deputy Supreme Knight Patrick Kelly, chairman of the board of the March for Life; Jeanne Mancini, president of the March for Life; Supreme Knight Carl Anderson; Supreme Secretary Michael O’Connor; Patricia O’Connor; and Dorian Anderson.

Right: Members of George Washington University Council 13242 in Washing- ton, D.C., stand in front of the Supreme Court building at the conclusion of the 2016 March for Life.

The Knights and the March

EACH YEAR, Knights turn out in and distribute 10,000 K of C “Defend • Georgetown University Council large numbers at the March for Life, Life” and/or “Choose Life” placards. 6375 co-sponsors and organizes the an- joined by their families, councils, • Members of The Catholic Univer- nual Cardinal O’Connor Conference parishes and universities. In addition: sity of America Council 9542 and for Life, the largest student-run pro-life • Knights of Columbus were among other K of C ushers assist at the Na- conference in the United States. the founding organizers of the first tional Vigil for Life at the Basilica of • Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson march in 1974. the National Shrine of the Immaculate began participating in the March for • Since 1974, Virginia Knights have Conception. Life in the 1970s and has addressed the served as marshals at the march, col- • For decades, the Order has offered rally several times. lecting donations and offering first aid. signs and pro-life information resources • Deputy Supreme Knight Patrick • Every year, Knights from Washing- at the March for Life Conference, as well Kelly has served as chairman of the ton, D.C., and their families assemble as at Canada’s National March for Life. March for Life Board since 2012. TOP: Photo by Matthew Barrick — BOTTOM: Photo by Spirit Juice Studios

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Abortion by the Numbers

59 million — the approximate number of abortions that have been performed in the United States since 1973. (National Right to Life Committee estimate based on the Guttmacher Institute calculation through 2014, extrapolation for re- cent years and a correction for underreporting.)

Less than 2 percent — the percentage of abor- tions performed for commonly cited “exceptions” of in- cest, rape and risk to the mother’s life or health. (The Johnston Archive reports that conception in rape leads to 0.3 percent of abortions, incest 0.03 percent, and danger to the mother’s life 0.1 percent. An additional 0.8 percent occurs because the mother’s health is at risk. The term “health” here does not refer to the legal description of health in Supreme Court rulings, where the word refers to substantially elective abortions.) 7 in 10 “People keep asking me — journal- — the lower estimate of how many children ists keep asking me — what are our with Down syndrome, or trisomy 21, are aborted as a numbers for the March for Life? result of prenatal screening. (Estimates for the United States range from 67 percent to 92 percent based on various factors, including the Well, it’s hard to add up so many mother’s age, race and ethnicity.) numbers after 44 years, because More than 50 to 1 there have been a lot of us. But that — the number of abortions isn’t really the point. The only for every infant adoption in the United States. (National number I care about — the only Council for Adoption and Guttmacher Institute) number all of us here care about — 2 for every 5 — the number of abortions com- is 58 million. Since 1973, 58 million pared to live births in the African-American community. Americans have been lost to abor- In New York City, that number surpasses 50 percent. tion. We stand here for them today.” (Centers for Disease Control, Guttmacher Institute, and New York City Dept. of Health and Mental Hygiene) Jeanne Mancini, president of the This data was compiled by the Charlotte Lozier Institute Depart- March for Life Education and Defense ment of Data Analytics. Fund, 2017

Americans Support Abortion Restrictions

FOR THE PAST DECADE, the than currently exists in the United States. Marist Institute for Public Opinion has That number has consistently remained surveyed Americans’ opinions on abor- more than 3 out of 4 since the polling tion in Knights of Columbus-spon- began. And half would limit it only to — sored polling. at most — cases of rape, incest or to save As in previous years, the most recent the life of the mother. poll, conducted in December 2017, In addition, 60 percent of Americans found that the overwhelming majority of oppose using tax dollars to pay for abor- Americans support substantial restric- tion, while fewer than 4 in 10 (36 per- tions on abortion. Seventy-six percent cent) support it. And by a margin of 30 would limit abortion to — at most — percentage points (63 percent to 33 per- the first three months of pregnancy, cent), Americans support a ban on abor- which is a far more restrictive standard tion after 20 weeks of pregnancy. Photos by Spirit Juice Studios

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JANUARY 2018 ♦ COLUMBIA ♦ 15 JAN 18E12_18FINAL.qxp_Mar1212/18/1710:28PMPage16 Hundreds of clergy process at the beginning of the opening Mass of the National Prayer Vigil for Life Jan. 21, 2016, at the Basilica of the Shrine of Shrine the of Prayer Basilica National at the the Vigil 2016, 21, of Jan. for Life Mass opening the of beginning at the process clergy of Hundreds the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C. The event draws an estimated 9,000 participants each year. • Opposite page, top: Students from the from Students top: page, year. each Opposite • in participants Washington, D.C.9,000 Conception estimated draws an event Immaculate the The Academy of the Holy Cross in Kensington, Md., cheer during the Youth Rally and Mass for Life at Capital One Arena Jan. 22, 2016. 22, Jan. One Arena Capital at Life for the Mass Youthand during Rally cheer Md., Kensington, in Cross Holy the of Academy 16 ♦ A I B M U L O C ♦ 8 1 0 2 Y R A U N A J

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‘You Are Not Alone’

Mary Forr, 28, is the director of the Department of Life Issues for My dad would always say that sports teach us about life. the Archdiocese of Washington, D.C. A native of Altoona, Pa., and They teach us that hard work pays off and that there will be a former basketball player for the University of Notre Dame, she wins as well as losses. This is also the case for our work in the coordinates programs and education efforts related to pregnancy pro-life movement, but unlike in sports, the outcome here support, chastity, and death and dying. She matters in the long run. This is a battle also helps organize the Youth Rally and Mass we must continue to fight because it’s for Life, which precedes the March for Life not just a scoreboard that’s at stake here each year. Columbia recently spoke with her — it’s a human life. about the march and what led her to this work. This is what she had to say. I think that for those who get angry about the right to life — usually there is some My parents are heavily involved in the kind of hurt. We need to work to help pro-life movement, and I’ve been going heal those wounds, because they are real. to the March for Life for as long as I can That’s why the work of Project Rachel remember. Every year, I’m blown away that our office does is so important. by the magnitude of the march. When you get to the top of the hill and can The annual Youth Rally and Mass for look back and see people as far as you Life was started 27 years ago as an effort can see, it’s just a really awe-inspiring to mobilize the young people of the moment. archdiocese. It quickly grew in size, and now we welcome almost 20,000 teens I remember in college walking up Capitol from across the country to Capital One Hill alongside a young man with Down syndrome. He was Arena. The rally begins at 6:45 a.m., but these teens could freezing cold, but he was smiling and talking about how won- not be more awake. The Mass, which is celebrated by cardi- derful it was to be there. Walking next to this young man nals, bishops and hundreds of priests, is an incredible expe- made it the most powerful march that I’ve been on. rience for them.

My older sister, Marita, has special needs, and she is a huge It’s important to know that you’re not alone. A lot of young source of inspiration for me to fight for the dignity of all life, people today see a society that tells them that women have especially kids who are targeted because of their disabilities. the right to choose, that their strong Catholic values are not My sister is in Special Olympics, and every summer, my important. Here, they’re united with 20,000 other teenagers brother and I volunteer at the Pennsylvania State Games. who are all there standing for the same thing that they are.♦ TOP: CNS photo/Gregory A. Shemitz — CENTER: Photo by Greg Gibson Photography

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Pro-Life From Coast to Coast Dozens of annual marches demonstrate the momentum of the pro-life movement across the United States

by Joseph Pronechen

ot everyone can make the trip to the annual March people from Illinois and surrounding states, even during Nfor Life in Washington, D.C. But since 1974, a steady the coldest winters. stream of companion marches has grown. Now more than Meanwhile, one of the newest pro-life events is also 60 local marches take place across the United States, allow- one of the largest. The OneLife LA celebration, launched ing many more thousands to take a stand for life. by Archbishop José H. Gomez in 2015, grew out of the For instance, approximately 10,000 people participate Los Angeles March for Life established 11 years earlier. in the Dallas March for Life, which started in 2002. That event begins with Mass and in- cludes a rally at the Earle Cabell Federal Courthouse, the site where Roe v. Wade was first filed in 1970. In Florida, March for Life St. Augustine, which was founded in 2007 with 700 participants, now draws 3,500 from as far as Miami and Savannah, Ga. Denver’s annual Celebrate Life Rally and March attracts more than 5,000 people annu- ally. Numerous smaller marches take place in cities like Concord, N.H., and Charlotte, N.C. There is at least one case of a pro-life march that predates the DENVER annual event in Washington. Laurence and Marge Theriault, who served on the Illinois Right to Life committee at the In 2003, John Costello, a member of Van Nuys (Calif.) time, helped launch the first march in Chicago in 1972, Council 3148, was disturbed by the following statement a year before the Supreme Court’s Roe v. Wade decision. on a Christian radio program: “There have been over 30 “We had kids marching from all the Catholic schools million abortions in the past 30 years, and most Chris- during Respect Life Week,” recalled Laurence, a mem- tians have done little or nothing about it.” ber of Father John J. Dussman Council 3731 in Glen- A short time later, Costello was asked to head the pro- view, Ill. “It was a very joyful march because we wanted life committee for Council 3148. He soon co-founded the to celebrate life.” Los Angeles March for Life with then-Grand Knight John The Chicago March for Life is now the largest pro-life Riordan and Julie Ball, director of the Pregnancy Coun- event in the Midwest, regularly drawing more than 5,000 seling Center in Mission Hills, Calif. In March 2004, LEFT: Photo by Michael Morneau — TOP RIGHT: Photo by Spirit Juice Studios — BOTTOM RIGHT: Photo courtesy of OneLife LA

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CHICAGO

LOS ANGELES

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some 700 showed up to walk along busy Ventura Boulevard to give a public witness for life. “We were pioneers in the state of Cali- fornia,” Costello said. Eventually, the annual event transformed into today’s archdiocesan OneLife LA event. ST. PAUL Now, under Archbishop Gomez’s leader- ship, OneLife LA is drawing huge crowds. “Archbishop Gomez is an outstanding leader and advocate of the culture of life,” affirmed Richard Marciniak, the K of C culture of life chairman for Southern Cal- ifornia and a member of the OneLife LA organizing committee. “We’re expecting 20,000-30,000 people this year.” He added that, in addition to participat- ing with their families and serving as mar- shals, Knights promote the event throughout the archdiocese and remain “a leading force for the march.”♦

JOSEPH PRONECHEN is a staff writer for EWTN’s National Catholic Register. Photo by Bill Poehler

Olympia Jan. 22 Spokane Jan. 20 Bismarck Jan. 22 Portland Montpelier Concord Jan. 14 Jan. 22 Jan. 13 St. Paul Jan. 12 Boise Albany Boston Jan. 20 Jun. 4 Jan. 18 Elkhart Cleveland Jan. 22 Providence Cheyenne Jan. 13 New Haven San Francisco Jan. 22 Jan. 13 Chicago Jan. 22 Jan. 27 Lincoln Jan. 14 Salt Lake City Fort Wayne Annapolis Jan. 22 Jan. 20 Jan. 27 Columbus Mar. 12 Denver Jefferson City Jan. 22 Washington, D.C. Jan. 13 Topeka Jan. 22 Jan. 19 Las Vegas Jan. 22 Louisville Charlotte Los Angeles Mar. 10 Jan. 22 Raleigh Jan. 20 Little Rock Jan. 12 Knoxville Jan. 13 Tulsa Jan. 21 Jan. 22 Jan. 22 Columbia San Diego Phoenix Jackson Atlanta Jan. 6 Dallas Jan. 20 Jan. 20 Shreveport/Bossier Jan. 22 Jan. 19 Jan. 20 Jan. 27 Mobile Jan. 19 Austin St. Augustine Jan. 27 Pineville/Alexandria Jan. 13 Feb. 3 Pensacola Baton Rouge Jan. 13 Jan. 20

Biloxi 2018 Jan. 22

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San Francisco’s Witness to Life The annual Walk for Life West Coast thrives — and heals — in a hostile environment

by Gibbons Cooney

he first Walk for Life West Coast astonished organizers “You can avoid the truth, but you can’t avoid the traffic!” T by drawing more than 7,000 participants Jan. 22, 2005. Organizers have always sought for the Walk to be an occa- In the past 12 years, the event has grown steadily to well over sion for healing, with a message of hope and love pouring oston 50,000 participants. onto the streets of San Francisco. The motto is “Abortion an. 18 “Many of us responded to the call to fearlessly proclaim the Hurts Women,” and the event begins with the Silent No dence dignity of each person, especially the most innocent,” said More Awareness Campaign — testimonies by those affected 2 Ralph DeSimone, who was among the organizers in 2004 and by abortion. is a past grand knight of St. Mary’s Council 14156 in Walnut Lisa Hamrick, a co-founder of the Walk for Life, didn’t Creek. “We knew that having a safe, well-organized walk in know what to expect when a woman suddenly approached her San Francisco would be an opportunity to show others that during a recent year’s event. there are many people of all ages and backgrounds who sin- “She came and stood right in front of me,” Hamrick re- cerely value life.” called, “looked me squarely in the eyes, and said these words Although people of all ages, races and creeds attend, what which I will never forget: ‘I was your opposition! For the first is most striking is the exuberant presence of great numbers of time this year, I am walking with you!’” young people. The event has generated pilgrimages, Holy For Muntean, a moment that stands out is the start of the Hours, special Masses and youth conferences, becoming one first Walk for Life in 2005, turning the corner out of the plaza of the most faith-filled weekends of the year for the area’s and facing a mob of hateful protestors. Catholics. “For a half-second, I was terrified,” she said. “Lifting up my “The growth of the Walk is a dream come true,” said Eva foot for the next step I wondered, do I stop or go on? But I, Muntean, the Walk’s lead organizer, adding that the event has and we, took that step. We took that step, we didn’t stop, and faced strong opposition from San Francisco’s political and we aren’t done yet!”♦ media establishments — opposition that has continued yearly. One result of the censorship and under-reporting is the grid- GIBBONS J. COONEY is the parish secretary at Sts. Peter lock that catches the uninformed public unawares. As another and Paul Church in San Francisco and volunteers with the of the event’s organizers, Dolores Meehan, memorably quipped, Walk for Life West Coast. Photo by Eva Muntean

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The Converts of Roe v. Wade

Two pivotal figures who fought for abortion rights became passionately pro-life

by Carolee McGrath

r. Bernard Nathanson was the most vocal of advocates. expressed doubts that abortion was simply the removal of an DThousands of women, he claimed, would die in back- “undifferentiated mass of cells.” He further wrote, “I am alley procedures if they were not granted the right to obtain deeply troubled by my own increasing certainty that I had in an abortion, and he had to protect them. So, in 1969, the fact presided over 60,000 deaths.” OB-GYN from New York City co-founded the National As- As ultrasound technology emerged, Nathanson soon found sociation for Repeal of Abortion Laws. A year later, he became it impossible to deny the humanity of the unborn child. the director of New York’s Center for Reproductive and Sexual In 1979, he wrote Aborting America, which exposed what Health, the largest free- he called “the dishonest standing abortion facility beginnings of the abor- in the world. tion movement.” He But abortion was still even admitted to person- illegal in many other ally fabricating statistics places, like Texas, where about the number of local attorneys and ac- women who died each tivists in Dallas were year from illegal abor- ready to challenge the tion — in order to con- state’s anti-. vince the Supreme Court They took as their case an that legal abortion unmarried, unemployed would save lives. young woman named In cooperation with Norma McCorvey, who the National Right to was denied access to abor- Life Committee in 1984, tion when she became he narrated a documen- pregnant. tary film titled The Silent In the case, McCorvey Scream, which showed went by different name: the abortion of a 12- Jane Roe, or the “Roe” in Dr. Bernard Nathanson and Norma McCorvey, aka “Jane Roe,” are pictured week unborn baby via Roe v. Wade, which even- in 1985 and 1998, respectively, following their renunciation of abortion rights. ultrasound. tually made its way to the A self-identified Jewish Supreme Court in 1973. atheist, he then began a The landmark decision decriminalized abortion nationwide, spiritual journey after befriending Father John McCloskey, a and in a certain sense, Nathanson and McCorvey had achieved priest of Opus Dei. He later converted to Catholicism and was victory — but that is not the end of their stories. In the years baptized by Cardinal John O’Connor, archbishop of New York, that followed Roe v. Wade, their views on the issue of abortion in St. Patrick’s Cathedral Dec. 8, 1996. changed dramatically. They eventually became vocal pro-life By this time, McCorvey had begun her own path of conver- advocates and encountered God’s forgiveness in a powerful way. sion. In 1995, her life changed when a pro-life organization Just one year after Roe, in a 1974 New England Journal of moved into an office next to the Dallas abortion clinic where Medicine article titled “Deeper into Abortion,” Nathanson she was working. Just a year earlier, she had published a book LEFT: AP Photo/J. Scott Applewhite — RIGHT: AP Photo/Eric Gay

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titled I Am Roe: My Life, Roe v. Wade, and Freedom of Choice, who prayed for me all those years when I was publicly an- in which she chronicled her troubled childhood, substance nouncing my atheism and lack of faith. They stubbornly, lov- abuse, three pregnancies and support of Roe v. Wade. ingly prayed for me. I am convinced beyond a doubt that Within months of meeting her pro-life neighbors, including those prayers were heard.” Rev. Philip Benham, McCorvey left the abortion industry for- Nathanson also confessed in the book to being “one of ever and became an evangelical Christian. She was later re- those who helped usher in this barbaric age.” McCorvey made ceived into the Catholic Church in 1998 by Father Frank a similar confession in a public service announcement: “My Pavone, national director of . She also published case, which legalized abortion on demand, was the biggest a second book, Won by Love, earlier the same year — a story mistake of my life.” of repentance, mercy, conversion and hope. Despite their regret, when Nathanson died Feb. 21, 2011, at In a supplement to the book, she wrote, “There is not a day age 84, and McCorvey died Feb. 18, 2017, at age 69, they left that I do not thank God for the men and women who, by this world in peace, as powerful witnesses of the Gospel of Life.♦ their personal contact with me or simply by their prayers, have helped me on my journey. His mercy is limitless.” CAROLEE MCGRATH is co-host of CatholicTV’s women’s In his own 1998 memoir, Hand of God, Nathanson echoed series, The Gist. A wife and a mother of five, she writes from these sentiments: “I can’t tell you how grateful I am to those Massachusetts.

“I stand in front of you today, Leaving the Abortion Industry a woman who spent eight BERNARD NATHANSON and Norma McCorvey are far from the only years of her life working and promoters of abortion who have experienced powerful conversions through running a Planned Parenthood reflection, friendships and pro-life witness. Dr. John Bruchalski’s conversion facility. Because of the power came after working as an abortionist during his OB/GYN residency in the of conversion, because of the late 1980s. Now a member of Padre Pio Council 10754 in Great Falls, Va., he founded the Tepeyac Family Center, one the largest freestanding pro-life power of Christ, I stand in medical practices in the United States, in 1994. In the case of Abby Johnson, front of you as a woman who a former director of a Planned Parenthood facility in Bryan/College Station, has been redeemed from her Texas, her conversion in 2009 was prompted in part by those organizing the past.” – Abby Johnson, founder 40 Days for Life campaign. She subsequently established And Then There Were None, an organization that has helped some 400 abortion workers and of And Then There Were None, 7 abortion doctors leave the industry. • abortionworker.com March for Life Rally 2017 Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

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THE THEME of the 2018 March for Life — “Love and evangelization. • sistersoflife.org Saves Lives” — is more than just a catchy slogan. It re- • In 2004, members of Texas A&M Council 10624 flects the countless ways that compassionate pro-life work and the Brazos Valley Coalition for Life in Bryan/Col- is making a real difference. Here are just a few examples: lege Station, Texas, launched a 40-day, 24-hour prayer • Project Rachel is a diocesan-based confidential and vigil outside a local abortion facility. Now a grassroots sacramental healing ministry that serves women and movement active in 57 countries, the peaceful witness men suffering in the aftermath of abortion. Founded in and prayer of 40 Days for Life has led some 14,000 1984, it offers pastoral counseling, support groups, re- abortion-minded women to choose life, 170 abortion treats and referrals to licensed mental health professionals. workers quit their jobs and 90 abortion facilities close. • hopeafterabortion.com • 40daysforlife.com • The Sisters of Life is a contemplative/active religious • The largest youth pro-life organization in the United community of women founded in New York in 1991 by States, Students for Life of America has helped to establish John Cardinal O’Connor for the protection and enhance- and build more than 1,100 student pro-life organizations ment of the sacredness of every human life. Apostolates and has trained tens of thousands of students nationwide include providing housing and practical assistance for to defend the preborn and help their mothers on their cam- pregnant women in need, post-abortion healing, retreats puses. • studentsforlife.org • pregnantoncampus.org

“Let this movement be known for love, not anger. Let this movement be known for com- passion, not confrontation. When it comes to matters of the heart, there is nothing stronger than gentleness. … To heal our land and restore a culture of life we must continue to be a movement that embraces all, cares for all, and shows respect for the dignity and worth of every person.” Vice President Mike Pence, 2017 March for Life Photo by Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images

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“Let us who are gathered here today to witness to the blessing of human life commit ourselves to shattering the isolation of a culture which finds death a solution to the difficulties of life. ... Let us commit ourselves to the rehabilitation of the value of sol- idarity. Love requires solidarity.” Mother Agnes Mary Donovan, supe- rior general of the Sisters of Life, Walk for Life West Coast, Jan. 24, 2009

Helping Women Choose Life

WHILE THE NUMBER of abortion facilities in the United States, now around 700, declines, the number of pro-life pregnancy centers is growing. More than 1,100 pregnancy centers in the United States now offer ultra- sound services in addition to the traditional model of coun- seling and material aid. About 100 additional centers are converting to a limited medical model each year, and many clinics are expanding to provide comprehensive health care services from a pro-life perspective.

“As an adoptee and adoptive parent, I know deeply and personally how adoption unleashes purpose. It is an act of love, hope and justice. It helps restore what was broken. The abor- tion industry promotes the myth of the ‘unwanted child’ to justify the slaughter of innocent human life — Since the Knights of Columbus Ultrasound Initiative was unplanned equals unwanted equals launched in 2009, state and local councils have helped place unloved. It’s a lie. And that myth is some 900 ultrasound machines in qualified pregnancy centers shattered every day by courageous using matching funds from the Knights’ Culture of Life birth moms and millions of adopted Fund. The Order is well on the way to placing more than 1,000 ultrasound machines by the 10th anniversary of the children and their families who prove initiative in 2019. Supreme Knight Carl A. Anderson an- there is no such thing as unwanted.” nounced this goal at the 135th Supreme Convention in Au- gust 2017, estimating that the machines would save 1 million Ryan Bomberger, founder of the unborn children by encouraging abortion-minded pregnant Radiance Foundation women to choose life. • kofc.org/ultrasound TOP: Photo courtesy of the Gospel Herald Society — LEFT: Photo by © Renata Grzan Wieczorek / FortheLoveofBeauty.com — RIGHT: Photo by Slav Zatoka

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“I am standing here with you today as a wife, a mother, and yes, as an abor- tion survivor who is a pro-life activist. … If the abortion had succeeded, my husband would be without his wife; our children would never have been born. Abortion doesn’t just end a life; it changes lives for generations.” Melissa Ohden, founder of the Abortion Survivors Network

“A woman experiencing an unplanned pregnancy also deserves to experience un- planned joy.” Patricia Heaton, American actress and model, 2017 OneLife LA speaker

“I stand with you in de- fense of the voiceless, the preborn, who are our most precious gifts. … We as men must stand up for the lives of the innocent and their mothers in crisis. We must rise up and lead “Fellow college students, this is not the charge.” someone else’s problem. Indiffer- Benjamin Watson, Bal- ence is not an option. Ending abor- timore Ravens tight end; tion is our responsibility.” husband and father of five children Katrina Gallic, University of Mary in Bismarck, N.D. CLOCKWISE FROM TOP LEFT: Photo by Spirit Juice, Photo courtesy of the Archdiocese of Los Angeles, Photo by Rachel Gallic, Photo by Matthew Barrick

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“To be pro-life is to be pro-woman, and to be pro-woman is to be pro-life. The abortion industry doesn’t want you to believe this truth. … The March for Life has a simple message about pregnant moms and their babies: We love them both! And our message is winning.” – Deputy Supreme Knight Patrick E. Kelly, chair- man of the Board of the March for Life

“It’s important to mobilize women who “I am a mother of six living children, and I am a embrace ending the violence of abortion grandmother. I am also a post-abortive mother. I and who stand for human rights and jus- tice for all. The voice of pro-life men, join the voices of thousands across America who are women and families matters and truly Silent No More. If the dream of Dr. Martin Luther makes a difference.” King Jr. is to live, our babies must live. Our mothers must choose life.” Brandi Swindell, founder and CEO of Stanton Healthcare Alveda King, niece of Martin Luther King Jr. TOP: Photo by Tom Serafin — LEFT: Photo courtesy of Hannah Rose Allen — RIGHT: Photo courtesy of Brandi Swindell

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Life, We Stand on Guard for Thee

On Parliament Hill and across the provinces, Canadians stand together in defense of life

by Colleen Rouleau

ens of thousands gathered May 11, T 2017, for the 20th National March for Life in Ottawa, Ontario — a sea of smiling faces stretching from the Cen- tennial Flame to the Peace Tower at the steps of the Canadian Parliament. Partic- ipants at the annual event, which coin- cided with Canada’s 150th anniversary of Confederation, both celebrated the value of all human life and peacefully protested the country’s radical policies regarding abortion. “We are one of the very few countries in the world, along with China and North Korea, that have no law restricting abor- tion,” explained Jim Hughes, who is pres- ident of Campaign Life Coalition, the political arm of Canada’s pro-life move- ment. “Many Canadians are unaware of this fact.” On May 14, 1969, the Criminal Law Amendment Act legalized access to abor- tion at accredited hospitals when ap- proved by a committee of physicians. The Supreme Court of Canada, in its 1988 R v. Morgentaler decision, deemed that provision unconstitutional and nul- lified all laws regulating abortion. About a decade later, Hughes drew in- spiration from the late Nellie Gray, founder of the March for Life in Washing- ton, D.C. “She said to me, ‘Canada should march for life too,’” he recalled. Following discussions with Basilian Fa- ther Alphonse de Valk and others, Hughes helped organize the first official national march in 1998. Photo by Jake Wright

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“Christ says, ‘If you receive a little child in my name, you receive me.’ That is why abortion is such a terrible evil, because in refusing the little child we are refusing Christ himself. … If you do not want the child, I want it. Give it to me.” – St. Teresa of Calcutta, founder of the Missionaries of Charity, Ottawa rally, Sept. 17, 1988

The Knights of Columbus has been a significant ally of the event from its infancy, assisting with funding, organization and participation. K of C state deputies and numerous Knights across the country have also helped organize smaller marches in the provincial capitals. “I am very grateful to the Knights of Columbus for their commitment, leadership and support,” said Hughes. Over the past 20 years, the National March for Life has evolved into a three-day event, beginning with a candlelight vigil on Parliament Hill the eve of the march. “Eighty percent of participants are under the age of 30,” Hughes noted. “It is a joyful event.” Today, more than 100,000 abortions are officially reported each year in Canada. But the national march reflects the grow- ing numbers of citizens who are affirming, through word and action, the value of all human life. Opposite page: Supreme Director Graydon Nicholas of New Brunswick, Hughes recalled Mother Teresa’s words to him when she was joined by his wife, Elizabeth, and Ontario state officers, speaks at Par- a keynote speaker at a 1988 pro-life rally on Parliament Hill: liament Hill prior to the Canadian National March for Life in Ottawa, “The beautiful thing about the pro-life movement is that it’s May 11, 2017. • Ontario State Treasurer Marcel Lemmen (left) takes ordinary people doing extraordinary things for God.”♦ part in the 2017 National March for Life with his daughter, Grace, and wife, Charlene. Also pictured is District Deputy Randy Hingston COLLEEN ROULEAU writes from Edmonton, Alberta. of Granottier Council 2092 in Owen Sound, Ontario. TOP: Photo by Jean-Marc Carisse — RIGHT: Photo by Jake Wright

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Marches for Life Go Global

Undaunted by challenges, the international pro-life movement grows in strength and solidarity

by Corinna Turner

he March for Life began in the United States, but Paul Forget, a pro-life leader from Belgium, observed, T it’s now a global phenomenon, with marches in “March for Life in Brussels is organized by young people, countries as diverse as Mexico, Poland, Nigeria, France really young. The average age of our organizers is 23, like and Australia, to name just a few. me. We represent a new generation that believes life must According to Niamh Uí Bhriain of Rally for Life in be defended.” Dublin, “The March for Life in the U.S. has definitely John Smyth of the Pro-Life Campaign in Ireland inspired many people throughout the world to come to- agreed. “It is such a youth-driven movement,” he said. gether and stand up for life.” “It’s going from strength to strength.” Jeanne Mancini, president of the March for Life Edu- And it’s the same phenomenon everywhere — with the cation & Defense Fund in Washington, D.C., noted that exception of Africa, where the young are indeed pro-life, pro-life leaders from numerous countries have attended but so is the older generation. Washington’s march. Obianuju Ekeocha is the founder of Culture of Life “They go home and, in an enculturated way, build some- Africa, which helps organize pro-life marches throughout thing that’s unique to their local community,” she said. the continent. Inspiration and enculturation make each different pro- “Our groundbreaking marches attract many people: life march unique — from the bagpipers and impromptu young and old, strong and frail, rich and poor,” she said. Irish dancing in Dublin, to the joyous and peaceful, but “With remarkable African vitality, verve and vigor, they comparatively sedate, “LifeFest” in Birmingham, U.K., sing, dance and pray, witnessing to the sanctity and dig- to the full-on pop concert atmosphere in Lima, Peru. nity of life, motherhood and marriage. Our marches are This growing international movement is also notably a powerful testimony of the unanimous pro-life stance in youthful. the typical African society.” Photos courtesy of international pro-life march organizers

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◀ The first Paris “Marche Pour La Vie” took place in 2005, and the 2016 march drew some 50,000 participants. One of the primary partners in the march is the Jérôme Lejeune Founda- tion, which works on behalf of people with genetic intelligence disorders. Since 1975, abortion up to 12 weeks gestation has been legal in France.

► Members of the One of Us Federation, a European association of 25 pro-life or- ganizations, are pictured at the Budapest Forum May 17, 2017. Among numerous initiatives to protect human life in its most vulnerable stages, in 2014, One of Us con- ducted a petition to protect unborn life by banning embryo-destructive research. Signed by nearly 2 million citizens, it was one of the largest citizens’ petitions in the history of the European Union.

As Bishop Emmanuel Badejo of Oyo, Nigeria, put it, participants away buzzing with excitement, new confi- “In Africa we have a saying: There is always room for one dence and a heightened commitment to help women more child!” and unborn babies. Nevertheless, while many African countries have laws In France, despite an atmosphere of aggressive secular- against abortion, they are coming under immense pressure ism, a pro-life or pro-family march has taken place in Paris from Western organizations. every year since 2005, with the exception of January 2016, “The enemy of life has financial means to achieve a when the march was canceled due terrorism. Last year, the great success in the Western world,” said Virginia Coda march was back and bigger than ever, with more than Nunziante of March for Life Italy. “Now they are striving 50,000 turning out to support life — making it the largest to ‘colonize’ Africa in this way. Indeed, we are in a glob- march in continental Europe. alized world and this is a global fight.” Still, the pro-life movement in France is facing unprece- One of the blessings brought by the spread of the dented levels of opposition. In February 2017, the French March for Life movement is the feeling of unity and sol- Parliament approved a bill criminalizing various forms of idarity, both nationally and internationally. pro-life witness as “obstruction to abortion,” shocking ob- “It is one family — a united voice in different coun- servers around the world. tries across the world,” said Ben Thatcher, one of the di- “The purpose of this law is to punish any information rectors of March for Life U.K. “We can help each other, that might dissuade women from having an abortion,” ex- we can learn from each other and we can achieve more plained Nicolas Sévillia of the Jérôme Lejeune Founda- together.” tion, which helps organize the Paris march. “This law is a In the United States, to be vocally pro-life is not un- scandal, since any objective information about the reality usual, but in many countries — even pro-life nations such of abortion is by nature dissuasive!” as Ireland, Poland and Peru — people who believe in the Thierry de la Villejégu, executive director of the Jérôme right for life often feel alienated or even threatened. Lejeune Foundation, asked, “Will all the marchers for life At the 2016 March for the in Warsaw, be condemned for illegal interference against abortion?” Archbishop Henryk Hoser of Warszawa-Praga described Regardless, preparations for the Jan. 21, 2018, march attending the march as “an act of bravery.” are well underway. Carol Maraví, spokesperson for the March for Life in “This year, the theme will be light — the light of life, Lima, also described the pressure pro-lifers feel: “We are in opposition to the darkness of death,” said Sévillia. “To under attack and need a march to be the face of our pro- see the light means to be lucky enough to live.”♦ life movement.” A march shatters the lie that pro-lifers are alone. It also CORINNA TURNER is a Carnegie Medal-nominated encourages networking and new friendships, sending British Catholic author.

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PHILIPPINES

The Walk for Life pro-life marches, spearheaded by the Knights of Columbus in the Philippines, began in Luzon in 2009 and have since spread to Visayas and Mindanao. The 2017 marches in Quezon City, Antipolo City, Iloilo City, Davao City and Bacolod City drew an average of 5,000 participants each. Abortion is illegal in the Philippines; the marches serve to affirm human dignity and promote Catholic teaching.

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MEXICO The Mexico City March for Life began in 2012, and the 2017 event drew some 13,000 people. In 2007, elective abortion up to 12 weeks was legalized in the federal district of Mexico City. The legality of abortion varies in the other states of Mexico.

UKRAINE

The second pro-life march affirming the POLAND importance of the family took place in Kyiv, Ukraine’s capital, in 2017. Organized Beginning in Warsaw in 2009, marches for life in Poland are now organized in by the All-Ukrainian Council of Churches 140 cities. Last year, some 200,000 people participated across the nation to and Religious Organizations with aid from promote teachings on family, love and responsibility and to affirm the value of local Knights, the event drew several thou- human life. A 1993 act banned abortion in Poland outside of extraordinary cir- sand participants. The cities of Khmelnyt- cumstances, replacing Soviet-era legislation broadly allowing abortion. skyi and Ivano-Frankivsk also host marches.

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IRELAND

The All-Ireland Rally for Life and the National Vigil for Life take place in Dublin in alternating years. Both have focused recently on protecting the Eighth Amendment of the Irish constitution, which recognizes the right to life of pre- born children. The 2017 rally drew some 80,000 participants.

ENGLAND

March for Life UK first took place in Birmingham CZECH REPUBLIC in 2012, aiming to revive the pro-life marches and rallies that took place in the United Kingdom in The National March for Life and Family takes place annually in Prague. the 1970s and ‘80s. Abortion up to 24 weeks ges- The 2017 march drew more than 5,000 participants and was accompanied tation was legalized in the United Kingdom by the by an appeal by the prime minister for the state to offer more support for Abortion Act of 1967. families, rather than offering abortion. Elective abortion was legalized in 1957, when the former Czechoslovakia was under Soviet control

ITALY

The annual Marcia Nazionale per la Vita in Rome protests the 1978 legalization of abortion in Italy. The march draws 15,000- 20,000 participants.

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NETHERLANDS The March for Life in the Netherlands first took place in 1992 in Amsterdam. The march was moved to The Hague, the Netherland’s primary seat of government and one of the host cities of the United Nations. The 2017 march drew 15,000 people. Abortion is included the Nether- land’s national health coverage

SWITZERLAND

Switzerland’s first Marsch fürs Läbe took place in 2009. The annual event, which draws several thousand partici- pants, was banned in 2017, but organ- izers plan a 2018 march in Bern, the Swiss capital. Elective abortion up to 12 weeks gestation was legalized in Switzerland in 2002.

SPAIN Annual pro-life marches take place across Spain, including in the capital, Madrid. In 2017, some 100,000 people took part nationwide. The marches occur at differ- ent times every year, adapting to current political and social events. In Spain, abor- tion is legal in some circumstances up to 22 weeks gestation.

ROMANIA

The first national Romanian march for life (Marșul pentru viață) took place in 2011, and in 2015, the event became the March for Life Romania and the Republic of Moldova. By 2017 the march included 287 cities across the two nations, with 110,000 participants in Romania alone. Abortion was legalized in Romania by the communist regime in 1958, restricted in 1967-1989 and reinstated in 1990. BOTTOM RIGHT: Photo by Claudiu Pantea

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BELGIUM

The March for Life Brussels had its start in 2010 and draws some 4,000 participants. The march affirms human dignity from conception to natural death in the face of national policies that increasingly encour- age a materialist view of the person. It is meant to re- open the debate on abortion, as well as on euthanasia, which was legalized in 2002.

GERMANY

The first March for Life in Germany took place around 2000. Since taking the name Marsch für das Leben (March for Life) in 2010, the event has grown. The 2017 Berlin march drew some 7,500 people. Abortion is technically unlawful in Germany, but broad exceptions in the law made it widely accessible.

NIGERIA UGANDA Regional pro-life marches began in 2010, organized with as- The Catholic Archdiocese of Owerri organized the coun- sistance from Human Life International. The first march in try’s first pro-life march in June 2013. Led by Archbishop Budaka attracted 2,000 participants, with similar turnout in Anthony Obinna, it was devoted to the theme Protecting subsequent marches in Arya, Soroti, Mbale and Tororo. The Human Life from Conception to Natural Death and at- most recent march in 2016 drew 3,000 participants in Wak- tracted thousands of participants. In June 2014, 11 bishops iso, near Kampala. Abortion is illegal except for medical rea- led a larger march in Abuja, with similar events multiply- sons, but international population control groups are ing across the country since that time. exerting pressure on the government to loosen restrictions.

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PERU

Since 2002, the annual Marcha por la Vida in Lima has been held March 25, the Day of the Unborn Child. The Archdiocese of Lima has or- ganized the march since 2013, each year welcom- ing more than 100,000 participants. The most recent march in 2016 attracted over 750,000 — the largest event in Peruvian history. The event was canceled in 2017 due to catastrophic flood- ing. Peru permits abortion in cases where the mother’s life or health is at risk.

SOUTH KOREA

Beginning in 1994, annual marches have been held in Seoul. Other pro-life marches and events take place through- out the year, with the next large event slated for March 8. Abortion is illegal in the Republic of Korea though not un- common; since 1973, there have also been legal exceptions.

AUSTRALIA JAPAN

An annual pro-life rally (now March for Life) in Brisbane and the The first March for Life in Tokyo took place in 2014. March for the Babies in Melbourne both developed in 2009. Four Initially spearheaded by a single individual, the Tokyo thousand people took part in the 2017 Brisbane March for Life, March is growing in a country largely unaware of the coinciding with the vote on an abortion decriminalization bills, pro-life movement, and in 2017 the march drew 150 which were withdrawn. In Australia, abortion laws are determined people. Laws enacted in 1948 and 1949 legalized by state governments. abortion in Japan. PERU: Photo by Carlos Garcia Granthon/Pacific Press/Alamy Live News — SOUTH KOREA: Photo by An Hee-young

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KNIGHTSOFCOLUMBUS

Members of St. Anthony Claret Council Knights 10090 in San Antonio stand with staff of the Gabriel Project of San Antonio, a pro-life outreach ministry that supports pregnant of charity women and young families. After buildings on the grounds of St. Anthony Claret Catholic Church, one of which housed the Every day, Knights all over the world are ministry’s supplies, were destroyed by arson, given opportunities to make a difference Council 10090 held a diaper drive to help — whether through community service, replace the resources that were lost. More than raising money or prayer. We celebrate 5,000 diapers were collected. each and every Knight for his strength, his compassion and his dedication to building a better world.

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PLEASE, DO ALL YOU CAN TO ENCOURAGE PRIESTLY AND RELIGIOUS VOCATIONS. YOUR PRAYERS AND SUPPORT MAKE A DIFFERENCE.

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‘I HAVE FOUND NOTHING BUT JOY IN SERVING THE LORD’

For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to be a priest. The Lord blessed me with tremendous examples of priestly love and service throughout my life. When I was 13, God showed his love for me in a powerful way. I was diagnosed with malignant melanoma and was confronted with the idea that I might die soon. Having no control over the situation, I turned to the Lord, telling him, “You’re going to have to take care of me.” After surgery, when the doctors told me I was going to be OK, it was as if Christ were saying, “I am giving you your life back. Now I want you to give it to me.” From that mo- ment, I knew that the Lord wanted me to be a priest, and I have found nothing but joy in serving him ever since.

FATHER JOHN PAUL LEWIS Archdiocese of Oklahoma City Father Al Waleczek Council 8204 Photo by McNeese Stills + Motion