Editorial

Do you have time to pray, to stand up for children, for life?

If you’re looking for an opportunity to add more prayer to your Lenten practices, it’s not too late to participate in a 40 Days for Life campaign.

40 Days for Life is an international, multi-faith effort that seeks to end abortion through peaceful prayer vigils outside abortion centers, and to raise community awareness of the consequences of abortion.

During the campaign, individuals silently pray during one-hour time slots in front of abortion centers around the world, including the Planned Parenthood facilities in Indianapolis and Bloomington. While state law now prohibits abortions to be performed in these two facilities, they still offer abortion referrals and other services opposed to the sanctity of life (see article about sidewalk advocates on page 1), and they represent the evil of the abortion industry promoted by Planned Parenthood throughout the nation.

The six-week period provides people of faith a grace-filled opportunity to offer special petitions to end abortion around the globe. Besides Indianapolis and Bloomington, there are 40 Days for Life sites located throughout Indiana and the surrounding region for anyone interested in prayerfully standing up for life.

Prayer warriors from area Knights of Columbus councils did just that by taking part in an overnight prayer vigil from 7 p.m. on March 8 to 7 a.m. on March 9 in front of the Planned Parenthood facility at W. 86th Street and Georgetown Road in Indianapolis. We thank the Knights, priests and others for their commitment during those 12 hours to standing in solidarity for the unborn and for their witness of faith.

As a result of the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2022 Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization decision overturning the court’s 1973 Roe v. Wade decision—which had legalized abortion on demand in the U.S.—abortion regulation was returned to each state. But we are witnessing many in society who still strongly support abortion rights. While the court in Dobbs emphasized that there is no federal constitutional right to abortion in the U.S., some are pushing hard to again make access to abortion the law of the land.

In his State of the Union address to a joint session of Congress on March 7, President Joe Biden reiterated his position that access to abortion should be expanded by federal legislation.

Although he did not use the word “abortion” in his address, Biden, a Catholic, noted, “If Americans send me a Congress that supports the right to choose, I promise you: I will restore Roe v. Wade as the law of the land again,” the president said.

Chelsey Youman, national legislative adviser for Human Coalition Action, a pro-life advocacy organization, said in a statement after the address, “It is unconscionable that the White House and members of Congress are hijacking what should be a moment of national unity to promote the mass death of children in the womb.

“The plight of vulnerable women seeking abortion should be off-limits for politicization, yet President Biden wants to use the killing of an innocent child with disabilities to boost his chances of re-election.”

Jeanne Mancini, president of the National March for Life and a Catholic, offered a similar sentiment, saying, “President Biden’s remarks were meant to convince listeners that his administration cares for pregnant women facing difficult circumstances, but his policies communicate a very different picture.

“His Department of Health and Human Services has proposed a rule seeking to prohibit temporary assistance to needy families [TANF] funding from going to pregnancy resource centers which serve pregnant women and families, who need such help,” she said.

Mancini added, “The fact is that most women want to keep their children but some need support to do so. Pregnancy resource centers exist to provide life-affirming support and resources and yet are under attack from powerful politicians like President Biden who want us to believe they care about choice. In reality, those currently in power push only one choice for women: abortion, anytime and for any reason.”

The president’s message and the support many still have for abortion confirm our prayers are still very much needed. While Indiana state law now requires abortions to be performed only in hospitals or hospital-run clinics, women still visit the Planned Parenthood facilities in Indianapolis and Bloomington for out-of-state abortion referrals, birth control, morning-after (Plan B) abortion pills, transgender hormone therapy and other services that contradict a culture of life.

Now is an opportune time to take part in your nearest 40 Days for Life effort before the spring campaign ends on March 24. The Bloomington campaign is taking place along the public right-of-way outside of the Planned Parenthood facility at 421 S. College Ave. To sign up, go to 40daysforlife.com/en/Bloomington. To take part in the Indianapolis campaign, sign up at 40daysforlife.com/en/Indianapolis. To find other campaigns outside of the archdiocese, go to 40daysforlife.com and select “Locations.”

As the battle to fully protect the unborn continues, may our prayers and actions this Lenten season and beyond bear fruit.

—Mike Krokos