Home / News & Publications / Michigan Catholic News / 2008 / Catholics, others join in prayer to promote the protection of life
Catholics, others join in prayer to promote the protection of life
by Joe Kohn of The Michigan Catholic
Published January 18, 2008
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Joe Kohn | The Michigan Catholic
Four-year-old Elijah Zarotnew sits on the shoulders of his father, Todd, during the Right to Life—Lifespan rally Jan. 13 on the campus of Madonna University in Livonia. |
Metro Area — Each year at this time, those who mourn the affects of abortion gather together to pray, show solidarity, and rededicate themselves to building a culture of life.
"We are in the midst of a great moral war," said Livonia resident Margaret Kobernic, a paraplegic who last weekend gave her testimony at a candlelight prayer service at St. Aidan Church in Livonia. "We will have these issues for a time to come.
"Many of us are already disabled. Please, please don't let this society make us disposable."
The prayer service was one of dozens of services, rallies, marches and Masses that center on the Jan. 22 anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court's Roe v. Wade decision. Many events take place this weekend. And hundreds in the area will take bus trips to Washington, D.C., for the annual March for Life, a peaceful protest against legalized abortion.
Pray to stop abortion
Communities across the archdiocese each year take part in events to mark the anniversary of the 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that assured abortion's legality in the United States. Here's a sample of what Catholics and other pro-lifers have planned on or before Jan. 22:
• Trenton March for Life will take place at 2 p.m. Jan. 20, starting at First Presbyterian Church of Trenton, 2799 West Road. A memorial service will take place in the church at 2:30 p.m.
• Wyandotte March for Life will begin at 1:30 p.m. Jan. 20, in two locations: St. Stanislaus Kostka Church, 266 Antoine St., and Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church, 10th Street and Superior. They will come together at Mount Carmel Cemetery for a 2 p.m. prayer service.
• A prayer vigil and a walk to an abortion clinic will begin at 3 p.m. Jan. 20 at St. Barbara Church, 13534 Colson St. in Dearborn.
• A service will take place 4 p.m. Jan. 20, starting at St. Mary Church in Monroe, at Elm and Monroe streets. For information call (734) 587-3132.
• At St. Albert the Great Church in Dearborn Heights, a vigil Mass will take place 7 p.m. Monday, Jan. 21, followed by all-night adoration and Mass at 8 a.m. Jan. 22. St. Albert the Great is at 4855 Parker St., Dearborn Heights. For information, call (313) 274-1223.
• A memorial Mass for women and unborn children will take place at 10 a.m. Jan. 20, at St. Thecla Church. A special ceremony will take place prior to Mass. St. Thecla is at 20740 S. Nunneley Road in Clinton Township. For information, call (586) 596-7430.
• A rose ceremony to honor Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the unborn, will be conducted by the children of St. Paul on the Lake Parish during the 10 a.m. Mass on Jan. 20. St. Paul is at 157 Lakeshore Road, Grosse Pointe Farms.
• A Memorial Mass for the Unborn will be celebrated 11 a.m. Jan. 20 at Cathedral of the Most Blessed Sacrament, 9844 Woodward Ave., Detroit. For information, call (313) 237-5905. | The 1973 Supreme Court decision, along with accompanying decision Doe v. Bolton, superseded all state laws to make abortion legal in all 50 states, during all nine months of pregnancy, for any reason.
At a rally on the campus of Madonna University in Livonia, Kim Wall, chairperson of the university's pro-life committee, noted that millions are missing now from several generations because of abortion in the United States and around the world.
"Think of how many holes there are in the world today, thanks to 46 million abortions around the world each year," she said.
Other pro-life leaders spoke at the rally. While many have been part of the pro-life movement since Roe v. Wade was first decided, many were much younger, too. Stalwart leaders of the movement, from churches and such organizations as Right to Life, urged the younger generation to take up the fight.
Some, such as 15-year-old Gabrielle Valentic, agreed.
"People need to wake up and realize that it's not something that's going on in the future, and it's not something that's going on in the past — it's going on right now," said Gabrielle, who won second place an annual Right to Life—Lifespan essay contest for an essay she wrote on embryonic vs. adult stem cell research.
She added that a culture of life happens by reaching one person at a time.
Her parents, parishioners of SS. Cyril and Methodius Parish in Sterling Heights, say the Church has strengthened their convictions through its teachings about the dignity of life.
"We've always valued life," said Joseph Valentic, Gabrielle's father. "And through the Church we've come to find out what it really means."
Many Catholics are among those who plan to join the Washington, D.C., March for Life on Tuesday. Susan Tesorero, a parishioner of Divine Child Parish in Dearborn and president of Dearborn Area Right to Life, says joining the March has a special meaning.
"I view the trip in the same light as a pilgrimage," Tesorero said. "There are many who can't go down there in person, but hopefully myself and the others from the area serve as their representatives."
She added that, through her work with Right to Life, she sees hope in the pro-life movement.
"I think the tide is turning, especially with the youth," Tesorero said. "They are looking for hopeful answers, and they know that self-centeredness doesn't work. It's self-sacrificing love that ultimately fulfills."
And while Catholics make up a significant portion of pro-lifers, the cause is one that reaches across ages, races and generations, said Robert Burke, a parishioner at St. Joseph Parish in Adrian who's helping organize one of three Right to Life busses departing from southeast Michigan.
The March for Life illustrates the all-inclusiveness of the cause, he added.
"It begins that process of unity that we need," Burke said. "This is nondenominational. This is nongender. This is nonracial. This brings all of us together for one purpose, to stand up for the beauty and sacredness of life."
Still, what Catholics hope for, ultimately, is not only the end of abortion – it's the healing of the culture through God's infinite mercy. At the prayer vigil at St. Aidan, Fr. William Tindall stressed that it's the job of the people of God to bring Christ's message of compassion to those touched by abortion.
"You have to be proud that you carry that cross," said Fr. Tindall, pastor of St. Michael Parish in Livonia. "You have to be proud of the discipleship and speak to this horrible issue from faith."
Without hearing the message of God's mercy and forgiveness, he added, those who have been affected by abortion will not understand how the Lord can heal them.
"Until we speak of this from the perspective of faith," he said, "we will not bring healing."
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