Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta once said, "I feel that the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion, because it is a war against the child - a direct killing of the innocent child - murder by the mother herself. And if we accept that a mother can kill even her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another?"
Blessed Teresa understood well the crisis facing America and every nation that freely embraces the killing of the most innocent and vulnerable among us. She boldly and courageously challenged all of us, from the powerful to the lowly, to make atonement before the Heavenly Father and mend this festering wound. Her remedy was love and acceptance for every child regardless of the circumstance in which he was conceived. No one child should be marked as "unwanted or undeserving" of life. Every life is precious and sacred!
Only true love for God and neighbor could pierce through the most hardened of hearts. Consider Blessed Teresa's reflection from the 1997 National Prayer Breakfast in Washington:
How do we persuade a woman not to have an abortion? As always, we must persuade her with love, and we remind ourselves that love means to be willing to give until it hurts. Jesus gave even his life to love us. So the mother who is thinking of abortion, should be helped to love - that is, to give until it hurts her plans, or her free time, to respect the life of her child. The father of that child, whoever he is, must also give until it hurts. By abortion, the mother does not learn to love, but kills even her own child to solve her problems. And by abortion, the father is told that he does not have to take any responsibility at all for the child he has brought into the world. That father is likely to put other women into the same trouble. So abortion just leads to more abortion. Any country that accepts abortion is not teaching the people to love, but to use any violence to get what they want. That is why the greatest destroyer of love and peace is abortion.
We are often uncertain of what we can do to change the grappling hold of evil in this world. Promoters of the Culture of Death would have us believe that we are helpless in changing the current momentum, but this is a blatant lie. We are not alone. Jesus is with us! Jesus, the one Who conquered death, removes our fear. As Saint Paul in his Second Letter to Corinthians beautifully encourages us:
But we hold this treasure in earthen vessels, that the surpassing power may be of God and not from us. We are afflicted in every way, but not constrained; perplexed, but not driven to despair; persecuted, but not abandoned; struck down, but not destroyed; always carrying about in the body the dying of Jesus, so that the life of Jesus may also be manifested in our body. (2 Corinthians 4:8-10)
Recognizing our unity and strength in Christ, we step forward to join the fight. We realize the fight is not fought only upon the temporal plains of this world, in courtrooms, legislative halls, branches of government or town squares; but also, and perhaps primarily, in the hearts of God's people. It comes to us to cooperate with Our Lord, who is always offering us a true renewal of our hearts, and asking us to help him reach the hearts of others: "Moreover, I will give you a new heart and put a new spirit within you; and I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh" (Ezekiel 36:26).
The darkness of the Culture of Death must be confronted with the Light of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. We cannot win this battle merely with our own gifts and efforts; but we absolutely can win with the help of the One who is Freedom, Truth, Light and Life.
Wednesday, September 28, marked the beginning of the Fall 2011 40 Days for Life Campaign. 40 Days' mission is to draw attention to the evil of abortion, and to unite the Body of Christ while invoking God's power through prayer, fasting and peaceful vigil. Thousands of pro-lifers throughout the world are wedded through prayer as they witness the power of Love - one "drop" at a time.
We ourselves feel that what we are doing is just a drop in the ocean. But if that drop was not in the ocean, I think the ocean would be less because of that missing drop. I do not agree with the big way of doing things.
One drop of love joined with other drops can change the world. The fruit of 40 Days for Life has become more evident with each passing year and its powerful influence is breaking through the hardened barriers promoted by the Culture of Death.
I am asking you to join me in this great crusade, and to encourage others to join us. I need your help, your brothers and sisters praying in front of abortion clinics need your help, and most importantly, innocent babies in the womb need your help. Please locate a 40 Days Campaign in your area and actively participate.
Get involved. Stand with me and your brothers and sisters. This peaceful activism, with a spirit of repentance at its core, seeks the Almighty's favor in transforming the hearts and minds of His people, especially those supporting the Culture of Death.
While we are praying for the unborn, and for conversion of those who facilitate or perpetrate the horror of abortion, let's also remember each other, and pray for joy, strength and perseverance as we keep up the fight for life.
"I give thanks to my God at every remembrance of you, praying always with joy in my every prayer for all of you because of your partnership for the Gospel... I am confident of this, that the one who began a good work in you will continue to complete it until the day of Christ Jesus" (Philippians 1:3-6).
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Father Shenan J. Boquet
President, Human Life International
President, Human Life International
