The Valley Catholic February 5, 2019 | Page 13

tvc.dsj.org | February 5, 2019 13 COMMENTARY After the March for Life – Keep Walking! By Tony Magliano Internationally syndicated social jus- tice and peace columnist [email protected] In the more than 30 annual Washington, D.C. Marches for Life I have participated in, I always think the current march is the largest ever. But since accurate fi gures are hard to come by, it usually comes down to taking a good guess. But a 60-second time-lapse video produced by Students for Life of America clearly reveals, regardless of the exact number, that this year’s March fl owed on and on (check it out https://bit.ly/2Hu3sC2). It’s heartening to see that lots of people care. But do we really care enough? As important as they are, the annual Washington March for Life, Walk for Life West Coast, Midwest March for Life (Feb. 2) and dozens of similar events at state capitols throughout the U.S., are simply not enough. I remember some years ago, just before our bus left for the March for Life, a well-meaning priest congratulated us for doing our yearly duty to protest abortion and protect unborn life. While he certainly meant well, he didn’t quite grasp the horrifi c reality that the approximate 900,000 brutal abortions each year in the U.S. (see: https://bit.ly/2snR4vE), and the estimated 56 million annual abortions worldwide (see: https://bit.ly/2R6xsDr) – urgently requires various ongoing eff orts throughout the entire year. While many marchers actively work to end abor- tion and support women in diffi cult pregnancies throughout the year, many do not. Years ago, the late Nellie Gray, who founded the March for Life, told me that if just Catholics alone tirelessly stood up and demanded an end to abortion, it would end! We would do well to walk in the footsteps of the nonviolent Jesus and his early followers, proclaiming in word and deed that no life is disposable, and that every person is a beloved child of the God of life! But sadly, we are not paying enough attention to this tragedy. Perhaps after all these years of legalized abortion, we have gotten somewhat use to it. Homilists rarely rally us around the plight of our tiny unborn brethren – or for that matter the plight of our war-torn, hungry, poor, homeless, migrant, sick sisters and brothers, and the environmentally wounded planet we all share. Abortion centers have very few people, and often no one, standing in peaceful, prayerful witness on behalf of the unborn babies being killed within these so-called clinics. Education at all levels regarding the barbaric reality of abortion (see: www.abortionno.org), and the miraculous wonder of human develop- ment from the moment of conception onward (see: http://bit.ly/1XezTp2) is not suffi ciently happening. Legislators are not being swamped throughout the year with phone calls, email and text messages insisting that they pass legislation to protect the most vulnerable human beings among us. We absolutely need to put political pressure on our elected offi cials to do the morally right thing. For as the saying goes and is true in most cases, “Politicians don’t see the light until they feel the heat.” We need to turn up the heat! Even new born infants are less vulnerable than unborn babies, for it is a rare person who will murder the helpless baby he or she can see. But in this case there is light at the end of the tun- nel. A wonderful international eff ort by the Knights of Columbus has provided 1,000 ultrasound machines to pregnancy centers and pro-life health clinics through- out the U.S. and in several countries, thus allowing mothers and fathers to see their miraculous unborn babies (see: https://bit.ly/2QIVtjX) We would do well to walk in the footsteps of the nonviolent Jesus and his early followers, proclaiming in word and deed that no life is disposable, and that every person is a beloved child of the God of life! Reverse Mortgage FHA NE Lending Limit is NOW $726,525! Catherine de’Ricci Image © The Crosiers Our Jumbo Reverse Mortgage 1522-1590 feast - February 13 C At 13 St. Catherine entered the Dominican convent at Prato, Italy. As a young nun, she became mistress of novices and at 30 she became prioress for life. She became famous for her sound teaching, which she communicated in letters. From 1542 to 1554, Catherine received an extraordinary ecstasy. 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