Editorial

40 Days for Life reminds us mission in building culture of life is far from over

If we’re about to begin our observance of Lent—which begins on Feb. 22, Ash Wednesday—that means our spring 40 Days for Life campaign is about to begin as well. This year’s campaign runs from Feb. 22-April 2.

40 Days for Life is an international effort that seeks to end abortion through peaceful prayer vigils at abortion centers, and to raise community awareness of the consequences of abortion. A campaign also occurs each fall.

The purpose of the campaigns is to turn hearts and minds from a culture of death to a culture of life and to bring an end to abortion. In the archdiocese, campaigns take place in Bloomington and Indianapolis.

During the 40-day campaigns, individuals and groups pray during one-hour time slots in front of abortion centers around the world. The initiative offers us a unique opportunity to plant seeds of faith, hope and love where the unborn and their mothers are concerned, and it is a powerful example having people across the globe pray in unison for the unborn.

It is true that pro-life advocates scored a big victory last June when the U.S. Supreme Court overturned its 1973 Roe v. Wade decision that legalized abortion on demand across the United States.

Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which centered on a Mississippi law that banned abortion after 15 weeks, overturned Roe and Planned Parenthood of Southeastern Pennsylvania v. Casey, stating that the rulings in these earlier cases erroneously recognized a right to abortion in the U.S. Constitution. As a result of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in Dobbs, the matter of regulating or restricting abortion was returned to states legislatures.

Indiana’s pro-life legislation making most abortions in the state illegal—Senate Bill 1, which was signed into law by Gov. Eric Holcomb last August—continues to be under an injunction while the Indiana Supreme Court reviews a case by Planned Parenthood and others arguing in the judicial system that the law violates the state’s constitution. A second case against the law was filed last September by Hoosier Jews for Choice and others, claiming the law violates Indiana’s Religious Freedom Restoration Act passed in 2015.

While the law is on hold, abortions continue in Indiana as they did prior to the enactment of the law last September. We believe that is reason enough for people of faith in central and southern Indiana to continue taking part in 40 Days for Life campaigns.

Tim O’Donnell, 40 Days for Life coordinator for the Indianapolis campaign and a member of the Knights of Columbus, said as much in a recent e-mail to The Criterion, citing five reasons why it is important to continue taking part in this pro-life effort. They include:

• Praying that the Indiana Supreme Court rules against the lawsuits brought against Senate Bill 1.
• Even with Senate Bill 1 in force, there will be abortions due to exceptions. Every child needs to be rescued from the violence of abortion.
• Offering a public witness to the sanctity of life to those who work, visit or drive by Planned Parenthood centers.
• Chemical abortion has dramatically expanded because CVS and Walgreens drug stores provide abortion pills.
• “Solidarity with our brothers and sisters across the country and the world. Even in a post-Roe America, more than 80% of abortions will continue to happen,” O’Donnell wrote. “We love our country and these precious children. We will stand shoulder to shoulder with pro-life warriors with one heart and mind: loving them both to make abortion unthinkable.”

The Indianapolis campaign will take place on the public right-of-way outside of the Planned Parenthood abortion center at 8590 Georgetown Road. Parking is available along Georgetown Road; do not park in the Women’s Care Center parking lot or at the industrial complex across from the Planned Parenthood facility. To sign up, go to 40daysforlife.com/en/indianapolis. For additional information, contact O’Donnell at 317-372-0040 or e-mail idipsumsapere@att.net.

The Bloomington campaign will take place along the public right-of-way outside of the Planned Parenthood facility at 421 S. College Ave. Parking is available at the meters along the street at $1 per hour. Do not park in the Planned Parenthood parking lot. To sign up, go to 40daysforlife.com/en/bloomington. For more information, contact Deacon Russell Woodard at 317-456-7722 or e-mail rbwoodard@ameritech.net.

The central Indiana Knights of Columbus will host an overnight prayer vigil from 7 p.m. on March 24 to 7 a.m. on March 25 outside the Planned Parenthood center in Indianapolis. All are invited to participate.

For more information or to sign up at sites outside of the archdiocese—including in Evansville, Louisville and Cincinnati—go to www.40daysforlife.com and select “Locations.”

Because U.S. President Joe Biden, in his State of the Union address on Feb. 7, called on Congress to codify Roe v. Wade “to protect every woman’s constitutional right to choose,” we understand our mission in building a culture of life is far from over.

May we continue, please God, to do all we can to protect the most vulnerable members of our society and convert those hardened and uniformed hearts who fail to understand what a precious gift each child is.

—Mike Krokos