Add 30 days of prayer for abortion-vulnerable moms to your Lenten devotion.
In January, tens of thousands of pro-life advocates gathered for the 53rd annual March for Life in our nation’s capital. School groups, congregations, families and political leaders all gave witness to the gift of every life — both mom and baby. Thousands more prayed the Nine Days for Life novena in the days leading up to the March because as Catholics, we know the power that prayer holds.
As we begin Lent, we consider what we can add or remove from our lives to help us grow closer to Christ. Maybe you’re giving up chocolate or coffee or social media as your act of daily penance. Maybe you’re adding a positive behavior, such as daily Mass or a Lenten Scripture reading plan. However you choose to observe Lent this year, each of us is called to prayer, fasting and almsgiving to help us grow in our relationship with Christ and in love of our neighbor.
As pro-lifers, Lent offers a special invitation for us to be there for vulnerable mothers and their children. The threat of abortion has never been greater. Even after the overturn of Roe v. Wade, Congress has not enacted nationwide legal protections for unborn children. Abortion drug traffickers proudly proclaim that they break the law to mail abortion drugs into pro-life states.
A woman no longer needs to make a doctor’s appointment or speak to a medical provider to take these dangerous drugs. They wait for her — in her neighbor’s medicine cabinet or in her boyfriend’s sock drawer.
No pregnancy verification is required and there is no opportunity to even ask the fundamental human question, “Are you okay?” These drugs have been marketed to the American public as safe and empowering, but nothing could be further from the truth.
Women who have had abortions tell us it was not what they wanted. In fact, 60% of women who have had abortions said they would not have if they had more emotional or financial support, according to the Charlotte Lozier Institute. They turned to — or were pushed towards –— abortion because they believed the lie that there was no other way. Weary from a lifetime of empty promises and disappointment, the abortion-vulnerable mom can’t believe anyone would be there for her or her baby. Research tells us she is single, in her 20s, and living below the poverty line, often with older children she can’t imagine providing for while caring for a newborn.
In the face of this suffering, how do we respond? How can we be there for her when she feels most isolated and alone? How can we follow the example of Simon of Cyrene on the road to Calvary and help her carry the weight of her struggles and fears?
Her PLAN’s mission is to ensure anyone ministering to a pregnant or parenting mom in need can find the resources to meet her needs and help her sustain her decision for life. Pregnancy centers, single mom ministries and churches are primary beneficiaries of our work, but what we offer them is connection to a robust network of life-affirming support that consists of a wide range of community organizations like food pantries, licensed counselors, job training programs, childcare centers and more. Her PLAN increases access to resources that sustain a mom’s decision for life, so she, and her baby, can thrive. Our team operates nationally and in 29 states, and we’re working to connect and strengthen the pro-life safety net right here in Virginia.
We also believe in the power of prayer. Our team has developed a self-guided 30-day prayer guide designed to help the ministries, providers, charities and community leaders we work with join us in prayer for the unborn, their mothers and the neighbors who stand with them. Together, we’re inviting communities to learn more about who the abortion-vulnerable woman is and the real and often complex challenges she’s facing.
Together, we’re praying that she would receive tangible support to meet those needs — and we’re working to help local communities be that support. The guide includes daily prayer prompts for you to use individually or with your church, ministry, or Bible study. Also included are reflections from Scripture and real stories of women who have been empowered to choose life when local communities of support stepped up to meet their needs.
As you begin this penitential season, we hope you’ll join us in this opportunity for reflection. We ask God to respond mercifully to prayers for life-giving help in each of the circumstances abortion-vulnerable moms face. And as you ponder how to grow in love of Christ and love of neighbor over these next 40 days of Lent, we hope you will join us in 30 days of prayer for the most vulnerable unborn and their mothers.
Simmons, a Viginia native and parishioner of St. John the Evangelist Church in Warrenton, is Virginia Coordinator for Her PLAN, an initiative of the Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America Education Fund.
More info
Click here for the prayer guide.
The Virginia Catholic Conference continues to urge all Catholics to pray and work against the proposed abortion amendment to the commonwealth’s constitution.
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