Any concerns about pro-life enthusiasm among high school students was put to rest at George Mason University’s EagleBank Arena in Fairfax Jan. 23. Nearly 3,000 students from states far and wide prepared for the March for Life by attending the Life Is VERY Good rally and Mass, celebrated by Bishop Michael F. Burbidge.
“Look around at so many people your age from around the country — your generation — who share your beliefs and convictions,” said Bishop Burbidge in his homily. “We will march today, holding hands accompanying one another, realizing we will accomplish so much more as a united team than we will ever accomplish as isolated individuals.”
Students agreed that they were uplifted in being surrounded by thousands of others who take a stand for life. “This really helps me understand that they’re a lot of people fighting against abortion,” said Lily MacDougall, a senior at Thomas Aquinas Regional School in Woodbridge. “You realize you’re not alone in the fight.”
Many students were visibly moved as they listened to the praise and worship music of Seph Schlueter, linking arms in prayer, swaying and singing together as one.
“We’re all in this together with Jesus by our side,” said Callie Dunn, a junior at Saint John Paul the Great Catholic High School in Potomac Shores. “I think that our generation is the one to take it one step further and to really make a difference and keep going forward with this movement for life.”
“This is something that makes me feel really confident knowing there’s so many other people out here who feel the same way I do,” said Xavier Olsen, also a junior at John Paul the Great. “In living out our faith, I think we can make a big difference in society.”
Despite significant legislative setbacks in many states since the Dobbs Supreme Court decision overturned Roe v. Wade in 2022, Kevin Bohli, executive director of the diocesan Office of Youth, Campus and Young Adult Ministries, said that connecting with high school students is more important than ever. “That’s why we continue to do this event,” he said. “We still need the next generation to have a deep respect for life so that they can help change the culture. They come here and see thousands of others who will stand alongside them and this just emboldens their desire to take a stand for life.”
In an impassioned half-hour keynote address, Oscar Rivera exhorted the students to remember to center their pro-life activism on the love of Christ instead of social media influencers.
“We’re not here to raise a group of zealots or a group of activists, but we are here to raise up a nation that follows Jesus in the midst of darkness,” said Rivera. “Will we continue to mimic the influencers that get the most likes? Or will we mimic the one crucial person who brought change into this world 2,000 years ago? Do not grow numb because the world is so heavy … Don’t march because you’re an activist; march because you are a Christian.”
Just moments before boarding their buses en route to the March for Life, Bishop Burbidge reminded the students that much is at stake. “Isn’t that true for our country,” he said. “So, think of how much confidence the Lord has in you that he’s sending you forth today to be the voices, intercessors and protectors of the unborn.”
Bishop Ireton High School senior Niamh Moreno looked around at the hordes of students pouring into the arena and spoke with confidence. “This shows that love overpowers everything,” she said. “This will never die.”
