‘Pro-Life @ Every Stage of Life’

WASHINGTON  Above their heads, Pat Hardy, 15, and his brother, Mike, 17, of St. Vincent de Paul Parish, Stirling, hoisted up placards that display the same powerful declaration — “Pro-Life @ Every Stage of Life.” These two teens were joined by hundreds of thousands of enthusiastic pro-life people from around the U.S., who on Jan. 19 descended on the nation’s capital for the 45th annual March for Life. The Hardys were among hundreds of Catholics from the Paterson Diocese, who marched that warm Friday afternoon — often chanting, singing, praying and carrying signs — to give a voice to the voiceless in the womb in their fight to end legalized abortion.

Earlier in the day, pro-lifers, including laity, clergy and religious, packed Constitution Avenue as they marched passed the U.S. Capitol — where the House of Representatives passed the Born-Alive Abortion Survivors Protection Act hours before the March — and the U.S. Supreme Court, which handed down Roe v Wade, the decision that legalized abortion on demand, on Jan. 22, 1973. Knights of Columbus councils, parishes and Respect Life ministries sponsored buses that left for the March — with the theme “Love Saves Lives” — from several locations early that morning from around the Diocese.

“This is awesome. It’s really important to speak for unborn life. This is a message that the world needs to hear,” said Pat Hardy, who with Mike — two of nine total children in their family — traveled from Stirling and represented the great number of young people, who participated. Their family members have attended pro-life rallies and prayed and protested in front of an abortion clinic.

The March kicked off on the National Mall with a rally that included inspiring pro-life speeches by Rep. Paul Ryan, speaker of the House of Representatives; NFL/MLB star Tim Tebow’s mother Pam Tebow, and U.S. Representative Chris Smith (R-N.J.) and others. Also President Donald Trump became the first sitting president in history to address the crowd by live video from the Rose Garden of the White House.

“The March for Life is a movement born out of love: you love your families; you love your neighbors; you love our nation; and you love every child born and unborn, because you believe that every life is sacred, that every child is a precious gift from God,” Trump said. “I want to thank every person here today and all across our country who works with such big hearts and tireless devotion to make sure that parents have the caring support they need to choose life. Because of you, tens of thousands of Americans have been born and reached their full God-given potential, all because of you,” he said.

Also, Trump promoted his administration’s accomplishments, such as reinstating the Mexico City Policy, which blocks federal funding for non-governmental organizations that provide abortion counseling or referrals or advocate for abortion policies; supporting the House’s pain-capable bill, which would end late-term abortions; and reversing former President Obama’s policy that restricted state efforts to direct Medicaid funding away from abortion facilities that violate the law.

In talk, Congressmen Smith praised the marchers but also urged them to continue to “reach out to women, who have had abortions” — “to love them, to care for them” — and urge them to tell women considering abortion, “Rethink what you are intending. Please, have that baby.”

“We need to double down on our prayer for healing. We need to increase our fastings and we need to ask God for wisdom, for healing, so that we will do our duty to protect the weakest and the most vulnerable,” said Smith, who later hosted a reception for pro-life advocates. Also following the March, other pro-lifers visited the offices of Congressman Rodney Frelinghuysen (R) and Senators Bob Menendez and Corry Booker of New Jersey, both Democrats who support abortion on demand.

In the line of march, demonstrators sang religious hymns, such as “Ave Maria”; recited the rosary; led chants, such as “Hey, hey, ho, ho, Roe v. Wade has got to go”; and carried signs with slogans, such as “Abortion Is Not Empowerment.” Among them were Ania Trzesniowski, 14, an eighth-grader at St. Joseph School, Mendham, and March veteran, who carried a sign, “Abortion Stops a Beating Heart.”

“The atmosphere here is so friendly and you feel the love. It’s important to defend the unborn,” said Trzesniowski, who told The Beacon that she finds great meaning in the March, because she had three sisters, who range in age from 15 years old to one who will celebrate her first birthday this year.

Marching alongside Trzesniowski was Father Stephen Prisk, parochial vicar of St. Joseph Parish, Mendham, who traveled to Washington on a bus with people, who included the St. Joseph’s community and the Sisters of Christian Charity, also from Mendham.

“It’s great to see the young people here. They are the future of the Church. It’s important to educate them on the teachings of the Church, what the pro-life movement stands for and how they fit in with their relationships with Christ and how they are called to be evangelizers,” said Father Prisk, during the March, his sixth. He praised his parish’s pro-life ministry, including its participation in the National Day of Remembrance for Aborted Children. That morning, the priest blessed the graves of two abandoned babies who were buried in the parish’s cemetery.

The line of march was filled with many parents and their children, including Pilar Gomez of St. Anthony Parish, Passaic, and her son Jesus, 12. It marked the seventh time for Jesus, who with his mother, carried a sign, “I Am the Pro-Life Generation.” Ahead of them were two other parishioners, holding a brightly colored sign that stated, “God Bless the Unborn Family” and displayed images of Jesus and Mary.

“I want to promote that we should not be killing babies. It’s wrong,” said Jesus Gomez, while Pilar said, “This is a way to show that babies can have life and have the right to live.”

As with many of the excursions that left the Diocese, one from Holy Family Parish, Florham Park, started with a Mass in the church. The presider, Father Thomas Rekiel, pastor, told The Beacon after Mass, “We are pro-life people. God offers us the gift of life. To deprive people of that is terrible. We pray for women who are making that decision, and speak out for life.”

In Washington, before the March, some diocesan marchers attended Mass at St. Peter Church on Capitol Hill celebrated by Father Michael Rodak, pastor of St. Jude Parish, Hamburg. He also serves as diocesan pilgrimage director and served as diocesan coordinator of the buses for the March for Life.

Organizing the Florham Park bus was Frank Tinari, who co-coordinates Holy Family’s pro-life ministry with wife, Barbara. It presents roses and certificates, which speak about Respect for Life, to mothers of newly baptized children; collects baby items for Good Counsel Homes for unwed mothers; and prays and pickets in front of an abortion clinic. On the bus in the morning, he helped lead the riders in the rosary, and on the way home, showed a video about the 20/20 Project, a major campaign for a ban on abortion in the state of New Jersey past 20 weeks by the year 2020.

“The idea of killing the unborn sickens me,” said Tinari, who with Barbara have three children and two grandchildren. He also participates in the Legal Center for the Defense of Life and the Life Education Council, in addition to serving on the Diocese’s Pastoral Council. “It’s mind-blowing to see all these young people at the March with all the singing and chanting,” he said.

On the Florham Park bus, Maressa Park, 16, of Notre Dame of Mount Carmel Parish, Cedar Knolls, sat with her friend, Isabella Perretti, 17, of St. Aloysius Parish, Caldwell, in the Newark Archdiocese. They are both students at Mary Help of Christians Academy (MHCA) in North Haledon, which sponsored its own bus to the March. Also the two students belong to the school’s Life Support Club, which promotes the 20/20 Project in school, encourages people to pray for life and participated in a pro-life rally in Newark.

“It’s important for young people to go to the March, because the issue of abortion is relevant to our generation. As we get older, it [the issue] falls into our hands,” Park said. “Also, we represent our stage of life [the teen years] and we represent all stages of life.”