Take action and pray

Richard A. Sokerka

In many states across the nation, pro-life advocates are seeing some light in their ongoing efforts to curb abortion.

In South Dakota, Gov. Kristi Noem (R), in her 2021 State of the State address, asked state lawmakers to introduce a bill banning abortions based on a prenatal diagnosis of Down syndrome. “The Declaration of Independence summarizes what we all know in our hearts to be true — that God created each of us and endowed all of us with the right to life. This is true for everyone, including those with an extra chromosome,” she said to a standing ovation from legislators.

In Ohio, Gov. Mike DeWine (R) signed a bill into law that bans the practice of “telemedicine abortion” procedures.

In Texas, the state will no longer provide Medicaid funds to abortion providers such as Planned Parenthood.

Lawmakers in Kentucky last week sent two pro-life bills to Gov. Andy Beshear (D), both of which are likely to become law thanks to veto-proof Republican majorities. One bill would allow the state attorney general to directly investigate and prosecute abortion facilities for violations of recently enacted state laws, including that abortion facilities have a transfer agreement with hospitals in case of medical complications that could arise from abortions. The second bill would make it illegal for medical professionals to deny medical care to babies born alive during abortions. It also provides for born-alive infants to be legally recognized as persons under Kentucky law.

However, here in New Jersey, just the opposite is happening. The pro-life community sees no light, only the darkness, as N.J. Gov. Phil Murphy (D) and his party cohorts in the state legislature push for the passage of the Reproductive Freedom Act. The Beacon has detailed in stories over the last few months how this bill will strip the child in the womb of any legal right to life and make New Jersey the most pro-abortion state in the nation.

The Catholic Bishops of New Jersey have voiced strong opposition to the Reproductive Freedom Act, and have asked Catholics to not only contact their state representatives to vote “no” but also to join with them tomorrow Jan. 22, the 48th anniversary of Roe vs. Wade, in a Day of Prayer and Fasting to end abortion.

Here in our own Diocese, join with Bishop Sweeney in a livestreamed event at 7 p.m., Jan. 22 from the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist in Paterson (www.rcdop/live) during a holy hour of prayer for the protection of life in the womb.

The Catholic Church believes and teaches that all human life is sacred from conception to natural death. Pope Francis has said that the right to life of the unborn “is the most fundamental right. This is not first a religious issue; it is a human rights issue.”

At the National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C. in 1997, St. Mother Teresa said, “If we accept that a mother can kill her own child, how can we tell other people not to kill one another. Any country that accepts abortion is not teaching its people to love, but to use violence to get what they want. That is why the greatest destroyer of love and peace is abortion.”

Take action to stop the Reproductive Freedom Act and also pray and fast on Jan. 22 to end abortion.