Devotion for today: Protection for the unborn

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Today, in the United States of American, we observe the Day of Prayer and Fasting for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children. Although the March for Life will take place in Washington, D.C. on Friday, January 25, we should spend today in deep prayer, fasting and sacrifice to beg God to help us turn the hearts of stone in this country, hearts which refuse to believe the truth of scientific sonograms, of women who tell their stories of post-abortion trauma, of documentaries like Blood Money made by a former abortion clinic owner who states that pressure tactics, unsterile utensils, and severe body trauma were common in her clinic, into hearts willing to take a stand to let our children live. We must become willing to become part of the solution of women pregnant and abandoned, pregnant and poor, pregnant and scared. The Catholic Church welcomes all women to come and partake of a wide variety of services offered to help every woman give birth to her baby, whether she chooses to keep him or give her up for adoption. Let us all search our souls and see if we can become part of these programs, or in some way, through prayer, contributions, or personal sacrifice, bring all babies into loving arms, and not into death. There is no other answer if we are to turn the culture of death in our society around. Death delivered from a mother to her own baby can only create a mentality of violence in the culture where it exists. Why not take time today to call your own mother, or offer a prayer to her in heaven (I have it on the best authority that most moms make it to heaven!!) thanking her for unselfishly sacrificing her body, her soul, her dreams and goals to give you life, to raise you well, and to love you without end. Then say a prayer to Mary, the Mother of us all, to bless each and every woman today who is considering abortion, that her heart be moved to choose life, and not death.

The attack on the innocent and defenseless life of the unborn has its origin in an erroneous view of human sexuality, which attempts to eliminate, by mechanical or chemical means, the essentially procreative nature of the conjugal act. The error maintains that the artificially altered conjugal act retains its integrity. The claim is that the act remains unitive or loving, even though the procreative nature of the act has been radically violated. In fact, it is not unitive, for one or both of the partners withholds an essential part of the gift of self, which is the essence of the conjugal union. The so-called "contraceptive mentality" is essentially anti-life. Many forms of so-called contraception are, in fact, abortifacient, that is, they destroy, at its beginning, a life which has already been conceived."

~ Cardinal Raymond Burke, Advancing the Culture of Life in Hope and With Obedience, October 29, 2011~

 “Destruction of the embryo in the mother’s womb is a violation of the right to live which God has bestowed on this nascent life. To raise the question whether we are here concerned already with a human being or not is merely to confuse the issue. The simple fact is that God certainly intended to create a human being and that this nascent human being has been deliberately deprived of his life. And that is nothing but murder.”
~ Dietrich Bonhoeffer ~

"...is it surprising that today we have become so morally blind (for wickedness blinds) that we save the baby whales at great cost, and murder millions of unborn children?"
~ Alice von Hildebrand, The Privilege of Being a Woman, p.24 ~http://www.prolifequotes.blogspot.com~

Prayer: Prayer to End Abortion

Lord God, I thank you today for the gift of my life,
And for the lives of all my brothers and sisters.

I know there is nothing that destroys more life than abortion,
Yet I rejoice that you have conquered death
by the Resurrection of Your Son.

I am ready to do my part in ending abortion.
Today I commit myself
Never to be silent,
Never to be passive,
Never to be forgetful of the unborn.

I commit myself to be active in the pro-life movement,
And never to stop defending life
Until all my brothers and sisters are protected,
And our nation once again becomes
A nation with liberty and justice
Not just for some, but for all.

Through Christ our Lord. Amen! (http://www.priestsforlife.org/prayers/praytoendabortion.htm)

Scripture for meditation: Jeremiah 31:15

Thus says the LORD, "A voice is heard in Ramah, Lamentation and bitter weeping. Rachel is weeping for her children; She refuses to be comforted for her children, Because they are no more.