Monday, January 23, 2017

Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Abortion

(Hebrews 9:15.24-28; Mark 3:22-30)

Abortion is a grave crime.  It is the intentional taking of a human life in its most vulnerable stage.  The extent that the crime is committed is even more egregious.  Every year more or less one million abortions are performed in the United States alone.  Around the world there must be tens of millions.  Despite the atrocities Jesus in today’s gospel indicates readiness to forgive all these sins.

The passage is famous for Jesus’ observation that accusing him of being in league with the devil is like saying that a house is divided against itself.  Also noted many times is Jesus’ prescription of an unpardonable sin.  But what should interest people most is his statement, “…all sins and all blasphemies that people utter will be forgiven them.”  He does not mean that they will be forgiven without repentance, but he assures that God is quite ready to forgive even heinous crimes.


Today we pray for abortion victims and its perpetrators.  We make a communal act of penance for the unborn who will never see the light of day.  We beseech the Lord to change the minds and hearts of those who seek, perform, and allow abortion.  Finally, we ask the Lord to stop this slaughter of innocents.