On January 22nd, Knights of Columbus and pro-life activists from across the nation will rally and march in our nation's capital for the 35th annual March for Life, to defend the right to life of the unborn child.

Each year at this time over 100,000 Americans gather peacefully and prayerfully to urge Congress to pass a constitutional amendment to defend the life of the unborn child, and to urge the presiden t to nominate pro-life judges to the courts.  Speakers at the rally include cardinals, bishops, priests, ministers and rabbis, as well as members of Congress.  After marching through Washington, we will visit the offices of our senators and congressman to personally lobby them in support of the unborn.
 
In the past, our parish has actively participated in the March for Life, but for the last several years  our participation has been very poor.  For 3 weeks our parish bulletin ran a notice asking parishioners to sign up for the March, but nobody contacted the bus captain.  It is good to have local pro-life events as we do, but at this time abortion is still a federal issue, and our federal government must first act before the states can take any more steps to defend the unborn.  I strongly urge all of you as Roman Catholic knights to commit to a day to stand up for God's weakest and most innocent of children, who cannot speak for themselves.  It would be most unfortunate if, once again, only the Protestants in Burlington came to the defense of the unborn.

Let us remember that our order is first and foremost a Catholic men's order, not simply a fraternal or social organization.  Let us remember the first principle of our order, that of charity.  Charity is more than simply giving to the poor.  It is love, the supernatural equivalent of which is the perfect love Christ has for His Church.  While we are in this world, Our Lord expects us to make sacrifices.  It is a sacrifice to use a vacation day to take off from work.  It is a sacrifice to get up early and ride a bus to Washington, and to rally and march at the coldest time of the year.  But we are knights.   

I would like you to recall what Pope John Paul II said when he visited our country a few years ago.  While standing next to President Clinton at the airport in Denver, he said that "America is in danger of losing her soul", largely because of our indifference to the slaughter of the unborn child.  These are chilling words!  Gentlemen, the Vicar of Christ, Jesus Christ's personal representative to the world, had said that our beloved country risks utter destruction because of what Vatican 2 called an "unspeakable crime", the murder of God's innocents.  Over a million babies every year are murdered in American abortion clinics, often with taxpayer subsidies.

Americans tend to believe that our country has a special relationship with God because of our freedom and long history of prosperity and protection from our enemies.  But no nation had as close a relationship with God as did Israel, and yet the Old Testament reveals the disastrous consequences Israel suffered as a result of her faithlessness to God.  The sins of Old Testament Israel pale in comparison to today's abomination of abortion in the U.S. and most of the West.  The Pope's warning to our country echoes the dire warnings of Jeremiah, Isaiah, and the other Old Testament prophets.  I urge you, for the sake of the babies and for the sake of our beloved country, to stand with your brother knights and other pro-life activists from across the country to defend God's children on January 21st.       

We need to let Congress know that it is not enough to simply ban partial-birth abortion, which only involves about 2 percent of all abortions.  We need to let President Bush know that we expect him to not only nominate pro-life judges, but to fight for them when they are blocked by anti-life politicians in the Senate.

Please ask your employer for a day off on January 22nd. "THE PEOPLE ON THE BUS GO UP AND DOWN" on their way to Wash., DC, for the Annual MARCH FOR LIFE. Round Trip from our church parking lot is only $33.00, plus few other small expenses. The day includes Mass celebrated by Bishop Burbidge at the Immaculate Conception Basilica at 10.30 AM. March for Life Rally at 12.00 PM noon at the Mall, March to the Supreme Court at 1.30 PM to Pray, Visit our Congressional Reps., Dinner at the food court around 5.30 PM, return trip around 7.00PM. Pack a bag lunch, wear your best walking shoes and dress in layers. Please call Sis Steffen, 226-5497 for questions or reserve your seats ASAP.
Thank you on behalf of the babies.

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