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BY ERIKA ANDERSON
Staff Writer
ATLANTA--The faint cries of babies in the congregation were a reminder of
why hundreds of Catholics gathered at the annual Mass for the Unborn at the
Shrine of the Immaculate Conception Jan. 22.
The Shrine was filled to capacity with pro-life faithful who stood in the
aisles, along the walls and in the vestibule of the church to mourn the loss of
over 30 million unborn babies since the 1973 Supreme Court ruling of Roe vs.
Wade legalized abortion in the U.S.
Father Michael Campbell, parochial vicar at St. John Neumann Church,
Lilburn, led the rosary prior to the Mass, as those in attendance prayed that
abortion would someday no longer be legal.
Sponsored by the archdiocesan Pro-Life Office for the eighth year, the Mass
for the Unborn began as St. Pius X High School students processed into the
church holding a series of white wooden crosses, each representing the number
of unborn babies lost in one year since the ruling. They were followed by
priests of the archdiocese who concelebrated the Mass with Archbishop John F.
Donoghue.
In his homily, Archbishop Donoghue said that the Mass was a mixture of
sorrow and hope.
“This is not itself a funeral Mass, for at the end, we must have hope,
and we must believe in the power of good to overcome, and the power of Divine
love to redeem all that has been lost,” he said. “And yet, in a real
sense, it is a day of funeral remembrance--remembrance of all infants who have
died under the knife of the abortionist, especially those who have died in the
year since we last gathered, and especially for those who have died near to us,
in and around this part of Georgia that we call home.”
The archbishop also spoke of the lies that surround the abortion industry
and the way the light of the Gospel penetrates this darkness.
“To those dedicated and baptized in truth, there is no successful
deceit in terms like reproductive freedom, or a woman’s right to choose or
‘planned parenthood,’” he said. “We might as well call
murder pleasant, or death inviting, or pain refreshing--but whatever evil and
death might be called, they are still evil and death, and God will not, in the
end, suffer evil to exist, nor invite to the heavenly banquet, any who have
stolen His right, and His alone, to judge when the end should come for any of
us.”
Archbishop Donoghue also reminded the congregation of the need to be
completely pro-life in regard to those who perform abortions.
“We do not wish the death of anyone, we who gather here in the
Lord’s presence, to mourn the many children innocently slaughtered,”
he said. “We do not pray to God for the deliverance of anyone unto death,
but rather, deliverance into life, into love, and into the chance for salvation
that is the birthright of every human being, however conceived.”
Music for the Mass was provided by cantors Mary Welch Rogers and Sam Hagan,
the Catholic Home Schools Choir directed by Linda O’Neal, trumpeter Greg
Holland and Alan Brown, organist.
During the offertory procession, Catholic school children brought forward a
basket of baby booties to be blessed by the archbishop. These booties were
later used to line the steps of the Capitol, where Catholics joined thousands
of other mourners after the Mass for the annual memorial walk of remembrance
sponsored by Georgia Right to Life, a non-profit, non-sectarian organization.
Peggy Sinanian, archdiocesan pro-life director, thanked those in attendance
at the Mass for their dedication and announced she would step down from the
post in February after nine years.
“I have been doing this work for the Lord for many years,” she
said with emotion. “I owe so much to all of you. This has been the
greatest endeavor I have ever been involved in. I will never stop working for
life.”
On a day predicted to be rainy, the sun shone on those gathered at the
Capitol to hear the remarks of Archbishop Donoghue and other leaders of the
pro-life movement in Georgia.
The archbishop spoke of the victory in the closing of Midtown Hospital, an
abortion clinic that was shut down in May 1998 due to horrific conditions
documented by state inspectors from the Department of Human Resources.
“What can we say of those who own and operate such horrors, having the
audacity to call them ‘facilities of excellent health care,’ except
that they make a mockery of God and of human beings,” he said. “Well,
they are the fools, and by the power of love, those particular devils have met
their match--in the persistent faithful witness of Georgia’s
right-to-lifers, in the slow, but strong power of the State to shut down
unclean, unsafe public facilities, and finally and foremost, in the will of
God, the Father of us all, who will not be mocked.”
The archbishop also encouraged those in attendance to pray for those who do
not oppose abortion.
“Let us pray, dear friends, that our example may grow stronger--that
the light which flows through us, the light of Truth, will blind into
conversion those who have yet to see the Truth in light, and destroy in them,
the sickness which tolerates, accepts, and then protects in law, murder,
suicide, and the extermination of infant children,” he said. “May God
hear our prayer as we come before Him today, one family, many children, and
together--for a lifetime, and for all life.”
Then, together as one body in Christ, mourners marched through the streets
of downtown Atlanta, quietly, prayerfully holding signs and banners pleading
for an end to abortion.
Those who marched were of varying ages, races and religious denominations,
but all were united by the common bond of life.
Nick O’Connor, a parishioner of the Cathedral of Christ the King,
Atlanta, has been to the Mass and march for the past eight years.
“I just really want to support the pro-life movement,” he said.
“Of course the most advantageous thing we can do is pray.”
He also said that he is encouraged by those who come each year to stand up
for the right to life.
“I think it makes a statement to Atlanta that we are here and we are
not going away,” he said. “It makes people think about this thing and
they can’t just put it aside.”
Mary Beth Raterman, 17, a senior at St. Pius, said that although this was
her third Mass for the Unborn and March for Life, she spent a lot of time
thinking and reflecting during the events of the day.
“I’ve been looking at all the numbers and it’s just baffling
to me that it’s still going on and that people can just turn their
heads,” she said. “People will fight for other mild causes, but
ignore the fact that thousands of babies are being slaughtered every day.”
John Vrionis, a parishioner of St. Andrew Church in Roswell, said that he
came to show his support for the pro-life movement.
“I believe very strongly in the right to life,” he said. “I
think there are way too many forces of evil and we have to stand up for what we
think is right.”
Jennifer Stockard, a parishioner of St. Catherine of Siena Church, Kennesaw,
said she brought her two young daughters to teach them about the sanctity of
life.
“They have to understand that we need to stand up to the government and
tell them that this is not right,” she said. “God is pro-life and we
are following God.”
Stockard said that she wants her daughters to know that life is the only
choice.
“It’s very important that they understand that it’s a fallacy
that we have a right to choose and they will be bombarded by that as they get
older,” she said. “I can’t think of anything more precious than
life and I wanted to show them that.”
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