Archdiocesan youth bring energy to
Washington March for Life rally

By Julie Brown
Special to The Criterion

WASHINGTON, D.C.—“Pro-Vida. Pro-life.”

“Abortion is homicide.”

“Rock for life.”

Thousands of pro-life signs were visible on Jan. 24 along Constitution Avenue in Washington, D.C., as hundreds of thousands of pro-life supporters from across the United States gathered in the nation’s capital for the 32nd annual March for Life.

Pro-life supporters of all ages, but mostly young people, braved winter storms and bitterly cold temperatures to participate in the peaceful and prayerful rally for an end to abortion.

More than 500 students and adults from the Archdiocese of Indianapolis traveled to Washington on Jan. 22 to join the pro-life march. On each bus, a priest served as the bus captain and pilgrimage director, making the trip a meaningful as well as a spiritual experience.

Enduring the discomforts of long bus rides, cramped spaces in the crowded Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception and sleeping on a gymnasium floor, the archdiocesan youth embraced those difficulties as ways to strengthen their faith.

St. Anthony of Padua parishioner Jennifer Prickle of Morris, a senior at East Central High School in Batesville, said “this trip has helped me grow in my faith and show others that I’m not afraid to stand up for what I believe in.”

Although the cold weather was daunting, it didn’t keep many people from participating in the pro-life pilgrimage.

Father Jonathan Meyer, associate director of the archdiocesan Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministry and associate pastor of Our Lady of the Greenwood Parish in Greenwood, was surprised by the huge turnout in the wake of a snowstorm.

“We went on the trip not knowing exactly what was going to happen, thinking that the numbers were going to be down because of the weather,” Father Meyer said. “But when we arrived in D.C., specifically at the Basilica of the [National Shrine] of the Immaculate Conception, we realized that the weather had not stopped anyone from coming, so great is the love for the pro-life movement and the unborn, bringing thousands upon thousands together to pray.”

On Jan. 23, the night before the march, pro-life supporters filled the basilica for the National Mass for Life and prayer vigil to pray for an end to abortion, the more than 43 million babies killed in abortion, the spiritual conversion of abortion providers and God’s protection for those marching the next day.

Hundreds of pro-life supporters attending the Mass for Life were inspired by the procession of several hundred seminarians, priests, bishops and archbishops in the crowded basilica.

The March for Life is held each January in Washington to peacefully protest the Supreme Court’s Roe vs. Wade and Doe vs. Bolton decisions in 1973 that legalized abortion during all nine months of pregnancy.

While in Washington for the march, archdiocesan teenagers stayed at The Catholic University of America adjacent to the basilica, where they had an opportunity for praise and worship, confession and all-night adoration. Many of the youth took advantage of this prayer time, and felt that participating in these activities with other pro-life supporters added to the spirit of the pilgrimage.

“To be able to worship God with people of the same mind through adoration and songs was definitely a huge part of my experience,” said Ben Lehmertz, a Ball State University sophomore and member of St. Francis Parish in Muncie, Ind.

The events leading up to the march created a spiritual mood that affected everyone in a beneficial way. Many pro-life supporters prayed the rosary or Chaplet of Divine Mercy and sang songs during the march.

Although the goal of the March for Life is to send a pro-life message to members of Congress, the objective also is to send the same message to the American people.

Seminarian Aaron Thomas, a member of St. Andrew Parish in Richmond and a resident of the archdiocese’s Bishop Bruté House of Formation at Marian College in Indianapolis, said “America needs a change of heart. America needs to see the human goodness in every person, no matter how small or seemingly insignificant.”

Father Michael Shawe Memorial Jr./Sr. High School senior Jacob Laskowski, a member of Peace of Peace Parish in Madison, said he was encouraged by the large number of teenagers at the march and the determination of all the pro-life supporters to work for an end to abortion.

“People will begin to see what we’re doing here at the march,” Jacob said, “and know that the next generation is the one that is standing for the message of Christ.”

(Julie Brown lives in Springport, Ind., and is a member of Holy Rosary Parish in Indianapolis. She is home-schooled and serves on the Archdiocesan Pro-Life Youth Council.) †

Click here to see pictures from the event