by Janet A. Morana
Associate Director, Priests for Life
“Solidarity with women” is the effort of Priests for Life to respond to the call that the Holy Father makes when he writes in Crossing the Threshold of Hope, “Therefore, in firmly rejecting 'pro choice' it is necessary to become courageously 'pro woman,' promoting a choice that is truly in favor of women. The only honest stance…is that of radical solidarity with the woman” (p.206-207). Likewise, in Evangelium Vitae 99, the Holy Father calls for a “new feminism” whose purpose is “to acknowledge and affirm the true genius of women in every aspect of the life of society, and overcome all discrimination, violence and exploitation.”
This is a task for everyone, women and men alike. The basis of our solidarity with women, as well as with unborn children, is our common humanity, not our gender.
Through its “Solidarity with Women” effort, Priests for Life has faithfully reflected this call of the Holy Father, and this inherent demand of being pro-life. In thousands of parishes around the nation over the past decade, the priests of our organization have preached, and have trained countless other priests to preach the following theme: To be pro-life is to be pro-woman. We do not say, “Love the baby and forget about the mother.” Rather, we say, “Why can't we love them both?” We can and we must. To harm one is to harm the other; to love and serve one is to love and serve the other. The destinies of mother and child are inextricably bound to one another.
Through its “Solidarity with Women” effort, Priests for Life has revealed, through TV and radio shows and in full-page ads in papers such as USA Today, how women are deceived, exploited, and killed by the abortion industry. Our Defending Life program continues to be the platform for countless women to speak to hundreds of millions of people worldwide about the pain that comes after abortion, and about the healing the Church offers.
Through its “Solidarity with Women” effort, Priests for Life has spent millions of dollars promoting awareness of pregnancy assistance centers and post-abortion healing programs, and has directly assisted these centers to become better known in their communities. For years, we have called upon pastors to place as a permanent item on their parish bulletin cover the phone numbers for local alternatives to abortion.
Through its “Solidarity with Women” effort, Priests for Life has brought to the attention of countless people in the general public that abortion harms women. Through our suggestion, the “Life Chain” began using the sign, “Abortion Hurts Women,” and we have likewise trained activists who pray at abortion mills to read aloud the names of women killed by abortion, and call upon the abortion industry to express some regret for the loss of those lives. We have also assisted many women to sue the abortion industry for physical and emotional damages, and have helped attorneys find specialized training in abortion malpractice litigation.
Through appearances on college campuses, pro-life conventions, and television programs like Hannity and Colmes and The O'Reilly Factor, Priests for Life has spread the pro-woman message and argued that if feminism rightly rejects the exploitation of women by men, it should likewise reject the exploitation of children by women. Priests for Life has educated clergy and laity alike that those who founded the “women's rights movement” in this nation were pro-life.
Through our website, we maintain the largest collection of post-abortion testimony on the internet), and assist numerous post-abortion ministries to develop healing programs.
One of our latest efforts is to co-sponsor the Silent No More Awareness Campaign. Throughout the country, women who have found healing after their abortion are speaking out, revealing abortion for the harmful, empty promise that it is. In June of this year, we brought such women before a special gathering of members of the US House of Representatives in Washington. We will continue to give them opportunities to speak out from coast to coast. In the month of September, we are organizing events at which women gather publicly with their signs that say “I Regret My Abortion.” We also invite pastors to hold healing services in October. More information is on our website.
Our efforts in “Solidarity with Women” have only just begun. “Pro-woman” is not simply a project, strategy, or package for the pro-life message. Rather, it is that message. Whenever someone speaks up for the equal dignity of the unborn child, that person is advancing the status of women. Whenever someone reveals the horror of abortion, that person is counteracting the exploitation of women, so many of whom are deceived into thinking that abortion is no horror at all. Whenever the pro-life message is advanced, women are ennobled. For that we will continue to work, and in that we rejoice!
This update courtesy of the Priests for Life newsletter. You may contact Priests for Life at PO Box 141172, Staten Island, NY 10314; Tel: 888-PFL-3448 or 718-980-4400; Fax: 718-980-6515; Email: mail@priestsforlife.org; Website: www.priestsforlife.org.
