Roe vs Wade: 40 years later

(Vatican Radio) It was 40 years ago on Tuesday that abortion was made legal in the United States.

On January 22, 1973, the Supreme Court ended the Roe vs. Wade case by legalizing abortion in all 50 States, through all 9 months of pregnancy, and for any reason. An estimated 55 million abortions have been legally performed in the United States since that time.

That Supreme Court decision is remembered each year on or near January 22 with a massive demonstration in Washington DC known as the March for Life. This year’s March was moved to Friday to accommodate the US presidential inauguration.

To commemorate the 40^th anniversary of Roe vs. Wade, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) is hosting Nine Days of Prayer, Penance, and Pilgrimage. The Novena began January 19^th and will conclude on January 27^th. Mary McClusky, who is the project coordinator for the USCCB’s secretariat for pro life activities, spoke with Ann Schneible about this novena,

“It’s an important time to commemorate the lives that are lost, but it’s also a time to pray, to pray in hope, to pray with faith. And in this Year of Faith, the bishops saw a particular desire to call our nation to prayer,” she said.

McClusky spoke also about the role of faith in helping to bring about the end of abortion. “We know that science and reason show and prove that the unborn child has a right to life and is a human being.”

“Faith gives us hope that we’re going to end abortion in this country… God really calls us to love others, and that is the way in which we are going to end abortion. We’re going to help mother with their material needs so they don’t feel like they are in a position that requires them to have an abortion.”

Listen to Mary McClusky’s interview with Vatican Radio’s Ann Schneible: