(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 40th 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 19th and will conclude
on January 27th. 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: