From
the Desk of Fr. Frank Pavone
Director of Priests for Life
November 25, 2008
Dear Friend,
Ten years ago, our bishops warned that “we get the public officials we deserve. Their virtue – or lack thereof – is a judgment not only on them, but on us” (Living the Gospel of Life, #34).
Too many of our fellow citizens failed to cast their vote with this overriding concern: That public servants need to be able to tell the difference between serving the public and killing the public. Believe me, millions will come to regret the decisions that were made on Election Day ...
... but none more so than those millions of God’s innocent unborn babies who now face almost certain death at the hands of unfeeling abortionists.
Without question the next four years will be difficult ones for the unborn and the people of life. But the results of the 2008 Election are far from the end of our pro-life movement.
In fact, Priests for Life saw its initial eight years of growth during the anti-life Clinton regime. We challenged power, and we rallied millions to do the same. We will do so again now!
What’s more, abortions are not taking place in the Oval Office or the halls of Congress or inside the chambers of the Supreme Court. They are taking place in the abortion mills of our nation, located down the street from where many of you live and work and worship.
The problem is not primarily who sits in the White House –
it’s that too many people who profess to be pro-life are sitting in
their houses!
That being the case, of this much I can assure you:
You and our entire Priests for Life family will continue to be the pro-life prophets of our day! Like Elijah and Ezekiel ... Jeremiah and Isaiah ... John the Baptist and Jesus Himself, we will speak out on behalf of the innocent and challenge those in power to correct the error of their ways!
While witnessing and calling to conversion those in public office – and continuing to work with our pro-life friends in public office (of whom there are many) – Priests for Life must also ...
...
intensify its long-standing work of going to the abortion mills in
organized ways and being public witnesses for the sanctity of human life
... support pregnancy centers more vigorously
... heal the wounded through post-abortion ministries
... and activate the Churches.
Children in the womb are oppressed! And that oppression is likely to get worse in the next few years. Our new President promised Planned Parenthood that his first action as President would be to sign the “Freedom of Choice Act” (if it is passed by Congress). There is no more extreme piece of pro-abortion legislation – it goes far beyond Roe vs. Wade. It’s simply diabolical.
If ever the children needed us to champion their cause and be their voices, that time is now!
And we will not fail them!
To that end, Priests for Life will represent them – and you – as we walk the halls of government and openly challenge those who oppose the cause of life to admit the violence of abortion. At the same time we will exhaust ourselves and our limited Priests for Life resources to rally our fellow Americans to rise up and oppose every single one of their anti-life initiatives ... including the nomination of judges who openly support the killing of innocent babies in the womb.
Bottom line:
We will not abandon the youngest children to the ravages of self-interested elitists who seek to gain personal wealth and political power at the expense of the most helpless and defenseless among us.
But with the economy reeling as it is, it’s going to be more difficult than ever to fund the life-saving work Priests for Life must carry out in the coming months and years.
I am relying on you to make whatever sacrifices are necessary to fund our work here at Priests for Life and the fight to end abortion.
I know that’s asking a lot of you. And yet, knowing you as I do, I am fully confident that you will put your own self-interest aside for the sake of the unborn.
I say that because of the generous and selfless manner in which you have supported Priests for Life thus far. In so doing, you have shown that you have taken to heart the words Our Lord spoke in His Sermon on the Mount when He said:
“No one can serve two masters; for either he will hate the one and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and mammon.”
This reminds me of something Mother Teresa once said. Having been blessed to spend a fair amount of time with her, I know she believed there was a direct link between the growth of financial fortunes and the decline of respect for life. I’m sure you’ll recall one of her strongest condemnations of the culture of death when she said:
“It is a poverty to decide that a child must die so that you may live as you wish.”
In truth, that’s the choice our country now faces. The stock market is tumbling. The economy teeters. Home prices are falling. Investments and 401Ks are disintegrating. People are anxious about their job security.
But BE NOT AFRAID!
Regarding our “treasures” here on earth, Our Lord warned us not to fret over things that “moth and rust consume” and “thieves break in and steal” – whether those “thieves” be Wall Street stockbrokers, international bankers, or socialist politicians.
Your most secure investments are the ones you build up in heaven ... which most assuredly include the sacrificial offerings you willingly make to support Priests for Life so that, through us, you can fight to defend children in the womb and end abortion.
Those are the investments most worth making because they are the only investments that last forever.
we need your help.
Never have children in the womb needed us more than they do now. Let us resolve to dedicate ourselves to the task of saving their lives, protecting every American’s unalienable right to life, and ending abortion once and for all.
I’ll close here with a sincere request that you continue to pray for me as well as the priests and staff of both Priests for Life, Gospel of Life Ministries and those who are active in the Pro-Life movement. Rest assured that we pray for you ... every day! And thank you again for whatever help you can give today ... we desperately need it. God bless you.
Sincerely yours in the peace and love of Christ,
To make a donation to Priests for
Life click here