In my junior and senior years of college, I used to pray and sidewalk counsel outside of a nearby abortion clinic most Saturdays (No, this did not mean that I waved a sign and screamed at clients going into the clinic – for more info on sidewalk counseling, you can go here). In graduate school, I completed one of my internships at a pro-life pregnancy resource center. During my first year of marriage, I would sometimes volunteer as a peer counselor at this pregnancy resource center, too.
Now, as a new mom of a two-month-old, I realize that my involvement in the pro-life movement is going to look different now. It isn’t possible to pray or sidewalk counsel outside of an abortion clinic every Saturday due to weather conditions, nursing schedules, weekend errands with my busy husband, etc. It’s also hard to do pregnancy options counseling at the pregnancy resource center I used to volunteer at if I have a crying baby on my lap. And, if the weather is too cold, I may not even be able to go to the March for Life in January due to Lucia’s very young age!
Since we have entered October, which is Respect Life Month, I find myself reflecting on how I can be involved in pro-life work now that I am a mother of a young child. So, I give you five ways that families with young children can be involved in the pro-life movement…
1) Donate baby or maternity supplies to your local pro-life pregnancy resource center (also often called crisis pregnancy centers). These centers are all over the country – chances are that there is one within a 20-minute drive from you! I already have some items that I never used (and won’t use for any of Lucia’s future siblings) to donate to our local center! Alternatively, you can also pick up an extra pack of diapers on your shopping trip to donate! (Diapers were always the most needed item at the pregnancy resource center I worked at!)
2) Spiritually “adopt” an unborn baby. It’s simple: you pray Fulton Sheen’s Spiritual Adoption Prayer for an unborn baby who is in danger of abortion throughout the duration of his or her gestation (9 months of course). It goes:
“Jesus, Mary, Joseph, I love you very much. I ask you to spare the life of the unborn baby I have spiritually adopted who is in danger of abortion.”
Even better: you can join the Holy Heroes Spiritual Adoption Prayer Adventure that I created with my roommate from college (who is also a Mom) and get bi-weekly updates on the development of your adopted unborn baby. This is such a fun program to do with your kids and is a very positive way to introduce them to the concept that every life has intrinsic dignity from conception!
3) Educate other parents. Once, my mother and a group of moms were talking about how the birth control pill is an abortifacient. Suddenly, our non-Catholic neighbor left the gathering, and my mom realized that she may have been offended by this conversation. The next day, our neighbor came to talk to my mom. She shared that she had indeed been upset by the conversation. However, she did some research with her husband and realized that my mom and her friends were right – the birth control pill was an abortifacient! So, she and her husband immediately stopped using this method to space their children and began to use Natural Family Planning (NFP) instead!
Hearing that story later made me realize that, while there are many people who virulently disagree with what I believe about abortion, contraception, and other bio-ethical issues, there are also many people who might change their minds if they were educated or challenged to do some research! I am now more emboldened to lovingly speak up about these issues when appropriate – and you should be too! Talk about NFP, share stories about how children with disabilities can also live fulfilling lives and should not be aborted, and maybe even brave the social media mob by posting the pro-life news article! “Be not afraid!”
4) Participate in 40 Days for Life. 40 Days for Life is a wonderful, ecumenical program that focuses on praying and fasting for an end to abortion; keeping a constant, peaceful vigil outside of local abortion clinics; and spreading awareness of the evil of abortion through community outreach. I used to volunteer one hour a week to keep vigil outside of the local abortion clinic, but having a newborn has made that difficult. Now, I participate in 40 Days for Life by praying and fasting (in the form of giving up sweets since I am breastfeeding). However, I just learned that our church is covering the Wednesday vigil outside of our local abortion clinic. I can no longer commit to keeping vigil for an hour, but I still hope to join my church members for at least a little bit next week – weather and baby permitting! Who knows? It might be important for another young mother considering abortion to see me and my cute baby together!
5) Teach your children the value of life. I remember being taught by my parents about the value of life from conception to natural death. The most memorable lessons I got weren’t from long lectures though – they naturally occurred throughout my childhood. From putting my hand on my mother’s stomach to feel my little siblings kick and move around in her womb to helping take care of my great-grandmother to packing hundreds of lunches for those in the local homeless shelter to taking the long drive to the National March for Life in DC, I learned that all people have value, regardless of their age, ability of function independently, socioeconomic status etc. Most people in our society at least give lip service to the idea that all human life is valuable – but when it comes time to put that belief into action, many (if not most) fail woefully! Show your children how to put that belief into action, and they will join you in making the world a more pro-life place!
Virginia has her M.A. in Counseling and currently works as a therapist at a Catholic counseling agency, specializing in working with children (and their parents), teenage girls, and mothers. She also gets some very “hands-on” experience parenting her two young children – who have become Holy Heroes fans!
As the eldest of the “Adventure Guides,” she has played a big part in developing so many Holy Heroes products and adventures. She wrote the scripts for lots of “Adventure” videos, as well as writing and directing the first “Inside the Sacraments” video (The Holy Eucharist). She wrote Glory Stories Volume 8, “Best-loved Catholic Prayers and Prayers of the Mass,” and Volume 13, “Secrets from Heaven – The Story of the Children of Fatima” (her favorite!). Most recently, she co-created the Holy Heroes Spiritual Adoption Adventure with her former college roommate. She continues to enjoy blogging for Holy Heroes.
