The number of cities already on board for June 8 shows that the massive turnout seen at the first Nationwide Rally on March 23 wasn’t just a one-time thing.

Opposition among the American people to the HHS Mandate’s assault on religious freedom is intense—and getting stronger!

From Portland, Maine to Portland, Oregon and all the way out to Honolulu, Hawaii, Americans of all ages are sending a message that we will not stand idly by while the federal government forces all employer health plans to provide free contraceptives, sterilizations, and abortion-inducing drugs, regardless of any moral or religious objections.

Check out the Locations Page to see all the cities taking part and find a Rally near you.

They called it “National Pro-Life T-Shirt Day”.

Since then, the Day has gotten bigger and bigger each year. In fact, it’s so big that National Pro-Life T-Shirt Day has now become National Pro-Life T-Shirt WEEK!

The great thing about wearing a pro-life T-shirt at your school, at work, or wherever, is that it gets people talking about the humanity of the unborn child and the violence of abortion — which a lot of people never think about.

Imagine how many people’s minds can be changed — and babies’ lives can be saved — when we give this witness for 7 straight days from April 24th through 30th!

There’s more information here.

To participate, you can wear one of the official NPLTW shirts (available here), or any other pro-life shirt.

I hope you’ll join me in participating in National Pro-Life T-Shirt Week. Just by wearing a pro-life T-shirt and being out there in public, you’ll be helping to build a Culture of Life!

The Christian faith has been the most prominent voice in the pro-life movement since abortion came into public scrutiny.

It’s amazing how one single issue like abortion has managed to unite multiple Christian churches in an ecumenical movement history has seldom seen. Catholics, Orthodox, Lutherans, Baptists, Mormons, and a mix of other denominations have taken a stand against the killing of the unborn. Even non-Christian faiths like Judaism and Buddhism have pro-life communities.

But seldom is a word heard from atheism. Surely someone who doesn’t believe in God would subsequently have no problem with the killing of an unborn child? Thankfully, that isn’t the case, and there is an astounding presence of atheists in the pro-life community that emphasizes secular reasoning as the key to a pro-life stance.

Secular Pro-Life attended the recent American Atheist Convention, causing a (mostly positive) stir among respectful atheists and religious pro-lifers alike.

Secular pro-lifers (here’s their website: SecularProLife.org) echo the exact same argument that a Christian pro-lifer would use against abortion (that scientifically, life begins at conception and must be protected). But because of their separation from any religious establishment, they need more prominence in the pro-life community to prove to the world that a pro-life belief is not esoteric to any single religion.

I’ve only met a handful of atheist pro-lifers in my experience. The one I recall most easily was a fellow I met online, the son of a Planned Parenthood doctor. After reading of Planned Parenthood’s practices in the abortion industry, and how they want ultrasounds to be hidden from mothers expecting abortion, he simply made the logical decision to become pro-life. He’s never set foot in a church, yet that never stopped him from seeing the light of truth that the pro-life stance offers.

I’ve also met a handful of religious pro-lifers who don’t trust atheists in the abortion movement, suggesting that atheists have an ulterior motive to their pro-life beliefs, and subsequently isolating them from the movement. I cannot agree with this standpoint, because the pro-life community needs all the allies we can find.

And so I encourage pro-lifers of all faiths to be open to one another in seeing our belief not merely as a Christian movement but a moral one. Though we may disagree with others on our belief in God, having such a diverse pro-life movement can only be an asset to us.

[Photo above via LifeSiteNews: Kristine Kruszelnicki, Kelsey Hazzard, and Michael Crone at the 2012 American Atheist Convention]

Whether dating or single, practicing chastity – not merely avoiding sex, but the internalization of thinking, living, and loving in a proper manner – will build you up as a person.

So, since I am here to make your life easier, you should make a concrete list of reasons practicing chastity is so worth it. For example:

1.) Unchastity becomes boring.
2.) You promised [accountability partner] you would avoid sin.
3.) As a Christian, you are held to a higher standard.
4.) You won’t carry that deep dark secret.
5.) You will be worthy of your future husband or wife.
6.) Practicing chastity is a rejection of Satan.
7.) Your boyfriend/girlfriend deserves your respect.
8.) Your wedding night will be so much more awesome.
9.) Unchastity chases out love.
10.) You won’t let anyone down by your actions.
11.) You will be able to be that example for your children.
12.) You are waiting for the real thing.
13.) Unchastity will enslave you to your passions
14.) Regret isn’t one of your life goals.
15.) Virtue is incredibly attractive.
16.) You deserve the utmost respect.
17.) You’re being a rebel in the eyes of the world.
18.) Slavery to sin only makes one miserable.
19.) Chastity is not so much a series of “no’s”, but a “yes” to the real thing.
20.) Sex before marriage is merely a counterfeit of love.
21.) Anticipation makes anything so much better
22.) You don’t want your white wedding dress to be a lie.
23.) Unchastity makes any break up that much more painful.
24.) You will never be lacking respect.
25.) You will have a healthy view of your relationship, not one clouded by emotions.

Feel free to add more points in the comments!

“When you decide firmly to lead a clean life, chastity will not be a burden on you: it will be a crown of triumph.” – St. Josemaria Escriva

Did you know that 80% of babies diagnosed in utero with Down Syndrome are aborted?

And did you know that individuals with Down Syndrome themselves oppose prenatal detection testing for this very reason?

And did you know that for every 50 children with Down’s Syndrome identified and killed by abortion, 160 non-affected babies are lost by miscarriage after the test?

Christina Dunigan has an eye-opening post on this topic titled “An Acceptable Level of Collateral Damage”. You can read it here.

The Nationwide Rally for Religious Freedom is being held this Friday, March 23 at noon, local time, outside federal buildings, Congressional offices and historic sites all across the country.

The theme for the Rally is “Stand Up for Religious Freedom—Stop the HHS Mandate!”

Thousands of Americans of all faiths and of all ages will be participating in these peaceful rallies — organized by our parent organization, the Pro-Life Action League, along with Citizens for a Pro-Life Society — to oppose the new mandate from the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) that requires all employers provide free contraceptives, sterilizations, and abortion-inducing drugs through their health plans, even in violation of their consciences.

There is going to be a very strong youth representation at the more than 100 Rally sites across the country, and I hope you’ll be a part of it!

You can find the site nearest you here.

Fr. Claude Burns (a.k.a. Fr. Pontifex) has put the dire threat to religious freedom to a stirring spoken word with the help of our friends at Spirit Juice Studios.

Check it out and share it with your friends and spread it using the “Share” button below!

March 10 is an especially fitting day for a pro-life prayer vigil, as it is National Abortion Provider Appreciation Day. What better day to pray for unborn children and that those responsible for taking their lives will have a genuine conversion of heart and become ex-abortion providers?

In addition, on Friday, March 9, Msgr. Reilly will give a presentation entitled “Be Not Afraid” at St. Isaac Jogues Parish in Hinsdale, IL.

Msgr. Reilly has been active in the pro-life movement since 1967 — six years before Roe v. Wade — and in 1989, along with just four volunteers, he founded the Helpers of God’s Precious Infants outside the infamous Choices abortion center in Brooklyn, New York. Helpers Chapters now span across the United States and 18 countries worldwide.

Don’t miss this chance to learn from and pray with this holy priest!

The schedule for Msgr. Reilly’s visit is as follows:

Stations of the Cross, Benediction, and Talk: “Be Not Afraid”

• When: Friday, March 9th, 7:00 p.m.
• Where: St. Isaac Jogues Church, 306 W. Fourth St., Hinsdale IL (Map)

Mass at Old St. Pat’s and Prayer Vigil at Washington Street Abortuary

• When: Saturday, March 10th, 8:00 – 10:30 a.m.
• Where: Mass at Old St. Patrick Church, 700 W. Adams Street, Chicago (Map). Following Mass, Msgr. Reilly will lead a Rosary procession to Family Planning Associates abortion facility, 659 W. Washington Blvd., Chicago (Map). The prayer vigil concludes back at Old St. Patrick’s Church

We’re happy to help!

Here is Angela’s letter:

The Teenage Life Club is hosting The 2012 Pro-Life Letter Campaign, and we need your help, participation, and prayer. We are a small, national group of six teenage girls in five different states. Our goal is to have 1 million letters sent to the White House and the Supreme Court during the month of March.

Why are we doing this and why should you participate? Abortion has been in this country long enough, and The Teenage Life Club has decided to help bring it to an end. 1 million letters won’t stop abortion, but it will make an impact in the pro-life movement. As elections approach, we want to remind this nation that abortion is still present. It is deadly, it is wrong, and we still care.

We need pro-life senators and Supreme Court justices, as well as an actively pro-life president. This campaign will remind people to vote for the pro-life candidates. It will also open an opportunity for people with pro-life views to become active and to make an impact.

Addresses:

The White House
1600 Pennsylvania Ave NW
Washington, DC 20500

Supreme Court of the United States
One First Street N.E.
Washington, DC 20543

What can you write in a letter? You can write anything that is pro-life. Basically, just ask the government to bring abortion to an end. Show them that you care. There is a Form Letter written by the president of The Teenage Life Club that you can find here.

Who can write a letter? Anyone of any age living anywhere, and also you can send as many letters as you want. Just make sure that you let us know by taking this survey.

How can you help beyond just writing letters? Forward this email to all your friends and family. Ask your pastor to encourage his congregation to participate. Pray. Join our Facebook movement. If you’re interested in participating further, contact us at contacttheteenagelifeclub@gmail.com.

I hope you can see the importance and urgency behind this campaign. It is time for abortion to stop, and it is time for every pro-life person to stand up together and fight against this injustice. Thank you and may God bring justice to the United States of America and to the world.

Sincerely,

Angela Kim
President of The Teenage Life Club

P.S. (If you’re interested in keeping up with the campaign, check out our Facebook page or the blog where I update the happenings of this campaign daily).

Needless to say, we were more than happy to do that!

Earlier this week, we heard back from Mary Beth, who wrote to tell us that the youth rally was a great success.  Total attendance was nearly 1,000 — double the size of last year’s event!

She also sent along several testimonials from teens who attended the rally. The one that jumped out at me the most was this one, from Josh R., age 14:

This event has been a huge impact on my life. I was, am and always will be pro-life, but this gave my pro-life journey something special. It proves that I am not alone. It proves that I am not the only kid who is pro-life in their school. It proves that I am not the only one who stands up for innocent lives, even though some of their friends hate them for it.

Our friends say that it won’t change anything for good, it will only make it worse. This march and rally shows that only good can come out of our voices. I will stand with my youth friends, stand with my church, to support innocent lives.

Mary Beth said that the information table was a popular hot spot, with hundreds of teens stopping by to pick up the resources provided by us and other pro-life organizations.

In an article on the rally that appeared in the Diocese of Charleston’s newspaper, Mary Beth was quoted as saying, “I urge any young people interested in teaching others to be pro-life to truly dig into the issue, because you have to know why you believe what you believe.”

We couldn’t agree more.

It’s a great privilege to have been a part of this wonderful pro-life event!

In the Summer of 2011, my best friend and I spent many hours volunteering at The Women’s Center in northern Chicago. TWC is a crisis pregnancy center that helps impoverished mothers choose the gift of life for their children in a friendly, supportive environment.

Through TWC I learned of Generations for Life and the Pro-Life Action League, and soon became a part of the summer Face the Truth Tours. Immersing myself into the network of pro-life leaders like John Jansen and Joe Scheidler was an incredible turning point in my life, and I found myself wanting more and more to stay active in both my faith and this noble cause.

In my public high school I make myself known as the “Resident Catholic Dude” for discussions on faith and morality with people of all religious backgrounds. I consider myself open-minded and welcome to discussion with all faiths. I am a very academic fellow, a member of my school’s Math Team and other academic clubs. I am searching for a career in math and statistics while maintaining strong ties with my church and the pro-life movement.

I live for the beach, I love biking around with my friends, and I’m a big fan of playing volleyball when I get the time. My schedule can get hectic, but I always make time to enjoy life (and defend it!). Thanks for hearing me out and I look forward to contributing to the Generations for Life blog!

-Warren D’Souza

Wednesday marks the beginning of Lent, and prayer, fasting, and almsgiving are traditionally practiced over the next forty days. We give up meat on Fridays while fasting on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday, but many Catholics also practice an additional form of fasting from something such as candy, or desserts, or coffee.

I never really understood why. When people asked me what I was giving up, I always would tell them that my Lenten resolution was to spend more time in prayer, or go to daily Mass. To me, that would make me MUCH holier than giving up chocolate!

And honestly, it wasn’t just some excuse so I could stuff my face with cake and laugh while my friends watched miserably. I think it was because I’d since outgrown the ‘sugar-phase’ every child goes through, and giving up candy just wasn’t that hard anymore. It didn’t really mean that much to me.

Nevertheless, I had somewhat lost the understanding of fasting. Because the point of fasting isn’t some external show of going through the motions.

Through the sacrifice of fasting, we learn self mastery and self control over the appetites. And what’s true in small things carries over into big things.

According to St. Thomas Aquinas, fasting is the guardian of chastity, and it holds true. Fasting strengthens the virtue of temperance, and the more we master temperance in the area of food and drink, the more temperance we gain against lust. If we can’t practice self-denial when it comes to food, it will only be an uphill battle when it comes to saying no to our sexual appetites.

Fasting frees us from a certain bondage to the material things. And when we are no longer enslaved to the senses, we discover a freedom, and virtue is not so difficult as the world tells us.

So for me, giving up candy is easy. Pick something hard, like drinking water with your meals or giving up cappuccino from your favorite coffee place. And for heaven’s sake, offer it up!

When you grit your teeth and walk past Starbucks, or when your stomach is growling because you’re not eating between meals yet your friends are devouring mouthwatering hors d’oeuvres, offer it up for a specific person or intention. Because it’s infinitely more worthwhile (and much more motivating) to offer it up for your future husband – or wife.

Virtue doesn’t come without effort. By definition, virtue is a disposition to do the good easily, joyfully, and promptly. Develop virtue in small things, because as with anything, what we do in small things carries over to how we act in important situations.

Valentine’s Day shouldn’t just be about roses, chocolates, and significant others–it’s a time to remember our love for everyone, including family and friends. It’s what Jesus would want us to do–show love for everyone. It’s a commercial holiday, but we don’t need to let consumerism and romance get us in the dumps on Valentine’s.

A lot of people, including me at times, can get depressed when it comes to their love lives. It’s refreshing to adopt what I’d call the “Michael Bublé optimism” you find in his song, “Haven’t Met You Yet”: “I know someday it will all work out, You’ll make me work to work it out, and I promise you kid, to give so much more than I get, I just haven’t met you yet.”

Rather than being depressed, we can hope that “the one” is out there for us, we just haven’t met him or her yet. In the meantime, we can work on bettering ourselves for “the one” and showing our love to all of our Brothers and Sisters in Christ.

If we search for love in the wrong places or stay too focused on romantic love, it could hurt us. Take St. Augustine‘s Confessions:

“I pursued whoever-whatever might be loveable, in love with love. Safety I hated–and any course without danger. For within me was a famine.”

“I carried inside me a cut and bleeding soul, and how to get rid of it I just didn’t know. I sought every pleasure–the countryside, sports, fooling around, the peace of a garden, friends and good company, sex, reading. My soul floundered in the void–and came back upon me. For where could my heart flee from my heart? Where could I escape from myself?”

Even if we have a date on Valentine’s that doesn’t mean we’ll be happy. Unless we are secure in God’s love and secure with ourselves the way we are, then romance won’t fill our deepest longings. Only God can do that.

We can’t be like St. Augustine and try to fill our deepest longings with material goods or sex. Sex without attachment will only hurt us, if not now, then someday. My purpose of this post isn’t to start a big debate about premarital sex (you can read all of my and my fellow bloggers’ posts on purity if you don’t believe premarital sex is harmful) but my purpose is to remind you that….

God loves you, loves me, and that this Valentine’s, we can all show love for each other instead of getting depressed chasing after the world’s false ideas about love, romance, and sexuality. So much more is waiting for us if we are patient, and I just as much as anyone need to remember this.

Happy Valentine’s Day, Everyone!

Humanae Vitae, 10 begins with the teaching on responsible parenthood, which each married couple is called to. This ‘responsible parenthood’ refers to the knowledge and respect for the biological functions and laws which are part of humanity. This includes dominion of the reason and will over the tendencies of instinct or passion.

A couple exercises responsible parenthood by their decision to bring up a large family or, due to grave reasons, space or avoid conception. To fully exercise responsible parenthood, the couple must correctly recognize their duties towards God, each other, their family, and lastly towards society.

Avoiding Conception For Grave Reasons

Every conjugal act must remain open to the possibility of new life. However, for grave reasons, it may not be prudent for a couple to conceive. There are both licit and illicit ways to avoid conception. According to HV, 16, periodic continence (also referred to as Natural Family Planning) may be licitly used to avoid births, while the use of artificial birth control is gravely sinful.

By practicing periodic continence, the couple does not violate the moral principles of making the conjugal act intentionally infertile. Both NFP and contraception seek to avoid births, but there is a fundamental difference. By practicing periodic continence, there is use of a natural disposition rather than dominance over nature and the body.

Conception is not made impossible; it disappears on its own. In practicing NFP, the couple practices continence during the woman’s fertile period of the month. NFP assists love, in that the other person is worth waiting for. There is the virtue of self-mastery and respect for the body.

The Body Is The Person

Contraception on the other hand, violates moral principles. First off, either the sexual act or the sexual faculty is violated through sterilization or artificial contraception. Man does not have unlimited dominion over his body or fertility. The body is treated as sub-personal when man tries to exercise domination over it. This is a matter of injustice to both the individual and their spouse.

As a woman, my fertility is not merely something I have, it is part of my being. The body is the person. According to John Paul II’s Theology of the Body, we are embodied souls… it is the body AND soul that make up the person.

Secondly, contraception creates sexual lies. There is not a total self-gift, even though the body speaks of it. The spouse is withholding part of his or herself.

The mentality of contraception says that procreation is not necessary to express love. It implies that sexual intercourse is good as long as it is satisfying. When the focus is taken off procreation, genital intercourse no longer is necessary and there are many acts which are instead considered sex. Pleasure oftentimes becomes the end, and the sexual act becomes counterfeit, as there is no longer the self-gift to the spouse. The Christian sense of the person is lost. The human heart fails to be satisfied by this mentality.

Domination Over The Body

The difference between NFP and contraception is not the effectiveness of spacing births. It is not the intention, because NFP can be misused, and those using contraception may genuinely have sincere and good intentions. In regards to being ‘natural’, contraception is not condemned because it employs science and NFP does not; rather NFP/PC is ‘natural’ because it respects the body.

The fundamental difference is that contraception impedes a natural process and seeks domination of the body, which is the person. Periodic continence is the use of a natural disposition. There is no dominance, instead virtue and chastity are practiced, and love is fostered.

I heard about it from an Illinois high school student who is using Jessen’s address in competition for her high school’s speech team—even though she was initially advised against doing so by her coaches!

Gianna Jessen’s address is definitely worth sharing, so I’ve included the video below, which is followed by the written version.

But in a special surprise, former Planned Parenthood clinic director Abby Johnson, who was giving the keynote address to the adults at the concurrent SpeakOut Illinois conference, came by to give a quick talk.

Her call to purity and to the hard work of keeping the pro-life movement going was so inspiring, and it’s definitely worth sharing:

All of these clubs have either used our Pro-Life Curriculum, or had members attend our TeenSpeak conferences over the past few years — or both — and based on personal experience, I can assure you that they’re all doing great work!

You can read the article here.

These are just some of the comments that sum up the reaction of the more than 140 teens and adults who attended TeenSpeak 2012 on January 28 at the Doubletree Hotel in Oak Brook, Illinois—the largest crowd we’ve ever had at a TeenSpeak conference!

The day began with an engaging and enthusiastic talk entitled “Making Abortion Unthinkable: The Art of Pro-Life Persuasion,” by Right to Life of Central California’s Josh Brahm. Drawing from his experience as one of few pro-life speakers who has formally debated leaders from “pro-choice” organizations like Planned Parenthood and NARAL, Josh emphasized the need to “focus like a laser beam” on the humanity of the unborn child when talking with someone who sees nothing wrong with abortion.

The audience loved Josh’s talk. High school student Sadie Huddleston remarked, “It was so informative! This talk truly brought out the issue of abortion and clearly informed me of ways to approach and how to answer pro-choicers.” Shea Mahoney commented, “I really liked how he showed us a way to revert any argument back to the question: What is the unborn?”

The next speaker was Abby Johnson, the former Planned Parenthood clinic director turned pro-life activist who shared her amazing story of conversion. She also advised the teens, “Never let anyone tell you that you are too young to be part of the pro-life movement,” and encouraged them to embrace the virtue of chastity.

Abby’s talk was very well received. Stephanie Luviano commented, “I was amazed at her bravery for sharing her experience and turning away from sin.” Taylor Pokryfke said, “She is an amazing woman! Her story inspires me to reach out to my pro-choice friends and help them see the truth. She also helped me find beauty in modesty.”

Following Abby’s talk, Josh Brahm gave his second talk of the day: “Nine Faulty Pro-Life Arguments and Tactics.” Joe Daly remarked that this talk was “enlightening and practical,” and Yong Jin Yi commented, “It gave me many tools I can use to persuade the opposition.”

Next, my co-worker Matt Yonke gave a short PowerPoint presentation in which he explained the principles of design that go into making a good pro-life bumper sticker. Matt’s talk served as a great jumping-off point for TeenSpeak’s Pro-Life Bumper Sticker Workshop. We’ve conducted similar workshops at the last three TeenSpeak conferences, and they’ve received tremendously positive feedback over the years. This year’s Bumper Sticker Workshop was no exception.

Attendees were divided into 20 groups, and each group was given two bumper sticker templates, a pencil, a set of markers, and 40 minutes to create their own pro-life button design. To ramp up the competition factor, the teams were told that the winning design would be turned into a professionally made bumper sticker by ChristianShirts.net.

Eric Scheidler and Matt Yonke selected the top four finalists, and the teens voted for their favorite among these: a clever design (see below) created by Emily Coronado, Taylor Marsh, Chris Crocco, Frances Crocco, Kelly Hayes, Matt Wanda, Margaret Schuhriemen, Clare Dempsey, and Mason Fiascone.

Last but not least, the TeenSpeak Essay Contest winners were announced: Second place went to Matalyn VanderBleek, a senior at Morrison High School, and First Place went to Warren D’Souza, a senior at Niles North High School.

We were thrilled that so many teens have given us thoroughly positive feedback on the conference and have said they’re really looking forward to next year.

So am I!

Related

• Order copies of the two talks given by Josh Brahm here.

The doors don’t open until 7, but even though I’m huddled in a group trying to stay warm and asking myself how much, if any, sleep I got on the six-hour bus ride from Steubenville, the general atmosphere on this wet morning is one of enthusiasm and energy. Teens shout out Pro-Life chants and cheers, and a yellow balloon imprinted with ‘LIFE’ is bounced back and forth like a beach ball.

The presence of the pro-life youth was remarkable. Not only was the Verizon Center, with a capacity of 20,000, teeming with pro-lifers, but another 10,000 teens and young adults attended the rally at a second venue, the DC Armory.

Concelebrating the Mass which followed the rally were roughly a dozen bishops and 180 priests, including the Vatican’s Apostolic Nuncio, who spoke to the youth on behalf of Pope Benedict XVI. Furthermore, what I found to be encouraging was the vast number of seminarians present at the Verizon Center Mass, as well as those attending the newly inaugurated Blessed John Paul II seminary in D.C.

Following the youth rally, rosary, and Mass, I took off for the National Mall with the goal of meeting up with friends from back in Chicago. I got “adopted” into the group of students from UIC’s Catholic community, and marched and prayed the rosary with them.

But the March for Life is more than just the ‘march’. It’s the sacrifice that comes with it. It’s sleeping on a bus, then rolling into DC before 6am. It’s standing around, and then marching through the rainy and cold January weather. It’s also the spiritual aspect of praying the rosary, and going to Mass, and praying the rosary, and then praying another rosary!

Both the sacrifices of making the trip to the March, and the public witness it bears are keys to turning the tide and ending abortion. Already, the youth of our generation are more pro-life, and the tide is turning in our favor.

The crowd was enormous and excited about the coming year, as well they should be. 2011 was an amazing year for the pro-life movement, and the momentum only keeps going our way.

As the march wound through the streets of the nation’s capital, you could see groups from all religious traditions, all ages and races, school groups, church groups, colleges with huge banners—it was quite a show.

Crusaders for Life Steal the Show

But there was one thing that I don’t think anyone missed—the Crusaders for Life pro-life youth group from my parish, St. John Cantius in Chicago. The giant group came equipped with chants, huge yellow “LIFE” balloons, and portable platforms where they could carry some of their cohorts above the crowd to lead chants.

The most notable was the “Life Boat”, a platform with a boat and a giant yellow sail reading “LIFE”. When Joe Scheidler — the national director of our parent organization, the Pro-Life Action League — came by the group, they hoisted him into the Life Boat to cruise around on their shoulders. The crowd went nuts as Joe piloted the boat.

I got a sneak peak at the “Life Boat” last Thursday night, when I attended a pre-March meeting at St. John’s led by the parish’s tirelessly energetic youth director, Brother Chad McCoy. I knew it was going to be a big hit, but I didn’t know it was going to be that big!

Energized by this march, I’m looking forward to fighting abortion and spreading the pro-life message all year long.

Also, don’t miss Joe Scheidler’s interview with LifeSite News from the thick of the march, Andy Moore of AbortionWiki.org leading an Occupy-style “mic-check” on ending abortion, as well as a slideshow of our pictures: