Kevin Lawson
reposted with permission from his blog
On the day of the March for Life (January 25, 2013) and, in fact, during the very time in which the march was taking place, several members of my parish and I were standing outside in front of the Planned Parenthood abortion clinic on Auburn Avenue, praying for the end of abortion and the sparing of the lives of the innocent unborn. This is something we do quite often, but normally with no physical assurance that our prayers have caused lives to be saved. While we do believe that, through the grace of Almighty God and by our prayers to Him, some children are spared the torturous death of abortion, it is not all that frequent that we actually receive news of our pleas being answered.
It came to pass that as we were praying, a van pulled up to the sidewalk and stopped. The driver then rolled down her window and asked us if we were praying. We responded by concluding the prayer which we had started seconds before. She then had a girl in the backseat open the side door, thus revealing a carseat. The driver invited us to come closer. As we all crowded around the open door, the lady told us a story, one with an encouraging moral and a happy ending, and it was all true. She explained that the young woman in the backseat had become pregnant at a young age, and her parents, neither of which was the driver, urged her to abort the child. The daughter took their advice and headed to the very abortion clinic at which we stood. However, upon her arrival, she saw a person standing on the sidewalk, praying just as we were. We have no leads as to who this person was, but by his or her presence and prayers, this young woman made the choice to save her baby, rather than destroy her. The infant, who slept soundly in the carseat, was named Neveah (that's "Heaven" backward) Christian (because she was a Christian) Rachel (from Holy Scripture). Little Neveah Christian Rachel was, indeed, a beautiful child, a little angel, if you will. Never before had I been so excited to see a child, as her life, among many others, was a symbol of the beauty that follows the Pro-Life movement. She was the first infant (I knew to be saved by the works of God's mercy and the prayers of Pro-Lifers) whom I encountered in person. This meeting was truly a blessed one, as it was a beacon of hope for our cause. By meeting the young child and her courageous mother, who chose life over personal interest, my fellow parishioners and I were greatly filled with the grace of hope in God's mercy and in His answering of our prayers. The prayers we say at the clinic are, indeed, answered. By God's hand, we were granted the chance of a lifetime, perhaps in order to show us the fruits of our love for Him and for our fellowmen. The event was truly a revitalizing experience.
The following is a link, which contains a small report of the incident.
The Catholic Beat - Sacred Heart Radio
reposted with permission from his blog
On the day of the March for Life (January 25, 2013) and, in fact, during the very time in which the march was taking place, several members of my parish and I were standing outside in front of the Planned Parenthood abortion clinic on Auburn Avenue, praying for the end of abortion and the sparing of the lives of the innocent unborn. This is something we do quite often, but normally with no physical assurance that our prayers have caused lives to be saved. While we do believe that, through the grace of Almighty God and by our prayers to Him, some children are spared the torturous death of abortion, it is not all that frequent that we actually receive news of our pleas being answered.
It came to pass that as we were praying, a van pulled up to the sidewalk and stopped. The driver then rolled down her window and asked us if we were praying. We responded by concluding the prayer which we had started seconds before. She then had a girl in the backseat open the side door, thus revealing a carseat. The driver invited us to come closer. As we all crowded around the open door, the lady told us a story, one with an encouraging moral and a happy ending, and it was all true. She explained that the young woman in the backseat had become pregnant at a young age, and her parents, neither of which was the driver, urged her to abort the child. The daughter took their advice and headed to the very abortion clinic at which we stood. However, upon her arrival, she saw a person standing on the sidewalk, praying just as we were. We have no leads as to who this person was, but by his or her presence and prayers, this young woman made the choice to save her baby, rather than destroy her. The infant, who slept soundly in the carseat, was named Neveah (that's "Heaven" backward) Christian (because she was a Christian) Rachel (from Holy Scripture). Little Neveah Christian Rachel was, indeed, a beautiful child, a little angel, if you will. Never before had I been so excited to see a child, as her life, among many others, was a symbol of the beauty that follows the Pro-Life movement. She was the first infant (I knew to be saved by the works of God's mercy and the prayers of Pro-Lifers) whom I encountered in person. This meeting was truly a blessed one, as it was a beacon of hope for our cause. By meeting the young child and her courageous mother, who chose life over personal interest, my fellow parishioners and I were greatly filled with the grace of hope in God's mercy and in His answering of our prayers. The prayers we say at the clinic are, indeed, answered. By God's hand, we were granted the chance of a lifetime, perhaps in order to show us the fruits of our love for Him and for our fellowmen. The event was truly a revitalizing experience.
The following is a link, which contains a small report of the incident.
The Catholic Beat - Sacred Heart Radio