Archbishop Hebda: Pro-life advocates ‘on the right side of this battle, because this is the Lord’s battle’

The men and women gathered Jan. 22 at the Cathedral of St. Paul were not alone in their prayers to end abortion, Archbishop Bernard Hebda said at the annual Prayer Service for Life.

The archbishop noted that they were united with “so many saintly witnesses to faith and to life” such as John Paul II, Mother Teresa of Kolkata and Gianna Beretta Molla.

“We know we are united as well with the prayers of the 62 million brothers and sisters whose lives have been cut short by abortion since the passage of Roe v. Wade,” he said.

Organized by the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis’ Office for Marriage, Family and Life, the Prayer Service for Life was held on the 48th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion in all 50 states.

Archbishop Hebda began his homily by recalling the song “Miracle of Miracles” from the 1971 musical film “Fiddler on the Roof,” where Motel, a tailor, sings of God’s great works after he receives permission from the film’s central character, ?evye, to marry his daughter Tzeitel. In his song, ?evye praises God for rescuing Daniel from the lion’s den, taking down Jericho’s wall and parting the Red Sea.

“We have a God who works miracles, who rescues us at our low points, just as discouragement is about to take over, when we think that defeat is all but inevitable,” Archbishop Hebda said of the miracles ?evye listed. “And that’s just from the Hebrew Scriptures. Those who know and love Jesus can give many other examples — how Jesus gave sight to the blind, how he gave life to the lifeless.”

He said that those gathered at the Cathedral were “united in our desire to ask for God’s strength as we as a nation combat the evil of abortion.”

“We gather here this morning with confidence, because as men and women of faith, we know that we have a God who can work miracles,” he said. “We gather to storm heaven. While the societal clouds these days might look a bit dark, and the thunder indeed may be rumbling, we cannot be deterred.”

Calling abortion “the greatest human rights issue that faces our global society in 2021,” he said, “the greatest reason for our confidence is that we know God loves babies.”

“God loves babies,” he repeated.

“If you saw the two infants in the fourth row on both sides, I know God would be smiling,” he said, grinning and gesturing to two families in the pews who brought babies to the prayer service.

“God loves life,” Archbishop Hebda continued. “How could the Author of Life — the one who has a plan for every life, not only from the moment of conception but from the beginning of time, before the dawn — how could the Author of Life not love each life and desire for an end to abortion?”

Pro-life advocates “are on the right side of this battle, because it’s the Lord’s battle,” he said. “And we can trust that victory will be his.”

He said that they must not forget that Jesus loves children and loves life so much that he asked the little children to come to him.

“They’re not an inconvenience, they’re not a simple mass of cells,” he said of pre-born children in the womb. “They are children loved by Jesus.”

He said Jesus, however, will be the one to decide how, exactly, the “battle” will be won.

“What we can do is offer our lives and humble service to the Gospel of life,” Archbishop Hebda said. “Whether Jesus chooses to win the battle by changing laws, or through the courts or simply by changing hearts, that’s his choice, but we know that whenever we are willing to defend life, no matter the stage, whenever we’re willing to witness to the dignity of each human life, it’s then that the Lord can use us to work his miracle, to change hearts and to change lives.”

He continued: “There’s no other work in the world or Church that is more important than defending life.”

“While that’s true at every stage of life, there’s a real imperative to defending the very right to life,” he said.

Archbishop Hebda quoted St. John Paul’s 1988 document on the role of the laity, “Christifideles Laici,” saying, “the common outcry, which is justly made on behalf of human rights — for example, the right to health, to home, to work, to family, to culture — is false and illusory if the right to life, the most basic and fundamental right and the condition for all other personal rights, is not defended with maximum determination.”

“If we want to see change in our world, change in our society, it’s going to require a deeper sensitivity to the right to life,” Archbishop Hebda said.

He said that he was blessed that his parents were strongly pro-life. “Perhaps it was because they had such difficulty in conceiving and starting a family,” he said. He recalled that his mother went to the March for Life in Washington, D.C., for its first couple of years and “came back energized, even though frozen.” So, after that, she sent a teenage Archbishop Hebda to be part of the march on her behalf.

“I was excited to go and thrilled be part of change,” he said. “As an idealistic 16 year old, I looked at the crowd that had gathered … at the Capitol and Supreme Court, I was sure that things would change that year. It didn’t happened. I went back the next year, once again expecting immediate change. Here we are 48 years later.”

But, he said, “that shouldn’t be a source of discouragement when we see what the Lord has accomplished in changing hearts.”

He credited the great work of local pro-life pregnancy help centers for their work helping families and mobilizing pro-life advocacy. He also said he’s inspired by pro-life young people, noting that nearby St. Agnes parish and school was hosting hundreds of high school students for a pro-life event at the same time as the prayer service.

“Travel with them to Washington to the March for Life, and you’ll ride a high for months,” he said of young people.

Archbishop Hebda said that the past 48 years since Roe v. Wade has provided many opportunities to witness to the value of each human life, born and unborn.

“We gain credibility in our defense of the unborn when show a deep respect for all human life, especially our brothers and sisters who are most vulnerable,” he said. “When we are able to give a consistent witness to life, when we are able to show compassion and understanding, when we are able to respond to hatred with love, when we are able to offer God’s tender love to a desperate young women, it’s then that the Lord is going to be able to use us to have a real impact in this battle.”

He ended his homily with an exhortation and prayer: “Let us offer ourselves to the Lord this day, to the Lord that loves babies, the Lord that loves life, the Lord who alone can work the miracles that we need, the Lord that can bring true victory when we least expect it. May the Lord’s will be done in our lives and in our world. Amen.”

The Prayer Service for Life also included Scripture readings, petitions and the recognition of the 2020 winners of the St. John Paul II Champions for Life: Ruby Kubista, Art and Mary Lou Junker, and Kate Fischer. The awards, which acknowledge their recipients’ pro-life advocacy, are presented by the archdiocesan Office of Marriage, Family and Life.

The event also included an appeal for the Archdiocesan Life Fund, which provides “last-resort” emergency financial assistance to pregnant mothers and mothers with babies up to 12 months old. Since its founding more than 30 years ago, it has raised more than $1.8 million, said Nancy Schulte Palacheck, archdiocesan Family and Laity Outreach Coordinator. She noted that 100% of the funds raised goes to help families in need. She said that because of COVID-19, that the fund is in need “now more than ever.” For more information, visit archspm.org/lifefund.

The event is typically held in conjunction with Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life’s annual March for Life at the State Capitol. That event was moved to a virtual format this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic.