The most important thing to do while talking with someone who disagrees on any controversial issue is to love that person, said Emily Albrecht, a pro-life leader and speaker with the Equal Rights Institute.

“I think that is important in and of itself because it is a good in and of itself to love other people,” she said, “even those with whom we disagree.”

Emily Albrecht

Emily Albrecht

It also is “pragmatically important” to love the person in front of you, she said, because that will “automatically be more persuasive and more interesting from a psychological perspective if you are kind to the person you are talking to, and you show them that you really are trying to understand them and respond to their needs and their concerns, not just the stereotype … of what ‘idiots on the other side think.’”

Albrecht recently joined “Practicing Catholic” radio show host Patrick Conley to describe effective ways for pro-life individuals to approach in-person or online conversations about abortion with pro-choice supporters. She is offering a training day in such conversations Oct. 1 at Lumen Christi in St. Paul through ERI, a secular pro-life organization that trains pro-life advocates to dialogue with pro-choice advocates. The Minnesota Catholic Conference and the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis are sponsoring the event.

People engaging in a controversial conversation often feel in “fight mode,” Albrecht said. “We have to dismantle that so that both you and the person you’re talking to are in a place where any arguments you actually say could have a chance of landing.”

Arguments matter, Albrecht said, but how they are stated, the attitude and environment created in the conversation will be “the biggest influencer of whether or not someone takes you seriously,” she said.

Albrecht offers training about effective ways to approach conversations about abortion, which she described as “a comprehensive pro-life apologetics seminar.”

“I want pro-life people in our community to understand really well what the modern pro-choice person thinks, and how to reply effectively,” she said.

To learn more about the training and to register for “Equipped for Life: A Fresh Approach to Conversations about Abortion,” at Lumen Christi in St. Paul, visit mncatholic.org/EquippedForLife. Learn more about the Equal Rights Institute via its social media on Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, Twitter and YouTube.

During the interview, Conley asked Albrecht how someone who is pro-life might best approach conversations with close family members who are solidly pro-choice and tips for engaging on pro-choice social media posts. To hear her responses and to hear the full interview, tune in to the 9 p.m. Sept. 16 “Practicing Catholic” show, which repeats at 1 p.m. Sept. 17 and 2 p.m. Sept. 18 on Relevant Radio 1330 AM.
Produced by Relevant Radio and the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, the latest show also includes interviews with Father John Floeder, director of the propaedeutic year and director of human formation at The St. Paul Seminary in St. Paul, who describes a day in the life of a new seminarian; and Archbishop Bernard Hebda of the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis, who provides an update on the Archdiocesan Synod as he prepares to issue his pastoral letter Nov. 20.