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40 Days for Life: Spring vigil to begin Feb. 25

By KATIE LEFEBVRE, Globe staff reporter
(Email Katie)

The Diocese of Sioux City is getting ready for its second run of 40 Days for Life, Feb. 25 – April 5, Ash Wednesday to Palm Sunday.

40 Days for Life consists of 40 days of prayer and fasting for an end to abortion, 40 days of constant, peaceful vigil outside abortion centers and Planned Parenthood offices and 40 days of active pro-life community outreach.

“We realize that more people are becoming aware of the evils of abortion and the harm it does to women,” said Mary Stevens, the campaign director for Sioux City. “Our presence really speaks to that -something wrong is going on in there. We want people to pray and fast because that is where the power is. We want people to contemplate human life - that is created by God and is to be taken by God.”

This spring Sioux City will be one of more than 130 communities in the United States, Canada, Australia and Northern Ireland that are hosting 40 Days for Life events during Lent.

“We are here to stay. We have to keep a vigil presence,” said Mark Thomason, director of catechesis, evangelization and RCIA for the diocese as well as the diocesan pro-life contact person.

During this past fall’s 40 Days for Life, more than 76,000 nationwide joined together in praying and fasting for an end to abortion, and conducting peaceful 40-day prayer vigils outside Planned Parenthood centers and abortion facilities. Reports from around the country documented 614 lives spared from abortion during the campaign.

Kick-off rally
The kick-off for 40 Days for Life during Lent will be at 11:59 p.m. on Feb. 24 across the street from Planned Parenthood followed by the start of prayers there.

“It will be very simple,” said Thomason. “Everyone is invited – the more the merrier. It is neat for people to think about doing something at midnight. It is different.”

The plan is for the event to last about a half an hour with prayers, songs and a witness. Thomason will be the emcee and the Knights of Columbus will be present. Stevens suggested that attendees bring flashlights.

“We will have a testimony by a young woman who became pregnant in high school and was pressured from family and other forces to have an abortion,” she said.

During Lent
The national campaign designates the dates for 40 Days for Life in the spring and fall.
Thomason said that Lent is a “perfect time to do this. It fits well with prayer and fasting. It really enforces the liturgical season.”

“With Jesus on the cross and the suffering that he did, there is no more suffering for these babies,” said Stormy Poss, vigil sign up coordinator. “Everyone is always in the mind frame of giving something up for Lent. As opposed to giving up candy or pop, it is kind of nice to give up your time and also bring yourself into prayer during that time.”

Stevens said that when people add fasting to prayer “it is very powerful.”

“It is a good time for people to really concentrate on, as Mother Teresa said, ‘the greatest evil of our day,’ during the days of Lent,” she said. “God hears every prayer. If we all did a little more prayer and fasting, we’d have a lot less to complain about.”

Sign up
This spring the weather will be going from cold to warm rather than warm to cold as it did in the fall. Stevens noted that the cold might be more of an issue for people who have not participated before than for those who have.

“For those who have been there before, they are there because they want to make a difference,” she said. “They realize the harder it is to be there, the more sacrificial it is and the more powerful the prayer is. Sacrifice is prayer.”

Stevens added that the weather will not stop people from being there and anticipates that there will be some bad weather.

“There are committees of people in each parish – three or four people – who are asking people if they want to sign up for 40 Days for Life,” said Poss. “We looked at the list of people who we had last time and called in advance to see if they would be willing to help again.”

She added that if there is a certain hour that has several people signed up, she will call to see if someone is willing to switch to an hour that isn’t filled. She stressed the importance of signing up for hours because then they know that the hours are filled.

A number of people have already signed up for hours. In all, 960 hours need to be covered, with a goal of two people covering each hour.

“We have a lot of hours filled, but we have a lot of hours to go,” said Thomason. “We are doing way better than we did last year. Our goal is to have all the hours filled before the vigil starts. We would like to have a total presence - two per hour.”

This time around the organizers are targeting people to sign up for the same day and same hour every week. For instance, someone could take 5 to 6 p.m. on Thursdays for every week of the vigil.

Poss noted that Fridays for the vigil are pretty full, but Saturdays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays are a little short. For some days, the early morning hours have been hard for them to fill, but on other days it is the middle of the afternoon.

“I have one guy who is taking every Monday from 12 midnight until 4 a.m. He takes four hours,” she said. “He is from Ellendale and did this last fall as well. It is amazing to me when people commit to those kinds of hours.”

Something happening more this time around, Poss noted, is that she has been getting calls from “our Protestant brothers and sisters.” They have heard about it through word of mouth and want to get involved.

Other pro-life activities
The parishes of St. Joseph in Wesley and St. Benedict are also participating in the 40 Days for Life Campaign. Their focus is to have someone in church for one hour (any hour) a day praying for an end to abortion during these 40 days. 

They are asking that at least one person from every household commit to one hour of adoration before the Blessed Sacrament. There is a calendar for them to sign up and many pro-life prayers to use during their time in church. 

“I think people and parishes are getting more and more active,” said Thomason. “Some parishes are doing things like 40-hour vigils, one hour a day for 40 days or a rosary for life every day. A lot more parishes are doing something locally.”

Poss pointed out that at Holy Spirit Retirement Home in Sioux City they will have adoration hours, during the hours the abortions are being performed, so they can be included in the vigil as well.

Thomason mentioned that not only are they looking to fill hours for the vigil, but they are looking for people to join the leadership team or committees.

To sign-up, contact a person from the list on page 2 of The Catholic Globe or go to www. vigilcalendar.com/siouxcity. The main Web page for Sioux City 40 Days for Life is www. 40daysforlife.com/siouxcity.