Diocesan 'pilgrims' Learn About Themselves While Standing Up For Life
Evansville Mater Dei junior Sydney Winstead had no trouble recalling the most poignant and touching moment she experienced during the Pilgrimage for Life, a three-day excursion to Washington, D.C., that coincided with the annual March for Life in the nation’s capital.
“There was a moment when it was snowing, and the snow was falling down and I was looking at it and, I don’t know why, but the thought came to me – it was almost like Christ’s tears were falling down for the babies that had been aborted and their souls were there with us on the march,” explained Winstead. She was one of more than 330 pilgrims who traveled by bus from the Diocese of Evansville to join the 500,000 to 600,000 who descended on the National Mall to affirm and celebrate the dignity and preciousness of all human life.
The Pilgrimage for Life is a collaborative effort between the diocesan Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministry and Catholic Charities. It is headed up by Steve Dabrowski, director of the Office of Youth and Young Adult Ministry, and Sharon Burns and Dominic Farone from Catholic Charities.
This year's pilgrimage began the evening of Thursday, Jan. 24, with a “Mass for Life” at St. Ferdinand Church, Ferdinand. The Mass was celebrated by Bishop Charles C. Thompson.
During his homily, Bishop Thompson reminded the pilgrims that they would be “giving witness to our Church’s great belief in the dignity of life from the moment of conception until natural death.”
“You’re acting in the name of the Church,” said the bishop. “You’re acting in the person of Christ. You’re his living Word. You’re allowing his Word to work and speak through you. You’re allowing the Eucharist, his body and blood, to mingle with your own lives - your own blood, sweat and tears, your own efforts - on this trip.”
Bishop Thompson also encouraged the young people to remember that they “can’t stop being Christ-like,” even when the road gets hard. “We can’t stop being witnesses to what Christ teaches, even when it gets difficult or when we get frustrated or rejected,” he said.
Once the Mass was complete, the pilgrims traveled by bus to St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Woodbridge, Va., which served as home base for the group throughout the trip. After a morning Mass and breakfast on Jan. 25, the group set out for Washington, D.C., to take part in the March for Life on a bitterly cold Friday afternoon. This year’s march marked the 40th anniversary of the Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion in the United States.
"Forty years ago, people thought opposition to the pro-life movement would eventually disappear," Boston Cardinal Sean O'Malley told the enthusiastic crowd at the March. "The march grows stronger every year.”
Emily David, a senior at Reitz Memorial High School in Evansville, said she was especially moved by the testimony she heard from women who had chosen to have abortions in the past and now felt forgiven and welcomed by the pro-life community. “I thought, wow, that takes courage to admit something like that,” she said.
For Evansville Mater Dei senior Adam Berendes, the march represented an opportunity to demonstrate that “what we’ve got now is not right, and that all life from conception to natural death needs to be respected.”
After the March, the Evansville Diocese pilgrims returned to St. Elizabeth Ann Seton before attending an evening of prayer and music at the “Life is Very Good” Rally in Fairfax, Va. The keynote speaker was international chastity speaker and author Chris Stefanick.
“In her Pilgrimage for Life 2013 blog at www.themessageonline.org, Marian University Senior Anna Bittner wrote that she kept coming back to an idea that Stefanick addressed in his talk. “In order for us to value the dignity of other individuals, it is very important to discover the reality that we ourselves have worth and value and are needed by others,” Bittner wrote. “Maybe I knew all this already, but I have definitely discovered it again: I have worth, and I am loved not just in my community, but I am loved by God, and His love is more than enough.”
On Saturday, Jan. 26, the pilgrims enjoyed a day of sightseeing in Washington, D.C., followed by Mass and a closing ceremony at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church. They returned home early on the 27th, weary but wiser for their experiences.
