MADISON — The pro-life community in Wisconsin, and in particular that in the Madison area, is a closely bound group of individuals and organizations always willing and ready to protect, and speak up for, unborn children and walk hand-in-hand with women in crisis pregnancies.
On September 18, approximately 100 of these women, children, and men representing the pro-life community gathered outside Planned Parenthood in Madison to protest peacefully at a Sanctity of Human Life Prayer Rally.
This happened on the day the clinic planned to resume abortions.
The previous week, Planned Parenthood of Wisconsin announced its plans to begin aborting children again, in both Madison and Milwaukee, after a Dane County judge’s decision to allow a suit challenging Wisconsin’s abortion laws, to continue in early July.
The clinics had ceased abortions shortly after the U.S. Supreme Court Dobbs decision in June of 2022.
An ‘injustice’
Voicing the clear conviction of those assembled, Catholics and non-Catholics alike, State Representative Chuck Wichgers from Muskego declared, “This is an injustice today.”
This sentiment, along with sincere hope for the future, was echoed by many of those who spoke at the rally throughout the morning.
Perhaps most significant were the remarks by Bishop Donald J. Hying of Madison, who made it a priority to take part in the event.
Bishop Hying commented, “We stand here as witnesses to the tragedy, to the lie, to the evil that abortion is.”
Speaking for all those in attendance, and for the faithful of our diocese, he renewed our promise to stand with mothers and fathers of unborn children and spoke of the fruits of the ongoing effort of Walking with Moms in Need, as a “beautiful nationwide initiative to really offer consolation and support and practical help, not only before the birth of children, but certainly after and for many years to come. We stand here in solidarity with all those who because of poverty, or just the difficulty of their life — in the moment, may contemplate ending the life within them. We stand with them. We pray with them. We love them.”
He called on those gathered to, “pray for our government leaders — our legislators, our president, our governor, all those who are complicit in continuing the lie and the evil of abortion. The first responsibility of a government is to protect the lives of its citizens, and if we are not all about protecting the lives of our unborn children, then our government has profoundly failed us. We need to pray for them, but we also need leaders who truly understand the natural law, written on the human heart. One does not have to be a person of faith to know that abortion is wrong, because it is written on the heart that murder is wrong.”
Witnesses to hope
Bishop Hying concluded that while “this is a sad day for us, today reminds us that we continue this tremendous witness to life and that it is not only a question of the law, but a question of transforming minds and hearts. As we stand here with sorrow in our hearts, perhaps tears in our eyes, we also stand here as a witness to hope, because love always wins in the end, which is another way of saying Christ always wins; that he has already gained the victory for us and we are witnesses to that power, to that grace, and to that glory.“
Also speaking at the event was Matt Sande, legislative director for Pro-Life Wisconsin.
He called the resumption of abortions “brazen law-breaking” and that, “we know why
. . . they profit from abortion.”
Optimistically, he added we must “continue ministering to men and women who come in here thinking abortion is a solution, which it is not. We can never lose hope.”
Julaine Appling, president of Wisconsin Family Action, said, “May we together end the scourge of abortion once and for all, restoring a culture of life in Wisconsin.”
Dan Miller, state director of Pro-Life Wisconsin, said that we are left to plead with Dane County to “enforce the law that is in place”.
Quoting Mother Teresa, he added, “Any country that accepts abortion is not teaching its people to love, but to use violence to get what they want.”
He continued, “Now it’s up to you to save the next generation . . . we need to stand up for those babies.”