Vigil Launch

We are already on day 4 of the Madison 40 Days for Life Vigil. Praise be to God!



The Vigil began with a prayer service at 6:00 p.m. on Wednesday, September 26th. Father Rick Heilman of the Knights of Divine Mercy, and Dave Konkol from the House of Prayer, presided over the service, with about 60 others uniting with them in prayer.

Media coverage up to this point has been surprisingly fair. The Badger Herald (The UW's primary newspaper) had a very good article in Thursday's edition:

Pro-life group begins 40-day vigil
by Andrea Berg
Thursday, September 27, 2007

Anti-abortion rights activists gathered outside a Madison Planned Parenthood Wednesday evening to mark the beginning of a 40-day vigil to pray for women entering the clinic.

The 40 Days for Life campaign began three years ago in Texas, and this year, more than 90 groups will be participating in the 40 days of prayer and fasting throughout the nation.

The Madison event took place in front of Planned Parenthood at 3706 Orin Rd. The program stresses peace and the power of prayer and God.

“We just hope that more clinics end up closing down through the power of prayer,” said Steve Marshall, a participant in the vigil.

The opinions expressed by Marshall were echoed by many of the other people in attendance. Although those praying during the event do not intend to speak directly with people entering the clinic, they do hope their presence will be felt.

One of the speakers at the event, Tom Lang, discussed the effects he thinks the groups’ presence will have at this clinic.

“When we hear the statistic of 60 to 80 percent of women being coerced to have an abortion, these 40 days here will have a profound effect on women who are having second thoughts,” Lang said.

Lang and many of the other people present at the vigil hope to inform people about the options besides abortion. Group supporters also wish for legal action against abortion, but they are currently focused more on changing people’s personal feelings about it.

“We all pray for legal change, but it also has to be a conversion of hearts,” Lang said during an opening ceremony.

The presence of religious leaders was strongly felt at the kickoff for the campaign. Multiple religions had representation at the event and two of those leaders spoke during the opening prayer ceremony.

One of them, Pastor Dave Konkol, expressed his opinions on abortion and his views on the importance of prayer. Konkol also offered a message to unborn children who may be aborted.

“We cry out tonight for the innocent, unborn children who are unwanted, and we say to them that you are wanted,” Konkol said.

The organizer for the event, Amy Hying, said she has always felt strongly about abortion. Hying, like the many other people in attendance, believes that God has given them this event to begin the process of changing people’s minds about abortion.

Abortion, Hying said, is actually killing two people: the unborn child and the mother, who dies spiritually.

“So many women have had abortions and are in pain,” Hying said after the opening proceedings.

However, according to Lisa Boyce, vice president of public affairs for Planned Parenthood, the campaign’s outreach efforts are counterproductive.

“If they were really interested in reducing the incidences of abortion, they would instead put their efforts towards enhancing women’s reliability on clinics to prevent unintended pregnancies,” Boyce said.

Boyce added the campaign has never deterred people from entering the clinic in the past.

“It only delays women from seeking out treatment and puts her health at risk,” Boyce said. “It puts off exams that could potentially reveal cervical cancer or a sexually transmitted disease that could then be passed on if not caught right away.”

The Madison Capitol Times also had a good story on the vigil in Friday's newspaper:

Abortion foes begin 40-day clinic protest
Hannah Young
Correspondent for The Capital Times — 9/28/2007 11:52 am

For the second time this year, anti-abortion activists are gathering outside the Madison Abortion Clinic for a 40-day demonstration, which so far has been peaceful, according to a staffer at the clinic.

The protesters holding vigil outside the Madison Abortion Clinic at 3706 Orin Road are part of a national campaign called 40 Days for Life, which organized sit-ins outside abortion clinics in 89 cities across the nation. The demonstrations all began Wednesday at midnight.

According to a press release from Wisconsin Right to Life, activists will spend 40 days outside abortion clinics praying and fasting.

The campaign's Madison coordinator, Amy Hying, said there are currently around 200 people signed up. She said the average shift lasts three hours, and at least two people will be at the site praying throughout the 40 days.

"We just come here in prayer and peace and love because we know that our society is being hurt by abortion," Hying said this morning in a phone interview. "We come here as ambassadors of joy."

Hying said the demonstrators were excited Thursday because David Bereit, the national campaign director for 40 Days for Life, was in Madison to visit the site and participate in the vigil.

Kim, an employee at the Madison Abortion Clinic who declined to give her last name, said the protesters have been peaceful. She added that protesters are not anything new for the clinic and that they typically have a couple a week.

"If they want to waste their time standing out there that's their business," Kim said of the 40 Days for Life protesters. "We haven't had any incidents."

In Wisconsin, 40 Days for Life vigils are also being held in Milwaukee, Green Bay and Grand Chute.

David Bereit, the nationwide coordinator for 40 Days for Life, stopped by the pray with the Madison faithful outside the Planned Parenthood on Thursday.

Continue to pray that God may use this vigil to convert hearts and minds!

Vigil Begins at 6:00 p.m. Tonight

Please join us at 6:00 p.m. tonight! We will begin the Madison Prayer Vigil outside of the East Side Planned Parenthood.

Update Out of Aurora

The Prayer Vigil has already hit 40 days, and continues down in Aurora. The Planned Parenthood, which would have been the largest abortion center in the country and was scheduled to open this week, remains closed. Here is an update from ABC News:

By TARA BURGHART
Sept. 20, 2007

A federal judge Thursday refused to order Aurora officials to let Planned Parenthood open a clinic where abortions would be performed while authorities investigate whether the organization broke any laws when it applied for building permits.

U.S. District Judge Charles Norgle rejected Planned Parenthood's request for a preliminary injunction, which would have allowed the suburban clinic to open as early as Friday.

He said Planned Parenthood needed to provide more proof that Aurora officials are treating the clinic differently than it has similar businesses engaged in permit or zoning debates. That's something the organization's attorneys could do in future filings, the judge said.

"By no means is this case over. By no means," Norgle said.

The 22,000-square-foot, $7.5 million building in Aurora, about 35 miles west of Chicago, stands finished but empty. It was supposed to open this past Tuesday, but Aurora officials would not provide the necessary occupancy permits.

The chapter that will run the facility -- Planned Parenthood/Chicago Area -- applied for various local permits under the name of a subsidiary called Gemini Office Development.

Planned Parenthood officials and attorneys say that decision was made to protect the clinic's staff and construction workers from the types of protests happening outside the clinic now.

City of Aurora attorney Lance Malina argued to Norgle that the city has a right to investigate whether local laws were followed during the permit process, and to make sure the city was not defrauded.

The city of Aurora commissioned an outside review last month, but two attorneys were let go over potential conflicts of interest. The city is now awaiting an investigation and advice from the Kane County state's attorney.

Christopher Wilson, representing Planned Parenthood, said if the medical facility was a place where dentists or dermatologists were going to work, Aurora officials would not be holding such an in-depth review.

He said the clinic is being targeted for extra scrutiny because abortions will be performed there.

Catholic Herald Article

Article from this week's edition of the Madison Catholic Herald

Forty Days for Life: Begins September 26 in Madison
MADISON -- This fall, from September 26 to November 4, Madison will be uniting with more than 80 cities in 32 states for the largest simultaneous pro-life mobilization in history - the nationwide 40 Days for Life campaign.

Madison will join together with Milwaukee, Appleton, and Green Bay in Wisconsin to hold a 24 hour a day, seven days a week prayer vigil outside of local abortion centers to pray to God for an end to abortion.

Some leaders are saying that, with God's help, this effort could mark the beginning of the end of abortion in America. Forty Days for Life is a focused pro-life campaign that has generated measurable lifesaving results in every community where it has been implemented. Some cities have reported as much as a 28 percent drop in local abortion numbers.

What is 40 Days for Life? It is a vigil based on peaceful prayer and fasting, using the biblically significant time period of 40 days. The 40 Days for Life campaign is made up of three key components:

Prayer and fasting: inviting people of faith throughout the city to join together for 40 days of fervent prayer and fasting for an end to abortion.
Those participating pray for their preborn brothers and sisters who are in danger of loosing their lives in their earliest moments. They pray for those women who feel trapped and alone, and feel abortion is their only option. They pray for those women and men who have already chosen abortion, and are in such need of healing because of their decision. They also pray for abortion doctors and abortion center staff, for they too are children of the same God who loves them and who longs for their conversion.

It could very well be that abortion is one of those society-wide devils that require people to humble themselves through a disciplined and simultaneous period of fasting. What does it mean to fast? While there are many different methods, fasting ultimately involves saying "no" to oneself. By denying oneself of those legitimate things to which one may have an inordinate attachment, whether it be food or other material goods such as television, persons allow God to work within them more actively and unimpeded.

Peaceful vigil: standing for life through a 40-day peaceful, prayerful vigil giving public witness outside the local abortion facility, Planned Parenthood, 3706 Orin Rd., Madison.


Community outreach: taking a positive, upbeat pro-life message to every corner of the city through media efforts, church presentations, flyers, petitions, and public visibility.
People are encouraged to join in the vigil next Wednesday, Sept. 26, outside Planned Parenthood on 3706 Orin Rd., off of Highway 51 in Madison at 6 p.m. for the beginning prayer service for 40 Days for Life. People will be gathering together to begin 40 consecutive days of prayer, keeping a peaceful presence every hour of the day. People are encouraged to come out as often as possible during the prayer vigil to be a witness for life.

For more information, visit Madison's vigil Web site at www.40daysforlife.com/madison For more information regarding the campaign in Wisconsin, visit www.40daysforlifewi.com or call 1-877-LIFE-360.

Today we are 8 days from the begining of 40 Days for Life nationwide

Let us pray,
Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Your faithful and enkindle in them the fire of Your love. Send forth Your Spirit and they shall be created. And You shall renew the face of the earth.

Come, Father of the poor!
Come, treasures which endure!
Come, Light of all that live!

Come, O Blessed Spirit of Holy Fear, fill us with devotion to God alone. In the Risen Christ, we welcome You, O Spirit of truth, whom the Father sends in Jesus' name. Wash clean the sinful soul, and rain down your grace that we may be one in fidelity to our Lord Jesus, Christ. Amen.

9 Days Out

With nine days before the nationwide vigil begins, please join us in praying to the Holy Spirit for the success of this vigil. We'll be posting a brief prayer here each day until the Vigil begins.

Let us pray,
Come, Holy Spirit, fill the hearts of Your faithful and enkindle in them the fire of Your love. Send forth Your Spirit and they shall be created. And You shall renew the face of the earth.

Holy Spirit, Lord of light,
From Your clear celestial height
Your pure beaming radiance give

Almighty and eternal God, send forth Your Spirit, who brought order from chaos at the beginning of the universe, and peace to the Lord's disciples. Grant that we, as your creation, baptized in your Spirit, may be filled with the seven gifts so that we may forever do your will and renew the face of the earth. Amen.

Final Meeting

Our final planned 40 Days for Life Meeting will be held at St. John the Baptist Church in Waunakee, located on 209 South Street. The meeting is Sunday from 4:30 p.m. to 5:30 p.m. If you have not had the chance to come to any of our other meetings, please join us! We will once again air Being Human, and will talk about praying outside an abortion center.

If your Church or pro-life organization would like any of the 40 Days for Life Madison Team come to speak to you, please contact us at 40daysforlifemadison@gmail.com and we will be happy to do so!

40 Days for Life in Aurora

For those interested in following the ongoing 40 Days for Life in Aurora, Jill Stanek has an excellent blog, following the vigil.

In her most recent blog, she quotes an email from Planned Parenthood CEO Cecile Richards sent to her supporters.

Planned Parenthood is under attack.

To be absolutely clear: the largest anti-choice protest we've seen in a very long time is happening at a Planned Parenthood clinic in Aurora, Illinois, at this very moment.

It's easy to ignore if you don't live there or aren't a woman trying to seek health care services at the clinic. But I hope you won't ignore it, because what's happening in Aurora is what's happening to all of us who care about choice in America.

We are facing no less than the most emboldened protest by the most radical anti-choice people I've ever encountered. They've made our brand new health center in Aurora ground zero in their fight against women's access to health care. And they are determined to keep our clinic from ever opening.

If there was ever a time for us to ask for help from our pro-choice friends and family - this is it.

First, take a simple action that demonstrates how much support Planned Parenthood and the women we serve have from all over the country. Click here to tie a hot-pink ribbon at the clinic - one ribbon for every supporter.

Then, tell your circle of friends and family what's happening in Aurora and what it means for access to reproductive health care and choice for all of us.

If you know people in the Chicago area, encourage them to put up a lawn sign or volunteer.

The protesters are determined to stop us, it's true. But we're taking this battle into our own hands - and into YOUR own hands. We're determined to open this clinic any day now, and with more warmth, more strength, and more solidarity with our supporters across the country than ever before.

Thank you for doing your part today.

Sincerely,


Cecile Richards
President, Planned Parenthood Federation of America

P.S. Thank you for your action today - if you can, we'd be grateful for your financial support as well. Any amount will help.

Planned Parenthood is taking 40 Days for Life very seriously. Their fear alone should be enough of an incentive to get involved here in Madison, or at any other of the 89 vigil sites for that matter.

40 Days for Life starts September 26th

Great article by Gordon Govier from allgodspeople.com. The article talks about the Madison vigil, and also our fearless leader.

Amy Hying, an accountant for a local trucking company, uses a lot of spreadsheets. But one in particular is very important in her life right now. It's the one she's using for the 40 Days for Life campaign that begins September 26th.

The spreadsheet has 960 spaces, one for each hour of each day between September 26th and November 4th. At least two volunteers will be signing up for each of those hours, to pray in front of the Planned Parenthood abortion clinic at 3706 Orin Road on Madison's east side. Madison is one of 89 cities in 33 states involved in the 40 Days for Life campaign. Milwaukee, Green Bay, and Appleton vigils are the other Wisconsin cities involved.

Amy says the campaign has the backing of both Wisconsin Right to Life and ProLife Wisconsin. And Madison churches are starting to get behind the movement. "It's a big thing to bring all the denominations together," she says.

Madison was once the home of at least three abortion clinics, and the scene of some large-scale prolife demonstrations two decades ago. Now with only one clinic, there have been fewer demonstrations in recent years. There are still people who go to pray in front of the clinic though, something that Amy has done on a weekly basis for the past several years. "It isn't always easy," she says.

Sidewalk counseling is not part of the plan for the 40 Days for Life campaign. In fact volunteers are being asked to sign a "statement of peace" that includes the assertions:

I understand that graphic images and profanity are not allowed on any clothing or signs.
I will not threaten, physically contact, or verbally abuse the employees, volunteers, or customers or anyone using the facility
"It's all about prayer and fasting," Hying says. So far about 30 volunteers have signed up for shifts of varying links. Right now she is trying to connect with some men's ministries, who might be interested in taking night shifts.

The leaders of the campaign note that 40 days is a significant time period for major changes to take place.

Noah experienced a transformation during 40 days of rain.
Moses was transformed by 40 days on Mount Sinai
The spies were transformed as a result of 40 days in the Promised Land
David was transformed by Goliath’s 40 day challenge
Elijah was transformed when God gave him 40 days of strength from one meal.
The city of Nineveh was transformed when God gave them 40 days to get their act together.

The disciples were transformed after 40 days with Jesus following His resurrection.
An organizational/training meeting will be held tonight (Sept. 10th) at Madison's International House of Prayer, 1714 Eagan Road. Another meeting will be held on the west side Thursday night, Sept. 13th, at St. Thomas Aquinas Church, 602 Everglade Drive. For more information, contact Amy Hying: 40DaysForLifeMadison@gmail.comThis e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or 698-3877. And check out the local website at http://www.40daysforlife.com/madison/.

Of course, it is very beautiful to see those spreadsheets filled by people committing to come out and pray, so please check out our calendar and let Amy know if you can come for an hour or more!

Meetings This Week

Just a reminder, 40 Days for Life Madison will have two meetings this week, one on the east side and one on the west side of Madison. No need to come to both.

The first will be Monday, September 10th from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. at the House of Prayer, located at 1714 Eagan Road, near the Princeton Club next to West Towne Mall. We'll be talking about our mission of prayer and will be showing the documentary 'Being Human'.

The next meeting will occur at St. Thomas Aquinas Church on Thursday, September 13th from 6:30 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. St. Thomas Aquinas is located at 602 Everglade Dr.

Yes, we know it is the first Monday Night game tonight, but it is a double header, so it is okay to miss one game.

So How Much is One Human Life Worth?

Very Tragic...here are the prices for abortions at our local Planned Parenthood. Seems it costs a little more the older the baby. Very sad.

Medical Abortion: RU486- $495.00, Methotrexate- $495.00

Surgical Abortion:
Pre-Abortion Counseling/Ultrasound- $100
up to 12 weeks LMP- $395
13 & 14 weeks LMP- $495
15 & 16 weeks LMP- $650
17 & 18 weeks LMP- $825
19 & 20 weeks LMP- $1050
21 & 22 weeks LMP- $1350
23 weeks LMP - $1750
More than 23 weeks LMP- $2250

Let us pray that, through this vigil, the Holy Spirit softens the hearts of all those working in the abortion industry.

Extremist protesters are on the horizon!

It seems as if 40 Days for Life is causing no small amount of consternation for abortion rights supporters, as evidenced by this notice put out by the Houston area Planned Parenthood, which has already experienced one 40 Days for Life Vigil.

At least one can say that Planned Parenthood is never boring!

Pro-life vigil: Shows importance of praying in spirit of peace

Bishop Robert C. Morlino talks to the crowd gathered on the sidewalk outside the Planned Parenthood Clinic on Madison's east side during the pro-life vigil for an end to abortion. (Catholic Herald photo by Kat Wagner)

The following article appeared in the August 30, 2007 edition of the Madison Catholic Herald, regarding the Diocese of Madison Seminarian's annual Respect Life Vigil.

MADISON -- The vigil outside the eastside clinic where abortions are performed was as peaceful a witness to the desire to end abortion as the silent reminder on the billboard opposite the clinic that reads "Defend Life."

People entering the Planned Parenthood Clinic either stared at those gathered for the vigil, especially during the talk by Bishop Robert C. Morlino and the rosary that followed, or they avoided eye contact. Occasionally passing drivers would heckle, beep their horns, or offer crude gestures.

But those at the vigil, some sitting in lawn chairs and others standing or kneeling, simply held their beads or pro-life signs and continued in the spirit of prayer.

"We're not here in a spirit of human combat," Bishop Morlino said. "We're here in a spirit of spiritual combat, which from our point of view is always a spirit of peace."

The vigil was organized by intern Scott Emerson with the Diocese of Madison Office of Vocations and associate director Tom Nelson of the Office of Justice and Pastoral Outreach.

The prayer outside the clinic off of Stoughton Rd. was held simultaneous with Eucharistic Adoration at nearby St. Peter Parish and a prayer walk from Holy Redeemer Parish downtown, which was organized by pro-life members of that parish.

Still solidly pro-life
This year is the fourth year the vigil was held, but, unlike previous years when the vigil would span the course of the night, it was planned for the daylight hours over two days.

The crowd was at least 40 thick for more than an hour during the second day and included not only 12 priests and several seminarians but also laypeople of all ages from around the diocese. They squeezed onto the public space of the sidewalk and the grass beside the road in order to hear the bishop's talk and pray the rosary with him.

At other times the vigil crowd was sparser, though there were always at least two seminarians present to carry on the prayer.

The vigil, said Msgr. Jim Bartylla, director of the Office of Vocations, was an opportunity not only to be faithful, but also to bring the crime against the unborn at Planned Parenthood and the Catholic belief in the dignity of life to the forefront of people's thoughts.

Especially with the bishop present, it provided a symbol to strengthen people to continue the fight, he said: "I think it helps people to know the church is still solidly pro-life, and we're going to remain visibly committed to that."

The vigil also served as an opportunity to train the seminarians, he said. "The concrete nature of watching people go in and come out of the clinic . . . it's a very pastoral moment for seminarians to see the pain and death that goes on daily in society."

Society of violence
"More and more people are tending to solve their anger or their disappointment of the failure in their life by killing somebody," Bishop Morlino said in his talk. "When we do that, we create a society of incredible violence."

"I really believe that it all started with abortion," he said. "Because death was invisible, because the massacre was invisible and we didn't see it, we took it for granted and that's the start of the slippery slope."

Abortion, the bishop said, hurts women because it turns the womb into a tomb.

"It's death-dealing to the baby, but it's also death-dealing to the mother, insofar as she is a woman, because it deprives her of her womanhood and creates a mind-body split," he said.

"So let's pray for the women who are tempted to abortion and who have abortions today in a special way," the bishop said, "not seeking to condemn, but hoping that they would be invited to grow in truth of their own womanhood and hoping that, if they have had an abortion, they would never hesitate to turn to the loving mercy of God."

Members of 40 Days for Life Madison participated in the Vigil, covering the night hours when the Seminarians were not present.

It would seem the Vigil had some positive fruits. A couple of the 40 Days for Life crew were present at the abortion center before it opened during the 7:00 a.m. hour on August 16th. Although no signs were being held and vigil participants did not aggressively engage the young women entering the Planned Parenthood, one couple did stop by the center before it opened, as they had a morning appointment to schedule an abortion.

After about 15 minutes of waiting, the young man who drove to Planned Parenthood with his girlfriend left his car and came up to those of us who were praying outside the abortion center, asking about why we were out there. After talking with the young man for a few minutes, he revealed that they had drove from out of town to schedule an abortion. He did not really want to go through with the abortion, but his girlfriend thought they should.

Although we were a little unprepared, we did have a good conversation with young man, and we talked to him about the nearby CareNet Pregnancy Center. He seemed excited to hear about alternative care that was available outside of an abortion, so he and his girlfriend left the facility, apparently intending to go to CareNet for service instead. We later received confirmation that a young couple did stop by CareNet that morning.

Of course, it may not be possible to know the ending of this story. But we trust in the love and mercy of God. We hope there will be many more stories like this during the 40 Days for Life throughout the country. Sometimes, just being there for someone to talk to in a peaceful and non-judgemental way, can make a huge difference in helping a young couple handle what is certainly a very difficult situation, and not make a decision they will later regret.