East Tennessee Catholics are encouraged to take part in the prayer campaign to combat the culture of death.
For the fourth year in a row, the Diocese of Knoxville will participate in the 40 Days for Life prayer campaign, joining 238 other U.S. cities and communities in Canada, Australia, England, Northern Ireland, and Denmark. This year’s vigil will run from Wednesday, Sept. 22, to Sunday, Oct. 31. During those days, Catholics, Protestants, and people of other faiths will pray and stand vigil in Knoxville’s Concord Park, across from the abortion clinic at 313 S. Concord St., to help bring an end to the culture of death.
The campaign will kick off at 8 a.m. Sept. 22. Father David Boettner, moderator of the curia and rector of the Cathedral of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, will open the vigil with prayer. He will be joined by other ecumenical leaders.
The campaign site is one of three abortion clinics in Knoxville, in which nearly 4,000 abortions are performed each year. That’s more than 10 lives lost each day and another 10 forever wounded: those of the mothers whose need for real healing might go unrecognized for years afterward, mothers who often develop destructive habits of coping with the pain of choosing to end the life of their child. An essential aspect of 40 Days for Life is outreach to women who have experienced abortion as well as to men who mourn their lost fatherhood.
The Knoxville Diocese was among the first to participate in this campaign when it began nationwide four years ago. Lisa Morris of Sacred Heart has been its co-director, along with Paul Simoneau, director of the Office of Justice and Peace.
Each year the organizers have briefed the City of Knoxville Law Office and Police Department in order to ensure that the vigil complies with the law.
“We have an excellent relationship with the police department and city,” said Mr. Simoneau. “In the past, we’ve had the cell numbers for the police shift commanders so we can communicate efficiently and transparently with them.
“Above all, safety is paramount. Concord is a busy street, and for everyone’s safety, we ask that everyone stay on the sidewalk across the street from the clinic.”
The 40 Days for Life campaign is intended to be prayerful, peaceful, and law abiding at all times. Even shouting is not tolerated, and all participants must sign a “peace statement,” declaring their intention to abide by the laws of the state.
Mr. Simoneau said he hopes for a strong showing at the kick-off on Sept. 22. “After four years of praying in front of this particular abortion clinic, we know that its closing is inevitable,” he said.
The campaign is intended for youth as well, he said. “The witness of our youth is particularly effective: it is a witness of hope.”
Parish groups and individuals are asked to visit the local 40 Days website to volunteer for blocks of time. “Our goal is to provide a continuous vigil of prayer each day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m., through Oct. 31,” he said.
“Our contribution of time, prayer, and fasting is never wasted: it has an immeasurable lifesaving effect that we might know only in the next life.”
To volunteer for participation in the vigil, visit www.40daysforlife.com/knoxville or contact Lisa Morris at 865-567-1245 or Mr. Simoneau at 865-584-3307 or psimoneau@dioknox.org.
Tags: 40 Days for Life
