Day 3: Thanks to St. Matthew Parish and All of our Volunteers!

And so another 40 Days for Life Lenten campaign has begun in Pittsburgh– the second one in post-Roe America. A time when God calls us to join others on the sidewalk to pray for expectant mothers and fathers and for their unborn children. To be the hands and feet of Jesus. To witness for the Truth that life begins at conception. May God give us the courage to stand up for our beliefs, to trust Almighty God to protect us, and to love others completely, including those opposed to us, as Jesus taught.

“You have heard that it was said, ‘Love your neighbor’ and ‘Hate your enemy.’  But I tell you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, that you may be sons of your Father in heaven.”

Matthew 5:44

If you have considered coming downtown to pray with us, this is your invitation. You will not meet more loving and caring people than those who pray for Life on Liberty Avenue. And maybe you will experience, as I did several years ago, the joy of a “save” in front of PP. I pray that you will accept this invitation and join us to pray for Life and witness against the evil of abortion. May God’s light shine upon us and give us the courage and
strength to persevere in this battle.

-Chris

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SIDEWALK REPORTS

7-9 AM +++ Greg and Susan

Cold and quiet on the sidewalk this morning.  Susan and I were happy to see our 9AM relief show up for their shift this morning!

Just before 9:00, the first abortion-minded couple showed up and went inside those evil doors.  Young, blue collar, and unreceptive to our offerings is how I would describe them.

We did receive words of encouragement from several different passersby, and only received one “We’re #1” finger from a young angry female.

Ryan, the Security Guard, arrived about 8:45.  At one point, when we started talking with a couple, he jumped out of his truck to make his presence seen.

I told him, hey, it’s all good, this is what we do — we talk to everyone that will talk to us.  I told him we’ll let him know if there is any trouble, which has been rare and far between in my 4 years on the sidewalk.

Hopefully, the cold keeps most of the patients away today.  

Greg

9-11 AM +++ Michael, Mark, and Kathy

Being that it’s Black History Month, I wanted to print a quote and a photo of Dr. Mildred Jefferson (1927-2010,) the first Black woman to graduate from Harvard Medical School and who became an OB/GYN. Dr. Jefferson was also a strong prolife advocate who started The Right to Life movement and had such a strong impact on then-Gov. Ronald Reagan that he wrote her a letter saying that he changed his stance on abortion after listening to her speech! One of Dr. Jefferson’s quotes is: “I am at once a physician, a citizen, and a woman, and I am not willing to stand aside and allow this concept of expendable human lives to turn this great land of ours into just another exclusive reservation where only the perfect, the privileged, and the planned have the right to live.”

Kathy

11 AM-1 PM +++ Jeannie and Katie

What a difference a day makes! But it was still preferable to my Wednesday shift with the pouring rain! Maggie, Jeannie and I were joined by Marilyn from St. Michael the Archangel and a small but dedicated group from Mother of Sorrows. There wasn’t as much traffic as usual in and out of PP, but there were lots of teenagers heading to the August Wilson Center, and we got probably around a dozen comments from them about how they love babies, can’t wait to be a mom someday, don’t like abortion, think we should save babies, etc. with not a single kid saying anything in support of abortion! The comments from adults were pretty much split down the middle, but hearing from all those pro life young people definitely made my day and gave me hope for the babies of the future!!! 

Katie

1-3 PM +++ Elaine

Parishioners from St. Matthew’s Parish and Maggie from the South Hills area joined me today during the vigil.  We endured the cold and windy weather.  We prayed the Rosary.  There were some women that passed us by making remarks that abortion was wonderful in their lives.  There was also a young man who stopped by to talk to us who was searching for answers about God and life.

Elaine

3-5 PM +++ Mike, Val, and Pat