CV NEWS FEED // Bishop Earl Fernandes, diocesan representatives, and pro-lifers from the Diocese of Columbus, Ohio gathered in early March to discuss how to promote life in a state that recently placed a right to abortion in its constitution.
“We are here in part because of the disappointing result in November at the ballot box, which reveals to us in some ways our need to win not merely votes but to win hearts and convert hearts and to truly be pro-life,” Bishop Fernandes said at the gathering, according to the Catholic Times of Columbus.
CatholicVote reported in November that Ohioans overwhelmingly voted to add a right to abortion to the state constitution, an action that came as a blow for pro-life advocates and unborn children throughout the state.
The Catholic Times added that following the election, Fernandes began encouraging the faithful of his diocese to increase their prayers, holy hours, penances, and acts of reparation to support “initiatives related not only to saving children from abortion but advocating for access to health care, preservation of dignity for the disabled and end-of-life issues.”
At that time, Fernandes also called for the diocese to establish a “Respect Life Office” to focus on diocesan pro-life activities.
“We’re going to renew our commitment to being people of life here in the Diocese of Columbus,” Bishop Fernandes told the pro-life leaders at the summit, “but part of what a respect life office ought to do is not replace what all of you are doing.”
He continued:
All of you are here because in one way or another you help build the culture of life, whether it is accompanying women and their unborn children, whether it is providing diapers or education about how women can care for their children and gain those life skills so that their youngsters can have a new beginning and a healthy beginning, whether it is helping people get into a good preschool or pre-K or our commitment to Catholic education.
In addition to Fernandes and diocesan representatives, several other pro-life organizations attended the conference and shared their thoughts.
“We are seeing changes in our community, in our schools, in our parishes, in our neighborhoods, in terms of what’s happening in pro-life and that was evidenced by the state issues and so addressing these cultural changes is a huge problem that we have to work through,” diocesan director of the Office for Social Concerns Jerry Freewalt said, according to the Catholic Times.
Aaron Baer, president of the Center for Christian Virtue in Columbus, said that statistics from the Center revealed that more than one third of weekly churchgoers voted to add a right to abortion to the constitution.
As a result, he said that churchgoers need to begin working together to bring awareness to pro-life issues.
