“Prepare for Battle!”

Gandalf, Return of the King, Lord of the Rings movie trilogy

There is a virtual blackout in the media, with the exception of EWTN… this is the situation I am seeing on my television and computer as I look for news of the 2012 March for Life.

My husband and my daughter Megan took the red eye bus with other students from Everest Collegiate High School in Clarkston, Michigan, last night to attend the annual event in Washington DC today.  I have been eagerly searching for coverage of what must be a major national news event.

I read a few days ago, in the Catholic media only, that March for Life organizers are expecting close to 200,000 people to descend on our nation’s capitol to mark the tragic anniversary of the legalization of abortion, now decades old, in our country.  I even saw the figure “10 million” expected. (Catholic media personality Teresa Tomeo calls the March the “Shuffle for Life” because there are so many people on the streets that it is difficult to move.)

In solidarity with the “shufflers,” I attended Mass earlier this morning, trying hard to think of Jesus’ words in the Gospel to “not let your hearts be troubled.”  I am trying to digest the recent news – again in the Catholic media only – of the mandate by the Obama Administration for health care coverage of contraception, including drugs that cause early term abortions.  No exception for religious belief.

I have seen the EWTN coverage of the reaction of Archbishop Timothy Dolan, president of the USCCB, that this is a direct attack on religious freedom and, specifically on the beliefs of the Catholic Church.  As expected, there is no mention of this in the secular media -- no outrage of the unfairness of this arbitrary decision to take away our freedom.

I am struggling to remember the words of a holy priest who once told me that, though we must still fight the battle, Jesus already won the war.  As we face this escalating fight, I try to keep in mind the words of St. John the Baptist that, “He must increase, and I must decrease.”  (I also resolutely remember the fate of this saint who Jesus called the greatest prophet ever.)

This year my New Year’s resolution is to surrender my worries to the Lord, so I will not allow myself to be afraid about the persecutions of the faithful that will inevitably come.  There will be more suffering for those countless young people in Washington today, as well as for those in spiritual solidarity around the world.  It’s always darkest before the dawn.

And the dawn always comes.

As the representative of the Vatican said at this morning’s Mass at the Verizon Center in Washington, we as a Church commend this fight to our mother general, the Blessed Virgin Mary, whose prayers of intercession will be critical as we go forward.  Through the Immaculate Heart of Mary, I pray, “Lord Jesus Christ, Your Kingdom Come.  Your holy Church offers our lives for your inevitable triumph.”