I ventured down to Ground Zero today to pray the Rosary. There was supposed to be 1 person there according to the official registration. There must have been closer to 10 people praying when I arrived shortly after 9AM. That's the amazing thing about this Campaign. People just show up and there is very little risk of at least one person not being there, at least during the daylight hours. Most of the vigilers were across the street from the abortuary (as is our custom), but there was one man on the side of the Mill. He was kneeling in prayer, about 8 feet from Hell's entrance itself. He must have stayed kneeling for about an hour on the interlocked sidewalk. When he finally rose to his feet, he sat down on the bench for awhile, probably because his knees were so sore to walk. For most of the time he was kneeling, he kept his head down low, fingering his rosary beads. He had a roped sign around his neck which read, "Women need Support not Abortion." Sometimes he would raise his head ever so slightly but rarely did he make eye contact with people as they passed by. Anyhow, I thought it was quite interesting how people reacted, as they walked pass. Some people didn't notice him. Others quickly glanced and kept right on walking. Still others would walk by with their friends and colleagues. There were furtive glances, and some discomfort I think. One of them was likely pro-life; the other pro-abortion. There were people who would slow down to see what he was doing, but then quickly picked up the pace and moved on. Still, others would almost stop, perhaps wanting to engage the man but none of them ever did. There were a few of them like that. You have to wonder what was going through their minds.
We should ask ourselves what kind of spiritual tsunami have we unleashed in side of them? In the case of the pedestrians, no doubt many of them were rather shocked that a man would be kneeling outside of a building in broad day light while behind him stood another 10 in silent prayer. How fitting is this passage from St. Luke:
"This child is destined to cause the falling and rising of many in Israel, and to be a sign that will be spoken against, so that the thoughts of many hearts will be revealed." (Luke 2:34-35)
This child...will be spoken against. What an appropriate passage for our times! That even a little baby, life itself, would be spoken against! And that the very existence of an innocent baby in the womb and, particularly, those that publicly bear witness to her would cause the thoughts of many hearts to be revealed.
As I pondered these reactions, I also thought back to the violent attack on Suzanne Poulin by the well-groomed 30-something year-old woman. Do not suppose that this incident is finished. It is not. There is the woman herself, of course. We pray for her healing and deliverance. Maybe she had an abortion. That would explain her violent reaction. It's a reaction from her pain and guilt. But then there is her immediate family. They will have to face the consequences of her violent assault and work through why she did it, and hopefully get to the bottom of her issue with abortion. But then there is Joe Public who watched the assault. There were many people who witnessed the violence. A few male bystanders had to restrain the woman until the police arrived or she would have continued on her rampage. What do you think was going through their minds and those other people who witnessed it? Maybe some of them were mildly pro-life; others ambivalent towards abortion; others still pro-abortion. What power and effect did our vigilers and their reactions have on them? Pretty significant, I should think. What about the woman's co-workers? Imagine the kind of chattering going on around the water cooler in the afternoon when they found out that their co-worker wouldn't be coming back to work after lunch, or even in the succeeding days or even weeks. And the cops? The Abortion Mill security guard? The McDonald's employees? The Abortion Mill Manager? The Abortionist? And on and on it goes. While the violent act is finished, the effects of the spiritual tsunami are still rippling around Ground Zero and well beyond. - John P.
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