Strong witness
The leadership of prayerful activism exhibited by Bishop [Paul] Loverde [of Arlington] and many of his fellow-bishops is being well received by pro-life leaders. "Most Catholics are simply passive on this subject, but they cannot but be affected by the witness of the bishops," Kenneth Whitehead, author of "Political Orphan? The Pro-Life Cause after 25 Years of Roe vs. Wade" (New Hope, $15), told Our Sunday Visitor. "This new witness is going to motivate a lot more people. This is what the country needs and that is what the babies need."
Tenacious abortion foe Joe Scheidler, head of the Chicago-based Pro Life Action League, sees the mobilization of bishops as encouraging activists and legitimizing the pro-life movement.
"He's encouraging credibility and doing what a bishop is supposed to do; he's standing at the foot of the cross;" he said.
And Father Frank Pavone, national director of the Priests for Life, told a revealing story. "I will never forget the comment of Joy Davis, who once administered six abortion facilities," he said. "She told me that when pro-life people prayed at them, business was slow, women changed their minds and even the staff wavered.
"To sum it up, she said, 'It was a bad day' But when there was a priest or bishop present, Joy told me, the abortion staff knew that 'It would be a very bad day.'"