2002 Conference
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the photos from our conference.
Hear what our conference attendees said about it.
Seminarians Gather for International Pro-life Retreat --
August, 2002
This past August, thirty seminarians from across the country
and the world gathered together in Pittsburgh, Pa., for an
intensive period of prayer and conference meetings to prepare
to become priests who are unreservedly pro-life. They focused
on the theme "Effective ministry amidst the culture of
death."
This conference grew out of the work of Seminarian Life Link,
a new organization of seminarians formed in response to our
Holy Father Pope John Paul II’s call to live and defend the
Gospel of Life publicly and vigorously. In doing so, they
have pledged to support each other in making that Gospel of
Life a cornerstone of their spiritual formation and priestly
identity.
This generation of seminarians is the first to live in a
world where abortion has always been legal, where the intrinsic
value of human life is no longer taken for granted, and where
the sense of true human freedom has been radically distorted
and turned inward on the self. In fact, it is the first generation
in which children – and even human life in general – are no
longer seen as precious and sacred gifts from God. Amidst
this dire need to evangelize and transform this culture of
death into a culture of life, through the power of Christ’s
Cross and Resurrection, these seminarians find themselves
contemplating the critical role of the Church and the priesthood
in effecting that transformation.
The conference generally focused on learning to balance and
incorporate both prayer and activism. The seminarians learned
to prayerfully trust that it is God who will bring about conversion,
but that He gave us certain gifts to be used to serve Him
as willing instruments to bring about His kingdom on earth.
They follow the example of Jesus Christ’s compassion and of
hating the sin but loving the sinner so that they can change
hearts and not just minds.
As future leaders of the Church, they have to be with the
people who are in the greatest need, both with the unborn
babies and with those women (and men) who feel they have no
choice but to have an abortion. They face the inevitable truth
that they must be very public about this issue, following
the advice of their Holy Father.
Do no be afraid to go out into the streets and into public
places like the first apostles, who preach Christ and the
good news of salvation in the cities, towns, and villages.
This is no time to be ashamed of the Gospel. It is the time
to preach it from the rooftops. Do not be afraid to break
out of comfortable and routine modes of living in order to
take up the challenge of making Christ known in the modern
metropolis.
The profound implications of this instruction from the Holy
Father constituted a cornerstone of the retreat. The priests
of the third millennium will be called to preach the Good
News of the Gospel of the Life from the rooftops! In
doing so, they will inevitably cause some people to take offense,
and to lash out against them in anger. But the lesson of the
Beatitudes is that disciples will be persecuted for the sake
of proclaiming the Truth. The retreat helped them reflect
on how they must continue to do so boldly and compassionately,
whatever the cost.
As future ordained leaders, these seminarians have a special
obligation to be present where their innocent brothers and
sisters are being killed. As much as they might like to recoil
from this unpleasant reality, they are aware that they need
to be present at these mills for much the same reason that
they are present when visiting the dying at their hospital
bedsides. They are convinced that no one should die alone.
Therefore the retreat included a time of prayer at a local
abortion mill, and a time of public witness on the streets
of Pittsburgh.
With these goals in mind, Fr. Frank Pavone, co-founder of
Priests for Life assisted them in organizing this conference.
While there, they had the privilege of hearing and interacting
with many key pro-life leaders from across the country. These
included a wide spectrum of people using their unique gifts
and talents in the service of building the Lord’s kingdom.
They had the opportunity to hear from long-term activists
who were able to discern what is and what is not effective
in transforming the culture; from Christian counselors who
reach out to post-abortive women in their grief; from scholars
who connect the theology of the Holy Father to the Gospel
of Life; and from women who were personally affected by the
tragedy of abortion.
Some of the highlights of the conference
included
- Fr.
Frank Pavone. Peppered throughout the weekend, in preaching
and conferences, we benefited from his wisdom and experience
as a national pro-life leader for almost ten years.
- Fr.
Richard Hogan, of St. Paul, Minnesota. He presented
the historical perspective of Pope John Paul II’s Theology
of the Body, and how that applies to the pro-life mission
of the Church.
- Fr.
Tom Euteneuer, president of Human Life International.
He presented the biblical and theological underpinnings
of the evil of abortion and also spoke directly to the seminarians
on their role as future spiritual fathers in a fatherless
world.
- Norma
McCorvey, the former "Jane Roe" of the Roe v. Wade decision.
She gave a powerful testimony about her personal conversion
from death to life in the power of Jesus Christ.
- Gregg
Cunningham, Director of the Center for Bioethical Reform.
He focused on the most effective way to put a face on the
horror of abortion, to concretize the abstract evil, and
to motivate people to become involved in the pro-life struggle.
- Monica
Miller, a professor of systematic theology at St. Mary’s
College/Ave Maria in Orchard Lake, Michigan. She used her
experience from her many years of activism in the Pro-Life
Action League and other organizations to give an historical
overview of the pro-life movement and what the direction
of activism should be in the future.
- Theresa Burke, founder of Rachel’s Vineyard, a ministry
for post-abortive healing. She described both the psychological
and spiritual effects of an abortion on the woman and those
close to her.
- Georgette Forney, director of Episcopalians for Life,
who gave a personal testimony of what was needed for healing
after her own abortion.
- We closed with Debra
Cardamone. She gave a gripping and courageous testimony
about living through the horror of seeing her own daughter
Marla killed at the hands of a ruthless abortionist and
the subsequent cover-up. Her story drove home the hard reality
that the culture of abortion, and the influence of the Evil
One behind it, will literally stop at nothing to perpetuate
the lie that abortion is merely a harmless "choice." But
her very presence in speaking to the seminarians was a witness
to hope and perseverance.
Even though the conference was held at a retreat center,
the interaction with our fellow seminarians and these pro-life
leaders intensified our sense of mission as future priests.
Now better equipped with effective tools and knowledge of
scripture, tradition, and our own history, these thirty seminarians
are committed to go out into the world and to rebuild the
culture, so that there will be no more Marlas, no more innocent
babies killed, and no more grief from women who are convinced
that they have no other choice but to have an abortion.
The retreat will be an annual event.
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