Good Friday Pro-Life March

Every year since 2000, Rochester Catholics have staged a Good Friday Stations of the Cross in Reparation for Abortion starting from McQuaid Jesuit High School. The annual event includes a prayer service at the school, then the Stations procession to the office of a doctor who performs abortions.

This year, the weather was beautiful. That, perhaps coupled with the anti-life climate in this nation, resulted in approximately 300 people taking part in the march this year - the largest participation I can remember in all the years I've been taking part. Even the road construction that produced lots of noise did not mar this day's event.

At the service before the march, Father Mike Mayer delivered an interesting reflection: If you want abortion to end, pray for the end of the world!

His point was not a morbid one. Rather, he observed that only the world's end will "bring about the fulfillment of the Kingdom of God," and it is only in that Kingdom that the evil that is abortion will end. He pointed out that we already pray for the end of the world: Think of the "Our Father" - "Thy Kingdom come."

That had never occurred to me before. But he is right. Suffering, violence, abortion will not end until the world ends and we are united with the Lord.

As for now, he observed, our "joy" is "to share in the death and suffering of Christ."

A very Franciscan notion, that!