Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children

Today, January 22nd, the anniversary of the Roe v. Wade court decision that legalized abortion in 1973, the U.S. Bishops call upon us to pray and sacrifice for the protection of unborn children and to do penance for acts of abortion. In the General Instruction of the Roman Missal, no. 373, we read:

In all the Dioceses of the United States of America, January 22 (or January 23, when January 22 falls on a Sunday) shall be observed as a particular day of prayer for the full restoration of the legal guarantee of the right to life and of penance for violations to the dignity of the human person committed through acts of abortion.

We encourage you to respond to this call through prayer, fasting, or by whatever sacrifices you are able to make. Let us pray that each innocent, unborn child may be fully protected under the law from conception until natural death, and let us beg God’s mercy upon us for this terrible crime that has been legal in our country for 46 years. Our Lady of Guadalupe, Patroness of the Unborn, and St. Gerard Majella, patron of expectant mothers, pray for us!

Cover photo shows the 2019 national March for Life in Washington, D.C., which took place this past Friday.

January 22, 2019