From staff reports
Three days before the annual March for Life in Washington, St. Denis Parish, Manasquan, will be showing the film “40″ – a documentary about the effects of legalized abortion in the United States in the past 40 years.
The film will be shown Jan. 24 at 11 a.m. and again at 7 p.m. in the church, 90 Union Ave, Manasquan.
In the documentary, women on both sides of the abortion issue, as well as former abortionist doctors, share their personal stories. Also featured are testimonials from pro-life leaders such as Lila Rose, president of the human rights organization Live Action, Father Frank Pavone, National Director of Priests for Life, and Abby Johnson, former Planned Parenthood director and founder of And Then There Were None – a nonprofit organization that helps abortion clinic workers leave the industry.
Rachel Hendricks, vice president of Mary’s Child Pro-Life Ministry in St. Denis Parish who is organizing the film screening, said one of the important aspects of the pro-life movement is that it includes both the secular and non-secular communities.
“Many people, even outside of the faith arena, can see that using basic scientific facts and logic that abortion is wrong and we have a duty to stand up for our smallest, most vulnerable human counterparts,” she said.
However, she said, the March for Life – which marks the anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court decision to legalize abortion, Roe v. Wade – and the issue of abortion “goes right to the core of the basic tenets of our faith.
“Our faith is all about life and living our lives abundantly as God wishes for all of us. Are we going build a culture of life through love, sacrifice and truth, or are we going to allow relativism, selfishness and pride to lead us to a culture of death?”
“I think we need to prayerfully engage others in respectful discussion about this most important issue so that hearts can be changed when the truth is revealed,” she said.
The film screening is free and open to the public. The one-hour movie, appropriate for ages 13 and older, will be followed by a question-and-answer session, comments and fellowship. No R.S.V.P. is required, and groups are welcome. For more information, contact Hendricks at maryschildprolifeministry@gmail.com or visit the parish’s Mary’s Child Pro-Life Ministry Facebook page.
For more information on the film, go to www.the40film.com.