“We all nod our heads that, in theory, it makes perfect sense for God to answer prayer in his own way, in his own time.  After all, God knows everything.  But it isn’t easy when we pray, and pray, and pray, and don’t see that God is answering.

I think the apostle Paul knew that feeling too.  When he wrote his letter to the Corinthians, he said, “For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face.  Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known” (1 Corinthians 13:12).

On this earth, through our human eyes, we see only “in part”.  The challenge is to keep on praying, trusting that God hears, listens, loves and acts even if we cannot see the evidence. My years with 40 Days for Life have taught me lessons in the importance of persistent prayer in the face of God’s mysterious silence.”

Excerpt from 40 Days for Life… Discover what God has done… Imagine what he can do  (pp. 65-66) by David Bereit & Shawn Carney with Cindy Lambert

OPEN HOURS

Tuesday, Nov. 25th – Only 69% filled on this Abortion Day – 2 needed at 2p; 2 needed at 3p and 1 needed at 4p.

Wednesday, Nov. 26th – Just 75% filled on this Abortion Day – 1 needed at 9a; 1 needed at 11a; 1 needed at 1p; 1 needed at 4p; and 1 needed at 5p.

Friday, Nov. 28th – Only 50% filled; 1 needed at 1p and 1 needed at 2p.

To sign up for hours go to: vigilforlife.org/calendar/monthview or call (608)393-8545 or e-mailinfo@vigilforlife.org.

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Empty Manger Caroling – Monday, December 22nd – 4p – 3706 Orin Rd., Madison, WI

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7th Annual Respect Life Retreat hosted by Servants of Our Lady of Guadalupe and Vigil for Life – Friday, Dec. 19th & Sat., Dec. 20th.

For more information go to: www.facebook.com/events/975503229141938/

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“Dear Lord, help me to accept your timetable rather than insisting on my own and to not be discouraged when the two don’t coincide.  When I face frustrations, roadblocks, disappointments, and persecution in my attempts to do your work, as I surely will, help me to not simply bear them but to rejoice in them, because they are what strengthen me and help me to grow to be more like your Son.  It is no small privilege to participate with him in his sufferings – even in this small way.  Amen.”

Prayer from: 40 Days for Life… Discover what God has done… Imagine what he can do (p. 71).

Lately, I have been sent and consequently viewed many graphic images of aborted babies.  As heartbreaking as it is to look at these images; they are a stark reminder of the reality and brutality of abortion.  That beautiful, tiny hand so perfectly formed (by 9-12 weeks unique fingerprints are evident and never change); those eyes (that will not get to see the wonderful, beautiful world that God created for us);  those sweet tiny feet (that will not get kissed by a loving Mommy & Daddy or learn how to walk or run) etc.  Yes, so very heartbreaking.

This is why we must never give up; we must endure the cold, the snow, the wind, the rain, the sub-zero temps., and any other thing that makes witnessing for life not appealing.  We must persevere!

OPEN HOURS THIS WEEK

Tuesday, Nov. 18th – 88% filled on this Abortion Day – 1 needed at 1p and 1 needed at 3p.

Wednesday, Nov. 19th – Only 65% filled on this Abortion Day – 1 needed at 9a; 1 needed at 10a; 1 needed at 11a; 1 needed at 1p; 1 needed at 2p and 2 needed at 5p.

Thursday, Nov. 20th –  Just 50% filled on this busy day – 2 needed at 9a; 1 needed at 11a; 2 needed at 12p; 1 needed at 3p; 1 needed at 4p and 2 needed at 5p.

Friday, Nov. 21st – 75% filled – 1 needed at 2p.

To sign up for hours go to:  vigilforlife.org/calendar/monthview or call (608)393-8545 or e-mailinfo@vigilforlife.org.

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Empty Manger Caroling – Monday, December 22nd – 4p – 3706 Orin Rd., Madison, WI

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7th Annual Respect Life Retreat hosted by Servants of Our Lady of Guadalupe and Vigil for Life – Friday, Dec. 19th & Sat., Dec. 20th.

For more info. go to:  www.facebook.com/events/975503229141938/

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Psalm 139: 13-14

You created

my inmost being;

You knit me together

in my mother’s womb.

I praise You

because I am

fearfully and

wonderfully made;

Your works

are wonderful,

I know that full well.

“There will be days that you may not want to do the work God calls you to do.  I have felt that way.  Do it anyway.  That is why the pro-life movement is as effective as it often is today – because of people who simply decided to do it anyway, whether or not they felt like it.  And that is how I believe that, ultimately, we will win this battle for life – by each of us doing it anyway.”

Excerpt from 40 Days for Life Discover what God has done… Imagine what He can do (p.250).

By: David Bereit and Shawn Carney with Cindy Lambert

OPEN HOURS

Tuesday, Nov. 11th – 88% filled – 1 needed at 3p and 1 needed at 4p.

Wednesday, Nov. 12th – just 70% filled on this Abortion Day – 1 needed at 11a;  2 needed at 2p; 2 needed at 3p and 1 needed at 5p.

Thursday, Nov. 13th – Only 44% filled on this busy, busy day at PP – 1 needed at 9a; 2 needed at 10a; 2 needed at 11a; 2 needed at 12p and 1 needed at 4p.

Friday, Nov. 14th – 75% filled – 1 needed at 2p.

To sign up for hours go to:  vigilforlife.org/calendar/monthview or call Gwen Finnegan at (608)393-8545 or e-mail info@vigilforlife.org.

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St. Ambrose Academy Faculty Lecture Series:  Wednesday, November 12th from 7p – 8:30p at Cathedral Parish (Holy Redeemer) 128 W. Johnson Street, Madison.

Guest Lecturer will be Vicki Thorn.

“The Biochemistry of Attraction”

Today, the prevailing view on sex is that it is casual

and carefree. Is that the case? Vicki Thorn has

disproven time and time again this faulty view of sex

in presentations across the country. Instead, in her

presentation, Vicki will demonstrate that

contraception, the key to “casual sex,” alters

relationships and the bonding between people. There

is, in fact, a “biochemistry” to attraction between men

and women. Men and women are made to be

complementary. Vicki will also answer the question:

“Are the Catholic Church’s teachings on sex and marriage outdated?”

This important lecture is free and open to the public.

Children are welcome to join their parents.

Refreshments will be served.

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Prayer to End Abortion

By: Fr. Frank Pavone, Priests for Life

Lord God, I thank you today for the gift of my life,

And for the lives of all my brothers and sisters.

I know there is nothing that destroys more life than abortion,

Yet I rejoice that you have conquered death

by the Resurrection of Your Son.

I am ready to do my part in ending abortion.

Today I commit myself

Never to be silent,

Never to be passive,

Never to be forgetful of the unborn.

I commit myself to be active in the pro-life movement,

And never to stop defending life

Until all my brothers and sisters are protected,

And our nation once again becomes

A nation with liberty and justice

Not just for some, but for all,

Through Christ our Lord. Amen!

FROM 40 Days for Life National Organization:

“We made it! Today is Day 40 … and it marks the final day of this 40 Days for Life campaign. As reports continue to pour in, we know one thing for sure — God can do a lot in 40 days!

Today there are babies alive who were scheduled to be aborted during this campaign. Instead of becoming abortion statistics, these children will have birthdays in June and July because their moms had a chance to turn around at the very last moment.

There are also women who are finding hope and healing after an abortion. There are abortion center workers who started this campaign by complaining about “those people” outside praying … before God went to work on their hearts and led them to quit their jobs.

God is always faithful and He wants to save our culture more than we do. The Gospel doesn’t tell us it will be easy, but it does say it’s worth it.

No harsh weather, discouragement or persecution can take away the joy of seeing a baby saved from abortion and a mom spared a lifetime of regret. Thank you for your prayers and sacrifices during these past 40 days!”

Current reports from this campaign show 528 lives saved from all 40 Days for Life campaigns that ran this fall.  In Madison, we know of 2 babies lives that were saved and 2 moms spared a lifetime of regret during this campaign.

Though we did “make it” through this 40 Days for Life campaign, our presence does not end today.  Starting tomorrow, Monday, Nov. 3rd – we switch over to our 365 for Life campaign.  Please prayerfully consider staying involved with us throughout the whole year!

OPEN HOURS

Tuesday, Nov. 4th – 11a – 2 people needed; 12p – 2 people needed; 1p – 2 people needed; 2p – 2 people needed; 3p – 2 people needed; and 4p  2 people needed.

Wednesday, Nov. 5th – 8a – 2 people needed; 9a – 2 people needed; 10a – 1 person needed; 11a – 1 person needed; 12p – 2 people needed;  1p – 1 person needed; 2p – 2 people needed; 3p – 2 people needed; 4p – 2 people needed and 5p – 2 people needed.

Thursday, Nov. 6th – 9a – 2 people needed; 10a – 2 people needed; 11a – 2 people needed and 12p – 2 people needed.

Friday, Nov. 7th – 2p – 1 person needed.

To sign up for hours go to:  vigilforlife.org/calendar/monthview or call Gwen Finnegan at (608)393-8545 or send e-mail to info@vigilforlife.org.

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Election Prayer for Life

By: Fr. Frank Pavone, Priests for Life

O God, we acknowledge You today as Lord,

Not only of individuals, but of nations and governments.

We thank You for the privilege

Of being able to organize ourselves politically

And of knowing that political loyalty

Does not have to mean disloyalty to You.

We thank You for Your law,

Which our Founding Fathers acknowledged

And recognized as higher than any human law.

We thank You for the opportunity that this election year

puts before us,

To exercise our solemn duty not only to vote,

But to influence countless others to vote,

And to vote correctly.

Lord, we pray that Your people may be awakened.

Let them realize that while politics is not their

salvation,

Their response to You requires that they be politically

active.

Awaken Your people to know that they are not called to be

a sect fleeing the world

But rather a community of faith renewing the world.

Awaken them that the same hands lifted up to You in prayer

Are the hands that pull the lever in the voting booth;

That the same eyes that read Your Word

Are the eyes that read the names on the ballot,

And that they do not cease to be Christians

When they enter the voting booth.

Awaken Your people to a commitment to justice,

To the sanctity of marriage and the family,

To the dignity of each individual human life,

And to the truth that human rights begin when Human Lives

Begin,

And not one moment later.

Lord, we rejoice today

That we are citizens of Your kingdom.

May that make us all the more committed

To being faithful citizens on earth.

We ask this through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Amen.

This fall’s 40 Days for Life campaign is quickly coming to a close.  Please join us for our closing prayer vigil with BISHOP MORLINO at 5 p.m. on Sunday, November 2 on the sidewalk outside of Planned Parenthood, 3706 Orin Rd., Madison. In addition to being blessed by Bishop Morlino’s presence, we will be making a BIG ANNOUNCEMENT.

After our prayer vigil, please join us for our closing celebration and meal at 6p.m.at St. Albert’s in Sun Prairie.  At this event, we will recognize people who spent many hours in prayer on the sidewalk or who worked behind the scenes to make this 40 Days for Life campaign such a success.

Vigil for Life will provide the meat entree.  We ask our friends to please bring a dish to pass. Friends with last names ending in A-H = please bring a salad or appetizer; I-Q = please bring a side dish; R-Z = please bring a dessert.  Contact Gwen Finnegan at 608-393-8545 or e-mail info@vigilforlife.org with questions or for more details.  Please bring a friend!!

Here is the link to the flyer for this event:  vigilforlife.org/wp-content/uploads/2014/10/40DFL-Closing-Vigil-Flyer-rev.-10.22.14-1.pdf

Please feel free to print it out and to have it posted at your parish or elsewhere.

Many, many blessings,

The Vigil for Life Team

“What happens when people pray?  God hears and he answers.  He may give us exactly what we seek. Or he may give us something entirely unexpected that accomplishes his will so much better and so much more powerfully than what we’d intended that we can only stand back in awe and give thanks.”

Excerpt from 40 Days for Life – Discover what God has done…Imagine what He can do by: David Bereit & Shawn Carney with Cindy Lambert (p. 162)

OPEN HOURS

Wednesday, Oct. 29th – 12 a.m. – 2 people needed; 2 a.m. – 1 person needed and 3 a.m. – 1 person needed.

Thursday, Oct. 30th – 6 a.m. – 1 person needed; 7 a.m. – 1 person needed and 9 a.m. – 2 people needed.

Friday, Oct. 31st – 7 a.m. – 1 person needed; 8 a.m. – 2 people needed; 9 a.m. – 1 person needed;  7 p.m. – 1 person needed and 10 p.m. – 1 person needed.

Saturday, Nov. 1st – 1 a.m. – 1 person needed; 2 a.m. – 1 person needed; 3 a.m. – 2 people needed; 6 a.m. – 1 person needed;  11 a.m. – 1 person needed; 1 p.m. –  1 person needed; 6 p.m. – 2 people needed; 7 p.m.- 1 person needed and 9 p.m. – 1 person needed.

Sunday, Nov. 2nd – 12 a.m. – 1 person needed; 1 a.m. – 1 person needed; 2 a.m. – 1 person needed; 3 a.m.- 1 person needed; 6 a.m. – 2 people needed; 7 a.m. – 2 people needed and 8 a.m. – 2 people needed.

To sign up for hours go to:   vigilforlife.org/calendar/monthview or call Gwen Finnegan at (608)393-8545 or e-mail info@vigilforlife.org.

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40 DAYS FOR LIFE CLOSING PRAYER VIGIL WITH BISHOP MORLINO will be on Sunday, Nov. 2nd at 5 p.m. at the vigil site (sidewalk outside of Planned Parenthood).

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Election Prayer for Life

By: Fr. Frank Pavone, Priests for Life

O God, we acknowledge You today as Lord,

Not only of individuals, but of nations and governments.

We thank You for the privilege

Of being able to organize ourselves politically

And of knowing that political loyalty

Does not have to mean disloyalty to You.

We thank You for Your law,

Which our Founding Fathers acknowledged

And recognized as higher than any human law.

We thank You for the opportunity that this election year

puts before us,

To exercise our solemn duty not only to vote,

But to influence countless others to vote,

And to vote correctly.

Lord, we pray that Your people may be awakened.

Let them realize that while politics is not their

salvation,

Their response to You requires that they be politically

active.

Awaken Your people to know that they are not called to be

a sect fleeing the world

But rather a community of faith renewing the world.

Awaken them that the same hands lifted up to You in prayer

Are the hands that pull the lever in the voting booth;

That the same eyes that read Your Word

Are the eyes that read the names on the ballot,

And that they do not cease to be Christians

When they enter the voting booth.

Awaken Your people to a commitment to justice,

To the sanctity of marriage and the family,

To the dignity of each individual human life,

And to the truth that human rights begin when Human Lives

Begin,

And not one moment later.

Lord, we rejoice today

That we are citizens of Your kingdom.

May that make us all the more committed

To being faithful citizens on earth.

We ask this through Jesus Christ, our Lord.

Amen.

“Abortion is graphic.  Abortion is so graphic that, despite decades of legislation, we can hardly talk about it without stirring passion like no other issue of our time.  Abortion is the most common surgical procedure in the United States, and yet the mere mention of it polarizes an office party or a Thanksgiving dinner with extended family.  And there’s a good reason our culture likes to keep abortion in the shadows.  Outside of the context of a political debate, a judicial nomination, or even a sermon, when you’re not talking about strategy or some abstract notion of morality, when you’re simply considering the unadorned nature of abortion itself, then that nature is very simple: It’s a practice that violently ends the life of a unique human being – a death followed by the nonchalant disposal of the body of a baby.

You don’t often hear that reality discussed in the media or the back rooms where political strategies are formed.  Even so, it’s the elephant in the room.  And it’s why, despite four decades of legalization, abortion is one of the most controversial issues of our time.

When forced to acknowledge and confront the graphic nature of that death and the disposal of the body, many people have found their lives changed.”

Excerpt from 40 Days for Life…Discover what God has done…Imagine what He can do (p.131) by: David Bereit and Shawn Carney with Cindy Lambert

OPEN HOURS this week:

Monday, Oct. 20th – 1 needed at 3a

Tuesday, Oct, 21st – 1 needed at 4a and 1 needed at 5a.

Wednesday, Oct. 22nd – 2 needed at 12a; 1 needed at 2a and 1 needed at 3a.

Thursday, Oct. 23rd – 1 needed at 6a.

Friday, Oct. 24th – 1 needed at 7a; 1 needed at 8a; 1 needed at 9a; 1 needed at 12p; 1 needed at 1p; 1 needed at 6p and 1 needed at 10p.

Saturday, Oct. 25th – 1 needed at 1a; 1 needed at 2a; 2 needed at 3a; 1 needed at 6a; 2 needed at 11a; 1 needed at 1p; 1 needed at 6p; 1 needed at 7p; 1 needed at 8p and 1 needed at 9p.

Sunday, Oct. 26th – 2 needed at 12a; 2 needed at 1a; 1 needed at 2a; 1 needed at 3a; 2 needed at 6a; 2 needed at 7a; 1 needed at 8a; 1 needed at 10p and 2 needed at 11p.

To sign up for hours go to: vigilforlife.org/calendar/monthview or call Gwen Finnegan at (608)393-8545 or e-mail info@vigilforlife.org.

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If anyone is involved in saving a mother and baby from abortion or if anyone is involved in sending anyone over to the Women’s Care Center, please send an e-mail to info@vigilforlife.org so that we can share the good news with everybody!

The baby blanket in the vigil bag went missing this past week so we think that someone must have been involved in helping a mother choose life for her baby and gave her the baby blanket.  However, we never heard from anyone about this.  Please keep us informed.

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Pope Francis beatified Pope Paul VI today.  The beatification followed the certification in May of a miracle attributed to Pope Paul VI’s intercession: the healing in 2001 of an unborn child whom doctors expected to be born with a number of birth defects. The boy, now 13, is a healthy American teenager.

In 1968, Pope Paul VI wrote “Humane Vitae” (“Of Human Life”), which reaffirmed the Church’s opposition to artificial birth control.

Bl. Pope Paul VI, pray for us.

The Women’s Care Center asked that we send out a reminder about the Rules of the Road regarding the Women’s Care Center and 40 Days for Life Prayer Warriors:

Women’s Care Center: PLEASE DO NOT ACCESS THE WCC & DO NOT PARK IN THE WCC PARKING LOT – even though it is located across from Planned Parenthood.

Here’s why: Although the WCC supports the efforts of Vigil for Life, their role and mission are separate and distinct. The primary role of the WCC is to establish a confidential, trusting relationship with women in crisis. Out of respect, we MUST not drop in unannounced.  If we do, we could put one of those relationships at risk.

If, at a separate time, you would like to learn more about the good work that the WCC is doing, please call them at(608) 241-8100. Again, please do not drop in unannounced which includes not dropping in to use their restroom.

Thank you so much for your witness to the Gospel of  Life on the sidewalk outside of Planned Parenthood!

For Life,

The Team at Vigil for Life

“Women seldom initiate first contact with prayer volunteers at a 40 Days for Life vigil – their boyfriends or husbands do.  Some are quick to defend what they are doing, even before the volunteers have asked them a question.  Justification and rationalization are verbalized far more often by the men driving than by the pregnant women, especially when they see other men standing and praying. And when one of those fathers has locked eyes with me.  I have often sensed aggressive defensiveness.