As anticipated, I was able to participate in several “Right To Life” events over the past couple of weeks, and I very much appreciated those opportunities. I have not previously had the chance to attend any of these events in the past, so each one was a first for me. I thank God for those folks who have been braving the cold and making the effort to “March For Life” over the past many years, and for the countless individuals who have been working (often quietly behind the scenes) and sacrificing in any number of ways to confess and defend the sanctity of human life.
The Right To Life of Northeast Indiana Rally & March For Life was held in Fort Wayne on Saturday the 18th. of January. It was chilly, damp, and windy, but it seemed like a decent crowd to me. Our Lutheran community was well represented, and we gathered at the conclusion of the March to pray and sing together as part of our public witness. Kudos to Rev. Dr. Peter Scaer for his tireless efforts in support of these efforts over the past many years, and thanks to Rev. Dr. Gary Zieroth for his beautiful and eloquent prayer to open the Rally. I would love to see even more of our LCMS pastors and congregations represented at the March in future years.
The 18th. of January is also my eldest son’s birthday, and so it seemed especially appropriate that he and his three eldest children were able to participate in the Rally & March along with me. My eldest daughter’s birthday was just three days later, the 21st. of January, one day prior to the 52nd. anniversary of the nefarious “Roe v. Wade” decision that has caused so much harm to so many over these past five decades. For me it has been such a poignant thing that my first two children were born in such close proximity to that fateful decision and the annual protests against it.
The Indiana Right To Life Rally & March was held in Indianapolis on the 22nd. of January, and I was impressed with the large number of people who took part. It was cold, but sunny, and not as wet or windy as the Fort Wayne March had been. From what I could tell, the number of marchers stretched for at least three or four city blocks and really spanned the full width of the streets; and a great many of them were young people in their teens and twenties. My youngest daughter and my eldest granddaughter have been adamantly pro-life since they were eight or nine years old, and they’ve often described themselves as being part of the “pro-life generation.” I am inclined to believe that description after what I’ve witnessed over the past couple of weeks. Praise God!
The Lieutenant Governor marched with us in Indianapolis – actually not far from where I ended up walking – and he also spoke at the Rally when we gathered at the Statehouse at the end of the March. Not only that, but our new Indiana Governor, Mike Braun, also came out to address the Rally. The Governor spoke strongly and clearly in support of human life, marriage, and family, and I have every sense that these are sincere convictions stemming from his Christian faith. We are quite fortunate in Indiana to have such strong pro-life advocates within our state government, especially as the battleground against the reigning culture of death has really shifted to the states following the Supreme Court’s overturning of “Roe v. Wade” in June of 2022.
The day after the Indianapolis March, I traveled to Washington, D.C. to join President Harrison and most of the other district presidents, along with other LCMS leaders from across the Synod, in the annual March For Life there. I was especially pleased and grateful to see the LCMS so well represented, not only by the COP and other Synod officials, but (again) by numerous young people, including a large contingent of high school and college students from our own Indiana District. The stories shared at the Rally & March were poignant and moving, especially those by abortion survivors and women who have had abortions in the past. Thank God, as well, for the strong public witness that was given by Vice President Vance, Governor DeSantis, and others!