THELEAVEN.ORG | VOL. 45, NO. 23 | JANUARY 26, 2024
LEAVEN PHOTO BY KATHRYN WHITE
Priests and bishops from across the nation — including Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann — join Bishop Michael F. Burbidge of Arlington, Virginia, chairman of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops’ Committee on Pro-Life Activities, at the altar during the National Prayer Vigil for Life Jan. 18 at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception in Washington, D.C.
GATHERING FOR LIFE
Archbishop Naumann leads National Holy Hour for Life By Barb Fraze Special to The Leaven
W
ASHINGTON (CNS) — More than 7,000 gathered at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception here for the March for Life Vigil Mass held Jan. 18. A great many of them stayed on for the National Holy Hour of Life afterward, led by To read Archbishop about the Joseph F. NauMarch for Life, mann. go to pages Among those 8-9 who remained to receive a message of encouragement from the archbishop, former chair of the USCCB’s pro-life committee, were many student marchers from his own Archdiocese of Kansas City in Kansas. After eucharistic adoration, recitation of the rosary, additional prayers and hymns, Archbishop Naumann told those gathered on the eve of the 2024
LEAVEN PHOTO BY KATHRYN WHITE
Archbishop Joseph F. Naumann, former chair of the USCCB’s pro-life committee, leads the National Holy Hour for Life after the National Prayer Vigil for Life on Jan. 18. March for Life that they should take their example from David in the Book of Samuel. He said he thought it was appropriate that the weekly liturgical
readings had included Samuel anointing David. The Philistines were threatening the Israelites, and none of the soldiers would
stand up to the Philistine giant Goliath. “It’s the boy David, who can’t even wear armor, who believes that God is with him, just as [God] was with him when [David] was doing his shepherding,” said the archbishop. Yet David hit Goliath with a single stone from his slingshot, then killed Goliath with the giant’s own sword. “And you know, I think that image is apt for us where we are right now in the pro-life movement,” Archbishop Naumann said. The forces pro-life advocates face can seem overwhelming, like a giant, like Goliath, he said. “We’re facing a billion-dollar industry that’s willing to spend everything, anything, to defend its livelihood — the killing of children. We have propagandized generations of children, now young adults, through our public education, through higher education, through the mainstream media, through the entertainment industry. . . . But what we have is something more powerful. “It’s Jesus and it’s truth.” >> See “ARCHBISHOP” on page 10