Our country is in crisis because so much pain and trauma goes on with insufficient healing and restoration. Creating a space and a time for healing is essential.
On September 10, the National Day of Remembrance for Aborted Children will be observed across the nation at gravesites and memorial markers.
This event is solely focused on being a quiet space and time of healing. A place where abortion isn’t just a conception but it is brought fuller meaning in the experience that provides a place of mourning and healing just as any funeral service furnishes for grieving.
“Not only is this a day of remembrance, it is also a day for repentance and restoration,” said Betty McDowell, vice president of Ministry Services for Heartbeat international. “The reality of the number of children lost to abortion is unfathomable, so to have a time where a woman, a couple, a family, a community can actually acknowledge this loss, seems to me a potential step towards the healing our post-Roe nation.”
The National Day of Remembrance website provides information concerning these events as well as the locations. If you wish to plan a memorial service or participate in one locally, you can find details on the website.
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These events began in 2013 and continue annually. A review of previous events reveal this joint project of Citizens for a Pro-Life Society, Priests for Life and Pro-Life Action League offered hundreds of locations across the nation where individuals could honor the memory of the unborn.
Georgette Forney, the co-founder of Silent No More Awareness Campaign stated that these events are especially poignant for the women and families they serve because it provides a day when they can honor their children who were aborted.
“For many of us, our healing began when we finally acknowledged that our child[ren] died during the abortion procedure,” said Forney.
To be able to recognize the life that was lost, Forney acknowledged, “The Day of Remembrance gives us permission to acknowledge these children, honor their lives, and give thanks for the forgiveness of God in Jesus Christ.”
“Receiving His forgiveness, also opens the door to our forgiving ourselves, which is another critical component of healing,” she concluded.
Matt Yonke, Assistant Communications Director at Pro-Life Action League stated, “Our country needs to mourn, find healing for past abortions whether their own or that of a family member.”
Yonke recalled one woman who attended who found comfort in the event.
“She found out her daughter had an abortion when insurance billing for an abortion procedure arrived in the mail. She was grateful for the opportunity to mourn for this loss and find healing,” stated Yonke.
“Our mission is to equip people to talk about abortion. Educating people about it so they are able to persuade with the truth while being sensitive in talking about abortion.”
Yonke noted there is a change in the willingness to talk about the issue of abortion since the Dobbs decision. “With the change of the legal status, it’s got people thinking and talking about it,” observed Yonke.
This is a powerful tool to awaken the consciences of individuals throughout our nation. While the vast majority of aborted children have not been given a proper burial, gathering at the gravesites of those who have is a way to bear witness to the loss of 65.5 million who have been killed since 1973 in our nation.
While many women remain alone in the shadows of abortion regret, this can empower them to find peace from the pain of abortion regret. To walk beside these individuals in testifying to the sorrow of the loss of innocent life brings healing as a community comes together to recognize the unborn and remember them.
Our flesh may lead us to deny and ignore what has been done to victims of abortion. However this approach will never bring healing and the renewal of hearts and minds.
Fr. Frank Pavone, National Director, Priests for Life stated, “When people become aware of the reality of abortion, they can more easily cut through the lies by which some try to justify it, and the natural apathy to which human nature is inclined. Even pro-life people are thrust into a higher level of commitment and activism.”
It is a regular occurrence, as a writer for a pro-life organization to have individuals I have known for years confide in me a past abortion experience. They carry this secret in silence typically for decades.
“It was for freedom that Christ set us free; therefore keep standing firm and do not be subject again to a yoke of slavery,” (Galatians 5:1).
We need to promote opportunities like the National Day of Remembrance to open the eyes of those clinging to guilt and shame to see God’s grace and forgiveness which is offered in abundance to those who seek it through repentance and sorrow. God then covers it all and provides healing and joy through newness of life.
“Over the years, countless women and men have drawn hope and healing from this solemn day of mourning for the unborn victims of abortion,” wrote Eric Scheidler, Executive Director of Pro-Life Action League.
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“This year, you can be part of bringing peace to those suffering abortion regret, and testifying to all our fellow Americans that the innocent victims of abortion must never be forgotten,” Scheidler concluded.
“A day of remembrance allows us a solemn moment to not only repent for ourselves and our nation but to also take steps towards restoration,” said McDowell. “I am so grateful for all the programs and services available to women and men, helping them towards wholeness. Healing and grace extended to them and they in turn extend to others.”
“So many women regret their abortion and the pregnancy help community is vital to help in her restoration,” she said.
To find the nearest pregnancy help center click HERE to check OptionLine. To find the nearest location for the National Day of Remembrance click HERE.
