January 20, 2012
Pilgrimage for Life—350 Pilgrims heading to Washington D.C. for March for Life
Bishop Charles C. Thompson responds to a media question during a news conference announcing details of the diocesan “Pilgrimage for Life.” Seated at the table with Bishop Thompson are Steve Dabrowski and Emily Snipes. Youth representatives include Hannah Hodge, Maria Mehringer, Jeremy Slaby, Rachel Eickhoff, Kaitlin Emmert and Marshall Howell. Hodge, Mehringer and Howell are from Memorial High School in Evansville; Slaby, from Castle High School in Warrick County; Eickhoff from Mater Dei High School, Evansville; and Emmert from the University of Evansville in Evansville. (Message photo by Paul R. Leingang) Click for a larger version.
By MARY ANN HUGHES (Message staff writer)
As Hannah Hodge prepares to attend the Jan. 23 March for Life in Washington, D.C., she knows it will provide a way for her to demonstrate exactly what she believes about the sanctity of life.
What she’s hoping to come away with from the experience is a “deeper conviction” of those beliefs.
She’s a sophomore at Reitz Memorial High School in Evansville, and this Friday she will be one of 350 youth, young adult and adult pilgrims who will leave southern Indiana and travel by bus to the 39th annual march that commemorates the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision which legalized abortion.
Hannah and five other young adults spoke about the upcoming pilgrimage at a recent news conference at the Catholic Center in Evansville. They were joined by Bishop Charles C. Thompson, Steve Dabrowski, the diocesan director of the Office of Youth and Young Adult Minis-try, and Emily Snipes, Family Life and Respect Life coordinator with Catholic Charities. Dabrowski and Snipes have spent the last year planning the 2012 pilgrimage.
Participants will wear sweatshirts with the design, “C2ND” — to proclaim on the outside what is their inner conviction, that “We are pro-life from conception to natural death.”
At the news conference, the bishop noted that the pilgrimage to the March for Life offers a way “to show our support for the inherent dignity of the human person.”
He said the Diocese of Evansville is filled with wonderful priests, deacons and lay persons, noting it is “rich in resources of people.” He cited the young people who are going on the pilgrimage, young people who are willing to proclaim their belief in the sanctity of life.
When asked how important it is for the diocese to participate in the march, he noted that “respect for the dignity of life is at the core of who we are. Every person is created in the image of God and redeemed by Christ. We believe that life starts at the moment of conception until natural death — and every moment in between.”
He said he hopes the experience will give participants not only “a deeper sense of appreciation for the dignity of others, but also for themselves. We all have something to contribute,” he said, adding, “I hope they realize the difference they make.”
Dabrowski said this is the second year that the Diocese of Evansville has organized a pilgrimage to the March for Life. This year there are seven buses which will carry the pilgrims to Washington, D.C. Departure sites include the Catholic Center, Rivet High School in Vincennes, Our Lady of Hope Church in Washington, and St. Ferdinand Church in Ferdinand.
Bishop Thompson will celebrate Mass at 8 p.m. EST on Friday, Jan. 20, at St. Ferdinand Church before the group heads east. Everyone is invited to attend the Mass.
The pilgrims are expected to arrive at St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Church in Wood-bridge, Va., on Saturday morning and then sightsee in Washington, D.C. They will attend Mass and a “Life is Very Good” rally on Sunday hosted by the Diocese of Arlington, Va., and then participate in the March for Life on Monday. The group is expected back in southern Indiana on Tuesday morning.
Maria Mehringer is a junior at Reitz Memorial High School. As she reflected on her experience at the 2011 march, she said she wasn’t prepared for the “emotional effects” from the march. “My faith was strengthened so much.”