Thursday, August 28, 2008

Prayer and Politics Do Mix, Says National Priests' Leader


WASHINGTON, Aug. 28 /Christian Newswire/ -- Fr. Frank Pavone, National Director of Priests for Life, the largest Catholic organization devoted exclusively to ending abortion, announced a nine-week "Novena of Prayer" starting on Monday, September 1, to prepare for our national elections. The Novena concludes on Monday, November 3, the day before Election Day. The prayer, in English and Spanish, can be found at www.PrayerCampaign.org and is interdenominational. Priests for Life is asking pastors to promote it in their churches, and families to pray it together.

"The intentions of this prayer are that citizens participate in an active and informed way in the elections," Fr. Pavone explained, "and that their voting choices are wise. Wisdom means that we see things from God's perspective, put first things first, and discern what's important and what's not. One of the practical effects of such wisdom is that we realize that when the state fails to protect the right to life, it ceases to be a true democracy and instead becomes a tyrant state."

Fr. Pavone also pointed out that wisdom in the elections means not only registering and voting, but getting others to register and vote, and taking advantage of such provisions as early voting in states that allow it. Priests for Life has established an election website at www.PoliticalResponsibility.org where one can find the voter registration deadlines and the early voting policies for each of the 50 states. Many other election-related resources, including a non-partisan voters' guide for the Presidential race, are on that site.

Priests for Life is the nation's largest Catholic pro- life organization dedicated to ending abortion and euthanasia. For more information, visit www.priestsforlife.org.