A reflection on living as a Catholic in a secular world.
Friday, June 24th, 2022.
Solemnity of the Most Sacred Heart of Jesus. A momentous day for abortion laws in the United States, and a balmy summer night in Fort Collins, Colorado. The thunderheads that piled on the horizon threatened rain, but for now a gentle breeze lifted the hair off my neck, while soft evening shadows played across the lawn. My husband and I stood amid a group of Colorado hippies and granolas who sipped their cups of craft beer and listened with eyes shut.
We had been looking forward to this day for quite some time. One of our favorite musicians was giving a concert at a brewery. While we waited for his performance, we got to hear the opening band, a beautiful folk duo of two sisters. Their singing was atmospheric and gorgeous, and I really wanted to like them. My smile cracked a little during a “queer love song” that one of the sisters had written about a personal experience, but I reminded myself to be charitable. Suspend judgement until after the show, I thought.
Now the leader of the group put her lips to the microphone.
“We wrote this next song when we thought our world had ended,” she said. “At the time, it felt like the apocalypse. It feels a lot like that right now too, after today’s Supreme Court decision. I don’t really have words for that yet. It’s a tragic loss of freedom.”
The crowd cheered.
A loss of freedom. A tragedy, that women killing their own children is no longer a federal “right.” The apocalypse, because lawmakers realized that the right to commit genocide exists nowhere in our constitution. The crowd continued to whoop and applaud in front of the stage.
My head was spinning. I needed air. As I shouldered my way through the crowd, someone in a tank top with a pro-abortion slogan jostled me. I passed a man in high heels and false eyelashes. “Hey, lady,” I heard another person call. “You’re right up in my armpit. Back off and have some respect.” My face burned and tears started to gather. “I hate people,” I muttered to myself. I hate it. I hate these people’s smiles and lies.
These thoughts didn’t feel right to me at the time, but in the moment I was too overwhelmed to conduct much self-reflection.
Was my response that night an overreaction? Almost certainly. But this experience, though painful in the moment, brought an essential question to center stage.
When morality comes under attack, how should we respond?
1. Remember that who is “right” or “wrong” in the eyes of the world does not matter. The times that you feel the angriest and most flustered are the best moments to invite God in, to “HPB,” as Christian Meert puts it.
2. Give your frustration to God. You may feel angry at yourself for being angry, so give Him that too. When you are ready, pray for the people who have upset you. And finally, pray for the people under attack. In my case, for mothers and for children.
3. Model love. Mother Teresa said that “any country that accepts abortion, is not teaching its people to love, but to use any violence to get what it wants.” The best way to counteract hatred and violence is through its opposite, despite my temptation that night at the concert. What can I do to love the people in my own life better? How can I ensure that my mindset, and not just my outward appearance, is pro-life?
4. Examine your conscience and live with integrity. As a Catholic, there is almost a cultural precedent to be outraged by abortion. And this is good, of course, and injustice should make us angry. But if we are pro-life, we should also be full participants in Christ’s mission in His church, living selfless and obedient lives. In what ways can I strengthen this mission in my heart and in my home? How can I live out the teachings of the Church in fuller harmony with the spirit of the law?
Finally, remember that you are never alone. We are called to love our enemies, but we are also given a community to support us by a God who loves us, a community whose persistent prayers He answered by allowing Roe vs. Wade to be overturned. Praise Him for that.
