By Lindsay Steele
The Catholic Messenger
IOWA CITY —The 40 Days for Life campaign is an opportunity for Christians worldwide to come together and pray outside abortion clinics.
Iowa City-area participants try to maintain a constant presence outside the Emma Goldman Clinic from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. during the campaign, which begins Sept. 24 and will conclude Nov. 2. Participants take shifts to pray, hand out brochures and/or hold signs.
“Emma Goldman Clinic is one of the last abortion centers remaining in Iowa,” said Paul Breitbach, local coordinator and a member of St. Wenceslaus Parish in Iowa City. “We believe through prayer, fasting and witnessing we will close (Emma Goldman).”
Since the overturning of Roe v. Wade three years ago, 56 abortion facilities have closed where 40 Days for Life prayer vigils were held. Furthermore, half of all states have enacted legal protections for unborn children, said Sheryl Schwager, executive director of Johnson County Right to Life. Participants report that people are more likely to miss their abortion appointments when someone is praying outside the facility.
40 Days for Life participants can sign up for one-hour time slots at https://www.40daysforlife.com/en/iowa-city. Breitbach invites pro-life advocates who cannot stand outside the clinic to participate from home. “We encourage everyone to pray a daily rosary for the end of abortion and the closing of Emma Goldman Clinic. We also encourage everyone to spend at least one hour in adoration each week.”
The 40 Days for Life initiative, in many ways, is an extension of what pro-life advocates in the area do year-round, organizers said. About 8 to 20 pro-life advocates pray outside Emma Goldman on Thursdays, when abortions are scheduled. Groups from Dubuque and Davenport participate regularly, as do students from the University of Iowa.
Breitbach is among those who pray regularly outside the center. “People always ask me why I pray on the sidewalk, (saying) I should just pray at church or at home.” He said he has experienced how powerful in-person witness can be. About a year ago, a man approached Breitbach on the sidewalk and shared that, when he was younger, he and his girlfriend experienced an unplanned pregnancy and opted for an abortion. “He was convinced that God would never forgive him,” Breitbach recalled. “I told him that God is a loving God and if he repents, he will be forgiven. I asked him his name and told him I will be praying for him, his girlfriend and the soul of their aborted baby. If I was not on the sidewalk I would not have met him and probably no one would be praying for him.”
