40 Days for Life Pro-Life Campaign Nears End, 441 Babies Saved From Abortion
by Steven Ertelt
LifeNews.com Editor
October 31, 2008
Washington, DC (LifeNews.com) — The latest 40 Days for Life campaign to draw attention to the destruction of human life at local abortion businesses is nearing the end, but the director of the campaign tells LifeNews.com he is hearing from dozens of pro-life groups in local communities that want to continue.
"Even after praying and fasting for 40 days – and being involved in vigils that in many cities went round the clock, seven days a week -many of the people who are participating in this campaign simply don’t want to see it end," David Bereit says.
"Tens of thousands of people have prayed in front of abortion facilities, many for the first time," the campaign director explained. "They see the impact of that peaceful presence, and they yearn to keep going."
Beginning September 24, intensive 40 Days for Life campaigns have been conducted in more than 175 communities in 47 states, the District of Columbia, American Samoa and two Canadian provinces.
Bereit said the biggest success of the campaign may have been jumpstarting efforts by existing groups to do more in their community and taking existing efforts that had grown stale and given them new life.
"People across the country have expressed an interest in getting involved in the effort to end abortion," said Bereit, "but far too often, they didn’t know where to start. 40 Days for Life provided a starting point. Now they’ve seen what can happen; and now that they’ve taken that first step, they’re eagerly anticipating additional opportunities for continuing their pro-life outreach."
Bereit told LifeNews.com the campaign has shown the importance of being at abortion centers to help women considering an abortion and to encourage abortion business staff to change their minds about working there.
In some cities, volunteers are talking about extending the daily vigils, some insisting that the vigils must continue until the abortion facilities are closed.
Others are planning to maintain vigils on a regular basis – during business hours, for instance, or at the very least on days on which abortions are done.
Ultimately, Bereit is pleased with the number of babies who survived abortions thanks to local pro-life people showing pregnant women alternatives.
"We know of at least 441 lives that were saved from abortion as a result of the 40 Days for Life effort thus far," said Bereit. "But those are not the only lives that have been changed."
"We hear every day about people seeking help who have been dealing with abortion experiences – some of them have been hurting for more than 30 years," he added. "There are people in the abortion industry who have been touched by this effort. They, too, are witnessing the power of prayer at work first hand."
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