It has been more than two years since Roe v. Wade was overturned and the issue of abortion handed back to the states. Though Kentucky has some of the most restrictive abortion laws in the United States, all indicators suggest the abortion rate for Kentucky citizens is actually increasing.
At the parish level, our pro-life ministry is more needed than ever.
Planned Parenthood is still operating full time in Kentucky, setting up free transportation and hotel stays for Kentucky women to access abortion centers over state lines. Additionally, due to federal deregulation, women have access to chemical abortion kits through the mail with no doctor supervision or parental consent. Although trafficking these kits is technically illegal in Kentucky, tracking them is next to impossible.
Statistics from border state abortion clinics estimate medical abortion rates for Kentucky citizens have increased as well, from 4,441 in 2021 to 4,466 in 2023, according to Kentucky Right to Life.
Now more than ever, it is the mission of every member of the pro-life community to work towards making abortion unthinkable. So, what can be done at your parish?
Firstly, we must help women with troubled pregnancies get the resources and counseling they need.
- Support organizations like Louisville’s Little Way Pregnancy Resource Center, which is on the frontline for encountering abortion-minded women. They provide free ultrasounds, loving and truthful advice and meet material needs to make the choice for life less burdensome.
- Join the Walking with Moms in Need program. More than a dozen parishes have participated, adopting families in need when they are confronted with a difficult pregnancy. If you are interested in starting a chapter, you can contact our office to attend the Oct. 26 training.
Secondly, we must support local pro-life legislation. Abortion is a multi-million dollar industry and there is tremendous political pressure to loosen Kentucky abortion restrictions.
In the next few years, the abortion industry is expected to mount a new effort to either overturn the Kentucky laws banning abortion or, worse, to amend our state constitution to make abortion a constitutional right. We must support organizations such as Kentucky Right to Life and the Catholic Conference of Kentucky, which lobby the state legislature to ensure that doesn’t happen.
Sign up for the newsletter on the Catholic Conference of Kentucky’s website, ccky.org, so you can stay current on laws affecting a whole host of respect-life issues.
Thirdly, we must concern ourselves with children who are born and already in need within our community.
The Kentucky foster care system is currently in crisis with children who need support. You can help by offering donations, respite or (for those who are called) foster care. The archdiocese is calling attention to this need by partnering with Operation Open Arms and Kentucky Kids Belong to host several informational meetings throughout the year in our parishes. The latest one is happening Oct. 20 at St. Gabriel Church.
Lastly, we need prayer.
Roe v. Wade was not defeated through work alone, but also by the many prayers of the faithful. The Helpers of God’s Precious Infants meet at 7 a.m. at the Cathedral of the Assumption every second Saturday for Mass and prayer. If you can’t attend, devote an Our Father a day, a rosary a week or even just a Hail Mary before every Mass to change the hearts of Kentuckians towards the unborn.
If we wed our work with prayer, Christ stands with us, and “If God is for us, who can be against us?” Rom 8:31.
Stuart Hamilton is the pro-life activities coordinator for the Archdiocese of Louisville.
