He is Risen

This is the day the Lord has made; let us rejoice in it and be glad! --Psalm 118: 24

On behalf of Vigil for Life, please accept our wishes for a wonderful and blessed Easter season for you and your families. Jesus Christ who had died is risen. Allelujah!

All human cruelty and callous indifference, all our frustration and despair, every destroyed life and broken heart is answered by this most holy season. And so, as we go forth this year continuing our labors to pray, fast and witness for an end to abortion, let us never forget that the beginning and the end of our work is the resurrection of the Lord.

Please read on for highlights from this spring's 40 Days for Life campaign in Madison.

40 Days for Life Madison 2010: Year in Review

After only three months since the end of the fall campaign, Vigil for Life embarked on an ambitious effort: holding another 40 day vigil--this time at the Madison Surgery Center. With the fall campaign still fresh in mind, with harsher weather, and with a very public location that would result in much more open hostility, we had our doubts as to whether the vigil could be pulled off. But we placed those doubts in the Hands of the Lord and trusted that if He wanted this vigil to happen He would find a way to fill the 960 hour long prayer shifts. And did He ever!

We were delighted, humbled and amazed by the way you all turned out to this vigil. Here is an overview of some of the highlights and success stories:

Making a Difference

• Prayer Warrior Tom reported that a man who came to work at the MSC in a service van came over to the sidewalk to ask about the late-term abortion plans. When Tom filled him in, he replied, "Well, I think I will call my boss and tell him that I will not do service here anymore."
• MSC staff routinely thanked participants for being out on the streets.
• The Vigil provided a street presence while Pro-Life Wisconsin discovered and publicized numerous accounts of corruption and illegal activity involved in the University of Wisconsin's plans to perform late-term abortions and its relationship with Planned Parenthood.
• Still no abortions at the MSC--Nearly 15 months after the targetted start date! This results in an estimated 150 saved babies since January of 2009!

Incredible Efforts

• Many people got involved for the first time--many coming from more than an hour away to pray!
• Close to 50 people gathered for the closing vigil, led by Pastor Jeremiah Johnson who led praise and worship music and offered a powerful reflection.
• The national 40 Days for Life team featured Madison--called you "defenders of true freedom" in its widely distributed campaign email and blog.
• This vigil drew participants from more Christian faiths and more churches than the previous one.
• On March 21, nearly 200 of you packed the sidewalks to pray the Stations of the Cross.
• Scores of people packed a special Mass praying to keep abortion out of health care reform and then filled a 40 hour adoration vigil that ran concurrent with 40 Days for Life

Putting the Abortion Industry on the Defensive

• A student newspaper on campus published a pro-abortion piece bashing vigil participants while admitting abortion kills a person.
• One day a counter-protester showed up--drawing further attention to the treachery of UW Health and Meriter Hospital.
• The campaign (along with a concurrent vigil in Wausau) so riled the abortion industry that several pro-abortion organizations attempted to launched a mass fundraising campaign in response to our presence on the street. The entire statewide effort drew only a paltry 63 donations!

Well done!

Keeping It Up

• Every Tuesday at the MSC at 8:30 a.m. We will continue our witness at the MSC with a weekly vigil at 8:30 a.m. on Tuesdays. A prayer partner is needed to keep 2 people out there at a time. Please contact Steve Karlen at 608-445-2063 if you can plan on praying on Tuesdays.
• Every Thursday at Planned Parenthood at 4:00 p.m. We will stand at the foot of the Cross at Planned Parenthood Thursdays at 4:00 p.m., which is a busy time. A prayer partner is needed to keep 2 people out there at a time. Please contact Laura Karlen at 608-445-2064 if you can plan on praying on Thursdays.
• Is there a time that you would like to pray at either location? Grab a prayer partner and head out two-by-two, as our Lord sent out His disciples. Let us know what you have in mind so we can multiply our vigils!
  

Lastly, we'd like to thank a prayer warrior who will be leaving the Madison area for her incredible efforts this past year. Jenny Hakes has been praying outside the Madison Surgery Center each Saturday morning for most of the past year. She's been a regular participant in 40 Days for Life and was featured in the Wisconsin State Journal for her efforts this winter. Jenny will be relocating to Texas.

Thank you Jenny Your efforts have gone above and beyond what we could have asked. You leave large shoes to fill and will be greatly missed.

Have a Blessed Easter!