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October 5-13 - 15th Annual International Week of Prayer & Fasting for the Culture of Life

By John-Henry Westen

WASHINGTON, DC, September 17, 2007 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A Catholic organization is launching its 15th annual International Week of Prayer and Fasting for the culture of life.  The International Week of Prayer & Fasting Coalition has as its goals the conversion of nations, an end to abortion and to build a culture of life.  The Coalition is asking for people to participate as individuals, families and parishes by organizing and offering the following: fasting, daily Masses and prayer to include: Holy Hours, Rosaries, Divine Mercy Chaplets and Confession.

Pope John Paul II backed the international week in a message given on October 1, 2001.  "As a pledge of an abundance of Divine Blessings upon you and yours, I paternally impart to all participants of the International Week of Prayer and Fasting my most heartfelt apostolic blessing," he said.

Coalition Chairperson Maureen Flynn says there has been an expansion of the group's mission. "This is actually a coalition, a grassroots effort of groups from all over the world that we have been working with for over 15 years," she notes, "and as we have approached more problems in the world, especially with terrorism and the decline of the culture of life, this grassroots movement has grown."

Flynn says the International Coalition organizes prayers for world peace, works to promote pro-life issues and sets up "prayer cells" to counter global terrorism.  "The more we have these terrorist cells all around the country, all around the world," she explains, "the more we need to counteract with prayer groups.  We call it the Prayer Network of Counter-terrorism."

In the past 34 years, we have allowed another form of terrorism, the killing of the innocent unborn child, she says.  There are 1.3 million abortions a year in the United States. "Globally, we have allowed child sacrifice.  In the Old Testament the ultimate sin that brought about judgment on nations was the sin of child sacrifice.  As Blessed Teresa of Calcutta has said we must fight abortion with adoption.  She has also said, "the poorest of the poor is the unborn child.""

For more information and to see special events taking place in Washington DC:
http://www.iwopf.org/

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