OTTAWA, Ontario, May 10, 2013 (LifeSiteNews.com) – After working up an appetite marching through the streets of Ottawa yesterday afternoon to demand justice for the unborn, 950 young people made their way to the youth banquet at the Hampton Inn where they enjoyed live music, fine dining, motivational speakers, and a movie.
As the diners enjoyed soup, salad, and lasagna, Alissa Golob of Campaign Coalition Youth, which organized the event, introduced David Bereit, national director of 40 Days for Life, to give the keynote address.
“The youth are not the future of the pro-life movement,” Bereit said. “You are the pro-life movement, today, right here, right now.”
“You are the generation that is committed to end this injustice [of abortion] once and for all.”
Bereit outlined six steps that he said pro-life advocates need to understand and “put into action” in order to end abortion.
1. Ending abortion is necessary. “Children are dying. Women are being wounded. Families are being torn apart,” he said.
2. Ending abortion is possible. “It’s possible for you, where you are at in life, with your gifts and your talents to change hearts and minds [on abortion]. You can save lives. It’s possible to end abortion in your community, province, and all across Canada.”
3. Only you can end abortion. “You are the person who God is calling. You are here because you have a unique and special purpose in this cause for such a time as this.”
4. It is hard to end abortion. “Fighting injustice is never easy. You are going to be persecuted. You are going to have challenges. You are going to have setbacks.”
5. It is worth it to end abortion. “It’s worth it when you know that children are alive because of you. It’s worth it when you know that women and men have been spared a life of regret because of you. It’s worth it when an abortion facility closes because of you. It’s worth it when the news headlines across Canada [will one day] say ‘Abortion has ended once and for all’ and you know that you were a key part of that.”
6. It is time to end abortion. “Forty-four years of children dying, of women being wounded is forty-four years too long. It’s time to turn the tide. We’re going to walk out of here with a commitment that it’s time. The line is drawn in the sand. Abortion ends starting now.”
The young people clapped and cheered as Bereit inspired them with stories of individuals who decided that it was up to them to do something for the unborn that made a difference.
“When you draw that line in the sand and say ‘it’s time, now is the time,’ with no looking back, then truly this will forever be defined in Canadian history — 2013 at the March for Life — this will be remembered forever as the beginning of the end of abortion.”
“And you are the people to make that happen,” he said.
Before Bereit spoke, Archbishop Gerald Lacroix, Primate of Canada and Archbishop of Quebec City, addressed the youth.
“We had an absolutely wonderful march this afternoon, didn’t we?” said Archbishop Lacroix.
He challenged the young people to “stand up and do all you can to respect life, every life, every human being.” He said that concern for the environment, conservation, and air quality must come after the concern for the “most precious gift of all of the created world: human life.”
Lacroix warned the young people of other dangers that threaten to devalue human life besides abortion, calling the push to make euthanasia legal in Quebec a “serious threat on the horizon.” He promoted the May 18th “Springtime March” against euthanasia in Quebec City as a way to say “no thanks” to the deadly practice.
“Make a difference,” Lacroix encouraged the young people. “My friends, let us continue to march for life every day of the year.”
After Bereit’s talk, the evening closed with uplifting music by the Gethsemane Youth Band.