United States prolife campaigner David Bereit had the perfect response for pro-abortion protesters in Sydney recently, as CATHERINE SMIBERT reports
TWO sides of the abortion debate came together in Australia recently on the back of a week-long tour by David Bereit, co-founder of the popular international movement, 40 Days for Life.
A 60-person strong youth breakfast with the guest from the USA was moved to another, “more peaceful” location, when it was discovered by young organisers that an aggressive protest had been planned to take place on the campus of Notre Dame University in Broadway, Sydney.
This came after a dramatic barrage on the Saturday prior in Sydney’s north-west as abortion advocates stormed in on the NSW Life Conference Dinner.
As Mr Bereit stepped up to the microphone, a pro-abortion protester threw a shoe at him, yelling “this is for the women”.
That was clearly the cue for another 10 screaming and chanting people to burst into the space through the main doors of the gala room.
However, the protesters appeared somewhat surprised, even amidst their frenzied yells, that the room bowed their heads in unison at Mr Bereit’s gentle directive and began to pray quietly and peacefully.
The first prayers were offered for those women who have been harmed by abortion.
It was this silent, prayerful and caring approach that underpins the 40 Days for Life movement.
After the protesters had been removed by security, Mr Bereit shared the story of the successful movement being embraced by women, families and communities across all 50 states of America and in 14 other countries, including Australia.
His presentation was as mesmerising as his first, held in Brisbane a few days earlier.
The powerful annual campaign has mobilised more than half a million people in 440 cities in just five years.
Members of the movement claim that, to date, the direct fruits of this action has seen more than 6000 women change their minds and decide to keep their babies, 69 abortion workers have had conversions and left the abortion industry and 23 abortion providers have gone out of business.
Ironically, the key phrase being yelled by the Australian protesters was “listen to the women”.
Indeed Mr Bereit and his family have now travelled around to every state in Australia sharing how listening to women is the key to this movement and how doing just that has created calm, gentility and understanding where women feel they are being heard and their needs met.
His visit was preceded by an Australian tour of one woman, Abby Johnson, who was a former director and “Employee of the Year” of Planned Parenthood.
She turned to David Bereit and his team for support when she witnessed an ultrasound-guided abortion on a three-month-old baby in the womb.
She told Australians she suddenly realised her business “had been lying to the very women she had believed she was helping”.
The very first 40 Days for Life campaign had been held at Ms Johnson’s clinic and those from 40 Days For Life had been praying specifically for her.
Today, she is one of the best known activists promoting the dignity of life from conception and the protection of women from the abortion industry in the world, sharing her story with millions internationally.
David Bereit was up to date with his facts noting that in Australia, where the laws around abortion vary from state to state, the facts remain that more than 100,000 terminations are performed per year – and that’s one in three women who are exposed to post-abortion grief and trauma, a recognised mental health issue.
The research is sound, with studies involving about 900,000 women showing an 81 per cent increased risk of negative psychological impacts for women who choose abortion over giving birth.
These risks include depression, suicide and drug and alcohol abuse.
Life Network Australia predsident Sonja Couroupis organised the “Life Breakthru Tour”.
Ahead of the tour, she wrote in her Online Opinion piece that the success of the 40 Days for Life campaign highlighted that the psycho-social needs of women were not being met and their voices not heard and when offered alternatives to abortion, women were accepting the help of complete strangers (those from 40 Days for Life) in order to continue their pregnancies.
Ms Couroupis supports the Feminist for Life philosophy that “Women deserve better than abortion” and said this campaign was offering just that to women in crisis and women were responding by the thousands internationally.
David Bereit has addressed about 1200 people Australia-wide, encouraging his audiences by highlighting the great work for at-risk women and their pregnancies via counselling centres and quality, school-based sexual integrity programs.
Teresa Martin, the Brisbane-based organiser of the tour, said many people “felt challenged not to give up, but step up” and see what responding to this call had done for shifting public perspectives and political will in the USA already.
Karen, a post-abortive woman who supports other women harmed by abortion, was particularly touched by Mr Bereit’s sharing that the group with the highest number calling themselves “pro-life” are, in fact, young women.
Already, some Australian women have availed themselves of the gentle assistance of local 40 Days for Life campaigners and advocates of it are keen to see this success continue to grow.
Indeed it appears to transcend even the internal issues that life-focused organisations have between each other by delivering a platform and an approach that has empirically worked, as opposed to being a competitor organisation.
It’s clear that finally the pro-life movement has a chance to step away from the negative stigma surrounding it by truly and deeply representing the care, consideration and calm opposing the great aggression from pro-abortion activists.
It seems the protesters at the Sydney events were spot on – chanting exactly what the 40 Days for Life campaign is about … “Listen to the women”, all the while, listening to God and stepping out into the wilderness of the 40 days to see how He can influence the scope and scenario.
David Bereit especially promoted a National Day for Prayer and Fasting dedicated to ending abortion in Australia to be held on February 10, 2013.
For more details see www.nationaldayforprayer.com.au
