Young Gold Coast Catholic CHRIS DA SILVA is one of 10 young people on Australia’s first Crossroads pro-life pilgrimage. They are walking from Brisbane to Melbourne, culminating with a pro-life rally in Melbourne this weekend. Chris reflects on his experience of the pilgrimage, at the halfway mark
I ARRIVED home from adoration on the Gold Coast one night in mid-November and followed my usual routine of checking Facebook where I found an advertisement to walk across Australia with an organisation called Crossroads.
Without much knowledge of what I was applying to do, I sent through an application the following day; it was a moment of conviction of God’s will.
Presently we are halfway through our walk and have made it safely from Brisbane to Sydney.
I could not have asked for a more amazing, colourful bunch of people to walk with.
Daily Mass, Morning Prayer, and multiple rosaries and Divine Mercy chaplets have bound us together in a special way so that I can confidently say I am not afraid to walk down a main road with a luminous yellow T-shirt that says “PRO-LIFE” in bold capital letters.
The general public reaction to Crossroads has been a mixed bag, ranging anywhere from a countless string of curses (which make no grammatical sense) to old ladies coming up to me with tears in their eyes and kissing me on both cheeks in affirmation of our dedication to the pro-life cause.
Praying outside abortion clinics every weekend has opened my eyes more and more to the need for young people to respond to the encouragement of Blessed John Paul II to not be afraid to take the Gospel of Life to the streets, and every day I must realise anew that copious sweating, shin splints and chafing are more than worth the sacrifice.
In fact, they are probably saving the lives of babies when offered up to Jesus appropriately.
The beauty of Australia that we constantly see on foot, on the other hand, is an aspect of Crossroads that has filled us with hope, and consoled us through our sacrifice each day.
Whenever we walk there is at least one ridiculously steep hill followed by spectacular view that reminds me of what the Christian journey is really about.
Speaking at parishes across the country to raise awareness about the pro-life movement and ask for prayers and support is the other vital component of Crossroads.
The generosity of host families and parishioners is humbling; it teaches me time and again that I am not here to be a hero.
This is not about me, or about any of us walkers; this is a spiritual battle against a culture of death, and perhaps even more so against the silent majority of fence-sitters who made their minds up about their stance on abortion years ago and have never chosen to contemplate it again.
And so we pray, we walk, we wear brightly coloured shirts, not to attract attention to ourselves, but to encourage people to think again and choose life at all times.
I am excited about what the rest of the walk holds for us and how God will continue to fill us up and use us in this Year of Grace – this year of life.
For more information on the Crossroads pilgrimage visit www.crossroadsaustralia.org
