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12th Annual Cardinal O’Connor
Conference on Life
Draws 500 at Georgetown University
Sunday, January 23, on the eve of
the March for Life, over 500 students and other members of the
pro-life movement gathered at Georgetown University for the 12th
annual Cardinal O’Connor Conference on Life. This year’s
conference featured many prominent figures in the pro-life
movement, who offered insight on many issues surrounding
abortion from a variety of perspectives.
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His Eminence Francis Cardinal George, Archbishop of
Chicago, celebrated the annual Mass for Life. |
Highlighting the conference was a
panel "Building a Culture of Life Today: Learning from the Life
and Legacy of Cardinal O'Connor.” The hundreds in attendance
filed into Gaston Hall to listen to Archbishop Edwin O’Brien of
Baltimore, Bishop William Lori of Bridgeport, Mother Agnes Mary
Donovan of the Sisters of Life, and Associate Professor of Law
at George Mason University Helen Alvare. The discussion was
moderated by the Rev. Joseph Koterski, S.J., a member of
University Faculty for Life's Board of Directors and Associate
Professor of Philosophy at Fordham University.
Another highlight of the conference
was "The Cardinal's Mind on Abortion: As Seen in the Major
Events of the Episcopacy of John Cardinal O'Connor," led by the
Rev. Charles Connor, Assistant Professor of History and Theology
at Mount Saint Mary's Seminary in Emmitsburg, Maryland. The late
Archbishop of New York was renowned for his courage as a
champion of the unborn. Cardinal O’Connor was a Georgetown
alumnus and one of the most prominent religious figures of the
century in the United States.
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Sister Mary Elizabeth, S.V. (Former Director,
Archdiocese of New York Family Life / Respect Life
Office) leading the closing prayer |
Lila Rose, founder of Live
Action, urged the youth present to find new and creative ways to
advance the pro-life cause. “We want to start a movement across
the country…to educate our peers, every one of them, to provide
them with the truth and … to expose every injustice, to get out
there with visual media,” she said. “Committing ourselves to
using that powerful media… to start this movement and reach
every young person.”
Breakout sessions were offered addressing a variety of topics
from the U.S. Healthcare to China’s One-Child Policy. Respected
speakers included Thomas Brejcha, President and Chief Counsel of
the Thomas More Society; Cat Clark of Feminists for Life;
Catherine T. Coyle, Co-Director of the Alliance for
Post-Abortion Research and Training; the Rev. Stephen Fields,
S.J., Associate Professor of Theology at Georgetown University;
the Rev. Kevin T. FitzGerald, S.J., the David Lauler, Chair for
Catholic Health Care Ethics at Georgetown University; Kathryn
Jean Lopez, editor-at-large of National Review Online; Steven W.
Mosher, President of the Population Research Institute; and
Msgr. Stuart W. Swetland, Vice President for Catholic Identity
and Mission and Professor of Christian Ethics at Mount St.
Mary's University in Emmitsburg, Maryland.
His Eminence Francis Cardinal
George, Archbishop of Chicago, celebrated the annual Mass for
Life.
The Cardinal O’Connor Conference
is entirely student-run and is sponsored by Georgetown
University Right to Life and the Georgetown chapters of the
Knights of Columbus, Catholic Daughters of the Americas, and
University Faculty for Life.
National Right
to Life News Today |
