By ANDREW HANSEN
     Editor

Right now, somewhere in our world, an unborn child and his or her parents are in need of prayers. That’s because the child is in danger of being aborted. St. Padre Pio said, “Prayer is the key that opens the heart of God.” As faith-filled people, we know the power of prayer and the impact it has on conversion.

This is where you come in. Spiritual adoption is very simple and takes seconds but can change the world. Here is how it works: Think of a name for the child you are spiritually adopting (or you can adopt more than one) and pledge to pray for nine months for this child who is in danger of abortion. While this child is unknown to the “spiritual parent,” God knows who the child is.

The recommended prayer by Venerable Archbishop Fulton Sheen of Peoria, who encouraged spiritual adoption, is this (although you can pray whatever you’d like):

“Jesus, Mary, and Joseph, I love you very much. I beg you to spare the life of [baby’s name], the unborn baby that I have spiritually adopted who is in danger of abortion.”

Consider teaming up with parishioners, your school community, friends, or your family for nine months. Everyone can spiritually adopt a child. It’s also a great way for students and children to learn about the beautiful gift of life in the womb, the stages of development each month, the evil of abortion, and why praying for others is so important. If you have your child pick the spiritually adopted baby’s name, your child will be more invested in praying as well. You can even create a birth certificate of your spiritually adopted child after nine months and hang them up. Then, do the entire program again.

Jeremiah 1:5 says, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, before you were born, I dedicated you, a prophet to the nations I appointed you.” Now you can play a role in helping God’s creations enter the world by not only saving a child from abortion, but also saving his or her parents from a lifetime of guilt and sadness.