The Walk for Life: An Opportunity for Martyrdom

My second grade teacher used to tell us all about Hell. I became convinced that I was a very bad girl, destined for eternal damnation.  After long moments of self-reflection, I would occasionally confess my frightening conclusion to my mother.  She would eye me suspiciously and say “What did you do now?” Very comforting to a scared seven year-old. 

St Stephen, Protomartyr

After all this Hell talk, the teacher would rave about the wonderful saints and how they sacrificed for their faith. “Don’t all of you want to become martyrs?” she would ask.  My friend “Maria” gravely volunteered. She WANTED to become a martyr.  Send that girl to China!  She was ready.  Nor was she alone. Voices piped up all around me begging for membership to this elite group.  I found myself at a crossroads. Do I volunteer to die for Christ to be cool, or do I want to be that lame girl who doesn’t want to be a martyr?  Thank God we never went on a field trip to China because I would have been found out pretty quickly.

I’ve always considered myself blessed to have enjoyed religious freedom.  I don’t have to be afraid of being impaled on a spiked wheel or smothered to death. However, I feel like a coward. Is it wrong that I don’t want to be tested? Is it because I think that I would fail the test?

This past Saturday I got an opportunity for martyrdom.  I participated in the West Coast Walk for Life in San Francisco, one of the most liberal cities in America.  This was the third time I attended the Walk in SF but never before had I been confronted by so many pro-choice protesters. The day of the Walk was beautiful and sunny, which meant both sides had more attendees than usual.

You may know the expression “looking evil in the face.” I never quite understood it . . . until I had people screaming in my face.  “Have you even read a science book before? Do you even BELIEVE in science? You believe the Bible is real? Have you ever read a book before?  . . .  that is why ALL CHRISTIANS ARE FASCISTS!”

Perhaps I’ve lived a sheltered life. Never before had I seen such anger, hatred and misery in the faces of others.  At first, I couldn’t even pity them.  I was livid.  I was surrounded by posters and placards that had nothing to do with abortion.  Their messages were anti-religion and anti-establishment. These people were looking for a fight, carrying posters making fun of the sex scandals involving Catholic priests and defiled images of our Holy Father, John Paul II.  Instead of civil protest, they chose open contempt and mockery.  A few mixed in with the pro-life marchers and screamed at us. They were two girls younger than me.  Others taunted us with megaphones announcing a “poll of our ignorance”.  There was a girl carrying a black cross, cross-dressers with “halos” and crosses painted on their faces, and the most creative group, the “Sisters of Perpetual Indulgence.” 

I was mad. I couldn’t respond to these people. They didn’t want to debate or recognize any common ground.  Their goal was humiliation.

As I contemplated punching Mr. Megaphone Man in the face, I reminded myself of the whole point of the Walk  –  sacrifice. There were lots of reasons to attend the Walk for Life. One I hadn’t considered was that it was an opportunity for martyrdom.  A martyr: a person who is put to death or endures great suffering on behalf of any belief, principle, or cause.  Ok, I wouldn’t consider the Walk for Life a great suffering by any means.  However, it isn’t something I would  be willing to do once a week.

Being a martyr stinks. (Don’t tell anyone I said that!).  Alright, being a real martyr is worth it –  a full-access pass to the Beatific Vision!  Yet what about us less victorious living “martyrs”?  Do we get left out in the cold?  Nope. Fortunately, there’s an upside for us lame-os too.  Read Matthew 5:11 –

St Thomas More, Martyr

“Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me.”  I may not have suffered a gruesome death, yet I experienced a persecution.  It was a blessing I did not immediately recognize.

So take that, second grade Louisa. You didn’t quit. You didn’t give in to your anger. You finished that Walk and you left feeling sorry for all the people who yelled at you. You stood up to those that hated you for Christ.  Maybe you could be a martyr.  Maybe China isn’t too big of a stretch after all.

Some Related Posts at Catholic Phoenix

• Passionate Views on Life Issues: An Interview with Nicole Collins
• The Myth That Is “Anti-Choice”
• Calling all Volunteers!!!
• Abby Johnson’s “Unplanned”
• The ELCA and Abortion

Tagged as: Abortion, Culture of Life