March 17, 2022

Mass. Citizens for Life to hold annual convention March 19

REGIONAL
Staff report

SPRINGFIELD – Massachusetts Citizens for Life (MCFL) is holding its annual convention, Saturday, March 19 at Boston College from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Peter Kreeft, author and professor of philosophy at Boston College and Kings College is the keynote speaker.

Kreeft, a convert to Catholicism and author of nearly 100 books, will focus his talk on “Why We Work: What keeps pro-lifers going?”  

“We have more registrants for this year’s convention than we’ve had in at least a decade. Every speaker we asked promptly accepted our invitation. These two points clearly indicate that, now more than ever, Massachusetts residents not only support the pro-life movement but are eager to become actively involved,” said MCFL president Myrna Maloney Flynn.

Other speakers include Massachusetts State Representative Colleen M. Garry, 36th Middlesex District; Dr. George Delgado, president of the Steno Institute: Life-Affirming Research, who will speak on the abortion pill reversal; Mariah McCarron, New England Regional Coordinator for Students for Life America; Dr. Mark Rollo, who will speak on physician-assisted suicide; Marianne Luthin, director of the Pro-Life Office for the Archdiocese of Boston; and Attorney Thomas Harvey, the chairman of the MA Alliance to Stop Taxpayer Funding of Abortions.

“With all eyes on the Supreme Court over the last year, as justices repeatedly upheld the Texas ‘heartbeat law,’ and agreed to hear arguments in Dobbs vs. Jackson Women’s Health, a case that could overturn Roe vs. Wade, it makes sense that interest in defending unborn lives would be heightened,” said Maloney Flynn.  

Dobbs vs. Jackson Women’s Health is a case that hinges on a Mississippi law that bans abortion after 15 weeks. Maloney Flynn said no matter what the U.S. Supreme Court decides, state laws will not change. She pointed out that Massachusetts lawmakers last year passed the Roe Act, which allows abortion through the ninth month of pregnancy.

“What all of this means for pro-life advocates is that our work is not done. Massachusetts women will still be vulnerable to abortion providers’ false narratives and, most urgently, unborn children’s lives will still be at risk. That is why MCFL is charging ahead in our efforts. And that is why every person reading this needs to partner with us today,” she said.

Maloney Flynn said education is key to helping people understand the reality of what an abortion procedure entails.

“At the core of our mission: dual goals of respect and truth; respect for the dignity of every human life, preborn or otherwise, respect for women, and respect for men who for too long have been sidelined on this issue. And respect begins with courageously sharing the truth, no matter how uncomfortable it might be or, in our state, how daunting,” she said.

For more information about MCFL’s convention or upcoming Mother’s Day Dinner, scheduled for May 5 at the Log Cabin in Holyoke, visit masscitizensforlife.org.