Norwegian parish holds Day of Prayer for Unborn in response to new abortion laws

Oslo, Norway, Dec 10, 2024 / 13:00 pm (CNA).

On Monday, the parish community of Our Lady’s Church in Ålesund, a port town on the west coast of Norway, gathered for a day of prayer dedicated to the unborn in the wake of new abortion laws in the country. 

This year, the celebration of the Immaculate Conception of the Blessed Virgin Mary — usually celebrated Dec. 8 — was moved to Monday, Dec. 9, as the second Sunday of Advent took precedence. The day began with Mass followed by adoration and the recitation of the rosary, emphasizing the inviolable dignity of human life from the moment of conception.

The parish’s initiative was in part a response to recent changes in Norway’s abortion laws, which for the first time allow for sex-selective abortions and so-called “twin reduction” procedures. 

The new abortion laws, adopted by Norway’s Parliament on Dec. 3, also extend the legal limit for abortion from 12 to 18 weeks. Women in Norway can still have abortions beyond that time frame with the approval of a medical board.  

The changes in the law have sparked debates in Norwegian society and within church communities, raising serious ethical and moral concerns. Faced with these realities, the diocese sought to respond through prayer, reflection, and increased awareness.

Father Dariusz Buras, parochial vicar of Our Lady’s Church, told EWTN Norway, CNA’s news partner, that he drew inspiration for the pro-life event from Sts. Teresa of Calcutta and Gianna Beretta Molla.

During her Nobel Peace Prize acceptance speech in Oslo in 1979, Mother Teresa highlighted the unborn as one of the most vulnerable in our time. She described abortion as a threat to peace, asking poignantly: “If a mother can kill her own child in the womb, what is to prevent you and me from killing each other?” Stressing that nations that permit abortion are spiritually impoverished, she promoted adoption as a hopeful alternative, showing that every child can find a loving home.

Another prominent saint for the unborn, Gianna Beretta Molla (1922–1962), was an Italian physician and mother who faced a grave moral dilemma when she was diagnosed with a cancerous tumor during her pregnancy. She chose to carry her child to term despite the risk to her own life, because she saw the unborn child as an irreplaceable human being. After giving birth to her daughter, Gianna Emanuela, Molla died of complications. 

Canonized by Pope John Paul II in 2004, St. Gianna Molla remains a modern example of heroic love for life, even under difficult circumstances.

While Mother Teresa addressed the right to life of the unborn from a global perspective, St. Gianna Beretta Molla demonstrated through her life that care for the unborn is not just an abstract principle but a concrete reality — a pastoral, medical, and maternal care that prioritizes the life of the child. 

Together, the lives of the two saints are a reminder of the Christian call to protect life in all circumstances and to offer alternatives to destruction, such as social support, adoption, and prioritizing the vulnerable with sacrificial love.

Monday’s gathering at Our Lady’s Church in Ålesund, inspired by the witness of the two saints, became a moment of deep reflection and prayer in a society where laws increasingly undermine human dignity, especially the dignity of the unborn.