By Anne DiBernardo - Florida Catholic

FORT LAUDERDALE | "If I had seen [people holding pro-life] signs out there when I was getting an abortion, I would have taken a brochure," said Tewannah Aman, 40 Days for Life outreach co-coordinator, during her testimony at the 40 Days for Life kick-off rally held at the Holy Cross Hospital Conference Center auditorium in Fort Lauderdale  Sept. 24. 

Aman's teary testimony is just one of the many testimonies mobilizing both men and women to get involved in the peaceful campaign to end abortion.  

When Aman was 18, she caved in to the pressure of those who told her that abortion was the only option.  She said that if she had been given the chance to pick up a pro-life brochure detailing the alternatives, things would have probably turned out differently for her.

"There was no one telling me not to do it and that there was another side.  I was confused and didn't know about the ramifications," she said. "God sent me here to be a voice.  God is good - I am a testimony.  I suffered and don't want others to do the same.  God can heal and restore," she added.

Aman said she had received a letter from Holy Cross which spoke about the babies that are going to be killed. At first, Aman struggled with the invitation to get involved with 40 Days for Life as she mentally scrolled through the overwhelming litany of chores and commitments she already had.  But then she realized, "How could I not get involved?"

The 40 Days for Life campaign unites the Church during a 40-day vigil of prayer, fasting, and peaceful activism, usually in front of abortion facilities.  The multi-denominational nationwide initiative seeks to restore a culture of life and bring an end to abortion.

"40 Days for Life is a local event with a national footprint," said Karen Gushta, the prayer vigil's communications co-coordinator.

40 Days for Life is held two times a year, in the spring and in the fall.  Earlier this year, South Florida kicked off its first 40 Days for Life prayer vigil on Ash Wednesday in Miami-Dade and Broward counties.  However, this fall, only one campaign is being held: in Broward County at All Women's Center, located at 2100 East Commercial Boulevard.  

The vigil began on Sept. 25 and will conclude Nov. 4.  It will run each day from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Support is still needed to fill the many available spaces, especially during the late morning and early afternoon. All Women's Center was selected as ground zero for this event because it is one of the most aggressive abortion facilities in Broward County. In Broward alone, more than 12,000 abortions are performed every year - that is 33 a day, more than the average size of a Broward County classroom.  

Another goal of the vigil is to protect women.  Abortion does hurt women, emphasized Gushta, who is also post-abortive and can speak with first-hand knowledge.  As a result of her abortion, she has had difficulty conceiving a child and has also experienced a myriad of health issues such as breast cancer, which many health care experts now link to abortion.

Sadly, many people believe that because abortion is legal it must be okay. This flaw in reasoning is what led Dayne Miller and his former wife to rationalize their decision to abort.  

"Had it not been legal back in 1980, we would have kept our baby," said Miller, a parishioner at San Isidro Parish in Pompano Beach.  Miller was attending the University of Chicago at the time and his best friend argued that if it was really so terrible and it was really a human being, it would not be legal.  

"This is why I'm so upset it is legal," said Miller, who will be praying during the vigil together with his wife, Maria.

Also praying during the vigil will be 22-year-old Lauren Sloan, who is enrolled in a post-abortion healing program and is also a new mother to five-month old Isaiah.  Sloan says her whole perspective on abortion has changed.  

"I didn�t know who I was before," said Sloan, who will be attending the vigil with her baby.

The first vigil was held in 2004 and has been growing ever since.  This fall it is being held in 314 cities - this includes 49 states and Washington, D.C., seven Canadian provinces, and four overseas nations.

Between 2004 and 2012, approximately 440 cities in 10 nations have conducted 40 Days for Life campaigns with measurable, life-saving results.  Throughout this period more than 535,000 people of faith have joined together to pray and fast for an end to abortion.  More than 190,000 people have taken to the streets, forming peaceful prayer vigils outside Planned Parenthood centers and other abortion facilities, and at least 5,928 children have been saved from abortion.

40 Days for Life is comprised of three key components:  prayer and fasting, peaceful vigil, and community outreach. The vigil's prayer coordinator, Rev. Jim McGarvey, a Sunrise-based minister with the Christian and Missionary Alliance, emphasized that the prayer to defeat abortion must be strategic.  

"The advocates of abortion are not our enemy," he said, adding the Scriptural maxim set forth in Ephesians 6:12:  "For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms." 

Rev. McGarvey, who preaches the pro-life message through the Church for Life, refers to these advocates of abortion as "casualties of Satan's deception and schemes."

He implored everyone to pray for repentance, pointing out that 43 percent of Protestants and 27 percent of Catholics are pro-abortion. He also cited the many Biblical illustrations of how God used a period of 40 days throughout time to bring about major transformations; Biblical figures such as Moses, Noah, David, and Jesus all experienced different transformations after periods of 40 days.

"We are equipped with God's power for this battle," Rev. McGarvey said, emphasizing that abortion is a Gospel issue.  "The battle will be either won or lost depending on the Church's response. "

"During the prayer vigil, we will be praying and fasting," Rev. McGarvey emphasized.  "When I fast, this is what motivates me: I need God more than I need food.  Fasting communicates urgency of desire, demonstrates that I mean business, and communicates dependence on God.  We do not know what to do but are looking to God for help.  Fasting is an invitation for God's intervention."

Vigil Coordinator Andi Guzman invited people to sign up and invite friends to fast or pray from home. "We need help while we're standing out there," Guzman said.

Father William Bowles, parochial vicar at St. John the Baptist Parish in Fort Lauderdale, delivered the closing prayer. He believes that children who lost their lives to abortion have been beckoning everyone to come to the rally.  

"The beckoning breaks through all our denominations," said Father Bowles. "I believe that more Americans are getting involved and we will win this battle."

There are four ways to support 40 Days for Life: prayer volunteers, vigil participation, community outreach and leadership. To find out more, visit www.40daysforlife.com/fortlauderdale or contact 40 Days for Life Catholic Co-Coordinator Colleen Riley at 954-465-3471 or [email protected].