40 Days For Life
Encyclopedia
40 Days for Life is a pro-life
campaign that was begun in 2004 by a local group in Bryan-College Station, Texas
, led by David Bereit
. The campaign is active in the fall and spring of each year, though local campaigns may continue it year-round. The fall 2010 campaign launched in 238 locations around the world, including the United States
, Canada
, Australia
, England
, Northern Ireland
, and Denmark
.
A 40 Days for Life campaign consists of 40 days of prayer and fasting combined with vigils in shifts outside of an abortion clinic. With enough volunteers, this protest may be round-the-clock. The 40 days concept comes from a pattern repeated in the Bible
, such as in Noah's Ark
, Moses's 40 days on Mount Sinai
, and Jesus
's 40 days in the desert
.
40 Days for Life campaigns are managed by local volunteers in each of the cities involved in the effort. A small national office coordinates communications and provides training and other resources for the local volunteers.
The organization says these campaigns have prevented 4,082 abortions since 2007.
The first national campaign ran from September 26 - November 4 with activities in more than 80 cities in more than 30 American states .
,
A short while after the end of the Spring 2008 Campaign, 40 Days for Life executive director David Bereit
was at the White House lawn on April 16 as President
George W. Bush
welcomed Pope Benedict XVI
to the White House
at the start of his visit to the United States
.
A third nationwide 40 Days for Life campaign was scheduled from September 24 - November 2.
During the Fall 2009 campaign, Abby Johnson
, the director of the Planned Parenthood facility in Bryan, Texas (where 40 days for Life had originated), became a pro-life activist. After holding a probe for an ultrasound guided abortion (Johnson was technically the facility manager and thus did not usually perform or assist in abortions) Johnson claims to have seen "the baby move away from the probe" http://abcnews.go.com/Health/MindMoodNews/planned-parenthood-clinic-director-joins-anti-abortion-group/story?id=8999720. Shortly after this experience, Johnson quit working for Planned Parenthood and joined the Coalition for Life, the local group that had been praying outside her former facility.
abortion provider was arrested for brandishing a handgun
at three 40 Days for Life participants demonstrating outside a South Carolina
abortion clinic.
Pro-life
Opposition to the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-life, or anti-abortion, movement, a social and political movement opposing elective abortion on moral grounds and supporting its legal prohibition or restriction...
campaign that was begun in 2004 by a local group in Bryan-College Station, Texas
Bryan-College Station metropolitan area
The Bryan–College Station Metropolitan Statistical Area is a metropolitan area in the Brazos Valley region of Texas that covers three counties: Brazos, Burleson, and Robertson...
, led by David Bereit
David Bereit
David Bereit is an American pro-life activist. Currently, he is the national director of 40 Days For Life, a Christian pro-life organization which opposes the actions of Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers through Prayer and Fasting, Peaceful Vigil, and Community...
. The campaign is active in the fall and spring of each year, though local campaigns may continue it year-round. The fall 2010 campaign launched in 238 locations around the world, including the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, Australia
Australia
Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland
Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
, and Denmark
Denmark
Denmark is a Scandinavian country in Northern Europe. The countries of Denmark and Greenland, as well as the Faroe Islands, constitute the Kingdom of Denmark . It is the southernmost of the Nordic countries, southwest of Sweden and south of Norway, and bordered to the south by Germany. Denmark...
.
A 40 Days for Life campaign consists of 40 days of prayer and fasting combined with vigils in shifts outside of an abortion clinic. With enough volunteers, this protest may be round-the-clock. The 40 days concept comes from a pattern repeated in the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
, such as in Noah's Ark
Noah's Ark
Noah's Ark is a vessel appearing in the Book of Genesis and the Quran . These narratives describe the construction of the ark by Noah at God's command to save himself, his family, and the world's animals from the worldwide deluge of the Great Flood.In the narrative of the ark, God sees the...
, Moses's 40 days on Mount Sinai
Biblical Mount Sinai
The Biblical Mount Sinai is the mountain at which the Book of Exodus states that the Ten Commandments were given to Moses by God...
, and Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
's 40 days in the desert
Temptation of Christ
The temptation of Christ is detailed in the Gospels of Matthew, Mark, and Luke. According to these texts, after being baptized, Jesus fasted for forty days and nights in the Judean desert. During this time, the devil appeared to Jesus and tempted him...
.
40 Days for Life campaigns are managed by local volunteers in each of the cities involved in the effort. A small national office coordinates communications and provides training and other resources for the local volunteers.
The organization says these campaigns have prevented 4,082 abortions since 2007.
History
The initial campaign resulted in a rejuvenation of local pro-life activities in the Bryan-College Station area. Over the next two and a half years, the campaign was replicated in six other cities.2007 campaign
In early 2007, the leaders of those first campaigns got together and suggested a simultaneous nationwide 40 Days for Life campaign in as many cities as wished to participate.The first national campaign ran from September 26 - November 4 with activities in more than 80 cities in more than 30 American states .
2008 campaign
A second national campaign ran from February 6 - March 16, with events held in 59 cities during the Christian season of LentLent
In the Christian tradition, Lent is the period of the liturgical year from Ash Wednesday to Easter. The traditional purpose of Lent is the preparation of the believer – through prayer, repentance, almsgiving and self-denial – for the annual commemoration during Holy Week of the Death and...
,
A short while after the end of the Spring 2008 Campaign, 40 Days for Life executive director David Bereit
David Bereit
David Bereit is an American pro-life activist. Currently, he is the national director of 40 Days For Life, a Christian pro-life organization which opposes the actions of Planned Parenthood and other abortion providers through Prayer and Fasting, Peaceful Vigil, and Community...
was at the White House lawn on April 16 as President
President of the United States
The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....
George W. Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....
welcomed Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI
Benedict XVI is the 265th and current Pope, by virtue of his office of Bishop of Rome, the Sovereign of the Vatican City State and the leader of the Catholic Church as well as the other 22 sui iuris Eastern Catholic Churches in full communion with the Holy See...
to the White House
White House
The White House is the official residence and principal workplace of the president of the United States. Located at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue NW in Washington, D.C., the house was designed by Irish-born James Hoban, and built between 1792 and 1800 of white-painted Aquia sandstone in the Neoclassical...
at the start of his visit to the United States
Pope Benedict XVI's visit to the United States
Pope Benedict XVI's visit to the United States took place from April 15, 2008 to April 20, 2008 and was his first visit to the United States. It was officially titled the "Apostolic Visit to the United States of America and to the Seat of the United Nations"...
.
A third nationwide 40 Days for Life campaign was scheduled from September 24 - November 2.
2009 campaign
The Spring 2009 campaign had numerous participating cities, including Brisbane Australia, cities in Canada, Northern Ireland, and the United States.During the Fall 2009 campaign, Abby Johnson
Abby Johnson (activist)
Abby Johnson is an American pro-life activist. Johnson had previously worked a Planned Parenthood clinic director, but resigned in October 2009...
, the director of the Planned Parenthood facility in Bryan, Texas (where 40 days for Life had originated), became a pro-life activist. After holding a probe for an ultrasound guided abortion (Johnson was technically the facility manager and thus did not usually perform or assist in abortions) Johnson claims to have seen "the baby move away from the probe" http://abcnews.go.com/Health/MindMoodNews/planned-parenthood-clinic-director-joins-anti-abortion-group/story?id=8999720. Shortly after this experience, Johnson quit working for Planned Parenthood and joined the Coalition for Life, the local group that had been praying outside her former facility.
2010 campaign
The Fall 2010 campaign ran from September 22 to October 31, 2010. It attracted attention when a TennesseeTennessee
Tennessee is a U.S. state located in the Southeastern United States. It has a population of 6,346,105, making it the nation's 17th-largest state by population, and covers , making it the 36th-largest by total land area...
abortion provider was arrested for brandishing a handgun
Handgun
A handgun is a firearm designed to be held and operated by one hand. This characteristic differentiates handguns as a general class of firearms from long guns such as rifles and shotguns ....
at three 40 Days for Life participants demonstrating outside a South Carolina
South Carolina
South Carolina is a state in the Deep South of the United States that borders Georgia to the south, North Carolina to the north, and the Atlantic Ocean to the east. Originally part of the Province of Carolina, the Province of South Carolina was one of the 13 colonies that declared independence...
abortion clinic.