Bishop Kemme reminds faithful about the ‘unspeakable evil’ that society rationalizes

The annual Mass at Wichita’s abortion clinic is a testimony to the faith those attending have in God, the creator of human and divine life, Bishop Carl A. Kemme said Saturday, Oct. 9.

The Mass was celebrated on public property just west of the abortion clinic. About 250 attended. Members of St. Joseph Parish in Wichita and others provided music.

“Here we offer the most powerful prayer, the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass representing the perfect sacrifice of Jesus on Calvary, here in a place where human life at its earliest stage is so little valued and sacrificed on the altar of human freedom and pride,” he said. “Let our perfect sacrifice make up for the unspeakable slaughter of human life that takes place behind these walls.”

After thanking Bonnie Toombs and the Respect Life and Social Justice Office for organizing the event, Bishop Kemme quoted St. Maximilian Kolbe, the World War II martyr of Auschwitz, who said that the greatest poison of that era was indifference.

Indifference is a poison

“I have thought about those words a great deal and have found them to be sadly true,” Bishop Kemme said. “Indifference is a poison of every generation, but it is certainly true of ours.”

The apathy, mediocrity, and lack of concern reflect the indifference of someone who does not care enough to make a difference, he said.
“One may be indifferent about anything – religion, politics, culture, or fashion. It is as Bishop Barron says: it is best verbally described in our times as ho-hum or whatever – with a cynical shrug of the shoulders.”

Our culture rationalizes the hard reality of abortion and what can only be described as infanticide, Bishop Kemme said.

“We are also largely unaware of what happens when a living baby is dismembered in the womb of his or her mother and then removed piece by piece,” he said. “This is the reality of the abortion industry in our times. And yet so many remain largely indifferent to it all.”

May that never be said of us, Bishop Kemme said.

“If we are the last people on earth to raise our voices in opposition to this unspeakable evil of our times, let us never tire of doing so. One of the reasons I offer this Mass here each year is to ask the Lord to strengthen us in this Herculean fight, for we know the battle is fierce. Sometimes, we get tired of it and wonder what is the use? This is what the devil wants. He wants us to give up and to become indifferent. But we must resist this temptation at all costs.”

Value Them Both Amendment

The pro-life movement in the next 10 months will be asked to do battle in a specific way, he said, through the promotion and passage of the Value Them Both Amendment. The vote would overturn a decision by the Kansas Supreme Court that rolled back all pro-life legislation that so many worked so hard to pass.

“Each of us must do our part in speaking about Value Them Both and encouraging family, friends, neighbors, fellow parishioners to do the same and next August to go to the polls in the primaries and to vote for life,” he said. “This is a most critical moment in the pro-life movement in our state, one that will not come around again for many years, if at all.”

Bishop Kemme urged those at the Mass to work to pass the Value Them Both Amendment.

“In this and in all our efforts, let us not be apathetic, unbiased, or ho-hum, but let us be determined to speak and act for those who cannot speak and act for themselves, the unborn, the newborn, the most vulnerable of our society, God’s babies and our brothers and sisters.

To contribute to a pro-life education effort, visit RespectLifeWichita.org.