By Josh McGovern | The Catholic Spirit
At the pulpit of the Cathedral of St. Paul in St. Paul, Bishop Chad Zielinski of New Ulm addressed those gathered at the annual Prayer Service for Life Jan. 22, marking the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion across the country.
On this day 53 years ago, the high court in effect redefined some people’s understanding of the sacredness of life, Bishop Zielinski said.
“By design, we are a sacred meeting place where divine love makes its dwelling and comes to perfection,” Bishop Zielinski said. “No nation, state or political system, no vote, no legislator or past legislation could change this divine decree that the human person is the sacred sanctuary where divine love is brought to perfection. We cannot destroy the sacred place or be guilty of the sacrilege by telling God he got it wrong. … God’s love cries out to be born. … What beautiful and glorious news.”
After giving the homily, Bishop Zielinski knelt in front of the altar and invited the congregation to also kneel.
“Our posture and response are to fall to our knees in prayer, to become like children and ask the Holy Spirit to forgive us, our state, our nation and embrace this outpouring of divine love that comes as children in the flesh,” Bishop Zielinski said before kneeling before the altar.
Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization — a June 2022 Supreme Court decision — overturned Roe v. Wade, returning the authority to protect the unborn back to elected representatives at the state and federal levels.
David Oolman, a seminarian in the Diocese of Winona-Rochester, traveled to the Cathedral from the Immaculate Heart of Mary Seminary in Winona, along with other seminarians from that diocese.
“To see us gathering together is amazing and incredible,” Oolman said. “I saw the Orthodox Church here; (the prayer service) draws us together in unity. We all are valued.”
People attended the prayer service in droves, including a group from the St. Cloud Diocese, despite below zero windchills and construction on John Ireland Boulevard that prevented a short march to the Minnesota State Capitol, where Minnesota Citizens Concerned for Life held their annual rally. Many people at the prayer service drove to the Capitol.
Joe Wannebo, a parishioner of St. John the Baptist in New Brighton, said he’s been pro-life most of his life. He’s a convert to the Catholic faith, having converted almost nine years ago. He said he attended the Prayer Service for Life to take action on his beliefs.
Wannebo quoted Ephesians 6:12: “For our struggle is not with flesh and blood but with the principalities, with the powers, with the world rulers of this present darkness, with the evil spirits in the heavens.”
He said that whether the Prayer Service for Life or MCCL March for Life affects any legislative change, this issue is not “with flesh and blood.”
“This battle is on a spiritual level,” Wannebo said.
Sonya Flomo with the Office of Discipleship and Evangelization for the Archdiocese of St. Paul and Minneapolis announced that over $79,000 in grants were provided to 78 mothers from donations to the Archdiocesan Life Fund in 2025. The fund provides emergency financial support to pregnant mothers of children up to the age of 1.
“I am one of the lucky ones when we hear the differences we’re making in the lives of very grateful mothers,” Flomo said.
Above photo by Dave Hrbacek/The Catholic Spirit.