Youth in The Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Washington will join in a Mass of Celebration and Thanksgiving at the Cathedral of St. Matthew the Apostle on Friday, Jan. 20, before the annual March for Life.
Events for the morning at the cathedral will include music and witness talks, a keynote speaker and recitation of the rosary, along with Mass.
Keynote speaker Ogechi Akalegbere is the recipient of the 2021 Cardinal Bernardin New Leadership Award from the Catholic Campaign for Human Development. She is the director of Youth and Young Adult Ministry at St. Rose of Lima Parish in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Leading music will be Mike Tenney, host of the podcast Pop Culture Catechism.
Most seats in the cathedral are reserved for parishes, schools, youth and college campus ministries within the Archdiocese of Washington. A limited number of open seats will be available on a first-come, first-served basis on Jan. 20. Doors open at 7:30 a.m., with Mass scheduled for 8:45 a.m. Events will conclude by 11:30 a.m.
The Mass and other activities at the cathedral may be watched on the Archdiocese’s YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/uGgQmHEyddM.
The Youth Rally sponsored by the archdiocese and held at Washington arenas in previous years was canceled for 2023, following the Supreme Court’s June 2022 ruling that overturned Roe v. Wade, reversing the 1973 decision that made abortion legal nationwide. The March for Life began the following year to mark the date of Roe and rally support for overturning the ruling and supporting the right to life.
In a November announcement, the archdiocese explained that consultation with other dioceses that had typically sent participants to the Youth Rally in Washington showed that many had changed their approaches for this year.
“We heard from many dioceses who shared that they are turning their efforts to their state’s March for Life now that Roe v. Wade has been overturned,” said the announcement.
Continuing as it has in the past is the National Prayer Vigil for Life at the Basilica of the National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception. That begins with an opening Mass on Thursday, Jan. 19 at 5 p.m. The National Holy Hour for Life will follow until 8 p.m. The National Prayer Vigil will conclude with a closing Mass at 8 a.m. the following morning in the Basilica’s Great Upper Church. Those events will be shown on the Basilica’s livestream: https://www.nationalshrine.org/mass.
