Pray for Cecile

At this first reading at Daily Mass, we hear once again the wondrous account from Acts of the Apostles of the conversion of Saul the Pharisee from ardent persecutor of Christians to Paul the Apostle, now one of God’s greatest saints.

“Saul, Saul, why are you persecuting me?” asked the Lord to this young man, leading him to a complete conversion of heart and change of direction for his entire life. And in the years to come, over thousands of miles of travels, at great sacrifice and pain and eventually martyrdom, what amazing works the Lord did through this most unlikely of His servants!

Listening this morning to a radio news soundbite of Cecile Richards, President of Planned Parenthood International, St. Paul’s conversion came to mind – how no person, no matter what they’ve done, what they’ve said, what they’ve believed, no matter how great their sin, is beyond the power of the Lord to change her heart and life and give new direction. The mercy of God is far greater than any sin.

And it occurred to me – we need to start a movement of prayer - prayer specifically for the conversion of this woman’s heart, Cecile Richards, for the Lord’s grace is great enough that even she can convert from her role as the world’s most ardent champion of legal abortion to the world's greatest evangelist for life!

So let us keep Cecile Richards in prayer every day, that by the intercession of St. Paul and Mary, the Virgin Mother of God, Ms. Richards may come to know Jesus Christ and His infinite love and mercy, and be converted.