Our Lady of Good Counsel and the Abortion Act

The Abortion Act was passed in 1967, but abortion actually became legal on the 27th April 1968. The day before that, 26th April, was the Feast of Our Lady of Good Counsel, meaning that the last day that abortion was illegal in Britain was on that Feast of God’s Mother in 1968.

This coming Sunday is the Feast of Our Lady, Mother of Good Counsel; the following day will see the 58th Anniversary of the Abortion Bill becoming law. Since that terrible day almost 11 million babies have been killed by abortion.

A third of pregnancies in this country end in abortion. On this Good Shepherd Sunday in particular, let us remember that for every two Priests that are ordained, another one may have been aborted.

Please take a moment, now, and again on Sunday to say the prayer below to Our Lady, Mother of Good Counsel for our work and for the mothers and babies that we seek to help.

Please also think about what you can do to support the women that we serve. Please read this article about Our Lady, Mother of Good Counsel and share it with friends and Family.

                           Prayer to Our Lady of Good Counsel

O, Holy Virgin, to whose feet we are led by our anxious uncertainty in our search for and attainment of what is true and good, invoking thee by the sweet title of Mother of Good Counsel we beseech thee to come to our assistance, when along the road of this life, the darkness of error and of evil conspires towards our ruin by leading our minds and our hearts astray.

Do Thou, O Seat of Wisdom and Star of the Sea, Enlighten the doubtful and the erring, that they be not seduced by the false appearances of good, render them steadfast in the face of the hostile and corrupting influences of passion and of sin.

O Mother of Good Counsel, obtain for us from Thy Divine Son a great love of Virtue and, in the hour of uncertainty and trial, the strength to embrace the way that leads to our salvation. If Thy hand sustains us, we shall walk unmolested along the path indicated to us by the life and words of Jesus our Redeemer; and having followed freely and securely, even in the midst of this world's strife, the sun of truth and justice under Thy Maternal Star, we shall come to the enjoyment of full and eternal peace with Thee in the Haven of Salvation. Amen.

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The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel

Sort Code: 40-06-30                      

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By Credit Card over the phone:

Call 0207-723-1740

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Via PayPal: Paypal.me/SaveLivesGCN

A Personal View of 40 Days for Life in Ealing

Sometimes we do something and we don’t know why. But then it makes sense afterwards. This sounds like a weaker description of what I have heard faith defined as - of believing in advance what only makes sense in reverse. With 40 Days for Life I have had this experience; of it making sense in reverse. There are so many good reasons to support this incredible group not least for the important work they do. In my case though I didn’t think, I just knew to go, gave up plans previously made and have been going ever since. In going I have been blessed to meet very special people there. This group seems to be a magnet for such people and each time I have really enjoyed it and found it a special experience in many ways.

This time every year the organiser, Sarah, gives up her Lent in order to make this happen; eight in the morning until eight in the evening everyday with at least two people outside the abortion centre. Sarah also organises several vigils throughout the night. The final vigil that went on for thirty-three hours and included one lady that inspired many. She used her one day off in the week to pray the whole night through, for this cause. This lady is among many that I have found truly inspiring in giving up their time and putting so much into this Lenten movement. Such people are the reason for many babies being born who would not have been without this group.

The power of this group is palpable given the number of mothers both this year and in past years who have chosen life for their children and been given help precisely because of this group – without which those same children may not be here today.

Sarah told me that she always finds it such a joy and still such a surprise when volunteers get so much out of it. She later suggested that perhaps it is because we often think we could do a bit more in Lent, but 40 Days for Life has all three Lenten disciplines - prayer, fasting and almsgiving (of time).

This is something that may seem to the world as something equivalent to hanging round in street corners or possibly something more insidious. But the truth is very different. The truth is that defending the unborn is an essential part of our Faith and anything against that is a direct attack on the dignity of human life made in the Imago Dei. To take part in this is to take part at the forefront of the spiritual warfare of our times, against the dangerous and growing culture of death that we have been previously warned about. This quote from Catholic philosopher Peter Kreeft brings to light the weight of what is at stake, “Abortion is the Antichrist’s demonic parody of the Eucharist. That’s why it uses the same holy words, “This is my body,” with the blasphemous opposite meaning.” 

I was also told about the history of the abortion centre that 40 days for Life, which set a fire inside of me in support of 40 days for life. I was sent the blog that goes through that history in detail. It used to be a chapel house that was set up by a woman called Dorothy Kerin who, was mortally ill. Yet on her deathbed she experienced miraculous healing in order that she may carry through her mission, that included prayer and ministering to the sick.

Alan Hopes, formerly Bishop of East Anglia and Auxiliary Bishop of Westminster said “The fact that Chapel House was founded as a house of prayer and healing, and is now home to an abortion provider is a tragic betrayal of the life and mission of Dorothy Kerin”. But things could have been very different, Dorothy was in the process of selling the building to a friend until that was blocked by the Middlesex County Council who forced its way into buying it with the threat of a Compulsory Purchase order. They subsequently sold it to Marie Stopes International in 1993. On MSI’s website they claim to provide “reproductive healthcare services”, which is possibly the most opposite description of something I have ever heard. Moreover, they provide this “healthcare” largely using our own tax money.

Dorothy, the same woman who experienced visions of angels and adopted nine children would likely be distraught that the house of healing has become a house of bloodshed. The building to this day still bears the plaque of Christ surrounded by a choir of angels with Saint Michael the Archangel below. This is such a profound insult to our Faith and what it stands for that I can hardly believe it. However, just as the crown of thorns was used by his executioners as a form of humiliation; we must remember that Christ (as only He can) used what they thought to be the ultimate insult, as His glory and final victory. In their vituperative outburst they crowned him king. More than that, it was the crown that Christ chose in order to display to the world His kingship. So too in this plaque remaining where it is, it signals hope of what is to come; as 40 Days for life holds on to that hope in prayer for the final victory in this place here. In Christ all is made right and the story of this “abortuary” is not over, as this very insult inspires hope for what is to come, for this abortion centre and all such clinics throughout the whole of England.

I’d like to end this post on one question - one that I invite you to ask others around you. A question that is essential to the mission of 40 Days for life and all those who take part in it. The answer will either, by implication, praise recent legislation to decriminalise abortion up until birth, or cause mourning for the deaths of the one third of children who were created by God to live a full life in this good country of ours.

The question: who are the unborn? This one question cracks open and defogs the entire landscape surrounding abortion. For if the unborn really are people, then this country will have to join a long list of those countries that have dehumanised and killed those that are inconvenient.

Thank you to this group and all the work that goes into it. It is something special and important and I very much looking forward to taking part in my own small way next year. I am and will continue to pray for this group and all its members, thank you again for all you do.

Tim

For details of other Pro-Life vigils see here

The Final Day of the 40 and a Tricky Encounter

As a vigil neophyte, I had not quite appreciated the strain put on the English language to misconstrue the purpose of our signs and indeed our mere presence. I had not realised that praying quietly and passively on a street corner amounted to the ‘obstruction’ and ‘intimidation’ of those seeking ‘healthcare’. Having directed the lady speaking to us to our two signs and asked about her objection, we were told that suggesting women deserve something better than abortion is to shame them. We then learned that both this sentiment and the boards’ stock image of a mother and child, offers of help with clothing, housing, and immigration status are all ‘implied’ acts of intimidation. Moreover, we were informed that our stance aligns us with the forces of ‘fascism’ and the ‘far right’. I can only suppose that in her charity, the lady speaking to us took our offer of referrals to immigration help as proof of how our succour to nefarious forces was at least an unwitting one. 

Calumny is hardly a novel tactic and much of the above is nothing new under the sun (though is no less bewildering for that). My only purpose in relaying this encounter is to remind us that even when faced with unobjectionable sentiments and an offer of help to those at the mercy of often terrible circumstances, our opponents will persist in constructing windows into our souls that reaffirm their very worst prejudices about us. That, then, should prompt us to be found perfect in our intentions and to act as we are prompted in 1 Corinthians: with love. When we smart at defamations and fail to endure them by responding with malice, pride, or impatience, then in that moment we fail our cause and fail to confound the prejudices of those who lie about us. 

I cannot ultimately say what effect, if any, our encounter with the lady at the vigil yesterday will have in the long run. From her emotion towards the end of our encounter, I strongly suspect that abortion is something proximate to her and the motivations she ascribed to us came from a place of great hurt and perhaps having been horribly wronged by men in the past. I was sorrowed seeing her upset and am sorrowed to recall it now. Perhaps hiding the full reality of the things that we do from our own sight can be a mercy at times, and who am I to suppose myself to be any less guilty of terrible omissions in other areas of my life? I only hope that, when the hour comes, I might be shown the loving mercy we should feel in our hearts for those Brixton passersby who are so wracked with suffering and anger but do not quite know why. 

Nathan

For help in pregnancy see here or for help when suffering after an abortion see here

DONATE TO SUPPORT OUR WORK

Donate by Bank Transfer to:

The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel

Sort Code: 40-06-30                       

Account Number: 13994678

By Credit Card over the phone:

Call 0207-723-1740

Monday to Friday, 10.30-6pm

Via Paypal: Paypal.me/SaveLivesGCN

or donate here

Many Thanks to Everyone at 40 Days for Life in Brixton

A huge thank you to all our 40 Days for Life volunteers. For forty days, in all kinds of weather and at all hours, you showed up to complete the 480 hours of prayer vigils. We had over 160 volunteers, which is an astounding number!! Hope you all have a very blessed Holy Week and a very Happy Easter, it is well deserved. Sorry to anyone who missed out on this wonderful 40 Days for Life in Brixton, but don’t lose heart there is always our regular Pro-Life vigils!

The Help And Support Of Professionals

Although we at the Good Counsel Network do all we possibly can to provide help and support to our clients, it sometimes happens that the client needs the specialist advice of a solicitor or of an immigration, employment or family law professional - as happened recently with a client who needed immediate family law and mediation advice.

In the last few years I have noticed that there are fewer free advice agencies offering the kind of expert advice our clients may need and I’ve been told by some groups that they have lost funding, do not have the staff and/or can no longer offer the services they once did.  Whilst this can be quite challenging when I need to get the best specialist advice I can for a woman, some wonderful professionals who support the work of the Good Counsel Network have occasionally stepped into the breach in order to offer their services free of charge.

This help might consist of a brief text, email or conversation, ongoing advice or even in some cases the professional working directly with a mother to help her navigate a difficult situation. The professional may not understand just how impactful their help was or will be on our client, but I see lives improved and fear lessened by this generous giving of time and specialist knowledge.  Plus, it gives a mother more confidence in navigating through her particular situation.  This confidence and support can mean a woman who is contemplating abortion decides to choose life for her baby.

In the recent case I mentioned above, our client’s fear was alleviated just knowing that she was better prepared for the difficulties she faced and she was happy to see that her informed preparation had a positive impact on her situation.

                                                                                                                                     Michelle

The 40 Days for Life Prayer Vigil in Brixton will run for 12 hours a day, 8am to 8pm, seven days a week from Ash Wednesday until Palm Sunday. If you could spare an hour or more to come and pray with us, it would be of great help. The vigil takes place at the corner of Brixton Water Lane, London, SW2 5BJ. For more details or to book to attend please contact Gabriella on 07745711064 or 02077231740

To sign up for hours at the 40 Days for Life vigil in Ealing, West London contact Sarah on 07776256838, or email her at london40daysforlife@hotmail.com

For details about 40 Days for Life Prayer Vigils in Reading, Southend, Liverpool, Nottingham, Glasgow, Leicester, Bournemouth and Sheffield see here and for the rest of the World see here 

TRUMP FUNDED!

Since the current 40 Days for Life campaign started on Ash Wednesday, a number of people have taken to vandalising the ground near our peaceful prayerful Pro-life vigil. Some have marked the pavement with chalk just around the corner from where we pray. Others have taken to spray painting the ground in front of our vigil. Highly imaginative slogans, such as "Brixton is pro-choice" have been sprayed on the floor, along with "Weirdos" with arrows pointing to the spot where we stand and pray. The latest example had someone paint "Trump funded" with an arrow.

We do receive donations from a wide spectrum of people. No doubt, a wider spectrum of people than our graffiti artist spends their time with. Happily living in their own little bubble, probably makes them feel quite comfortable, until they come across something as terrifying as peaceful prayer. To be honest with you President Donald Trump has not, as of yet funded any of our life saving/changing work, as we continue to provide ongoing assistance and help to Mothers in difficult pregnancies. We are of course happy to receive donations from anyone.

If you would like to donate directly to support women who do not want an abortion, but feel that they have no choice. Please consider donating using one of the options below.

No doubt President Trump will be quite happy with the praise and adulation given to him by Brixton's graffiti artist. The fact that having not supported our work, as of yet, they are giving him the credit for having done so, will allow him to sit back quietly in the White House and take the credit for all of the hard work of our staff and volunteers. And as most of our staff and volunteers are extremely hard-working and humble, I'm sure that they won't mind in the least.

DONATE TO SUPPORT OUR WORK

Donate by Bank Transfer to:

The Guild of Our Lady of Good Counsel

Sort Code: 40-06-30                       

Account Number: 13994678

By Credit Card over the phone:

Call 0207-723-1740

Monday to Friday, 10.30-6pm

Via Paypal: Paypal.me/SaveLivesGCN

or donate here

Patron Saint Of The Unborn

Saint Gianna Beretta Molla was born on the 4th of October 1922 in Magenta Italy, she was the tenth child in a family of 13 children. Gianna studied medicine and went on to specialize in pediatrics. In 1955 she married and had four children, during her fourth pregnancy she faced a life threatening medical condition, she had developed a fibroma in her uterus. The doctors presented her with three options, an abortion, a complete hysterectomy, both which would take the life of her child, or removal of only the fibroma, which could save the life of her baby but with potential further complications. St Gianna chose the path that could save her child's life, she was willing to give her own life to save the life of her child. She gave birth to Gianna Emanuela but died a week later on the 28th of April 1962. She is known to have said, "If you must decide between me and the child, do not hesitate: choose the child." 

She is the patron saint of mothers, physicians and unborn children.

St Gianna Beretta Molla, pray for us!

The 40 Days for Life Prayer Vigil in Brixton will run for 12 hours a day, 8am to 8pm, seven days a week from Ash Wednesday until Palm Sunday. If you could spare an hour or more to come and pray with us, it would be of great help. The vigil takes place at the corner of Brixton Water Lane, London, SW2 5BJ. For more details or to book to attend please contact Gabriella on 07745711064 or 02077231740

To sign up for hours at the 40 Days for Life vigil in Ealing, West London contact Sarah on 07776256838, or email her at london40daysforlife@hotmail.com

For details about 40 Days for Life Prayer Vigils in Reading, Southend, Liverpool, Nottingham, Glasgow, Leicester, Bournemouth and Sheffield see here and for the rest of the World see here

The Mystery Of Motherhood

‘Mummy, Mummy, look at this flower!’

‘Darling, I hate to tell you this, but that’s not a flower. That’s a weed’ she replies, laughingly. 

I’m thinking, what does it matter? It’s the most beautiful flower I’ve ever seen. 

On the path leading up to the abortion centre in Ealing, the periwinkle sticks its head out through the gap of the fence of a very beautiful park. The periwinkle is not a flower, it’s a weed. 

I’ve always thought that if I was a flower, I would be one that is technically a weed. I would be a forget-me-not, because regardless of whether they’re weeds or not, they’re my favourite kind of flower. 

And let’s face it, we’re all a bit weedy. We’re sinners. We get in the way, we take up too much space without asking and cause havoc, demanding attention. We’re not always pretty, sometimes we ruin the view and some of us might even sting. 

Nonetheless, there is something very beautiful about a flower that is actually a weed. Where did it come from? No one planted it. What a miracle, what a surprise. 

Somewhere out there, a mother regards the life in her womb as a weed. She didn’t intend for it to be there, and she wants to get rid of it.

It’s not a life. It’s not a flower, it’s a weed. 

In my woundedness, I don’t understand why Our Lord doesn’t raise children Himself. Why does He give them to us when He knows we will hurt them? Why does He keep giving them to us when almost one out of three in them now are aborted? Weeds grow in places where they are likely to be trampled upon. Our Lord imprisons Himself in the womb of the mother in the same way as He imprisons Himself in the Tabernacle. Why did He decide to become a tiny piece of bread, a substance so vulnerable to destruction, placing Himself in our clumsy hands? 

It is the mystery of the Cross. Our Lord became a vulnerable human being, and He let us destroy Him. That’s how He saved us. Our Lady knew what was going to happen, and still, she gave Him to us. It is not the end of the story. 

There is an abortion centre in Ealing, and the sun still shines, the birds still sing. It is right next to a very beautiful park where flowers still grow.

Article & Illustration by Anna Maria, 

Good Counsel's Artist in Residence

The 40 Days for Life Prayer Vigil in Brixton will run for 12 hours a day, 8am to 8pm, seven days a week from Ash Wednesday until Palm Sunday. If you could spare an hour or more to come and pray with us, it would be of great help. The vigil takes place at the corner of Brixton Water Lane, London, SW2 5BJ. For more details or to book to attend please contact Gabriella on 07745711064 or 02077231740

To sign up for hours at the 40 Days for Life vigil in Ealing, West London contact Sarah on 07776256838, or email her at london40daysforlife@hotmail.com

For details about 40 Days for Life Prayer Vigils in Reading, Southend, Liverpool, Nottingham, Glasgow, Leicester, Bournemouth and Sheffield see here and for the rest of the World see here 

Catherine Scott, Remembering a Pro-Life Volunter.

Seek ye therefore first the kingdom of God, and His justice, and all these things shall be added unto you

Catherine Scott, a long-time supporter of GCN and a very faithful vigil volunteer died on Sunday 30^th October 2022 on the Feast of Christ the King (in the Old Rite). This past Sunday would have been her Birthday.

I can’t remember a time when Catherine wasn’t involved in offering alternatives and real support to women entering abortion centres. She was fearless at the vigils and often received much abuse from passers-by in her daily presence at them. But she had a deep empathy for the women entering, no judgement of them and a desire to politely offer each woman the choice of life.

So many Mothers we have helped down the years were befriended by her and she would chide us if she thought they didn’t get the help they needed quickly enough, and would remind us if they needed something or needed a call.

Catherine was always ready to give witness for Christ’s sake and had a deep devotion to Our Lady. From the Chartres Pilgrimage to the G.K. Chesterton Walk, The Rosary Crusade, The Helpers of God’s Precious Infants Retreats, Catherine could be found supporting Mary’s Meals and numerous other Catholic events and good causes.

She had an incredible humility that allowed her to put any desire for human respect away when boldly reaching out to help those in need. One busy morning she popped into the office with a pregnant woman she had met by the fridges in Tesco, who needed help with accommodation to safely continue her pregnancy. Somehow this soul got talking to Catherine and she was determined to get her some real help.

She was full of love and mercy for others and never had a bad word to say about those she volunteered with and those she helped. She did have real anger towards those who lied about the vigils and those who profited from abortion while knowingly taking babies’ lives and putting women at risk.

Regularly accompanying us on staff retreats and formation days, Catherine was an honorary staff member of Good Counsel who had worked with us longer than many of our staff! As our sacristan Gabi said, “I remember Catherine radiant in prayer. I miss her being there for us all, such a beautiful, giving person. I feel so blessed for having met her.”

Thank you Catherine for all your hard work, for your tolerance of our foibles, for your kindness and your focus on what really mattered. Thank you for all the lives you have impacted, for making yourself an instrument in God’s hands to save children from abortion and to save Mothers from the sorrow of going through an abortion. God rest your noble soul, please pray for us, I know you will.

Clare

I remember being at Whitfield Street with Catherine one day. She was counselling women by the entrance to Marie Stopes abortion centre. One woman passing by stopped and asked her for a leaflet. The woman slowly tore the blue and pink leaflets up into tiny pieces and threw them up in the air. They fell to the ground, many of them landing on Catherine. It was really rather beautiful actually, and she stood there looking like she had been anointed. She just quietly bowed her head and prayed. – Len, Volunteer.

I think Marie Stopes is closed today…good thing the funeral happened on this day! Like they had a respite in abortions just for Catherine! – GCN Staff at Ealing Pro-Life Vigil on the day of Catherine’s funeral.

Instruments of God's Infinite Mercy

The wind blows on a cold day in the Brixton vigil, it looks like the picture of Our Lady of Guadalupe will blow over at any moment. Passers by are shouting at us, telling us that we should be ashamed, and we keep praying.

"Pray without ceasing" 1 Thess 5:17. The unborn need our help. Without us, who will be there to pray for them and support them in this culture of death?

People are struggling, and in great difficulties, and with great tumult of spirit do they decide to end the life of their child.

The culture points towards it. The constant promotion of lustful thoughts, fornication, adultery, the creation of and destruction of children through IVF, contraception and abortion. All these things bring death, first to the soul of the one who commits these acts, and that death cannot help but spread.

A gangrenous finger if not removed quickly becomes a gangrenous hand, then a gangrenous limb, then it finally spreads to the organs bringing death. Likewise smaller sins beget greater sins, for a mind made to desire the fulfilment that comes only from seeing God cannot be satisfied by that which separates itself therefrom. Therefore, in this dissatisfaction, it seeks to appease itself, and according to its habit of sin, it seeks this comfort from sin. Whence comfort can never come. Otherwise it attempts to use sin to reverse the effects of sin.

But this does not exempt myself. Have I not offended God? Have I not sought my own pleasure when I knew it was wrong? Thus am I not responsible for this culture of death? By every sin I disorder my own appetites, and I prepare myself to sin more. I build habits of vice which remain long after, and harm my ability to show love to God or to love my neighbour. To this same neighbour I give a bad example, and I give occasion to justify his sins, and by this I share in his sins. And those sins in which I share get shared to his neighbours and their neighbours.

Looking upon my own soul, is it any wonder that the world looks as darksome as it does? Is it any wonder that the mere suggestion that it is wrong to kill the unborn is met with scorn? Have I not crucified Our Saviour in my soul, or like Herod sought His death as an infant when I noticed Him coming, lest He should take my own power, by giving me the power to do His will and to avoid evil?

But greater than my iniquity is God's mercy. As our Lord says Lk 5:32 "I came not to call the just, but sinners to penance." At the vigil we are called to be instruments of God's mercy, to dissolve ourselves in prayer and Charity. When the passers by shout "Shame!" at us, we can bring to mind our own sins for which we ought to be ashamed and pray more fervently. By this we spread the mercy that we have received from the Most High God.

The mothers who wish to abort their children are in despair, despair at what their life might look like if they keep the child, at how they are going to be able to manage. It belongs to us to be their hope. Foremost to pray that they receive hope but also to have hope in our own souls that they will be able to keep the child. That their needs will be provided for, that the child's needs will be provided for, and that they will be provided the Grace to choose life for their child. As Simon of Cyrene helped Jesus to carry his cross, so too can we help these mothers to carry their crosses showing them the way to financial, emotional and spiritual help.

The children, free from all but original sin, find themselves collateral damage in this spiritual warfare. Sacrificed to the enemy to build his kingdom here on earth, a kingdom which has as alters its abortion centres and as borders its buffer zones. Not being able to surpass these borders, we, the soldiers of the army of God, recruited from amongst the army of Satan and washed by our Divine Saviour, lay siege to this fortification, hoping to deliver these infants, each precious in the sight of God, from the maw of the enemy.

If even one child is saved then our efforts have not been in vain, yet whilst any child is in danger we must keep going. I hope to see you at the vigil in Brixton by the grace of God.

Asare

The 40 Days for Life Prayer Vigil in Brixton will run for 12 hours a day, 8am to 8pm, seven days a week from Ash Wednesday until Palm Sunday. If you could spare an hour or more to come and pray with us, it would be of great help. The vigil takes place at the corner of Brixton Water Lane, London, SW2 5BJ. For more details or to book to attend please contact Gabriella on 07745711064 or 02077231740

To sign up for hours at the 40 Days for Life vigil in Ealing, West London contact Sarah on 07776256838, or email her at london40daysforlife@hotmail.com

For details about 40 Days for Life Prayer Vigils in Reading, Southend, Liverpool, Nottingham, Glasgow, Leicester, Bournemouth and Sheffield see here and for the rest of the World see here