Shortly after President Bill Clinton signed the Freedom of Access to Clinic Entrances (FACE) Act in 1994, I had the occasion to visit with Mother Teresa — now St. Teresa — in India.
While there, I told her about this new law designed to give protections to abortion businesses that no other industry in the U.S. enjoyed.
Since I had taken over as National Director of Priests for Life in 1993, I maintained regular contact with Mother Teresa, mostly through phone calls. When an opportunity arose to meet her where she lived and worked, I jumped at the chance.
On that June visit to Calcutta, I was fortunate to be able to spend a lot of time with Mother Teresa as she took me around to her order’s various houses.
I was also able to hold some classes for her sisters.
Mother Teresa and I discussed the vision, mission and structure of Priests for Life.
I eagerly received her guidance.
She really believed in the need to educate priests and deacons about abortion, so she was very supportive.
We discussed in depth the tragedy of abortion and how to end it.
Just a few months prior to my visit, this tiny nun originally from Albania had brought a roomful of American lawmakers to their feet with her admonition that "the greatest destroyer of peace today is abortion." She made her comment in February 1994 at the National Prayer Breakfast.
President Clinton and Hillary, both abortion advocates, along with Vice President Al Gore and Tipper Gore, were the only ones in the room who remained seated.
I told Mother Teresa, "Many of the American people loved your speech at the Prayer Breakfast!"
"Oh yes?," she replied, "And what about the rest of them?" She then gave me a homework assignment: To spread the speech far and wide. Priests for Life has been doing that ever since.
But it was our conversation on a related abortion topic that also has stuck with me all these years. When I told her about the FACE Act, which now made it illegal to "interfere" with "reproductive health services," or to intimidate or physically prevent someone from entering an abortion facility.
She looked at me and said, "Father, if we had that law here in India, I would have been thrown in jail many times! Here I go to the places where abortions are done and I take the women by the arm and say, 'Come with me; we will help you and your child!'"
Mother Teresa would be outraged to know how the FACE Act is being used by the Biden administration to arrest, try and convict peaceful anti-abortion adherents whose only goal when they show up to killing centers, is to save babies from abortion and their mothers, from a lifetime of regret.
I am outraged, too.
One of the first anti-abortion adherents Biden went after, Mark Houck, was acquitted of the made-up federal charges against him but there are more than dozen activists currently looking at the possibility of lengthy jail sentences after being convicted of FACE violations.
Again, they did nothing violent.
In fact, they were trying to stop violence.
But this is Joe Biden’s America.
Thankfully, there’s some hope on the horizon.
Rep. Chip Roy, R-Texas, and Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, have introduced legislation to repeal this unjust law.
I wholeheartedly support their efforts.
But, of course, we know the difficulties of passing such legislation in a closely divided House, and as for the Democrat-controlled Senate, they are the abortion industry’s biggest cheerleaders.
Which brings us back to the obvious point — elections matter.
Thirty-four Senate seats are up for grabs in November, as is the entire House.
It’s time to win pro-life majorities in both.
We need to elect public servants who understand the difference between serving the public and killing the public, and who understand that attempting to save a child’s life should not be a federal crime.
The overturning of Roe v. Wade, 410 U.S. 113 (1973) put us on the road to vanquishing this "greatest destroyer of peace."
Now it’s time to get rid of FACE as well.
Frank Pavone is one of the most prominent anti-abortion leaders globally. Read Frank Pavone Reports — More Here.