God Really Listens to Our Prayers

 
Letter from Fr. Laisney to Fr. Couture

St Anthony's Catholic Church
88 ALma Rd
Wanganui, New Zealand

Oct. 7, 2005

Reverend and dear Father,

For the past few months, the health board of the Wanganui hospital was discussing the project to bring "abortion services" to Wanganui. Currently they send the unfortunate women to Wellington, 3 hours away. Some of our faithful heard about it, and asked if the parish would join against it. We did. We had every Saturday the whole fifteen decades of the Rosary said before the hospital, plus a picket every day (just by one family, the Raaymakers). Our youth, especially lead by Jean-Paul and Rebecca Borberg, had several initiatives, such as pro-life T-shirts, pro-life balloons (!), a pro-life March in Wanganui, etc. We had a day of fasting for the whole parish.

The decision should have been taken two weeks ago, but the meeting of the health board had to be postponed because a report on the earthquake resistance of a particular hospital building was not ready and they had to discuss it at the same meeting. So they postponed the meeting in which they were to decide on this issue until... October 7th. We saw in this a first sign of hope from the Divine Providence. We organised a Novena from the feast of St Michael to the feast of Our Lady of the Rosary (included): the chaplet of St. Michael plus the Litanies of Our Lady. This morning after the 7:15am Mass we did the last prayers of the Litanies, and about 20 faithful went to assist at the health-board meeting. By the grace of God, one member of the board after the other spoke against it, there were only two who voted for it, and about six against it; the others somehow abstained. The decision to bring "abortion services" to Wanganui was thus voted down. Deo gratias. We came back to the parish and sung a Te Deum.

This in view of the coming of the relics of St. Thérèse to Wanganui next week reminds of a little passage of her life, where she wanted to know "if God really listened to her prayers." And He sure does! We have two hours with her reserved for our parish.

Pass on that news, and let us give due thanks to Our Lord Jesus Christ, through His most blessed Mother, "Our Lady of Victories" who smiled to St. Thérèse, and to St. Michael who really wins victory for God.

Yours sincerely in Jesus and Mary,

Father François Laisney


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