28 październik 2021 /FP | Family News Service
“At the request of the Polish foundation YES TO LIFE, today I consecrate bells bearing the title “Voice of the Unborn,” which will be sent to Ecuador and Ukraine. May they be, for these nations and for all, a sign of mobilization for the defense of human life from conception to natural death,” Pope Francis said on October 27th while consecrating the bells in St. Peter’s Square in Rome.
Pope Francis was the first person to strike the bells symbolically. “May their sound proclaim the Gospel of life to the world, awaken consciences and the remembrance of the unborn. I commend to your prayers every conceived child whose God-given life is sacred and inviolable,” he added.
“Voice of the Unborn” is an initiative which, according to its promoters, the Foundation YES TO LIFE, aims to actively remind people of the need to protect human life and its sanctity.
The Bells’ Birth
The bells which will go to Ecuador and Ukraine were cast in the workshop of Jan Felczyński in Przemysl. These are the next casts, whose creation was initiated by the Foundation of the Immaculate Conception of the BVM for YES TO LIFE. The first “Voice of the Unborn” bell was created exactly one year ago and was also blessed by Pope Francis. Currently on pilgrimage in Poland, it has visited nearly 30 towns and cities in the country. The idea has also gained international momentum. The bells have a rich symbolism. On the outer wall there is an ornament in the shape of a DNA chain, which reflects the genetic code of the parents, and the cast of a conceived child’s ultrasound. There is also a casting of plaques symbolizing the Decalogue and, among other things, the words of the fifth commandment: “Thou shalt not kill!” The inscriptions have been translated into Spanish and Ukrainian.
“Written on the bell are the words of the defender of life, Blessed Father Jerzy Popiełuszko: ‘the life of a child begins in the mother’s womb,’ and God’s commandment ‘Thou shalt not kill!’ – these are messages that will speak for all those who do not have the right to speak out,” explains Bogdan Romaniuk, Vice-President of the Foundation YES TO LIFE.
A Sound that Awakens Consciences
In an interview with Family News Service, Bogdan Romaniuk explains that Ukraine and Ecuador themselves turned to the foundation with the request to bring them bells. It is worth mentioning that already a year ago the Holy Father stressed that this bell should awaken consciences and mobilize people to save every human life.
“Bishop Mieczyslaw Mokrzycki, Metropolitan Archbishop of Lvov, and Archbishop Luis Cabrera Herrera of Ecuador asked the Pope to consecrate them. The Pope agreed. One of them will be stationed in Ukraine, in St. John Paul II Parish in Lvov; the other in Ecuador, in the archdiocese of Guayaquil,” says Bogdan Romaniuk.
Fr. Grzegorz Draus, pastor of the parish of St. John Paul II in Lvov, does not hide his satisfaction that one of the bells consecrated by the Holy Father will go to Ukraine. “This bell will not stay at our church all the time, but it will be set up on a trailer and so that it can be taken to different towns and parishes throughout Ukraine. It will be located right next to the place where John Paul II stayed in 2001. The bell also has a sacred meaning and will show the great dignity of human life. The ringing of the bell will resemble the heartbeat of a human being, including that of the unborn. The bell will give courage to the many large families in Ukraine who are open to life,” stresses Fr. Draus in an interview with Family News Service.
The priest expresses hope that the bell will attract those who are not indifferent to human life. “Certainly, years later we will hear the testimonies of those who were saved thanks to this initiative,” emphasizes the priest.
42 Million Abortions Each Year
Bogdan Romaniuk from the Foundation YES TO LIFE is convinced that after Ukraine and Ecuador the time will come when other countries will be interested in the initiative. “The plague of abortion, which has a toll of nearly 42 million children each year, is spread throughout different countries. Today, it would be difficult to find a country free of this plague,” he explains.
Family News Service
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