In this Impact Report, we feature highlights from Justice For All (JFA) events that took place from March to September. Each highlighted event illustrates the way smaller training teams can help us make a bigger impact. We’ve found that empowering our trainers to do events on their own helps our team to be nimble and ready to meet the great need all over the country for good dialogue training—training that includes outreach whenever possible.
This month we report on a different kind of impact that God has created through JFA, specifically through the work of our office manager, Eva Heath. This is the story of the impact God produces through human beings many have written off because of their circumstances or disabilities. It’s also the story of one woman’s testimony that even if we can’t see the good that God is bringing from difficulties right now, we must hope in Him, loving every human being precisely because each person is made in the image of God. We bid a fond farewell to you this month, Eva, and we trust God will care for you in the new chapter of your retirement!
"Through this conversation, I was reminded that I cannot really know another person or his beliefs until I take the time to ask questions and hear him out. I never know what God might do, even in the heart of a student that seems closed off." -Kaitlyn Donihue, JFA Trainer
Click here to read about Kaitlyn's surprising encounter at Fort Lewis College last year.
“Naturally gifted at public speaking, Mary quickly learns the material she will be presenting to pro-life advocates while also allowing her personality to bring joy to the conversation, even in the midst of discussing the heavy subject of abortion. Teaching Mary to present JFA material has been a delightful process for me.” - Rebecca Hotovy, JFA Speaking Coach
This was the perfect semester for Mary St. Hilaire to make her entrance into the JFA community as an intern. Given the COVID-19 shutdown, that may sound odd, but God knew the type of people we would need for this particular season.
Mary was eager to finally start the internship for which she’d been preparing. In anticipation, she said,
“Justice For All (JFA) is a group that I have known about and loved for several years now because of the way they approach the pro-life movement. JFA's goal is to educate people, specifically college students, on the reality of abortion and the humanity of the unborn through respectful dialogue. JFA's approach is not one of hate, judgment, or condescension, but of love, understanding, and openness. This is what attracted me to them. My passion for the pro-life movement put in me the urge to do more to save the lives of the innocent, and JFA is truly the perfect fit for me.”
We soon realized she was right, and that she was also a great fit for us!
I had the privilege in 2019 of following up with Mary several times about her desire to impact the injustice of abortion. Through our phone calls, her application, and the interview process it became clear that Mary genuinely wanted to help, was willing to work hard, and would enhance our team. She didn’t disappoint.
Hailing from the Lincoln, Nebraska area, Mary took her faith, her unbending pro-life convictions, her work ethic, her joy, and her sense of humor to Wichita, Kansas and didn’t look back. We could see that her family had prepared and encouraged her in some amazing ways!
Mary started as an intern in late January and quite quickly jumped into her two main tasks — creating conversations on college campuses (becoming a trusted advocate on our team) and learning our speaking material well enough to be able to contribute to our training events within weeks.
This semester will always be remembered for the impact of COVID-19 on our society, the shutdown of schools, the cancelling of events, and how it pushed our ministry to enhance our outreach and training tools online. It changed our plans, but it didn’t ruin our mission. This cultural moment has allowed us to take new chances, learn new things, and it was actually the perfect semester for Mary to start with us.
We are so thankful for the way our schedule worked out, abnormally packed for February. Mary started the semester off with a total of 11 outreach days and 4 interactive training events. She also helped in our office and learned speaking parts, making for a wild six weeks. If the schedule had been lighter, she would have had far less practice by the time the COVID-19 shutdown happened. Instead, she emerged a much stronger advocate through events in Denton, Albuquerque, San Antonio, and Dallas. By the time she completed our spring break mission trip at UT Dallas (March 9-11), Mary had also successfully contributed to our training seminars by delivering our “One Central Question” section (aimed at simplifying the abortion conversation), and she did a great job. She was polished, energetic, clear, and enjoyable to watch.
The Dallas trip helped all aspects of Mary’s job come together in a dynamic way. She helped with the speaking and brought a good amount of experience to outreach conversations there at UT Dallas. The mission trip team had enjoyable team building experiences together as well.
Mary in a conversation at UT Dallas, the last location where we held an outreach event before the COVID-19 crisis caused us all to change our plans.
Posting in March about her internship experience, Mary said,
“If I had to choose the single most important thing I’ve gained from interning with Justice For All these past two months it would most definitely be a new kind of love for all humans. In conversing with so many people from various races, religions, states, and even countries, getting to know them on a personal level, sharing my beliefs with them, and searching for the truth alongside of them, I have come to realize that my love does not have to be limited to only those with whom I share the same views. I knew this in my head, but until I actually participated in outreach, I didn’t know it in my heart. Through respectful dialogue I have been able to actually understand opposite viewpoints and beliefs for the first time in a totally new way. I have been able to find common ground and mutual interests with people I previously would’ve thought I could never talk to, and I have been able to positively impact students I thought would never want to hear my view.
“Each conversation I’ve had has brought me closer to an understanding of what Jesus’ words “Love your neighbor” truly mean. He didn’t mean “just be nice to your neighbor and put up with them.” No. He wants us to unconditionally love the people around us, despite their beliefs, their backgrounds, or their lifestyles. He wants us to take time to get to know them, listen to them, pray for them, help them, and love them as he loves us—without exception. Every single person I’ve talked to on campus holds a special place in my heart. I loved getting to know all of them, telling them about myself, and discussing the hard topic of abortion as well as other important issues with them. I think about them individually all the time, and I pray for them on a regular basis. I love them, not because we believe the same things, we’re from the same place, or raised the same way, but simply because they are children of God.
“I used to be scared to meet people who I disagree with spiritually, politically, or morally. Now, I jump at the chance to meet people of different beliefs! I find it intriguing and exciting to learn new religious, political, or moral views, and I love being able to share my beliefs and passions with them. For me, there is nothing more rewarding than meeting, knowing, and loving the people I meet through this work. JFA is by far one of the greatest blessings of my life, and I’m looking forward to the rest of my internship here!”
After our trip in early March, we decided to limit travel, and then within a week or so most schools were shut down anyway. Still, this didn’t shut down Mary’s internship. To the contrary, she pushed ahead with her speaking parts, learning several more sections of our seminar this past month. She is ready to assist with online trainings in the coming months and at in-person events when those return. Just last week, Mary was a significant contributor for our webinar. See upcoming webinars at JFA’s Calendar Page.
Mary has also been instrumental in helping us pivot during this time by being more active online with Instagram, Facebook, and other social media platforms. She’s worked hard to connect with pro-choice folks and to encourage pro-life students, and along the way she has encouraged the rest of our staff with some specific skills she brings.
Angelique (second from left), the pro-life club president at Trinity University, engages students at UT Dallas in conversation during her spring break with JFA.
In February, our team held outreach events at two schools in San Antonio in one trip. For the Trinity University event, we were invited by the president of the Tigers for Life, Angelique. As for UTSA, we had been working with their pro-life club’s outreach chair for years before finally getting to do outreach on campus this spring. We also did training seminar events with both of them last fall.
Our spring break team at UT Dallas
After our successful outreach events with them in San Antonio, we asked both of them if they wanted to join us two weeks later at the University of Texas at Dallas (UT Dallas) since our events there took place during their spring break. They each decided to abandon their spring break plans to come to Dallas with us.
There they joined Mariana and Thomas, from Benedictine College, who also spent their spring break with us. We all had three amazing days of outreach at UT Dallas. The day that trip ended, the quarantine and stay-at-home orders started to be issued, so we finished the trip with God’s perfect timing. Judging from the response we got from these student leaders, they really were glad that they spent their spring break not on a beach vacation, but at outreach with Justice For All changing their peers’ minds about abortion, one person at a time.
“I am so grateful I went on a mission trip with Justice For All over spring break! It was a time of growth, intentional dialogue, and deepening of faith . . . I learned a lot of interesting viewpoints, and I was deeply moved by some of the heartbreaking reasons why people are pro-choice . . . It was truly amazing to see a variety of different people’s strengths and talents come together and impact students on campus. Abortion is not something to be ignored, no matter how hard the conversation is. I can bet the students at UT Dallas will be talking about the JFA exhibit for years to come, leading to a domino effect of conversations. Overall, I feel strengthened in my own faith through this mission, especially in learning how to do my part in a mission and surrendering the rest to God.”
Mariana in action at UT Dallas
Thomas (green shirt) having conversations with pro-choice protestors
“I was amazed at how many conversations really changed people’s views on the issue of abortion—rarely a 180 degree turnaround, but more often than that, I found even sharing the perspective we were coming from helped open people’s minds more on the subject. I was especially impacted by seeing how each day the protestors became less hostile in their attitude and more open to dialogue.”
What: Love 3: A New Roadmap for Conversations about Abortion (Webinar with Q&A)
When: May 7 (Thursday) - 10:00 - 11:30 AM (Central Time)
Where: Live on JFA’s Facebook Page
Presenters: Tammy Cook, Jeremy Gorr, Susanna Dirks, Steve Wagner
To attend one of our upcoming webinar events, go to the JFA Calendar Page to get more information and register. We are also regularly adding new online events to the calendar. Watch for those, or contact us if you’d like to book a webinar event.
Dear Friend of JFA,
I was amazed. During a webinar that Paul Kulas, JFA’s Director of Operations, had planned for a family of supporters in mid-April, he led us through interactive teaching related to the topics of poverty and rape. To finish the webinar, JFA intern Mary St. Hilaire shared a story of a recent campus conversation with “Liz.” The two topics Liz had been most concerned about were also poverty and rape. The story fit perfectly with what Paul had selected even though we hadn’t planned it that way. Read Mary’s story, ”A New View of Abortion…and Pro-Life Advocates,” below.
During COVID-19, our team has been hard at work creating conversations using social media and other means. In just a few weeks, we’ve discovered and tested some methods we think anyone can use to create a conversation. We’ll report soon on our blog and in a future letter.
Our team has also conducted a three-hour online workshop, and we were excited to find a way to include interactive activities using Zoom breakout rooms. We have similar online events scheduled each week in the near future, including a series of shorter sessions for those who can’t attend longer sessions. To participate, keep an eye on the social media channels below.
Our team was encouraged this past week by Henri Nouwen’s essay, “From Solitude to Community to Ministry.” You can find it online at Christianity Today and in Nouwen’s short book, A Spirituality of Living. In the solitude you may be experiencing during COVID-19, we hope that you can pause and know more clearly how Christ has called you “Beloved.” We pray you might then find unique ways to share that same love with others in this challenging time. (See I John 4:7-14.) We continue to pray for you, beloved friends. Thank you for partnering with us in prayer and financial gifts, as God gives you ability.
Steve Wagner, Executive Director
UT Dallas Outreach Team (March 9-11, 2020) Missing: Kaitlyn Donihue (on plane back to MI for speaking event) and Paul Kulas (taking picture)
Impact Report, April 2020
A Note from JFA’s Executive Director: Mary St. Hilaire had been an intern with JFA for less than a week when we sent her to four different cities from February 7 until March 12. She helped JFA accomplish eleven days of outreach at five universities and also learned to present a portion of JFA’s training seminar. Since COVID-19 has caused us to postpone in-person events for now, we’re thankful for Mary’s help in doing more with social media, including starting conversations with people online. - Steve Wagner, JFA Executive Director
In the first outreach conversation of her internship, Mary (above, right) interacts with a University of North Texas student who skipped his class to talk about abortion.
One of my favorite conversations this semester was with a girl I’ll call “Liz,” a student at Trinity University in San Antonio, Texas. From the beginning I could tell that Liz was very hesitant to engage us in any way. When I asked if she wanted to weigh in on our poll (“Is Abortion an Injustice?”), she seemed almost nervous to do so, but eventually got up the courage and signed the “No” side. I then asked if she had time to share her thoughts with me, to which she timidly replied, “Yeah... I do have time actually.”
At University of Texas at Dallas in March, Mary talked with the group of students pictured here. As we traveled home from Dallas, we began to see cancellations of public gatherings nationwide.
I followed up by asking her what she thought about abortion. Right off the bat, I recognized the love and compassion that Liz has for women, for she responded, “Well, I don’t really like abortion, but I understand that it’s necessary for some women if they are raped or if they’re too poor to take care of a child.”
This was the perfect opportunity, early in the conversation, to set Liz at ease and help her know that I cared about her view and about these circumstances. I responded by saying, “I agree that rape is a terrible experience for any woman to have and I can’t imagine going through that. And poverty is something I’ve never had to experience, but my heart really goes out to anyone living in poverty, especially single mothers. Both of those situations are really sad to think about.”
Almost immediately after saying this, there was a change in Liz’s disposition. I saw a transformation in her face and could tell that my response was not at all what she was expecting to hear. In fact, not only did she become more willing to discuss the topic of abortion with me, but she also began to open up about very personal struggles in her own life. She said that both she and her boyfriend have problems with their mental health. They plan on getting married, and they would love to have children, but they feel trapped because they don’t want their kids to have the same mental challenges they have.
I could tell how distressing this was to Liz, and I was able to really empathize with her. “Wow,” I said. “That is such a difficult situation. I want to have children someday, too, so I can understand how hard this must be for you because obviously we want the best for our children and would never want them to experience the same hardships we have experienced. I’m sorry you have to go through this. Is your family supportive of you and your boyfriend?” “Yes, luckily they are very supportive and loving,” she answered. “I’m so glad to hear that,” I replied. “It’s so important to have people in your life that you can lean on to help you through the hard times.”
The way that Liz opened up to me and the way in which I was able to empathize with her created a strong connection between us. In fact, most of our conversation was spent just getting to know one another. We talked about our shared Christian faith, joked and laughed over stories from our past, and talked about our families and backgrounds. We didn’t actually discuss the topic of abortion in depth until a friendship had begun to develop. Because of our connection, when I did ask her about abortion again, she was very open and willing to discuss it with me.
“So, do you think the unborn is biologically human?” I asked. “I’m not sure,” she replied. “That’s okay!” I said. “Would you be open to hearing what I think?”
“Absolutely!” she eagerly responded. I then walked her through evidence that the unborn is biologically human. For example, the unborn exhibits the three characteristics of living things, it has human parents and human DNA, and it is a whole organism that is developing itself. Liz said that those reasons made sense, and she was willing to agree that the unborn is biologically human.
I then tried to help her see why all human beings deserve the right to life by asking her a few questions: “Look around at everyone on campus. We’re all different, right? Different religions, races, ages, and genders. But could you agree that everyone on campus deserves to be treated equally at least in the sense of the basic right to life?” She nodded. “Of course.”
I continued, “So then there must be something the same about us that gives us the right to demand this equal treatment. What do you think is the same about us?” Liz paused and thought for a moment. “That’s a good question. I don’t know. What do you think?” she finally asked.
“Well, I think it’s simply that we are all human beings!” I could see that this answer really resonated with Liz. “Yes, that makes sense,” she quickly replied. I continued: “So if the unborn is also human then shouldn’t he also deserve the right to life?”
The look on Liz’s face told me that she completely understood this argument and was really grappling with it. After a moment, she answered, “I guess abortion is an injustice. But I do understand why some women need to get abortions.” This response impressed me because of Liz’s willingness to admit that she had changed her view of abortion as not being an injustice. I wasn’t at all surprised that she held onto the belief that it is still necessary for some women, despite it being wrong. I know that she was simply trying to process through everything we had discussed. A total change of heart may come later when she has had more time to dwell on this complex topic.
With all that being said, my conversation with Liz is one of my favorites not because of her altered view of abortion but because of what she said in parting after we had talked for about an hour. She looked at me earnestly and said, “Thank you! You have changed my perspective of pro-lifers and the pro-life movement.” Those are the most precious words I have heard in any of my conversations.
One of our main goals as staff at Justice For All, and as pro-life advocates in general, is to have dialogues that convey Christ’s message of love, forgiveness, and understanding. Liz’s parting words confirmed that I had fulfilled that message in our conversation. Whether or not she completely changes her mind on the issue of abortion, I know that I had a great impact on her because she has a new view of pro-life advocates as people of acceptance, love, and openness. This, in and of itself, opens so many doors for more productive conversations in the future. She will now be much more willing to listen to and understand the pro-life position without the interference of a negative association with pro-life people.
So often, pro-choice people don’t want to engage us simply because they think we don’t care about their views. Let us change that stigma by our examples of Christ-like love, unconditional and immeasurable, in every interaction we have with people with whom we disagree. Let us truly live out Jesus’ command to us: “Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” (John 13:34)
February 8-12: Seminar and Outreach Events in Denton, Texas (University of North Texas)
February 17-19: Seminar and Outreach Events in Albuquerque, NM (University of New Mexico)
February 23-27: Seminar and Outreach Events in San Antonio, Texas (Trinity University and UT San Antonio)
March 7-11: Seminar and Outreach Events in Dallas, Texas (UT Dallas)
March 11: Presentation at Retreat for Council of Catholic Women - Kaitlyn Donihue
Because JFA has canceled all in-person events for the time being, we are offering JFA webinar events in various formats! Click here to register for an upcoming online event, or book a JFA webinar.
April 25: “Taking Abortion from Debate to Dialogue” Online Workshop
April 30: “Love 3: A New Roadmap for Conversations about Abortion” Webinar, 6:00-7:30 p.m. (Central Time) - Live on JFA’s Facebook Page
May 7: “Love 3: A New Roadmap for Conversations about Abortion” Webinar, 10:00 a.m.-11:30 p.m. (Central Time) - Live on JFA’s Facebook Page
To attend one of our upcoming webinar events, go to the JFA Calendar Page to get more information and register. We are also regularly adding new online events to the calendar, so watch for those.
It seems like the only thing anyone is talking about these days is COVID-19. It has dramatically changed our lives, canceled our plans, and turned our world upside down. What are we, as Christians, to do?
Trinity University, February 24 and 25, 2020
We are commanded throughout Scripture to go and make disciples of all nations, to proclaim the truth, to be salt and light to a lost and broken world. The Bible doesn’t list any exceptions. Nowhere does it say to make disciples unless there is a deadly pandemic sweeping the land.
The commands of Scripture still apply to us today. Our calling as Christians has not changed. So what can we do?
We have to get creative. Many of the normal routes for evangelism and discipleship are not available at the moment, so we must seek out other routes!
University of Texas at Dallas, March 9 and 10, 2020: I am so thankful for the training and outreach events we were able to do before COVID-19 hit and forced us to change our plans.
I strongly dislike social media. Other people get great enjoyment out of it, and that is wonderful. But I would much rather have a conversation with someone face to face or at least over the phone. When our team decided to work together to leverage the internet to create conversations, I began to think through how I could contribute. Despite my dislike of social media, I started an Instagram account (@kaitlyndonihue). Why? Well, this is my creative route for trying to share the truth with others.
I have been following pro-life pages and reading the comments on their posts. Many pro-choice people comment. After reading a comment, I private message the commenter and say something like, “Hey, I saw your comment on Justice For All’s post about abortion, and I would love to hear more of your thoughts.”
Over the past three weeks, I have had some amazing conversations about abortion, worldviews, and the gospel this way.
I have been talking with one young lady who struggles to believe in God because she has been hurt and abused by a lot of people throughout her life.
Another young woman shared with me that she believes that animals and human beings are equal in value. When I asked where value comes from and whether she thinks there is a God who gives value, she shared that she doesn’t believe in God because she has been deeply hurt by some very hypocritical Christians.
Another young lady has been sharing with me her view on the issue of a woman’s bodily rights related to abortion.
I have been amazed at how open and honest these young women have been with me. They are hurting deeply and are excited just to have someone listen to them.
I said earlier that this is not my preference for outreach. I would much prefer to be on a university campus having face-to-face conversations. Yet I cannot deny that I am seeing God use this. And yes, even I am enjoying talking with these women over Instagram.
How about you? During this season, have you found any creative ways to talk about abortion, worldviews, and the gospel with those who disagree or to disciple other Christians? I would love to hear about them!
I am excited to see what God will do in and through this time to draw people to Himself. May we be faithful and creative messengers of truth.
I recently came across this short, intriguing story from John Ensor at PassionLife: “Lunch with an Abortion Doctor.” It raises some interesting questions that could be useful for conversations between pro-choice and pro-life friends (see below). Here’s the story:
Photo by Igor Starkov on Unsplash
(Click on the image above to read “Lunch with an Abortion Doctor” by John Ensor.)
In Oradea, Romania, Mihaela and Gabby Visan run a pregnancy help center inside a women’s hospital.
Their effectiveness is severely limited by one fact: women must pay for their abortion before they can talk to anyone, committing them to abortion, even if they arrive ambivalent. So the counseling service is effectively cut out of the patient flow.
To address this, we had lunch with the main abortion doctor at the hospital. His girlfriend also joined us.
He sat down and started talking…
What should informed consent look like for those considering abortion?
Do you think it’s a good thing for pregnant mothers to see accurate imagery of the unborn (e.g. an ultrasound, in-utero footage such as content available at EHD.org, or imagery of the unborn after abortion) before making an abortion decision? Why or why not?
Join us today for “Taking Abortion from Debate to Dialogue,” a JFA Online Workshop with Interactive Activities. Here’s the workshop info:
Rebecca Hotovy talks with a student at a JFA outreach event at Arizona State University.
2:00 - 5:00 PM (Central Time)
Register here for webinar materials and login information. - If you are registering more than one person in your household, please just register once and add the names of all participants in the Comments area.
Presenters: Steve Wagner, Susanna Dirks, Jon Wagner, Mary St. Hilaire
Click here for more information about the “Taking Abortion from Debate to Dialogue” Online Workshop.
See more about the entire JFA team, including our interns, at the Our Team page. Read bios, see recent outreach pictures, and learn more from newsletters.
JFA Intern Rebekah Dyer recently posted “A Woman’s Response to ‘Men Can’t Talk about Abortion’” at the Merely Human Ministries Blog. Check it out, and let us know what you think in the comments or on Instagram.
