A Mission for Life Begins

I wanted to just say that at as of Thursday, I was in the desert town of Twentynine Palms, CA where our Southern Walk Team is living out of a cabin at an RV site. Our group is patiently waiting for our RV to come to us from Little Rock, AR where it is under repair. We pray that tonight will be the night where we can finally see our living space for the rest of the pilgirmage.

I am currently doing OK physically, mentally and spiritually. I have already done over 34 miles of walking with my partner on the night shift. Currently it is draining to my mind since I have not gotten all of my normal sleep like if I were home. It will get better as I get accustomed to the daily routine. Spiritually, there has been a lot of time to pray as a group, but also while walking with my partner. When you walk during the quiet of the night, I can do a lot of thinking and praying; especially as I am a "Witness for Life" during the next three months.

I want to thank everyone for your thoughts and prayer offered up to this point. It is only the beginning of the pilgrimage, but I am so excited about the things that will happen day by day.

Why Walk?

On May 19, 2009, I flew from the Lowell, MA, area,
where I normally live and have
my Oblate Vocation Office, with my
one-way ticket to Los Angeles, CA, to
begin an experience of a lifetime. Some
may wonder why I only have a one-way
ticket, instead of a round-trip ticket. I
hope you find my answer to be somewhat
amazing and inspiring. Some people
might think I am simply crazy!
When I arrive at the Los Angeles
International Airport, I met up
for the first time with the other eight
members of my group who are participating
in the 15th Annual Crossroads Walk
to Washington, DC. (There will also be
groups leaving from Seattle, WA, and San
Francisco for Washington, DC.) After
three days of training and meeting with
one another, we will begin our perspective
3200-mile walk across the United
States to be a witness for the dignity and
sanctity for all human life from conception
to natural death, especially the
unborn.
On August 15th, our group will finally
meet up with the other two groups in
Washington, DC, at the Basilica of the
National Shrine of the Immaculate Conception
for Mass on the Feast of the Assumption
of Mary and then take our final
walk to the steps of the Supreme Court of
the United States and the United States
Capitol for a Pro-Life Rally.
I join the walk across the southern
portion of the United States as the oldest
member of my group. Since I am 46
years old, I received permission to walk
with the other younger members who are
between 18 to 30 years of age. These
younger people and I have decided to
sacrifice the possibility of having a job or
other normal vacation plans to be a part of
this pro-life walk. And while we walk in
pairs for 15 miles to 20 miles a day from
Monday thru Friday, people will encounter
us in many different ways wearing
our white tee shirts with the words
“PRO LIFE” on the front and, hopefully,
for a moment ask themselves what these
walkers are doing, and, more importantly,
what “PRO LIFE” means for them.
I am especially excited to take on this
physical challenge, but I do the walk
with a deep spiritual connectedness with
our Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate
Founder, St. Eugene De Mazenod,
who said: “Leave nothing undared.” In
the spirit of St. Eugene, I feel connected
to our great charism to be a witness for
Jesus Christ and speak out in love for the
most poor and marginalized of our society:
the Unborn, but also against the
other realities in the Culture of Death
regarding abortion and euthanasia.
During these three months of walking,
our group will make an impact on
the tens of thousands of people we will
encounter as we walk along the highways,
being a part of other peaceful and prayerful
activities in front of abortion clinics,
speaking with youth groups and ultimately
sharing our story about this pilgrimage at
the many parishes we will visit on a daily
basis as well as on the weekends.
As I do this walk, I ask for your daily
prayers and support since I cannot do this
experience alone. I want to make a
difference in building up a Culture of Life
in our broken society. I also pray that
other young men who might see or hear
me during these three months, may
become inspired to think about a vocation
as a Religious Brother or Priest with the
Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate
so as to continue the charism of St.
Eugene and to stand up as a witness to
the dignity and sanctity of all human life.
To learn more about the Crossroads
Walk, check out the Crossroads website
www.crossroadswalk.org, and to monitor
our daily progress from an
Oblate perspective, the Communications
Office will be launching this regularly
updated “blog,” also accessible through the
OMI website at www.omiusa.org.
Fr. Dwight HOEBERECHTS, OMI