Jim Sedlak’s life’s work is ending horror of abortion

St. Luke the Evangelist parishioner John Hanagan of Indianapolis, left, talks with St. Bartholomew parishioner Eileen Hartman of Columbus, director of The Gabriel Project, a pro-life ministry for women experiencing crisis pregnancies, and Jim Sedlak, vice president of the American Life League and coordinator of STOPP, on Oct. 1, 2007, outside the Planned Parenthood abortion clinic (not pictured) at 8590 Georgetown Road in Indianapolis. (File photo by Mary Ann Wyand)

By Mary Ann Wyand

Abortion is on Jim Sedlak’s mind every day. Ending the horror of abortion—and saving the souls of unborn babies and their mothers —is his life’s work.

As vice president of the American Life League based in Stafford, Va., Sedlak coordinates STOPP, which stands for “Stop Planned Parenthood.”

Saving lives in crisis pregnancies is an urgent ministry that takes him all over the country throughout the year as he works to educate people about how abortion kills babies and harms women.

Since the U.S. Supreme Court legalized abortion during all nine months of pregnancy in its Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton decisions in 1973, more than 50 million unborn babies have died in surgical abortions. That number increases daily.

Accurate statistics are not available on the number of first trimester babies killed in chemical abortions from artificial contraceptives and the RU-486 abortifacient drug because many occur in the home environment.

Planned Parenthood is the nation’s largest abortion provider so the American Life League targets its clinics with pro-life educational efforts and spiritual warfare.

Last year, Sedlak was encouraged by the success of the first national “40 Days for Life” ecumenical prayer and fasting campaign held from Sept. 26 through Nov. 4 in 89 cities in 33 states.

The campaign mobilized pro-life supporters to pray outside abortion centers as well as at perpetual adoration chapels, churches and in their homes for 40 days and to fast frequently during that time.

He participated in a “40 Days for Life” prayer vigil last October in Indianapolis and spoke at several Catholic parishes in the state about how Planned Parenthood promotes the culture of death through abortion and artificial contraceptives.

“Their programs all lead to death, either the death of babies in the womb or the death of young people’s souls as they get them involved in sexual lifestyles,” Sedlak emphasized after praying the rosary last fall in front of Planned Parenthood of Indiana’s newest and largest abortion clinic at 8590 Georgetown Road.

Other Planned Parenthood of Indiana abortion clinics are located in Avon, Bloomington and Merrillville, and 31 smaller clinics in cities throughout the state offer birth control services.

“The other 31 clinics provide birth control products that prevent implantation [of a fertilized ovum] and are [chemical] abortifacients—birth control pills, … skin patches, … shots and morning-after pills,” Sedlak explained. “The morning-after pills are especially dangerous because they’re essentially four times the dose of the birth control pill [administered] in a 24-hour period. That can’t be good on a woman’s body chemistry.

“If you read the package inserts, the birth control pill has all kinds of bad side effects,” he said. “Heart attacks and strokes are normal with the birth control pill, and they’ve been shown to have links to breast cancer, to making women more susceptible to a host of sexually transmitted viruses and … [to] lower bone density.”

Planned Parenthood clinics must be closed, Sedlak emphasized, and pro-life supporters need to use prayer to accomplish that goal.

“It’s going to take a lot of prayer because it’s God who can close Planned Parenthood [clinics],” he said. “You can’t go about this fight without a very solid prayer life. … We are heartened to see how many of the ‘40 Days for Life’ events are at Planned Parenthood facilities. We need people praying in front of [abortion] clinics with signs as often as we can get them out there because it hurts their business and saves [babies’] lives. Having a peaceful, prayerful presence in front of Planned Parenthood [clinics] is one of the major things that are needed in the fight to end abortion.”

As part of their pro-abortion agenda, Sedlak said, Planned Parenthood provides sex education programs and confidential birth control services for minors to encourage them to participate in premarital sexual activity.

Nationally, Planned Parenthood clinics earn about $180 million a year from the sale of birth control products, he said, and about $118 million a year from their abortion business.

“People need to know the truth about abortion and Planned Parenthood,” he said. “You can fight Planned Parenthood. You can close their clinics and get them out of town. Planned Parenthood has all the money and we have God, so we have an unfair advantage and we’re going to win.” †