(NEBRASKA CITY) SNR – The Diocese of Lincoln officially launched Walking with Moms in Need March 25, the feast of the Annunciation.
The program, designed by the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB), seeks to offer the support of a loving community to women who find themselves in real and difficult situations. As America enters into a post-Roe reality, many Catholic parishes are stepping up to do the works of mercy.
“It is no accident that we chose the feast of the Annunciation to begin this program,” Bishop James Conley said. “Mary’s pregnancy and the situation surrounding it almost certainly brought surprise. There was great potential for scandal and dire consequences. It is my fervent prayer that the good people of our diocese imitate Joseph and the rest of Our Lady’s community and walk with her and assist her on the road to new life.”
The program calls for parishes to have a coordinator and a committee. Together they would begin with an inventory assessment of what services are available in their community and what needs still need to be met within that community. Many well-known services already exist and can be found at www.lincolndiocese.org/moms.
Another important goal of the program, once the inventory has been completed, is to educate the rest of the parish on what they have discovered, what else is needed, and how all members can walk with moms.
“These circumstances are more often known to the laity. You know them from your neighborhoods, your places of work or sitting near you in the pews” Conley said. “I truly want to equip our people to be ready when they are approached. This is an opportunity to be the joyful and comforting face of Jesus.”
In Otoe County, parishes have banded together to seek to offer each other support for the mission. The parishes include St. Mary and St. Benedict in Nebraska City, St. Joseph in Paul, St. Bernard in Julian, St. Leo in Palmyra, St. Martin in Douglas, St. Paulinus in Syracuse and Holy Trinity in Avoca (in Cass County).
Dotti Easter is the committee coordinator and was inspired when she toured the Women’s Care Center in Lincoln.
“The work they are doing there is the work that Jesus asks us to do,” she said.
As they began the work of assessing what resources were available to their own community, there were many ideas. Included in that was the idea of perhaps creating their own pregnancy center.
“As we really dug into that, we realized that we are not far from incredible places already doing the work,” Easter said.
They recognized there was already a community navigator in Otoe County, but what the group needed was diapers, wipes and formula to provide.
Along with transportation to pregnancy help centers like the Women’s Care Center the other big need that was diagnosed was daycare.
This illustrated the work that lies ahead. The parishes plan to rotate filling up the diaper pantry. They are also beginning to tackle the idea of how to put together an infrastructure plan for moms in need of child care, but as yet don’t have the means.
“We take a lot of guidance from the first letter of St. Peter,” Easter said. “First he tells us ‘always be ready to give an explanation to anyone who asks you for a reason for your hope’ (1 Peter 3:15). We all have a chance to be joyful messengers of the love of God! Walking with Moms in Need is such a great vehicle for us to live a fully Christian life.”
Easter again referred to St. Peter’s first letter, saying it tells them how to go about the work: “Be hospitable to one another without complaining. As each one has received a gift, use it to serve one another as good stewards of God’s varied grace.” (1 Peter 4:9-10)
Jeff Schinstock, director of pro-life activities for the Diocese of Lincoln, said every parish in the diocese is in the beginning stages of Walking with Moms in Need.
“If you hear the voice of the Lord pulling you in this direction, reach out to your pastor and ask how you can help,” he said. “So many in our communities are waiting to be released from fear and brought to hope. Each of us as Catholics are called to be missionary as the Church is. We must seek those in need and bring to them the joy of Christ.”
