{"id":211290,"date":"2026-04-27T15:47:33","date_gmt":"2026-04-27T15:47:33","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/211290\/"},"modified":"2026-04-27T15:47:33","modified_gmt":"2026-04-27T15:47:33","slug":"diocese-of-brooklyn-pro-vita-mass-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/211290\/","title":{"rendered":"Diocese of Brooklyn Pro Vita Mass 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

\t\t\t\t\"\"The Knights of Columbus Honor Guard leads the opening procession into the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph. The Knights work to promote a culture of life in the U.S. by providing assistance to expectant mothers and health clinics, leaders said. (Photo: Paula Katinas)<\/p>\n

PROSPECT HEIGHTS \u2014\u00a0Undaunted by\u00a0high\u00a0abortion rates\u00a0in the United States,\u00a0as well as a\u00a0new state\u00a0law\u00a0that allows\u00a0assisted suicide, pro-life supporters gathered\u00a0for the\u00a0diocese\u2019s\u00a0annual Pro Vita Mass on\u00a0April 26\u00a0to reaffirm their commitment to preserving life.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Bishop Robert Brennan\u00a0said\u00a0the gathering\u00a0at the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph<\/a>\u00a0was important because\u00a0it is centered on prayer.\u00a0\u201cIt\u2019s a moment where we stand for life, celebrate life, and pray for\u00a0respect for all life,\u201d\u00a0he\u00a0told\u00a0The\u00a0Tablet.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Bishop Brennan celebrated the Mass,\u00a0which\u00a0was sponsored by the Long Island Chapter of the Knights of Columbus<\/a>,\u00a0and noted\u00a0in his homily\u00a0that because God created human beings in his image,\u00a0there is no human life that is expendable.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

The Knights\u00a0are\u00a0steadfast in their\u00a0dedication\u00a0to life, said\u00a0the Knights\u2019 New York State Deputy\u00a0Gary\u00a0Leonardo.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThe\u00a0Knights are 100% committed to pro-life.\u00a0We\u00a0have to\u00a0make sure we get the message out there,\u201d\u00a0Leonardo\u00a0said, adding that the\u00a0Knights advocate\u00a0for life in many ways, including\u00a0raising money to pay for ultrasound machines.\u00a0He noted that the\u00a0Knights have provided more than\u00a01,500 ultrasound machines\u00a0to\u00a0health care centers\u00a0in New York.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

Father Michael\u00a0Gelfant,\u00a0associate chaplain for the New York State Council of the Knights, said\u00a0the\u00a0Pro Vita Mass\u00a0is more \u201cimportant than ever\u201d to protect the dignity of all life from conception until natural death. \u201cWe\u2019ve\u00a0always focused on the abortion issue,\u201d he said, \u201cbut now we have\u00a0assisted\u00a0suicide.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

RELATED: Pro Vita Mass Celebrates the Right To Life, Respecting All Its Stages<\/a><\/p>\n

According to the Guttmacher Institute, a pro-abortion organization, there were\u00a01.26 million\u00a0abortions in\u00a0the U.S.\u00a0in\u00a02025,\u00a0a number that\u00a0remained\u00a0relatively unchanged\u00a0from previous years\u00a0despite the overturning of Roe\u00a0v. Wade in 2022.\u00a0<\/p>\n

New York State\u2019s\u00a0new law\u00a0permitting\u00a0assisted suicide for the terminally ill\u00a0was on the minds of those at the Mass.\u00a0The\u00a0statute, called the Medical Aid in Dying Act<\/a>, was signed into law by Gov. Kathy Hochul in\u00a0February. The\u00a0law is proof that the pro-life community is fighting on two fronts, Father\u00a0Gelfant\u00a0said.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWhen you think you\u2019re getting relief on one end, another part of this evilness rears its ugly head,\u201d\u00a0he added.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Photos: Johnathan Paul Tigsi Lituma and Paula Katinas<\/p>\n

However, there is hope that reinforcements are coming to\u00a0aid the pro-life movement,\u00a0according to Mass attendees, with\u00a0many highlighting the increase in\u00a0the number of\u00a0people\u00a0who were\u00a0fully\u00a0initiated\u00a0into the Church this past\u00a0Easter.\u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n

According to an analysis by the creators of the\u00a0prayer and meditation app,\u00a0Hallow, the U.S. Church saw a 38% increase in the\u00a0number of people becoming Catholic in 2026 as compared to 2025.\u00a0The Diocese of Brooklyn\u00a0fully\u00a0initiated\u00a01,288 people \u2014 including 683 catechumens and 605 candidates \u2014 into the faith, according to figures from the\u00a0Secretariat for Evangelization and Catechesis.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Nancy Cardinale, an usher at the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph, said she hopes the influx will lead to more Catholics joining the pro-life cause.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cThere are a lot of young people coming to Mass now,\u201d she said, \u201cand it\u2019s very important that they understand the importance of life.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

Rewards were presented to those who have dedicated themselves to protecting the sanctity of life.\u00a0Father Patrick Keating\u00a0was\u00a0awarded\u00a0the\u00a0Father Michael J. McGivney Medal for Life. The Bishop Thomas Daily Pro Vita Award winners\u00a0were\u00a0Deacon James\u00a0J.\u00a0Giorgio\u00a0(Kings County) and Boris Musich (Queens County).\u00a0<\/p>\n

The\u00a0Pro Vita Mass, which\u00a0has become a tradition within the Church, is\u00a0often celebrated\u00a0in January around the time of the National March for Life.\u00a0The diocese originally\u00a0scheduled\u00a0the Mass for Jan.\u00a025\u00a0at the Cathedral Basilica of St. James<\/a> in Downtown Brooklyn,\u00a0but\u00a0a\u00a0snowstorm\u00a0forced its rescheduling\u00a0to April. In addition, the venue had to be changed\u00a0to the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph in\u00a0Prospect Heights due to the Brooklyn Half-Marathon and\u00a0the traffic detours the race\u00a0created.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Despite the scheduling issues, the Knights were determined to move forward with the Mass\u00a0and promote the pro-life cause,\u00a0according to\u00a0Paul\u00a0Eggert,\u00a0chairman\u00a0of the Long Island\u00a0chapter\u00a0\u2014\u00a0\u201cYou can\u2019t stop us.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

2026 HONOREES<\/p>\n

Dedicated to the Right To Life:\u00a0Father Keating<\/p>\n

Bishop Thomas Vose Daly Pro Vita Award, Brooklyn: Deacon James Giorgio<\/p>\n

Bishop Thomas Vose Daly Pro Vita Award, Queens: Sir Knight Boris Musich<\/p>\n

The Knights of Columbus also presented Bishop Brennan with a check for $10,000.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"The Knights of Columbus Honor Guard leads the opening procession into the Co-Cathedral of St. Joseph. The Knights…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":211291,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[36],"tags":[98,100,99,9,24,63],"class_list":["post-211290","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-brooklyn","tag-brooklyn","tag-brooklyn-headlines","tag-brooklyn-news","tag-new-york","tag-new-york-city","tag-nyc"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/211290","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=211290"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/211290\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/211291"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=211290"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=211290"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-ny\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=211290"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}