Thomas McKenna, president of Catholic Action for Faith and Family, addressing the crowd

A large crowd of people gathered on Sunday, May 17, outside the San Diego County Administration Building for a “Choose Life!” rally. The rally was scheduled to coincide with President Barack Obama’s commencement speech at Notre Dame University. Event organizers said the official crowd estimate by San Diego police was 1100.

It was very inspiring to see so many people gathered together giving witness to the right to life of the unborn in our country. There was great enthusiasm in the crowd as the speakers addressed many aspects of the pro-life effort.

Speakers included the Rev. Walter Hoye, a Baptist minister who was recently jailed for violating Oakland’s so-called “bubble ordinance,” and UCLA student Lila Rose, who has spearheaded a series of undercover investigations that have exposed Planned Parenthood cover-ups of statutory rape laws in various states across the country. Pastor Jim Garlow of Skyline Church, who helped organize the event, Pastor David Jeremiah of Shadow Mountain Community Church and Host of The Turning Point, were also featured speakers at the event.

Among the notable Catholics participating in the rally were attorney Chuck Limandri, West Coast director of the Thomas More Law Center, Dr. George Delgado of Culture of Life Family Services, Leslie Brunolli, San Diego coordinator of Silent No More, and Fr. Nabil Mouaness of St. Ephrem Church in El Cajon and Thomas McKenna of Catholic Action for Faith and Family

Below are a few excerpts of  Thomas McKenna’s address on behalf of Catholic Action for Faith and Family:

Today we come together to protest the pro-abortion position of our current Administration. And sadly, for many of us as Catholics, to protest and publicly decry the fact that the most pro-abortion president in the history of our country is speaking at the commencement ceremony at Notre Dame University and receiving an honorary doctorate degree.

This is a scandal of the greatest proportions and an outrage to us as Catholics.

We Catholics are here today to stand with all of you of different denominations, to give witness and be a voice for the unborn.

We are here today to make a statement against relativism. We are here to say and show that we care more for principles than prestige. We are called to give witness to the Culture of Life in America.

Last week a new Gallup Poll was released for the first time finds that a slight majority of Americans now call themselves "pro-life" regarding abortion. The poll also shows that a majority of Catholics once again consider themselves pro-life while the number of Americans who think abortion should be legal "under any circumstances" has declined. It reported that 51 percent of Americans now call themselves "pro-life," while only 42 percent call themselves "pro-choice."

So there is hope on the horizon. We must always remember that we are inspired to what is right because we have our faith and we believe in God. No matter what society tries to tell us. We see the increasing expulsion of the Faith from the public square in America. We see activist judges and opportunistic legislators who are placing marriage and same-sex unions on the same footing. We see many new appointments of notoriously “pro-choice” officials who favor abortion on demand and American funding of this “slaughter of innocents” in foreign countries.

This should only serve to raise our indignation and inspire us to redouble our efforts to stand up for God Rights. Yes, these are not our laws that we are fighting for. They are God’s Laws and we should never let anyone forget that!

He who created us, governs us. And to those who have strayed and want to convince others to follow, we stand together as people of Faith and shout NO.

I close with a saying that the founder of the Jesuit order, St. Ignatius of Loyola, used to tell his followers, and that I have always found inspiring. I would like to leave you with this thought today as we continue to carry out our peaceful and legal fight for the right-to-life of the unborn.

“We must work as though everything depends on us. But pray as though everything depends on God.”