One of the most fascinating aspects of the development of the “Day of the Unborn Child” is that the impetus for it seemed to self-generate naturally in the various pro-life communities of many nations, with no international organization or communication. As stated in the March 2004 WNY Catholic, “a growing number of people, independently of each other, have experienced insight concerning the significance of March 25 in promoting a ‘Culture of Life.’”
Father Frank Pavone, director of Priests for Life, said that when he worked at the Vatican’s Pontifical Council for the Family, he often heard pro-life leaders from around the world stress the importance of the Incarnation as a pro-life symbol and the need to give the feast of March 25th more emphasis in church celebrations. Dr. John Willke, well known as the former president of the premier U.S. pro-life organization National Right to Life Committee, shares this view. Willke wrote and distributes a brochure titled “Mary’s Pregnancy” that sheds light on the significance of Christ’s conception.
In 1998, Argentina became the first nation to officially recognize the feast as a secular memorial for the unborn--President Carlos Menem declared March 25 as the Day of the Unborn. The establishment of the day as a pro-life memorial elicited a particularly noteworthy response from Pope John Paul II who wrote to Menem expressing the hope that "the celebration of the 'Day of the Unborn' foster a positive choice in favor of life and the development of a culture oriented in this direction, which will ensure the promotion of human dignity in all situations." (Zenit 3/25/03).
Since then, many countries, with those in Central and South America leading the way, have established an official memorial for unborn children--most often choosing the March 25th feast of the Annunciation for the date of the observance. In other countries the legislation is being introduced or under consideration. In 2002, Peru's Congress declared March 25 the “Day of the Unborn” -- officially by Law No. 27654. Previously in 2001, Peru’s Roman Catholic bishops had announced that the March 25 feast of the Annunciation would be celebrated as the "Day of the Unborn." -- read more here. More recently, in 2006 the day was given official recognition in Ecuador by Presidential Decree No. 1441.
Individual organizations have also endorsed the Annunciation feast date as a day of pro-life remembrance and activism. In August of 2002, the Knights of Columbus passed a resolution at their Supreme Convention proclaiming, Orderwide, the March 25th Feast of the Annunciation to be the International Day of the Unborn Child; the Supreme Knight's statement on the occasion read: "May this day be the occasion for all of us to witness to the sanctity of God’s great gift of life and to further resolve to protect and defend it." Since then the Knights of Columbus have undertaken a wide sweeping organized effort to promote the feast as the "Day of the Unborn Child," and their website offers many recommendations and materials for its observance as such on their Day of the Unborn webpage.
Also in 2002, Priests For Life with two other prominent
pro-life apostolates (Human Life International, and the Missionary Image of Our
Lady of Guadalupe) issued a joint statement entitled "The Annunciation: A Feast of Life"
encouraging special celebration of the feast as marking the moment the
Incarnation took place, with special emphasis given to pro-life observances on
the day -- the web page also lists over 75 leaders of various organizations who
have added their names to the statement.
Priests for Life further urged believers to honor the March 25th feast
specifically as the "Day of the Unborn Child" on its "Celebrate
the Annunciation" webpage.
In addition to Central and South America, the Philippines instituted March 25 as “The Day of the Unborn” through Presidential Proclamation 586 in 2004.
In Spain the March 25th pro-life day of remembrance has been promoted as the "International Day for Life" with a broadened scope embracing other vulnerable classes targeted by the culture of death -- these efforts include opposition to euthanasia and embryo experimentation that complement the initiatives to end abortion. Read more about the March 25th "International Day for Life" here.
American Life League also began promoting the pro-life
aspects of the Annunciation feast, offering suggestions for its celebration and
advocating its adoption as an official "Day of the Preborn." To further these efforts, in 2007 the
organization announced a year-long
campaign collecting online
petitions via its DayOfThePreborn.com site to have March 25th declared
"The Day of the Preborn" by the President of the United States. To read
more about ALL's emphasis on the importance of the feast of Christ's
conception search
for the term Annunciation via their website search box.
To reinforce the connection between the feasts of the
Annunciation and Christmas, some organizations that have been participating in
the March 25th "Day of the Unborn Child" have started initiatives to
have pro-life activities every 25th of the month -- for example veladas25.org (click here for English translation of the site) -- often with special
emphasis on the nine months between March 25 and December 25. Read more at the veladas25.org page for this effort (click for English translation), or here for additional information from the site (click for English translation). (For ideas on starting a "25th of the Month Club" click
here.)
A partial list of countries that officially recognize the day can be found at the site for Human Life International’s Hispanic Division -- http://www.vidahumana.org/dia/dia_index.html (the web page also includes a link to a Spanish language article about the adoption of the Day of the Unborn in various countries). Click here for an updated 2008 list, and additional details on these and other countries’ establishment of this day as an official observance can be found at http://www.zenit.org/article-15596?l=english. A history of these efforts including the initiative to broaden the March 25th "Day of the Unborn Child" to a "Life Day" that includes all "culture of death" offenses against vulnerable human life can be found at sialavida25m.org (click here to produce an English translation).
Check the site for updates on the latest countries to adopt March 25 as a Day of the Unborn.