CEREMONY TO HONOR UNBORN : KNIGHTS OF COLUMBUS WILL DEDICATE SHRINE.Byline: Terry Kanakri Daily News Staff Writer The Simi Valley Simi Valley (sē`mē, sĭm`ē), city (1990 pop. 100,217), Ventura co., SW Calif. in an oil, fruit, and farm region; laid out 1887, inc. 1969. Chapter of the Knights of Columbus Knights of Columbus, American Roman Catholic society for men, founded (1882) at New Haven, Conn. (where its headquarters are still located), by Father Michael J. McGivney. is inviting the public to a dedication ceremony for a shrine to the unborn today at Assumption Catholic Cemetery. Members said they hope the statue will become a public reminder of the sanctity of life. ``The shrine stands for the unborn, that they should be allowed to stay alive and be able to live like the rest of us,'' said Grand Knight Al McKinley of Council 5803. The Knights of Columbus of Ventura County, a Catholic fraternal fraternal /fra·ter·nal/ (frah-ter´n'l) 1. of or pertaining to brothers. 2. of twins; derived from two oocytes. fra·ter·nal adj. 1. Of or relating to brothers. organization, donated the shrine to the Assumption Cemetery on 1380 Fitzgerald Road about a year and a half ago to honor the right to life. The shrine, however, has never been dedicated, and a ceremony to officially dedicate ded·i·cate tr.v. ded·i·cat·ed, ded·i·cat·ing, ded·i·cates 1. To set apart for a deity or for religious purposes; consecrate. 2. it will be open to the public at 2 p.m. Regional Bishop Thomas Curry, who oversees Ventura and Santa Barbara Santa Barbara (săn'tə bär`brə, –bərə), city (1990 pop. 85,571), seat of Santa Barbara co., S Calif., on the Pacific Ocean; inc. 1850. counties, will perform the dedication. The dedication ceremony is expected to last less than an hour, and refreshments re·fresh·ment n. 1. The act of refreshing or the state of being refreshed. 2. Something, such as food or drink, that refreshes. 3. refreshments A snack or light meal and drinks. will be served following the ceremony. The shrine consists of a four-foot white marble statue of Rachel, representing mothers, holding a child in her arms on top of a 3-1/2-foot-high black marble base. The statue was made in Rome. Jack Scroggins, a grand knight at Council 9410 and a family counselor at Assumption Cemetery, said the event is important to many Catholics in Simi Valley and across Ventura County. ``I'm sure there are Catholics who believe in abortion, but the majority of Catholics don't,'' he said. ``We're dedicating the shrine because abortion is totally against our religion.'' McKinley said honoring the right to life has special meaning for him. Unable to have children of his own, McKinley said he was able to adopt two children, who would not be alive today had their mother chosen abortion. ``I never possibly would have been able to have the children that I had, and that's why I think abortion is wrong,'' he said. CAPTION(S): Photo Photo: (Simi edition only) Grounds keeper Joe Flores Flores, town, Guatemala Flores (flōrəs), town (1990 est. pop. 2,200), capital of Petén department, N Guatemala. Flores was built on an island in the southern part of Lake Petén Itzá and on the site of the cleans off the Shrine to the Unborn at Assumption Cemetery in Simi Valley. Andy Holzman/Special to the Daily News |
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