Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone of San Francisco is inviting the faithful to join him in praying a rosary for peace on Election Day.
“At 12:30 pm on election day, please join me to pray a rosary for peace,” he invited on Twitter Sunday. “Let us ask Our Lady’s intercession with the Prince of Peace, who suffered much violence for peace in our day, and eternal peace.”
Catholics can participate in the virtual Rosary through the Archdiocese of San Francisco’s YouTube page, where it will be streamed live at 12:30 p.m. PST, or 3:30pm EST, on Nov. 8.
“As Americans participate in the electoral process and with political violence on the rise, we will pray for peace in our country,” the archdiocesan event page reads.
The page also features an image of Our Lady of Guadalupe, patroness of the Americas and the unborn.
California is one of five states that will vote on abortion during the midterm elections. On Election Day, citizens in that state will vote on Proposition 1, which would amend the California Constitution to explicitly protect abortion. Archbishop Cordileone has repeatedly encouraged voters to say “No” to the abortion measure, as has the California Catholic Conference.
“Proposition 1 is a worst-case scenario for abortion in California,” the group warns. “It is an expensive and misleading ballot measure that allows unlimited late-term abortions — for any reason, at any time, even moments before birth, paid for by tax dollars.”
California currently allows abortion for any reason before viability, when a baby can survive outside the womb — generally considered to begin around 24 weeks of pregnancy. After viability, California allows abortion when a woman’s life or health is threatened.