WASHINGTON — Evangelical Protestants have one. Women have one, and Hispanics have one. Now, Catholics have a national prayer breakfast to call their own.

More than 1,000 Catholics attended the inaugural National Catholic Prayer Breakfast held at the Renaissance Mayflower Hotel in Washington, D.C., April 28.

Prior to the event, host committee member Deal Hudson admitted his “expectations were low.”

Organizers were caught off guard by the overwhelming turnout. There was standing room only during the morning's rosary and Mass, which preceded the breakfast. During the breakfast itself, participants filled the ballroom's balcony and an overflow room, forcing attendees to watch the event on large video screens.

The event drew Catholics — lay and religious — from Washington and beyond. At least nine members of Congress were in attendance, as were participants from as far away as Canada, Russia and Costa Rica.

“At a time when there is a lot of confusion among Catholics about what we are to do, I saw this as an answer,” said Kari Beckman, a Catholic convert and home-schooling mother from Atlanta. She brought her 7-year-old son and 6-month-old daughter to the event while her husband, Rich, remained at home with their other four children.

“It was great to hear our representatives speak up for life,” she said.

The morning talks were peppered with spontaneous Hail Marys and prayers. Several politicians spoke of the role their Catholic faith plays in their lives.

“There has never been a finer time to be a faithful Catholic,” said Austin Ruse, vice president of the National Catholic Prayer Breakfast. “We are blessed to live in these troubled times because every one of us is needed.”

“This event has been too long in coming,” said Tommy Thompson, secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. Thompson read a greeting to participants from President Bush.

“I am proud to be a Catholic,” Thompson added.

Rep. Bart Stupak, D-Mich., told those gathered that his participation in the regular House prayer breakfast and in a Christian fellowship group has given him the strength to be a Catholic first and a Democrat second.

“It's difficult to walk in the light,” Stupak said. “If we walk in the light we will love one another … rich and poor, born and unborn.”

Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa., lamented the fact that “we are the most blessed country” yet “our hearts and souls are vacuous, empty of [God's] spirit.” He encouraged attendees to “get closer to God.”

“He is calling,” Santorum said. “Let me assure you. He is calling.”

Cardinal Avery Dulles gave the keynote address. In it, he called for a proper understanding of liberty, warning that “once freedom operates in a moral vacuum it becomes meaningless.”

Participants went away from the breakfast with a boost to live their faith publicly.

“We are advancing into a time when the distinction between ‘us’ and ‘them’ is becoming increasingly stark,” said Father Christopher Beaudet, a priest of the Archdiocese of St. Paul-Minneapolis. “It is important for we Catholics to gather as ‘us’ since the ‘them’ have already drawn their lines and have organized against the work of the Church. The forces of the culture of death have set themselves as enemies of the Church insofar as the Church perpetuates the saving mission of Christ and the spread of his gospel of life.”

Jared Leland saw the breakfast as an opportunity to “give the Church back its voice.” Leland works as an attorney with the Becket Fund for Religious Liberty. The Alexandria, Va.-based nonprofit sponsored a table at the breakfast.

Father Andrew Apostoli, a member of the Franciscan Friars of the Renewal, said he was inspired by the “tremendous enthusiasm of the people gathered” and described it as a “rallying experience.”

“The truth is the truth even if no one believes it,” Father Apostoli said. “People will go home encouraged by what they've heard.”

Beckman agreed. In fact, she used the opportunity to witness to a pro-abortion Catholic sitting outside the ballroom who asked what was taking place inside.

“I think this event is going to witness to a lot of people today,” Beckman said.

Breakfast's Genesis

The idea for the breakfast originally came to Joseph Cella late last summer.

“The call to establish a Catholic prayer breakfast struck me like a thunderclap,” said Cella, director of the Ave Maria List, a political action committee that supports pro-life candidates. “After considering the other long-standing prayer breakfasts, I felt called to firmly plant a flag for our faith. After all, we are the largest church in the country and the fastest growing.”

Cella approached Ruse, and Cardinal Anthony Bevilacqua, retired archbishop of Philadelphia, agreed to serve as the breakfast's ecclesiastical adviser.

“There is no political agenda,” Ruse explained. “The focus is to thank God for his blessings upon our Church and our land.” While the event was nonpartisan, only pro-life Catholics were invited to speak at the event.

“Like the Church itself, everyone is welcome,” Ruse said. “Also like the Church, everyone is welcome, but only a few get to talk through the microphone.”

“As Catholics in the New Evangelization, the breakfast is a new means of spreading the unambiguous truths of our faith,” Cella explained. “It is about prayer, fellowship and helping the poor and most vulnerable in our society.”

To that end, attendees made voluntary donations to support two charities. The donations, in addition to any money left after expenses for the breakfast, are going to New York's Sisters of Life and Pope John Paul II's private charity, Peter's Pence. Organizers estimated they raised approximately $100,000.

“The turnout shows that we will have legs for the future,” Cella said. “It is springtime for the Church in America.”

Tim Drake writes from St. Cloud, Minnesota.