For decades, local Catholics had maintained a prayerful presence outside an abortion clinic in Rockford, Illinois, but the clinic remained open.
According to Kevin Rilott of the Rockford Pro-Life Initiative, the tide began to turn in 2009 when Bishop Thomas Doran granted priests permission to recite prayers of exorcism outside the Northern Illinois Women’s Center. At times, four priests would stand outside the four corners of the building and recite the prayers together.
“Within two to three weeks of priests saying these prayers, the number of abortions began to drop,” said Rilott. “Over a few months, the number of abortions was cut in half and the numbers of women seeking our help probably doubled. The clinic, which had been performing 25-75 abortions a week for years, also reduced its days of business from three to two.”
In late 2011, the State of Illinois temporarily suspended the clinic’s license; in January, the clinic announced that it would not reopen its doors.