Join Father Andre and Father Frank Pavone as they take you on a spiritual journey through the missions of hope, mercy, and pro-life advocacy. From the harrowing story of Father Andre’s childhood escape from violence in Lebanon to his current work in bringing mercy to conflict zones, this episode is a testament to the transformative power of love and faith. Father Frank Pavone shares thoughts on the pro-life movement’s key achievements in 2025 and plans for changing hearts and minds in 2026.
00:00:05 Introduction of Father Andre and His Mission
At age 10, Father Andre escaped Christian massacres by living in caves in Mount Lebanon with his family. Today, Father Andre works tirelessly to encourage American leaders to keep God in the public square, defending religious freedom at home and abroad, so that all might live in peace for the glory of God. Founder and President of the Mission of Hope and Mercy, Father Andre has learned the secret to safety, joy, and peace. Love God and one another. Now, let us spend 33 minutes on the Lord’s Day, retuning ourselves to the truth of love in the hands of God.
SPEAKER 01 :
Greetings. This message is brought to you by Father Andre Mahana, President of Mission of Hope and Mercy. My dear brothers and sisters in Christ, a few days ago, the bombs fell again on South Lebanon. Last Christmas, like this time, under similar circumstances, we took the Christ child’s gifts with us anyway. We loaded the trucks with food, boxes, with mattresses, with bottles of water, and with the Christmas presents wrapped in the joy of the Nativity. And we drove straight into the villages where the missiles were still passing over our heads. We gave everything in the name of Jesus. On your behalf. And I saw the gospel of hope, of peace, of life and salvation come alive. The hungry were fed, the naked were clothed, the homeless were given rest, and children felt happy and rejoiced. In the very places of war and disruption of peace, the light of Bethlehem shone. I know that light from my own childhood, for during the war in Lebanon, my family became refugees in a cave. I was nine years old. Hunger gnawed not only at the body, but at the soul. I remember searching the school trash cans with my friends as the nun told us to pick out half-eaten sandwiches, brushing them off the dirt, and thanking God for every crumb. I remember the day we walked five hours to fill blue gallons of water from a fountain near Byblos. On the way back to the cave, Syrian jets struck. We fell into the creek as the earth shook, and every precious drop was lost, and we got injured. That frightened little boy hiding in the dark is still inside this priest yet with courage and resolve. That is why when I place a box of food into a mother’s trembling hands beneath the sound of bombs, when I give a child a Christmas gift in a village that has nothing left, I am bringing to them on your behalf the same mercy I once begged Jesus and the Virgin Mary to send me and my family. This is a mission of hope and mercy, to be the hands of Christ where the cross is heaviest, to carry the infant Jesus in our trucks right into the places that most resemble the stable of Bethlehem, poor, cold, rejected, and under threat. This Christmas, I beg you in the name of our Lord and Our Lady, who once fled into exile with her child, help us return again and again to Lebanon, to the south. Every dollar you give becomes an act of mercy that will be counted on the last day. Remember what Jesus said, I was hungry and you fed me. I was a stranger and you welcomed me. Your gift today is a Christmas offering laid at the manger for the suffering members of Christ’s body in the fullness of hope. Do not let these families face another night without help. Right now, today, please go to missionofhopeandmercy.org and go to the donation page and make the most generous gift you possibly can. A $35 feeds a family for an entire week. A $75 buys a blanket or a mattress so a child does not sleep on a cold ground. A $150 sends a full Christmas box food for the feast and gifts that tell child Merry Christmas. Jesus sees you and is with you. From the land where I once huddled in a cave, from the very villages that now receive the light of Christmas under fire, I wish you all a blessed and a holy season of Advent and a Merry Christmas. May the infant Jesus who was born in danger and poverty repay you a hundredfold forever. Praise be the most holy name of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, now and forever and ever. Amen. Christ is born to us. Hallelujah. Happy New Year. And as we say in colloquial Lebanese, the greeting for the feast day of Epiphany of our Lord, may it be always and always. Referring to the presence of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ. Referring to his holy baptism at the River Jordan at the hand of John the Baptist. Referring to the manifestation of the Holy Trinity at the time in which our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ was being baptized, where the Holy Spirit appeared in the form of a dove and hovered and remained on the sun, and where the voice of God the Father thundered from heaven, this is my beloved Son in whom I am well pleased. Also, the 2026 is a year in which the Holy Church has closed the doors of the Jubilee year, declaring that we have entered now into the second quarter of a 100-year march, a 100-year pilgrimage, all the way defining the 21st century. Reflecting on 2025 and doing our hopes and our aspirations and prayers for 2026 was the last subject with which we met with you in Irrevocable Father Andre, Father Altman, and Mother Miriam, when we discussed with you our hopes, our aspirations, and of course the anxiety and fear that we have, and of course the experiences of 2025, a very unique year. But there is nothing better to start the 2026 more than hosting Father Frank Pavone with us, Graceful Lives, to bring to you the message of hope where God the Father, where our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ and the Holy Spirit is telling every child yet to be born in the womb of their mother. From conception, I have known you. I have called you by name. God defined our existence and God chose that we come to existence. And in such a way, today, we want to listen carefully to the message of Fr. Frank Pavone, to the plans for 2026, for the pro-life movement, how we’re going to expand as much as possible, as wide as possible, that voice of God the Father. and the coming of the Holy Spirit, and the image of the baptism of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, to reach every mother, to reach every father, to reach every child, so they all know, you are my beloved son, you are my beloved daughter, in whom I am well pleased. Without further delay, and due to the restriction of time, I want to thank all our contributors, benefactors, and friends and sponsors of Irrevocable, with Fr. Andre and Fr. Pavone on this beautiful day in which we share with you the message for the pro-life. So, you also embark on special activities. Put them on your calendar to know what are the various activities you need to be informed about, you need to support in a prayer forum or in a March for Life, and what else is on the agenda of Fr. Frank for us for this year. That we soldier up, we act as apostles of divine assistance to support every suffering mother in the world. to support every child that is being conceived, that they come into this world safe, sound. And I pray they will be baptized and the choice for their faith to be as Christian. Father Frank, I want to wish you a wonderful and happy and blessed year as well. Good morning to you.
SPEAKER 03 :
Good morning, Father. Yes, thank you. The same to you. And it is a year that it starts off very strong for pro-life because in January, like every year, we have the two largest pro-life events in all the country and in fact in the world coming up. The March for Life in Washington. and this and the walk for life west coast in san francisco uh now i and my team are involved in planning six different events associated with four of them associated in in washington with the march for life and two of them in san francisco so today as we as we speak i want to invite our audience to either come to those events if that’s possible or to follow online with those events that are coming up next week. And we can explain each of them, but people will find all of them on ProLifeMarch.org. And I know that the different information is also being shared on the screen. ProLifeMarch.org will be their guide to these events we are organizing. And Father, when you think about it, as we will see in our discussion, these events touch on all the major aspects of the pro-life movement, starting with prayer and also moving into protest, Planned Parenthood, politics, and also the healing after abortion. Our events touch on all these different areas. So I think people will be very excited about what’s coming up next week.
SPEAKER 01 :
These two events are coming very quickly, but they’re coming amidst the transformational changes in politics and in the world of art, in the world of movies as well. We have many stars who are converted before they die. Today, I believe one of the actors unfortunately passed away, but a month before his death, he has chosen Christianity to be his faith. He’s one of the cartoon’s main players, Scott, if I’m not mistaken. And also, you have a particular star coming from The Chosen to be a star speaker in one of your marches as well. And then we’ll see how this administration under President Trump and Vice President J.D. Vance have been sending clear messages to the world about pro-life, have been sending clear messages to the world about that the choice of America is to stand for life. Any comments if you think about what is causing these type of conversions? I mean, The Chosen is a huge big series picked in Jesus Christ’s life and his relationship to the world, his apostles, his teaching, a new way to look at the gospel. And you have a special guest, the speaker, Lichi Ariza, who played the role of Jedera as a Sadducee, basically in Jerusalem. He had visited you in October, and now he’s going to be your guest at the 31st Annual National Prayer Service as well. What has happened with these wonderful stars and politicians? Are they really encountering God through the pro-lifes?
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, I think Lice will certainly have a lot to say about that at the National Prayer Service. You’re showing it now on the screen. That’s going to be on the morning of January 23rd. That is a week from Friday. And that’s the National Prayer Service prior to the March for Life. So Lice says, you know, there’s a thirst. He first, before he connected with me, He was seeking spiritual direction as he did his work in acting, and he was dissatisfied. I think as many people are, there’s a loyalty to the faith, there’s a loyalty to the church. And yet a lot of people, as they make their journey, are dissatisfied with the kind of spiritual leadership that they see. And I think that that reflects a thirst for authenticity, courage, clarity. I think that’s what you and I both try to provide in our broadcasts and the other kind of guests that you have on and that I have on. do the same thing. I think that’s what people draw, but draws people to them that they don’t want double speak. They don’t want beating around the bush. They don’t want what they get from many politicians, which is there was a lot of words, but at the end of it, you don’t know what they said. And when you do understand what they said, you know, it’s more, I don’t know, like just feel good storytelling instead of really helping them to understand the meaning of their lives and their sufferings, and to challenge them to change in specific ways to correspond their lives to the gospel. When people arise who are doing this, people come. And when leaders arise, like in politics with President Trump, I think one of the differences with him versus other politicians is that he does speak clearly. He speaks the way that many Americans are speaking in their living room, in their kitchen, you know, when they’re among friends, like-minded friends. And he speaks a language that helps people realize he understands things the way we do. And it’s the same thing with, you know, many of these entertainers. They They’re tired of the culture of compromise and of sin that they often see in the circles where they may be traveling. And they want that authentic discipleship.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, to your clear efforts, obviously, and thank you for what you have suffered from. Thank you for the pain of your late mother as well, who I know she was one of the successors who suffered and supported you and your stand for life. It seems you really needed and created a balanced position in the administration, in U.S. administration. But whether it is on the Hill, in the Congress, in the Senate, where the gentlemen and the ladies are serving as public servants in our nation, they can no longer ignore the pro-life. They have to deal with it. That’s right. Through the political pragmatism or through a clear moral standard. In the case of our president, President Trump, while he was clearly for the pro-life, and then we could see that in 2025, 2026, he’s a little bit shifting to a political pragmatism. But does this change that his initial position, his moral position, is still 100% pro-life? What do you think is, will he be attending or will… Vice President J.D. Vance be attending, you think, this year as well? Because we’ve seen them attending more and more. And this has been a boost of hope for populations in the United States every time in the March for Life.
SPEAKER 03 :
Yeah. Yeah. No, I have no doubt about President Trump’s commitment to this. You know, he… i think people make too much of some of the off-the-cuff comments that he makes uh because you know he he he speaks what’s on his mind and and we know that there’s uh you know a tendency to you know sometimes he’ll speak very, very boldly and strongly about something. But a speech off the cuff is not the same as a setting of policy and a pursuit of exactly where we have to be on these issues. So I’m not at all concerned about that. He is… going to be remembered as as the most pro-life president that we’ve had precisely because what he’s done for our mission so so like you know uh we will March next week in in Washington we will March in San Francisco the next day and uh the very freedom to do that uh is being strengthened by President Trump yeah we don’t I always say to people I don’t need him to give my pro-life speeches I’ll give the speeches, the other pro-life leaders, you and I and others will give the speeches articulating the clear principles, the uncompromising stand that we have to take about the right to life. That’s not his job. His job is to protect our freedom to do that, to protect our freedom to preach and to march and to vote, to protect our elections. If our elections are not free and fair, How can we advance the pro-life cause? And so there’s so many things that he has done, which are really building the infrastructure to the very movement that we are all involved in and concerned about. One of the things, too, Father, as you know, is the is the you made quick reference to it. You know, these policies. That have to do with the funding of abortion. Of course, this is a big problem in Colorado. They put it even in the Constitution, as you know, about the funding of abortion. But it’s it’s it’s it’s it has come up, like you said earlier, the issue has become impossible to ignore. And with the current debates in Congress about the health care. The question of funding abortion has once again come up front and center. Now, one of the reasons it’s come up is that the Democrats are so extreme on this that they want to. There’s not an abortion that they don’t want to fund no matter how late in the pregnancy it is. But it also comes up because it continues to be the position of a majority of the American people that they don’t want their money used for the killing of babies. At one of our events that, again, ProLifeMarch.org people will find is that we’re going to start on Thursday, the 22nd. Now, that’s the actual anniversary of Roe v. Wade. On Thursday the 22nd, we’re going to pray in front of Planned Parenthood in Washington, D.C. And there will be various pro-life leaders giving speeches. We will lead prayers. We will have songs. We will have many students there. We will have people who have had abortions. But one of the themes we’re going to hit very hard is about this funding of Planned Parenthood, funding of abortion. The big, beautiful bill, which President Trump signed into law back on the 4th of July, uh has been a blessing and a victory because it turned off one of the biggest streams of funding going into the abortion industry but we’ve got to keep working to make that permanent so that’s going to be you know that’s why I’m so excited about all these events because it’s going to be a chance for the pro-life movement from all parts of the country to really emphasize our message. The media, you know, pays a little bit more attention to this issue at this time of the year. So we have to be sure that we show up and show us not just that we’re coming together, but that we’re coming together in great numbers. and with great conviction. Vice President Vance, of course, has come to the march as has President Trump in the past. I know that they both have the willingness to support this movement, and we’ll see that hopefully the schedules that they have and the demands upon them will allow perhaps at least the vice president to come. But the March for Life is working that out together with their staff.
SPEAKER 01 :
Well, we are seeing the 2026 March for Life Washington, D.C. Father Frank has shared with you the ProLifeMarch.org, the ProLifeMarch.org, where you can find all the information. Father Frank, I’d like to go into a little bit of the details again of your schedule. On Thursday, January 22nd, From 9 to 10.30 a.m., the prayer and protest at Planned Parenthood Killing Center, 1225 4th Street, Northeast Washington, D.C. Are these events also being available online? Like, will they be streamed online? Will people be able to participate? Thursday, January 22nd at noon to 1 p.m., the prayers and remembering the victims Roe versus Wade, which is the actual anniversary of turning Roe versus Wade in front of the Supreme Court, which I had the privilege to participate with you in it last year as well. Oh, yes. The Friday, January 23rd at 830 to 10 a.m. National Pray Service at Dark Constitution Hall sponsored by Priests for Life and the National Pro-Life. Do you invite the coalitions from the various states? I know every state has almost a pro-life office. You know, Colorado has a pro-life Colorado. Florida has a pro-life Colorado. How do you send out the news? Do you send them invitations and they all come? How are these events organized and will they be available to be streamed online?
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, there will be various outlets there at these events, various media outlets, and some of them will stream it. Others will record it and post it later. That’s what we will do. But at my social media, at FRFrankPavone, on all the major platforms, we will be giving live updates as these events unfold, then giving people the link later on to the edited video where they can really experience the full event. So at FR Frank Pavone, if people tune in, if they cannot be there in person, they’ll see what’s going on for sure. And then we will give them links to the recordings. So yeah, and you mentioned that these different coalitions all through the year, actually, we communicate with not only the national pro-life groups. In fact, we bring them together for leadership meetings, but also the state groups too. So we send out communications to them in various ways uh electronically and through the postal mail and and in the leaders meetings that we have throughout the year so they’re very aware of the events and um and they will often have representatives at our events because so many pro-life people come to washington during these days but you know father the other thing about it is it’s you know people think about the march itself of course that’s the primary event But it’s a kaleidoscope of events because there are so many different groups. There are actually dozens of events going on. As I mentioned, you know, we organize six of those events, but there are literally dozens and some big, some small, you know, side groups. There’s conferences, there’s seminars. there’s different prayer events there’s banquets and luncheons and breakfasts and church services it’s just that unbelievable amount of activity you know in those two days in washington thursday and friday 22nd 23rd but then again then the next day Out on the West Coast, similar cluster of activities occurs, and we will do the same thing. We’ll have a Planned Parenthood protest out in San Francisco on Saturday morning, the 24th, and then we will have a silent no more gathering. Now, we didn’t talk much about that. That’s another dimension. We can get into that. But the people who have had abortions giving their their their testimonies, we will do that in San Francisco as well as in front of the Supreme Court in Washington. So it’s a cluster of events, but it is well represented with people from coast to coast will be at all these events. And it’s always so beautiful to be able to. It’s like a family reunion to see all the people. Of course, when we’re out in San Francisco and that’s showing on the screen right now, you know, mostly we see the people from the western half of the United States. And as the schedule indicates there, Saturday morning, eight o’clock is the Planned Parenthood protest on Bush Street in San Francisco. And then I go over to the cathedral and it’s kind of become a habit where I greet the people as they’re arriving for the big mass for life, which my friend, the Archbishop of San Francisco, celebrates Archbishop Cordelioni, who’s been a very great voice for life. And then at 1045, we have the Silent No More gathering. We go to the, as it says there, the Civic Center Plaza. And that is where the big rally happens before we actually march through the streets. So at the beginning of that rally, just before, we have this Silent No More gathering where people will hear the testimonies. Of those that have had abortions, the purpose of which is that people need to be educated on how harmful abortion is. Those that are tempted to do it need to hear the pain that comes from it. And that will deter a lot of people. And finally, those who have already done it in the past, sadly, will will know that there is forgiveness. There is healing if they repent and turn to the Lord. So it is a beautiful message. dynamic that occurs. It really is like it’s the preaching of the gospel because people who hear these testimonies, maybe they didn’t have an abortion. but they have other sins and the whole message is we have a savior just like your ministry father you know hope and mercy I mean that’s what we are proclaiming in all these events we’re talking about that’s what we’re proclaiming we’re proclaiming hope because we want to replace the despair that leads people to abortion and that follows abortion so much despair uh abortion’s not about freedom It’s about despair. And so we bring hope. All these events bring hope. And these events bring mercy. Mercy which creates us in the first place because we didn’t deserve to have life. It’s God’s mercy that brings us to life. And mercy for those that have sinned even by the killing of their children.
SPEAKER 01 :
Father Frank, achievement-wise in 2025, short and sweet, what do you communicate to our friends in the Mission of Hope and Mercy, those who are watching us on Peace for Life as well, your network and our network? What were the achievements in 2025 before we go to the objectives that you’d like to realize in 2026?
SPEAKER 03 :
Well, we had a lot of the we defunded Planned Parenthood and the abortion industry. Never before have we succeeded so much in doing that. And we also, thanks to the Trump administration, his inauguration, of course, took place at the beginning of the year. We have never seen a more effective attack and weakening. of the pro-abortion forces in America. Thanks to what he did, 50 abortion facilities closed. Thanks to what he did, money by the millions and billions of dollars was taken away from left-wing organizations that fund abortion nationally and internationally. Academic institutions were brought into line. Some of the bias is under the microscope now. And President Trump using the leverage of money is reining in these academic institutions as well as the secular media. It’s been a year of accomplishments that have been unprecedented. And the effect of them, the effect is some of it is immediate, like we see the closing of these abortion mills. Some of it will be felt more as time goes on, as we experience more freedom in carrying out our mission.
SPEAKER 01 :
Father Frank, in 2026, is the problem of pro-life and the challenges for pro-life, is it the financial support that the pro-abortion clinics are receiving, or is it the lack of religiosity in the United States? So basically, what I’m going to ask, there is a fight, it seems. It seems that the pro-life is perceived through an aspect of religiosity in the United States. Is it a religious stand to be pro-life or it has to be a human stand, a humanitarian stand? This is important for us to know because it seems that part of the confusion that the people might associate pro-life movement with a religious stand, not as much as with a human stand. Doesn’t the human stand complement and doesn’t the religious stand perfect the human stand? We as a human being, shouldn’t we be pro-life period?
SPEAKER 03 :
Yes, I explain this by saying to people, let’s ask the same question about child abuse. Some people, unfortunately, you know, it’s sad. They abuse their children. Babies are, you know, drowned in a lake, thrown out a window, beaten. And it’s like, okay, we’re all against that. Why are we against it for religious reasons or we against it just because we’re decent human beings. And of course the answer is both both and and and both are needed. I think father we’ve made the case pretty well as a movement and as a church, frankly, we’ve made the case pretty well that the pro-life position can and should be defended using human reason. and sciences like medical science, embryology, sociology, psychology, from all these different angles of human knowledge, you can make the pro-life case. This baby is human. This baby should be protected. And if you kill that baby, there are consequences. Okay. But I think that unless we show the religious dimension, then two things happen. We know that sin darkens the mind. And so even though we can come to know how wrong abortion is and how human that baby is just by reason, sin makes people miss it, forget it. There’s a blind spot. There’s a prejudice against the unborn. So we need the faith to really enlighten our minds that this is truly, this is not only a human being, this is an image of God. So our faith tells us that. Secondly, where do we get the perseverance? You and I have both spoken about the opposition and the persecution that we have faced and that so many others have faced. We have pro-lifers who will be marching next week who have spent time in prison. I mean, how does someone endure that kind of opposition? Only by faith, only when we’re united with the Christ who went to the cross and rose again, can we have the perseverance. In fact, what we need is exactly what Scripture talks about in the first letter of John. You know, he revealed his love for us by laying down his life. So must we, as St. John says, lay down our lives for our brothers and sisters. That’s the pro-life game plan right there. That’s pro-life strategy in a biblical nutshell. We have to lay down our lives for these brothers and sisters. Where do we find the strength, the love, the self-sacrifice to do that? Only from our faith. So is this a religious issue or a human issue? It is both. And in fact, ultimately, only the faith is going to give us a victory over abortion.
SPEAKER 01 :
For our friends with the KLZ Radio here in Colorado, you may continue to follow us as we wish you now a blessed and wonderful and happy Sunday as we are still in the East and in the West, almost in a Christmas feeling, the Christmas season, which could go actually to February 2nd, the finding of the Lord in the temple 40 days after Christmas. This is when we literally, historically celebrate finish what we call in particular the celebration and the fear of being with Jesus as a young child, as a boy going to the temple and then found in the temple at the age of 12 years old. So you may continue with us on missionofhopeandmercy.org or you can go to our X page or YouTube channel for Mission of Hope and Mercy to continue streaming The remaining part of this beautiful podcast today was Father Frank Pavone, Irrevocable. I want to wish you all a blessed and wonderful day.
SPEAKER 02 :
Thank you for listening to 33 Minutes on the Lord’s Day. To hear previous programs, visit the show page at missionofhopeandmercy.org. Listen to Father Andre every Sunday morning at 7.30 on KLZ as he speaks on the unity of Christians, religious freedom, and the biblical foundation of Judeo-Christian values and traditions. Join him in bringing hope and freedom to people across the globe while also strengthening your own faith, family, and community right here in Colorado. Reawaken the spiritual strength of America. Go to missionofhopeandmercy.org.
