“Passion of the Christ” lead Jim Caviezel made an appearance during a rally in Ohio, as pro-lifers prayed the rosary for a measure intended to increase the voting threshold needed to amend the state constitution. Pro-lifers hope the measure could prevent a pro-abortion amendment from being enshrined in the state constitution in November.
The rally, which was hosted by “Catholics for Catholics,” supported “Issue 1,” a measure which would require a 60% vote for the approval of constitutional amendments. As Live Action News noted, a pro-abortion amendment is on the ballot for November and “Issue 1” has the potential to block its passage if it’s approved during a special election on Tuesday.
Video from “Catholics for Catholics” shows Caviezel taking the podium but precludes the speech, which audience members were asked not to record. Former Planned Parenthood Director Abby Johnson and former national security advisor Michael Flynn also spoke at the rally.
Caviezel could also be seen beside Texas Bishop Joseph Strickland, who prayed the rosary on stage. Caviezel’s recent film, “Sound of Freedom,” highlights the evil of child trafficking and reportedly earned over $155 million, bringing in more at the box office than an Indiana Jones film and Insidious 5.
According to the hosts, the rally was scheduled to take place outside of Cincinnati at Norwood’s Dorl Field.
Ohio Secretary of State Frank LaRose also spoke at Sunday’s rally and led the audience in the Pledge of Allegiance, adding “born and unborn” to the line “liberty and justice for all.”
“It’s crucial that over the next few days that we all pray,” said LaRose, before noting the faithful should take action and vote as well. LaRose, a former green beret, added that he prayed harder in the last couple of days than he had since being in a combat zone.
“We know what’s at stake,” he said. “We know that there is a dangerous, radical, pro-abortion amendment that is likely on the ballot this November unless the courts intervene. And that is something we have to work to defeat because it takes away parents’ rights and it legalizes abortion all the way up to the end of the third trimester.”
Live Action News previously reported on the wording of the amendment and the radical pro-abortion influences pushing it:
In July, Ohioans United for Reproductive Rights submitted almost 496,000 valid signatures to put their pro-abortion amendment before voters in November. According to Ohio Right to Life, the group was “formed by the ACLU of Ohio, Abortion Fund of Ohio, New Voices for Reproductive Justice, Ohio Women’s Alliance, Planned Parenthood Advocates of Ohio, Preterm-Cleveland [an abortion business responsible for women’s abortion-related deaths], Pro-Choice Ohio, and URGE. OFRF has hired an out-of-state General Counsel named Mission Control, Inc.”
The measure groups abortion, contraception, and miscarriage care together, stating, “[e]very individual has a right to make and carry out one’s own reproductive decisions, including but not limited to decisions on contraception, fertility treatment, continuing one’s own pregnancy, miscarriage care, and abortion.” It adds that the “State shall not, directly or indirectly, burden, penalize, prohibit, interfere with, or discriminate against either an individual’s voluntary exercise of this right or a person or entity that assists an individual exercising this right, unless the State demonstrates that it is using the least restrictive means to advance the individuals’ health…”
Recent polling showed 58% of likely Ohio voters supporting the amendment, although the polling has received criticism from Charlotte Lozier Institute scholar Dr. Michael New, who wrote:
Methodologically, there are some legitimate concerns about this poll.
First, the sample size of 500 likely Ohio voters is relatively small which raises concerns about its accuracy. Second, statewide polls conducted by national pollsters or out-of-state polling firms can sometimes be inaccurate. Most importantly, surveys on ballot measures that are conducted months before the election tend to be poor predictors of election results. Indeed, a body of political science research shows that ballot propositions tend to lose public support as the election draws near.
Polling on Michigan’s Proposal 3, which recently placed legal abortion in Michigan’s state constitution, is instructive. Three polls conducted in September 2022 all showed opposition to Proposal 3 ranging from 24 percent to 27 percent. However, two polls conducted in November 2022 both showed that about 45 percent of Michigan voters opposed Proposal 3. These two polls were fairly accurate as on November 8, 2022, Proposal 3 was opposed by just over 43 percent of Michigan voters. In short, opponents of Michigan’s Proposal 3 gained nearly 20 percentage points in a little more than a month. A similar gain by opponents of Ohio’s abortion amendment would put pro-lifers within striking distance of victory.
