Last Tuesday, October 14, the 8th grade went to the Stubhub Center on a field trip to go to a Cristian Service for Life rally. The event was held at the Stubhub Center in Carson, the home of Los Angeles’s two Major League Soccer (MLS) teams, the LA Galaxy and Chivas USA, though the event was held not in the 27,000 seat soccer stadium but in an 8,000 seat tennis court. The rally included several speakers, who spoke mostly about their Catholic faith, and an exposition of the Eucharist ceremony, led by Archbishop Jose Gomez.

The rally began with a  game somewhat like Jeopardy, with questions such as “Which of the following celebrities claims to be pro-life? Justin Bieber, Tim Tebow, Jack Nickolas, or all of the above?” The approximately 3,000 students were split into four groups, each represented by a celebrity (such as David Henrie) or a student. After the “Game of Life”  (as it was termed), there were several speakers, including Rev. Wilson D. Miscamble, a Notre Dame University professor, and Immaculee Ilibagiza.

Ilibagiza is a survivor of the Rwandan genocide, and spent three months cramped with seven other women in a 3 by 4 foot bathroom. Both Mrs. Bello and Mrs. O’Toole spent some time teaching about Ilibagiza, including reading parts of her autobiography Left to Tell. During Ilibagiza’s time waiting out the genocide, she prayed the Rosary almost constantly. Ilibagiza said during her speech that she had forgiven the people who persecuted her Tutsi tribe, as her anger at them would do nothing.

After the speeches came the exposition of the Eucharist a ceremony in which Archbishop Jose Gomez carried in the monstrance. Following that was lunch and an opportunity to visit about twenty different booths related to Catholicism, including a booth for Ilibagiza and another booth for the Knights of Columbus.