Slovakian artist Martin Hudáček's moving sculpture celebrates love, mercy, reconciliation and peace through the love and mercy of Jesus Christ.
By Hannah Rose Allen
This heart-rending sculpture was created by a Slovakian art student named Martin Hudáček. He was moved to create something to draw attention to the devastation abortion can bring to the woman and to the fact that through the love and mercy of Jesus Christ, reconciliation, healing, and peace is possible. His main intention in creating the sculpture was "not to be famous, but to speak about the important value of human life and the necessity to protect it from conception."
The sculpture shows a woman in great sorrow grieving her abortion. The second figure in the work is her aborted child, presented as a young child, who in a very touching and healing way, comes to the mother, to offer forgiveness and love.
Martin named the work "Memorial for Unborn Children" and said that it "expresses hope which is given to believers by the One who died on the cross for us, and showed how much He cares about all of us."
A post-abortion retreat leader, Fr. William Kurz, S.J. said, “It’s a message of forgiveness and healing needed by the grieving post-abortive mother even some years after her abortion...It speaks directly and beautifully both to the intense and profound grief of the mother, and to the dignity of the aborted baby.”
From the Slovak Website [click to read], with the help of Google Translator:
"On October 28, 2011 at 16:00 o’clock in Ves memorial, a dedication ceremony for unborn children was held. The centerpiece of the dedication included the work (pictured above) of young sculptor Martin Hudáčeka of Banska Bystrica. This ceremony was attended by the Minister of Health, Ivan Uhliarik MD.
The idea to build a memorial to unborn children came from within a community of young women and mothers who are deeply aware of the value of every human life and the damage that is inflicted not only from the loss of potential unborn children, but also from the permanent intellectual impairment (sometimes physical) of every woman who chooses to conceive their unborn child.
This memorial not only expresses the sadness and regret of the mothers but also forgiveness and love from the unborn child to the mother."
A Latin American post-abortive woman who was helped in the healing process by the Proyecto Esperanza (Project Hope) program says the sculpture “is simple…marvelous. I got emotional and I stopped to take the time to look at it…I felt many things…the woman with all her pain being concentrated in her face held in her hands. Shame is also conveyed…And the daughter who blesses her, reaching up to touch her, to me indicates the height of forgiveness, the height of that child’s forgiveness, through the love of God. The transparency of the child means she comes from a pure place. It talks to me of the forgiveness we feel after we have worked through the grief… Precious…really precious.”
“This presents a very beautiful image of a core component of post abortion healing,” comments Kevin Burke, LSW, of Rachel’s Vineyard Ministries, “that the very child that was lost to abortion with God’s grace is now instrumental in calling the wounded mother and father to repentance and healing in Christ.”
Julie Thomas of Atlanta, who has personally experienced abortion and is now active with the Operation Outcry post-abortion program, commented, “I love that the little girl is not a baby - we often talk about that during our Bible study and for some reason a lot of us believe that when we get to Heaven that our children will be a toddler as the child is here. I also like the child being ‘transparent’ almost angel-like in appearance. The mother appears to be in anguish, which is so very real. I love that the child is reaching out to touch the mother’s head. I can imagine the mother sensing the touch and believe that she will stand up, taller than before. I believe that this image is very strong and touching, possibly leading to the first step of healing for the mother who has aborted her children.”
This work powerfully illustrates my experience with abortion and losing my Luke Shiloh. It resonates so much with me and draws out the beauty, pain, sorrow, and hope... It is an extremely effective representation of what it is like to live with an abortion, but also to be set free by the love and mercy of Christ! I am brought to tears looking at it and thinking of my Luke...I am so sorry sweet boy, yet I have tasted the forgiveness and healing of Jesus and I know one day I will meet you and see your precious face and what has happened on this earth will be forgotten.
I also believe that this sculpture beautifully shows what a mother experiences when losing a child...whether through stillbirth, miscarriage, or any other type of loss. A mother brought to her knees in grief, weeping over her devastating loss...and her little one coming to comfort her, almost as if she's promising all is well and they will be reunited again one day. There will be no more aching, no more longing, no more hurting, no more tears...
For anyone who reads this or sees this photo that has had an abortion, I encourage you to check out my After-Abortion Resource Page [click to read] for more resources of hope and healing.
For more information, and to download a mini-poster with this image, go Here [click to view].
Hannah Rose Allen writes at Rose and Her Lily [click to read].
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