Protecting and Defending Those
Whose Lives Are Most Vulnerable
"Every individual, precisely by reason of the mystery of the Word of God who was made flesh, is entrusted to the maternal care of the Church. Therefore every threat to human dignity and life must necessarily be felt in the Church's very heart; it cannot but affect her at the core of her faith in the Redemptive Incarnation of the Son of God, and engage her in her mission of proclaiming the Gospel of life in all the world and to every creature.”
Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life)
Blessed Pope John Paul II
Increasing threats to human life surround us in our world today. More than 54 million lives have been lost through abortion in the United States alone since 1973. Tiny human embryos too numerous to count have been killed through experimentation and cloning, abortifacient drugs, not to mention more than 500,000 of our tiniest brothers and sisters frozen in liquid nitrogen in fertility clinics. This blatant disregard for the dignity of the human person in the earliest stages of development has resulted in a slippery slope of disregard for life through other forms of violence and affronts to human dignity including euthanasia, assisted suicide, and threats to conscience rights and religious liberties.
The Respect Life Office exists to assist our diocese in living out our baptismal call to protect and defend those whose lives are most vulnerable. We do this through four major areas of ministry:
- education
- pastoral care
- public policy
- prayer
Through education in the life issues people learn what the church teaches and why. Understanding what we believe and proclaim is not only important, but necessary, for building a culture of life. Last year, there was a tremendous response to our first-ever “Cathedral Conference for Life.” National and local speakers drew a crowd of nearly 150 people from all over the diocese who expressed great appreciation for the opportunity to learn more about the “Cause of Life," the opportunity for fellowship with like-minded Catholics, and they are also hungry for more. It is our hope that with the help of adequate funding we may be able to offer such a conference again.
Pastoral care and acts of charity are a hallmark of the Catholic Church. By caring for those in crisis pregnancies, the sick, elderly, and disabled, and through the offering of healing and reconciliation to those who have been wounded by abortion through the ministry of Project Rachel, we strive to bring hope and healing to those in great need.
Through advocacy for laws that protect and defend the fundamental right to life, the Church proclaims the Gospel of Life in the public square. “The first right of the human person is his life… [it is ] the condition of all other rights [and] must be protected above all others. It does not belong to society, nor does it belong to public authority in any form to recognize this right for some and not for others… It is not recognition by another that constitutes this right. This right is antecedent to its recognition; it demands recognition and it is strictly unjust to refuse it.” (Declaration on Procured Abortion) In the year ahead we are facing yet another threat to human life: the attempt to legalize physician-assisted suicide in Massachusetts. If we don’t speak up, who will?
Participation in the sacramental life of the Church is essential and the foundation of all we do. The issues surrounding the sacredness of human life drive us to our knees. At the end of 2010, the Diocese of Worcester participated in a first-of-its-kind event: the Worldwide Vigil for Unborn Human Life, called for by the Holy Father. The cathedral was full for Advent Vespers with representatives of nearly every parish in the diocese in attendance. Words are inadequate to describe the deeply spiritual and powerful experience had by the attendees. Perhaps it is best described by the late Holy Father himself. In The Gospel of Life, Blessed John Paul II says, “A great prayer for life is urgently needed, a prayer which will rise up throughout the world. Through special initiatives and in daily prayer, may an impassioned plea rise to God. . . . Let us therefore discover anew the humility and the courage to pray and fast so that the power from on high will break down the walls of lies and deceit: the walls which conceal from the sight of so many . . . the evil of practices and laws which are hostile to life.” Our prayers do not only matter, they are necessary.
The Respect Life Office is very grateful for all the prayers and assistance of the faithful of the Diocese of Worcester to the annual Partners in Charity appeal. It is a blessing and a privilege to be a part of the life-giving mission of the Church.
Return to Ways We Help >>