CHOOSE LIFE
“I have today set before you, life and good, death and evil. If you obey the commandments of the LORD, your God…you will live and grow numerous, and the LORD, your God, will bless you…If, however, your heart turns away and you do not obey…I tell you today that you will certainly perish…I have set before you, life and death, the blessing and the curse.
Choose life that you and your descendants may live.” DEUTERONOMY 30:15
BACKGROUND
October is Respect Life Month, a time for Catholics to reflect more deeply on the God-given dignity of all human life. All lives are Sacred and gift from our Creator. I repeat, ALL HUMAN LIVES!
CATECHISM OF THE CATHOLIC CHURCH 2270-71 Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception… Since the first century the Church has affirmed the moral evil of every procured abortion. This teaching has not changed and remains unchangeable. Direct abortion, that is to say, abortion willed either as an end or a means, is gravely contrary to the moral law.
COMMENTARY
When is abortion permitted? NEVER! NOT when a child is inconvenient…. NOT when the child in the womb is the wrong sex….NOT when child created by God is a result of rape or incest…NOT when child in womb may be born with some handicap… The end never justifies the means. KILLING INNOCENT LIFE IS NEVER PERMISSABLE!
PLEASE NOTE: In an attempt to save a mother’s life, the life of the child in her womb may be lost in unintended consequences of saving the mother’s life.
Today, those who support abortion on demand use words to draw sympathy and support. Some will call it Women’s Reproductive Rights. Where does the right come from? I know it isn’t God. A person does not have a right to something just because they say they do.
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Calling Abortion, a woman’s health issue is like calling euthanasia, death with dignity or calling same-sex marriage, marriage equality. All of it is shameful marketing to develop sympathy for deeply flawed practices.
Women’s claim, “My Body, My Choice,” betrays a tragic misunderstanding of what is taking place inside the womb. By 12 weeks the baby has eyes, ears, hands, feet, toes, functioning brain and other organs apart from their mother’s.
At no point in pregnancy is the developing embryo or fetus simply a part of the mother’s body. Every cell of the baby in the womb is genetically distinct from every cell in the mother’s body. Human embryos did not originate only from the woman. The baby would not exist without the man’s seed.
A HUMAN PERSON DEVELOPING IN THE WOMB
There are many who call themselves Catholic who ignore the teaching of the Church. For example in a recent Pew Research Poll nearly 48% of those identifying themselves as Catholic say abortion should be legal in all or most cases despite the Catholic Church’s strong opposition.
We must shout from the rooftop “that all life is sacred.” In our own waters of Baptism – we have been initiated, called, and commissioned to be other Christs in the world.
We must in our charity do more than call to end abortion. . Poverty is often a factor in choosing abortion, material poverty as well as spiritual poverty.
The Lord calls on all of us to be present in support in the lives of women and families who might be tempted to consider abortion. Prayer support and material support are essential marks of a Christian.
The Catholic Church is one of the leading backers of a national pregnancy aid network Maternity homes and crisis pregnancy resource centers – offering everything from housing support to free diapers.
PRAYER CELEBRATING SANCTITY OF HUMAN LIFE
God, you are the Lord and Creator of Life. You have blessed men and women with the privilege of bringing new life into the world. You have imparted in our hearts the desire to nurture and protect life at all its stages. I accept these gifts as a sacred trust. Through the power of the Holy Spirit, Grant me the wisdom and courage to speak out and defend human life, made in your image and likeness from conception to natural death. Amen
I HAVE CALLED YOU BY NAME YOU ARE MINE
ISAIAH 43:1