October is Respect Life Month

I gave this homily on October 7^th, Respect Life Sunday. 

At the beginning of October, the Archdiocese held a two-day Summit: Revitalizing the Domestic Church.  The Domestic Church is the family.  The readings for Mass support the marriage and family life.  Jesus taught about marriage being a one-flesh union.  Now we have mountains of statistics that show the traditional family setting is best for society. Strong families make for a strong society just like strong bricks make for a strong wall.  The planners of the summit expected about 250 people to be interested, but 750 signed up and the event was sold out weeks before.  This shows that even if we can’t put our finger on it, we know that society is weak and the family has something to do with it.  We can instinctively tell that society is getting off track as family life deteriorates.  It is encouraging to see 750 people equipping themselves with knowledge and skills to support family life which supports the structure of society.  Respect Life Sunday and Respect Life Month give us the opportunity to renew our commitment to support family life.

Secondly, we have the opportunity to renew our commitment to end the horrible disgrace of abortion in our country.

I heard a story from a priest who gave a talk at a parish in Florida.  He arrived at the church early so he had some time to kill.  He strolled over to the beach and as he approached the beach he saw these big white signs that read: “Do not disturb the sea turtles or their eggs.  They are protected by federal, state and local law.”  Of only the unborn humans we protected by federal, state and local law.  We know that there is a sea turtle in the egg, but we pretend we don’t know there is a human being growing in the womb.

There was a house next to Auschwitz.  The people living in the house knew what was happening in the concentration camp.  They had a decision to make.  Do we do nothing? Or do we act in an effort against evil in order to save human life?  These brave people took their lives into their own hands and helped some of the prisoners escape.  If caught, they would have been killed by the Nazis.  We have a modern day Auschwitz in our own neighborhoods.  We have a decision to make.  Do we do nothing?  Or do we act in effort against evil in order to save human life?

We began Mass with the Confiteor.  In that great prayer, we ask forgiveness for what we have done and what we have failed to do.  The sin of omission is a very real sin.  This issue has nothing to do with partisan politics.  We must fight evil tooth and nail wherever we find it.

One of the ways we can support the unborn is by supporting their mothers who are afraid, scared and worried about the unknown.  Crisis pregnancy centers do great work and deserve our support.  Girls and women in crisis pregnancies should know that we will help make life as easy as possible for them during this temporary situation.  We should give them everything they need so they can choose life.  And sometimes the obvious needs to be pointed out: Nobody stays pregnant forever. It’s only temporary.  Isn’t the death of an innocent person a little too permanent a “solution” for a temporary inconvenience?  But people overcome by fear and anxiety make such rash decisions every day.

For those who have made these decisions in the past, there is great hope for healing.  We can support healing ministries for those who have the scars of past abortions.  We can let people know they exist.  There is no longer any need to carry around these secrets that cause overwhelming regret and emotional pain.  All people who have been complicit in abortion can get the healing they need in Project Rachel or any number of apostolates for healing the Church offers.  These apostolates reflect the compassionate heart of Christ.  And of course, they are confidential.  There is a loving God anxious to forgive and heal all who turn to him.  His offer of forgiveness and healing remains constant no matter what we have done.

Of course it would be better if abortion were not even legal in the first place.  We Christians have a large role to play as citizens.  We have an election in 30 days.  It is not partisan to fight tooth and nail against intrinsic evil wherever we find it.  It’s our duty as Christians!  We don’t come from the left or the right.  We come from the principle that it should not be legal to kill human beings in the womb.  Our bishops point out that a candidate for political office disqualifies himself or herself if he or she holds a pro-abortion position or any other position that is intrinsically evil.  Voting is a moral act, so we are not to participate in evil with our vote.

Let’s look at this comparison.  Would we ever vote for a person who wanted to keep slavery legal?  Of course not.  In fact, such a candidate would be sent packing from the campaign trail.  So why is there ever even a question that we would vote for someone who wants to keep the killing of human beings legal?  Enslaving human beings is an outrageous offense against human dignity.  And killing human beings is worse.

Let’s not fall into the trap of voting for pro-abortion candidates at the local level because they don’t have direct influence on policy regarding abortion.  Most politicians are climbers.  They work their way up the ladder of political power.  Whether they are pro-life or not shows their integrity as a public servant.  If they don’t want to protect the vulnerable, how do I know I will be lucky enough to be arbitrarily protected?

Many in our government think that some human beings are worthy of life, and some human beings are not, and thus may be destroyed for any reason whatsoever.  That’s not a healthy government, especially when a few can arbitrarily decide who has a right to live and who does not.  Either every human being has a right to live, or nobody does and we can destroy anyone at any time.  Let us vote according to Christian principles with a conscience correctly formed.  Archbishop Schnurr tells us, “A conscience must be well-formed by reason to discover natural law and faith to understand sacred Scripture and official church teaching.”  He also says, “opposing intrinsic evil actions that directly threaten the sanctity and dignity of life should have special claim on our consciences as we choose between candidates who do not promote all of the Catholic Social teaching.”  Jesus Christ is not running for office, so the perfect candidate is not on the ballot.

Perhaps we like to vote on economy even though it is a secondary issue to human life.  How can we have economic growth with fewer people?  It seems impossible.  Look at Spain and Greece with their 1.1 fertility rates.  Abortion is an exponential problem.  Not only are we mission 50 million Americans, but they are not here to have children.  Why did the housing market collapse?  Why do we have too much inventory?  These people are not here to buy houses.

We must also pray for our country and our world.  Pray for all who have chosen abortion in the past that they will seek God’s forgiveness, healing and loving embrace.  Finally we are to pray for the conversion of hearts, recognizing more and more the awesome dignity we have as human beings, the pinnacle of creation, wonderfully made in God’s image.

We can do something pro-life.  Call representatives in government at all levels.  Let them know we are a pro-life people.  Join in Life Chain.  Support the 40 Days for Life vigil at the abortion mills.

I’ll close with a quote from one of our bishops:  “God’s love for us is the fundamental reason why every human life must be valued and defended. It is not possible to maintain a community of justice, freedom, and solidarity built on any other foundation.”