Life
“We are called to reach out to those who find themselves in the existential peripheries of our societies and to show particular solidarity with the most vulnerable of our brothers and sisters: the poor, the disabled, the unborn and the sick, migrants and refugees, the elderly and the young who lack employment.” – Pope Francis
Because God created every person in His image and likeness, human life is sacred and has intrinsic, immutable dignity from the moment of conception until natural death. Our Catholic faith calls us to speak out on behalf of the most vulnerable among us and to advocate against policies that violate the dignity of the human person.
The Church in our nation’s capital is committed to helping mothers and families thrive. Our pro-life efforts begin before conception and continue throughout the life of the mother and child. Our local advocacy efforts on life issues include: protection of the unborn and maternal healthcare, pregnancy support for women, protection for vulnerable women, assisted suicide, capital punishment, ethical vaccine development, and stem-cell research.
A prayer for life by Saint John Paul II
“O Mary, bright dawn of the new world, Mother of the living, to you do we entrust the cause of life. Look down, O Mother, upon the vast numbers of babies not allowed to be born, of the poor whose lives are made difficult, of men and women who are victims of brutal violence, of the elderly and the sick killed by indifference or out of misguided mercy.
Grant that all who believe in your Son may proclaim the Gospel of life with honesty and love to the people of our time.
Obtain for them the grace to accept that Gospel as a gift ever new, the joy of celebrating it with gratitude throughout their lives and the courage to bear witness to it resolutely, in order to build, together with all people of good will, the civilization of truth and love, to the praise and glory of God, the Creator and lover of life.”
– Saint John Paul II, Evangelium vitae