Dear Friends,
Persons
who are disabled are prime targets for abortion and euthanasia. A
negative prenatal diagnosis is frequently a death sentence. Families who
raise children with disabilities are often isolated and lonely. In both
developed and developing countries the disabled are killed or
discarded. These, our brothers and sisters, are dehumanized regularly by
society so much so that many would claim that the dignity of the
disabled is not even a "pro-life issue."
It
is also true that many organizations, agencies, and people of good
faith have come together to support persons with disabilities.
This
is why Human Life International is partnering with the Nebraska
Bishops' Pro-Life Office and the Archdiocese of Omaha Respect Life
Apostolate to present a timely and important conference October 18-19 in
Omaha, Nebraska: Life, Dignity, and Disability: A Faith that Welcomes.
I
wish all of you were able to be with us next month (and there's still
time to register), but for those unable to make the journey, you can
still help to make this event a huge success and further our mission to
build a Culture of Life.
Your financial support will help HLI reach hearts and minds in the struggle for the right to life of persons who are disabled.
Most
Rev. James D. Conley, D.D., S.T.L., Bishop of Lincoln, will give the
keynote address at the conference, and Most Rev. George J. Lucas,
Archbishop of Omaha, will be the main celebrant at the conference's
opening Mass.
Besides myself, other featured speakers include
Peter Kreeft, prolific author and professor at Boston College; Joseph
Pearce, editor of Saint Austin Review; Omar Gutierrez, manager of the
Office of Missions and Justice at Archdiocese of Omaha; Sr. Terese Auer,
O.P., chair of the Bioethics Department at John Paul the Great Catholic
High School; Patty Franke, Be Not Afraid Ministry; Sarah and Jeff
Schinstock, Family Life Office of the Diocese of Lincoln; Martin Cannon
and Andy Bath, Saint Thomas More Society; and Arland K. Nichols,
director of education and evangelization at Human Life International.
As
always, your daily prayers for our pro-life missionaries around the
world and all of our educational efforts to spread the Gospel of Life
are most appreciated, and are essential for the success of our
apostolate.
There's still time to register
for the conference, and please invite your friends, family, and
co-workers to attend as well by forwarding this email or sharing it on
Facebook, Twitter, and other social media sites.
May God bless you.
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Father Shenan J. Boquet
President, Human Life International
