DEACON FOR LIFE

Were there to be no support in the whole history of ethical and moral thought, were there no acknowledged confirmation from medical science, were the history of legal opinion to the contrary, we would still have to conclude on the basis of God's Holy Word that the unborn child is a person in the sight of God. He is protected by the sanctity of life graciously given to each individual by the Creator, Who alone places His image upon man and grants them any right to life which they have.

Tuesday, April 12, 2022

USCCB Respect Life: April Prayer Guide

April Prayer Guide

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Pray

Our Father, 3 Hail Marys, Glory Be

Reflect

On Good Friday, when we observe our Lord’s Passion and Crucifixion, we remember how He bore our sins and the sins of the whole world as He suffered on our behalf. A week after celebrating His Resurrection, we celebrate Divine Mercy Sunday, remembering the message He so ardently instructed St. Faustina to spread: His endless mercy and forgiveness. God longs for us to return to Him and to allow His mercy to wash away our sins. He has a prepared place in His merciful heart for each of us, and no sin is bigger than His power to forgive. He desires all of us to come to Him just as we are and receive healing through the Sacrament of Reconciliation. The words Christ revealed to St. Faustina, He also speaks to us: “Lay your head on my shoulder, rest and regain your strength. I am always with you” (Diary, no. 848).

Act (Choose one.)

Pray the Chaplet of Divine Mercy at 3:00 pm (the Hour of Mercy), with the intention of healing for all suffering from involvement in abortion. How to pray: usccb.org/divine-mercy-chaplet

Jesus spoke to St. Faustina, “Reveal all the wounds of your heart. I will heal them” (Diary, no. 1487). Seek Christ in the Sacrament of Reconciliation and allow His healing mercy to reach every hurt and hidden pain.
Offer some other sacrifice or prayer that you feel called to do for this month’s intention.

One Step Further

Learn about St. Faustina, the Apostle of Mercy, and the message of Christ’s mercy that she conveyed to mankind: usccb.org/divine-mercy.

Excerpts from Kowalska, Maria Faustina. Diary of Saint Maria Faustina Kowalska: Divine Mercy in My Soul. Stockbridge, MA: Marian Press, 2000. Used with permission of the Marian Fathers of the Immaculate Conception of the B.V.M.

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LIFE IS SACRED

An example of the traditional magisterial teaching which indicates that it is never morally licit to intentionally kill a child through abortion in order to “save the life of its mother” comes from the teaching of Pope Pius XII:

“Every human being, even the infant in the mother's womb, has the right to life immediately from God, not from the parent or any human society or authority. Therefore, there is no man, no human authority, no science, no medical, eugenic, social, economic or moral ‘indication’ that can show or give valid juridical title for direct deliberate disposition concerning an innocent human life-which is to say, a disposition that aims at its destruction either as an end in itself or as the means of attaining another end that is perhaps in no way illicit itself. Thus, for example, to save the life of the mother is a most noble end, but the direct killing of the child as a means to this end is not licit.”