THE GOOD NEWS
ARCHBISHOP BELTRAN

September 24, 2006

The Good News

...Respect Life Questions

 Next Sunday, Oct. 1, has been designated as Respect Life Sunday.  Some years ago when the Church selected the First Sunday of October to be a commemoration of the beauty and dignity of every human person, it was not relegating this to be a one-day affair. Rather, it was setting this day to be a special reminder of the fact that we are God’s people. We, the human race, every one of us human beings, have been created in the Image and Likeness of God. Respect Life Sunday is intended to be a special renewal of our appreciation to Almighty God for He is so good and so loving. He created us. He redeems us. He calls us to everlasting life with Him in heaven. We, therefore, gratefully respect the life He has freely given us and the lives of all other human beings.

Respect Life Sunday affords us a wonderful opportunity to reflect on our own lives, our attitudes and our actions. Together as the Church, we are leaders in the movement to instill a Respect for Life attitude in our society.  We know that this is the mission of the Church given us by God. Thus the Church organizes and conducts various programs and activities under the heading “pro-life.”  But it is not only these that distinguish the mission of the Church. The Church is in the forefront of offering real help to people in need. Birth Choice and Catholic Charities are daily giving food, clothes, housing and counseling to pregnant women, mothers and their babies, homeless people and anyone in need. St. Vincent dePaul Societies throughout the Archdiocese assist the poor and elderly with food, clothing and utility services. Some parishes sponsor or support free medical clinics. The Archdiocese, through Catholic Charities, reaches out to the elderly poor with housing and support.

Yes, the many works of the Church on the international level, the archdiocesan level and the parish level are tributes to the Church’s dedication and commitment to people.  They are real signs of the Catholic Church’s mission to respect life.

Today on Respect Life Sunday, each of us is challenged.  It is not enough to for us to say that the Church is pro-life. We cannot just talk about the many good works of the Church. The challenge is to each of us individually. For this reason, I propose four simply but basic questions.

Do I really believe in the inherent dignity of all human persons?  

Do I realize that I have a grave responsibility to respond personally to the needs of our brothers and sisters?

Have I personally acted by volunteering at Catholic Charities or Birth Choice or St. Vincent dePaul or at the clinics or at my parish outreaches?  

Am I generous with my time and my efforts as well as my money to support and help works and movements that are pro-life and generate an attitude of respect for the dignity and estimable value of the life of every individual human being?

Next Sunday is Respect Life Sunday. Don’t just read about it.  Don’t just talk about it. Let us all personally respond with prayer and action. Pray and do something positive to protect and to help others.  Show gratitude to Almighty God for the gift of life, cherish your own life and respect the lives of others and you will have life everlasting.