Life

This past Friday enormous numbers of pro-lifers marched to the Supreme Court in Washington DC to ask that all life be protected and respected from the moment of conception to natural death. This is especially critical now with the HHS mandate as it stands now requiring Catholic institutions and organizations to provide health insurance which will provide for abortions. That’s correct: It’s not just contraception, but also abortion because many contraceptives induce abortions. The young marchers for life outnumber the older ones. There is an ever increasing greater awareness of the fact that human life begins at conception and that abortion discriminates against unborn babies.

Forty years of legalized abortion have made society not better but by far much worse. If a people can determine who can be killed by saying that it’s OK as long as they are in the womb, then why can’t they decide to broaden that prerequisite? History tells us that the killing under the Nazi regime began with legalized abortions in the early 1930’s. It is logical to conclude that the most powerful will decide who is privileged to live and who should die. They can dress it up by calling it mercy, concern or compassion when it all boils down to expediency. Whatever is the most convenient; whatever is the most profitable. 

The so called exceptions for the life of the mother or in cases of rape or incest do not hold water. Is it OK to kill any human being for these reasons? Of course not. We should not want to get rid of a person who has been in the womb for three months than we would want to discard a three month old or a three year old. 

The principle behind protecting and saving all innocent human life is that God is the God of life. He gives life. He sent His Son that everyone might have life abundantly for all eternity. No one should think that he is a god who can condemn a certain group to death. 

It’s encouraging to see more and more people, especially the young, who understand the value of human life. We don’t want to be pro-choice which means that we can be pro-death. No we want to be pro-life all the way. This is the way of life, the way of Christ, the way of love. 

Father Stanley