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Pope Benedict XVI Requests Worldwide
Prayer For Unborn Human Life Part One of Three By Dave Andrusko Good evening, and thanks to all our readers for taking time to read Today's News & Views. Part Two talks about New York Times columnist Paul Krugman's musings on "death panels." Part Three is a celebration of the choice of a true hero to pro-lifers as head of the United States Catholic Bishops. Over at National Right to Life News Today (www.nationalrighttolifenews.org), we begin with an advanced look at tomorrow's Senate Finance Committee where Donald Berwick will testify. I'm also happy to write about the selection of two NRLC leaders to receive Gerald Health Foundation Life Prizes. Please send your comments on Today's News & Views and National Right to Life News Today to daveandrusko@gmail.com. If you like, join those who are following me on Twitter at http://twitter.com/daveha.
What traditionally happens between Thanksgiving and December 25 (including for me) is a frenzy of shopping with an eye toward having the "perfect" commercial Christmas. However for Christians, who are commemorating the coming birth of the Messiah, our eyes ought to be somewhere other than on the lookout for the latest sales. Thus we all ought to be exceedingly grateful to Pope Benedict for his announced plans to begin Advent with a solemn "Vigil for all nascent [newly developing] human life" at St. Peter's Basilica on Saturday, November 27. Speaking November14, the Pope said, "The season of preparation for Christmas is an appropriate time for invoking divine protection over every human being called into existence and for thanking God for the gift of life we received from our parents." Catholics are encouraged to participate in a prayer vigil for unborn babies in St. Peter's Basilica or in their local parishes. "In what some are calling an unprecedented request, the Holy Father has asked that 'all Diocesan Bishops (and their equivalent) of every particular church preside in analogous celebrations involving the faithful in their respective parishes, religious communities, associations and movements,'" explains Mary McClusky, Special Projects Coordinator at the Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. "At this moment in history, when societies are now endorsing the killing of humans as a perceived solution to social, economic, and environmental problems, the Holy Father is reminding us of the necessity and power of prayer to protect human life." That time spent attending a vigil "may help increase awareness among family and friends about abortion, embryonic stem cell research, and other threats to children in their earliest days and weeks of life," she writes. And consistent with the Catholic Church's ongoing outreach to aborted women, McClusky adds, "Others may be inspired to learn more, or to begin a much-needed conversation about healing from a past abortion." McClusky continues, "To help dioceses and parishes plan their celebrations, the USCCB Secretariats of Divine Worship and Pro-Life Activities have developed vigil prayer aids in both English and Spanish, available at www.usccb.org/prolife/papalvigil. Catholics everywhere are encouraged to attend a special vigil in solidarity with the Holy Father." As a non-Catholic, I especially appreciate the Pontiff's ecumenical outreach, his encouragement that all the faithful "in their respective parishes, religious communities, associations and movements" participate. At this most holy time, Pope Benedict is asking all of us to remember the most vulnerable among us, and their mothers, including those who made the tragically wrong decision to abort. |
