Fr. Pavone is the National Director of Priests for Life. You may contact Priests for Life at PO Box 141172, Staten Island, NY 10314; Tel: 888-PFL-3448 or 718-980-4400; Fax: 718-980-6515; Email: mail@priestsforlife.org; Website: www.priestsforlife.org.
This is the time of year when most of us sit down with our staff to look at the calendar for the next academic year and plan the major parish and school activities. We offer the following suggestions for incorporating right to life themes into the life of your faith community:
1. Plan for special school liturgies on right to life themes, particularly in October and/or January. Essay and poster contests educate the students on these topics, and displaying their work in the Church vestibule or in the bulletin can educate the rest of the parish as well. Note that there are a number of national pro-life essay contests each year, including one sponsored by the annual March for Life
(www.marchforlife.org).
2. Participate in the National Night of Prayer, held in hundreds of parishes each year on the night of December 8, with Eucharistic adoration and special prayers for the defense of life. Also, have special pro-life observances on the Feast of the Annunciation.
3. Commission your Respect Life Committee at a special liturgy in the Fall. Such a commissioning ceremony makes the whole parish aware of the integral role this ministry has, encouraging more volunteers and strengthening those who are already doing the work.
4. Plan to participate in the Annual March for Life in Washington or in local observances of the January 22 Roe vs. Wade anniversary in your own state.
5. Let the school yearbook and graduation ceremonies include a remembrance of those who would have been graduating had they not been aborted.
6. Plan post-abortion healing services at key times during the year, involving nearby parishes in order to enable people to seek Reconciliation and counseling where they may not be as well known.
7. Hold the Life Chain, either on the day of the National Life Chain (first Sunday of October) or perhaps on a monthly basis, whereby people make use of their First Amendment rights to stand peacefully on the public sidewalks to proclaim the pro-life message to the local community beyond the walls of the Church.
8. In parish or school mailings, include some information about right to life issues, community organizations, alternatives to abortion, and post-abortion healing. This is especially helpful for those who may not come to Church on Sunday and therefore may not be hearing anything on these issues from their parish.
9. In sacramental preparation programs, including meetings with parents and of those being baptized or confirmed, marriage preparation activities, and RCIA programs, offer a strong presentation about our Christian responsibility to stand firmly on the side of the lives of the most vulnerable, particularly the unborn.
10. Give those who prepare the General Intercessions for Mass the material they need to fulfill the request the US Bishops made in their 2001 Pastoral Plan for Pro-life Activities that “Parishes should include in the petitions at every Mass a prayer that ours will become a nation that respects and protects all human life, born and unborn, reflecting a true culture of life.”
There are dozens more suggestions on our website. Please spend some time visiting www.priestsforlife.org.
