There was a moving tribute during the inaugural ceremonies for the 400,000 people in the United States who have died victims of Corvid-19. As a nation, we acknowledge various times when there has been a tragic loss of life however none for the thousands of unborn children who never saw the light of day.
Today we celebrate a Mass for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children to acknowledge them and pray for them.
How do we help one another to acknowledge human life as something sacred? In my opinion, it may not happen until we see all human life as sacred. It was the late Archbishop of Chicago, Joseph Bernadine, who I believe was on to something when he spoke of all human life as sacred and a seamless garment.
Try to image a garment as a collage depicting human life. First and foremost, engraved on the garment would be an image of a child, both an unborn child and child that was given life. Add to that other human lives, migrants who are human, the homeless, the imprisoned-on death row, and so many more. They are all human and sacred on this seamless garment. However, many Catholic Christians still find it difficult to embrace all as being sacred.
We Catholic Christians need to give more evidence that we value all life and are prepared to defend all life and maybe … just maybe … others looking at us may come to learn from us that all life is sacred, including the lives of unborn children.
In the gospel today, Jesus, for whom all life is sacred, chose apostles to go forth and carry his message of life and love to the masses. In effect, he was naming his team in much the same way that our new president is naming his team, his cabinet, to assist him in getting his message out to the masses.
Jesus sent His team to preach that God loves all people regardless of race or creed and that all life is sacred. Today Jesus continues to need team members who will do the same. He needs us to soften the hearts of those who yet do not share our belief that all life is sacred from conception until death.
Have we allowed God to put His laws into our minds and write upon our hearts that all human life is sacred and among them, the lives of unborn children?.
