From Archbishop Marino

Right to life
January 23, 1989
Saint Jude the Apostle Church
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Dear Friends in Christ,

"Today I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse: Choose life, then that you and your descendants may live."

The unforgettable words of Pope John Paul II in the Mass in Washington in 1979 remind us why we gather here once again.: "All human life - from the moment of conception and through all subsequent stages - is sacred because human life is created in the image and likeness of God. We will stand up and proclaim that no one ever has the authority to destroy unborn life. (John-Paul II)"

On this - the sixteenth anniversary of Roe vs. Wade - we find our numbers swelling and our determination unswerving. And no one of good conscience could question why. That terrible decision in effect removed all constitutional protection from unborn children. We have gathered in the Name of Jesus Christ, and therefore in the conviction that He is present with us. Jesus Christ came that all might have life and have it abundantly. In permitting abortion, we deal in death, the death of the most innocent and helpless among us. As long as we allow this generation to be at peace with the unjust death of the unborn, is it any wonder that we are so ineffective in challenging this generation to respond to the poor, the hungry and the homeless? Earlier today, many of us gathered at the Statehouse to manifest our righteous indignation as citizens - that our beloved country should have wandered so far astray.

Tonight we gather as men and women of faith to beg a compassionate God to bring about a genuine conversion of mind and heart, in us, and in our country. Thousands of citizens gather in Washington each year to petition our government to do whatever is necessary to extend the constitutionally guaranteed right to life - liberty - and the pursuit of happiness, to every individual - including the unborn child.

Earlier today many of us joined with men and women of diverse creeds - to share our profound concern for life, and our persistent determination to speak out for those who cannot speak for themselves. Now, in this moment of grace and human solidarity, let the significance of what we do here not be lost on anyone. We are about the issue of life or death - and the choice is life. The choice is free - but divinely ordained - for God has said - through His prophets: "Today I have set before you life and death - the blessing and the curse; choose life - then - that you and your descendants may live."

In an effort to protect a woman's right to privacy and to dominion over her own body - the Supreme Court compromised -indeed it abrogated the right to life of the unborn child. In effect the court said that the unborn is not a person - is therefore not a citizen - and therefore cannot have rights under the Constitution. We are here today to say, as we said in Washington last night, that the Supreme Court of the United States was wrong. As clearly - as forcefully - as unequivocally as we can - we say that the right to life does not come from the Supreme Court - and the Supreme Court does not have the authority to take it away! The right to life precedes the Constitution in the natural order of things - and in fact - precedes any and all written or accepted codes of law. The right to Life comes from God and God alone has sovereignty over it. When God gives life - it is forever.

History reveals to us other mistaken judgments in the Courts of our land. The Dred Scott decision of 1857 had the effect of declaring slaves chattel - and denied them any rights. But that error was corrected. The Supreme Court set forth the dubious proposal of "separate but equal." This mistaken notion has also been reversed, largely by the force of the people inveighing against it. And now we have indications that the Court may reconsider its former decision on the calamitous ramifications of abortion-on-demand. In Missouri - the people have declared that life begins at conception - and in doing so -have sparked our hopes for a reversal of Roe vs. Wade.

We come today before the God and Father of Our Lord Jesus Christ - the Author of all life. We declare that life is God's gift - His most precious gift - and when God gives life it is forever. We come together as Roman Catholic to celebrate the life - death - and glorious resurrection of Jesus Christ in these Sacred Mysteries. In this holy Sacrifice - men and women of faith who have been baptized into the mystery of the death and rising of Jesus come again into personal contact with the Risen Lord. In accomplishing His victory over sin and death Jesus rose to new life in His glorified human body. For all eternity - in His glorified humanity - He reigns at the right hand of the Father as a life-giving Spirit. He continues His mission in us, and invites us to share in it - that all might have life and have it to the full.

Sharing that mission requires far more of us than merely ending toleration of abortion by the law. Sharing the mission of Jesus requires that we bring about, through prayer and fasting, a genuine conversion of mind and heart that will reverence all life as God's sacred gift. It will demand not only that we preach and proclaim the sanctity of all human life but also that we teach, clearly and unequivocally, the true nature and the sacred character of human sexuality in the divine scheme. This will not be easy in a sensuous and selfish society. We must clearly present the Church's teaching on chastity, constantly urge our young people to respect their own sexual integrity and that of every other person, and warn them of the spiritual as well as the medical risks of casual sexual encounters. And not the least important, we must be prepared to accept the responsibility of offering substantial and compassionate assistance to those unmarried young women faced with an unplanned pregnancy. Ending abortion is just the beginning of our responsibility to secure the fullness of life.

And so we begin again in this moment of prayer by approaching the Mother of God, our Mother. She conceived of the Holy Spirit, Life itself, Jesus Christ the Son of God. We who for too long have been content to be silent beg for courage to speak out clearly and forcefully, we who for too long have been satisfied to stand idly by, beg for the fortitude to act boldly. And we begin by humbly, pleadingly approaching the Mother of Life Itself with the faith-filled words of children: Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us, sinners, now, and at the hour of our death. Amen.