MAY is Reverence for Life Month
“All life has inestimable value, even the weakest and most vulnerable, the sick, the old, the unborn and the poor, are masterpieces of God’s creation, made in his own image, destined to live forever, and deserving of the utmost reverence and respect.”
– Pope Francis
May is celebrated annually as "Reverence for Life Month" in the Archdiocese of Regina. The Culture of Life is often associated with ideas framed in negative ways: anti-abortion, against assisted suicide, hate the sin-not the sinner. As Christians we are invited to more than this. It is a challenge, but God calls each of us to recognize and respond to the wrongs of the world. We are called to raise our voices and live out the Gospel of Life.
O Mary,
bright dawn of the new world,
Mother of the living,
to you do we entrust the cause of life.
Look down, O Mother,
upon the vast numbers
of babies not born,
on the poor whose lives are made difficult, on men and women
who are victims of brutal violence,
on the elderly and the sick killed
by indifference or out of misguided mercy.
Grant that all who believe in your Son may proclaim the Gospel of life with honesty and love to the people of our time.
Obtain for them the grace to accept that Gospel
as a gift ever new, the joy of celebrating it with gratitude
throughout their lives and the courage to bear witness to it
resolutely, in order to build, together with all people of good will,
the civilization of truth and love, to the praise and glory of God,
the Creator and lover of life.
—John Paul II, Evangelium Vitae, 105
Resources From the Catholic Organization for Life and Family (COLF)
Life Matters: The Unborn Child: A Gift, A treasure, and A Promise
Life Matters: Euthanasia and Assisted Suicide: Urgent Questions!
Families: Christ Calls Us to Sow in Joy and Hope!
A Catholic Perspective on Health Decisions and Care at the End of Life