During the Octave of Christmas, when we observe the Feast of the Holy Innocents, we particularly recall those murdered by King Herod who sought to wipe out the promised Messiah. The Church venerates these innocents as martyrs. The Catholic Encyclopedia cites St. Augustine in noting that “they died not only for Christ, but in His stead”.
The loss of a child is one of the most heart-wrenching losses a parent can experience. Whether through natural causes, serious illness, tragedy, miscarriage, stillbirth, or abortion, the death of one’s own innocent one causes every mother and father to identify with the inconsolable Rachel who weeps for her children because they are no more (Jeremiah 31:15).
There are many more holy innocents whose brief lives have joined the company of martyrs since that fateful event 2000 years ago in Bethlehem.
It is that time of year again, when we recall the great holocaust of our times: abortion. January 22 marks the 41st anniversary of infamous Supreme Court decision Roe v. Wade and its companion case Doe v. Bolton, which legalized abortion in the U.S. throughout all nine months of pregnancy. Approximately 57 million lives have been lost since this 1973 landmark ruling. Countless hearts of mothers, fathers, grandparents, siblings, and friends, have been deeply, deeply wounded.
We should also remember those that we might call the “forgotten” innocents: the countless newly conceived children whose lives are lost to the abortifacient effects of hormonal contraception before a mother even realizes she is pregnant. Then there are the hundreds of thousands of frozen embryos stored in fertility clinics, or experimented on or simply discarded. These are human persons. All these too, are precious innocent ones.
Who and what might these innocents have become? Things would no doubt be different in our world today had those children been allowed to live. Perhaps one of them would have found the cure for cancer. Perhaps world peace would be a reality. Perhaps he or she would have been your best friend, or your first love, or the next Mother Teresa.
A recent video advertisement for the upcoming winter Olympics pays tribute to the mothers of athletes in a film montage depicting the struggles and perseverance from childhood to adulthood during their years of training for the games. The film poignantly points out “falling only makes us stronger”. Perhaps that is also what the hope of the pro-life movement can teach us. Triumph can overcome tragedy. And good can overcome evil. God always has a plan, despite our sin.
For the past forty-plus years, the Catholic Church has been a leader in reaching out to those wounded by the culture of death and offering hope and healing. Numerous pregnancy resource centers and homes serve women in crisis and help them to choose life. Project Rachel ministers to those who have suffered the trauma of abortion. Doctors specializing in NaPro Technology invite people to embrace the gift of fertility through the marriage-strengthening ministry of Natural Family Planning and offer a morally sound and medically effective approach to treating infertility. The list goes on with the many ways so many Christians treat human life with the dignity it deserves. We can be truly grateful for all those who live the Gospel of Life in ways big and small each and every day.
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We must continue to storm the heavens to restore a Culture of Life, and we must continue to faithfully witness to the Truth. Recently the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops launched a special novena called “9 Days for Life” to help us do just that. From January 18 through 26th, Catholics nationwide will be responding with prayer and penance for the healing and conversion of our nation and people impacted by the culture of death. There are many easy ways to participate in this special call to prayer. One can sign up to receive the novena intentions, which include brief reflections and suggested acts of reparation for each day via email, text message, or mobile app, by visiting the website www.9daysforlife.com. Let us pay heed to what the novena resources boldly proclaim: “Your prayers matter. Your sacrifices make a difference.”
God’s mercy is greater than our sin, and His love calls us to return to Him and keep Him at the center of our lives. When a half million people descend on Washington, DC on January 22 to March for Life and proclaim that all human life is sacred, we will hear little if anything in the mainstream media. But we are reminded by the frequently quoted Mother Teresa, “God does not require that we be successful only that we be faithful.” Life is worth fighting for. May we continue to persevere, and never, ever, give up.