This week, the Catholic Church in the United States focuses our attention on the protection of unborn children. A National Prayer Vigil for Life will take place on January 18–19. On this occasion, over 20,000 pilgrims gather in Washington D.C. to pray all night to end abortion and for a greater respect for all human life. Bishops and dioceses join throughout the country.
On January 22, the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the Church observes the Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children. On this day we are invited to give thanks to God for the gift of human life, to do penance, and to pray for the protection of each sacred human life. The U.S. Bishops remind us that prayer is the foundation of everything we do in defense of human life. One way to ask Our Lord to help us defend all life, is by praying the 9 Days for Life novena January 16–24.
In a speech to a high-level meeting of the UN General Assembly, Pope Francis said, “It is troubling to see how simple and convenient it has become for some to deny the existence of a human life as a solution to problems that can and must be solved for both the mother and her unborn child”.
Let’s pray with Catholics around the world for an end to abortion and for the protection of life through all its stages, from conception to natural death. Please join in praying this prayer from Day 1 of the 9 Days for Life novena. The Spanish version can be found here.
Heavenly Father, thank you
for the precious gift of life.
Help us to cherish and protect
this gift, even in the midst
of fear, pain, and suffering.
Give us love for all people,
especially the most vulnerable,
and help us bear witness to the
truth that every life is worth living.
Grant us the humility to accept help
when we are in need,
and teach us to be merciful to all.
Through our words and actions,
may others encounter the
outstretched hands of Your mercy.
We ask this through
Christ, our Lord.
Amen.
Image credit: FamilyMan88, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Prayer credit: Every Life is Worth Living, © 2015, United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, Washington, DC. All rights reserved.
