Homily: January 22 - Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children

Today, January 22, 2013, marks the 40th anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the landmark Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion nationwide.  In keeping with the instruction of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops– we are observing a special day of penance and reparation for sins against the dignity of the human person through acts of abortion.

Since that tragic decision, more than 55 million children's lives have been lost to abortion, and the lives of millions of their parents have been shattered. That single legal opinion, and the subsequent millions upon millions of individual and societal decisions that have been made in its wake, not only have taken the lives of countless human beings in the womb, but have also taken an unimaginable toll on those who have turned to abortion, those who have performed abortions, those who have encouraged abortions, and on our society as a whole as we have witnessed a steady desensitization regarding all forms of assaults on human dignity and life at all its stages.  

Abortion is directly repugnant to the teachings of the Catholic Faith and has always been so. Abortion was practiced by the Greeks, Romans, and even the Egyptians. But the Catholic Church has always condemned abortion as gravely sinful. Our Faith teaches that a baby is human from the very moment of conception and that innocent human life may never be directly and deliberately taken. Abortion is murder and it is intrinsically evil. 

So, the Catholic Church prays intently today for the legal protection of unborn children.  The priest wears purple vestments at mass today as we express our sorrow for the countless sins committed against human dignity specifically through abortion.  But today is also a day of hope.  We trust that God hears our prayers.  Many who once supported abortion have come to embrace the Church’s teachings on the dignity of human life; many workers in the abortion industry have become faithful, practicing, and vibrant Catholics.  

May the Church faithfully continue to be God’s instrument of hope, healing, conversion and life for our culture for His glory and the salvation of souls.