Q. What Has 1,200,000 Feet, 600,000 Heads, and 1 Huge Heart?

A. The March for Life in Washington, DC on January 22.

It’s 600,000 people on a mission to restore the right to life for every human being.

To get an idea of what happens on that amazing day here’s a 3-minute video of some our parishioners at last year’s March.

As we celebrate Thanksgiving today, it is important to remind ourselves why we defend the right to life of the unborn, why we march every year. The answer is simple. Jesus Christ revealed the infinite worth of every human being, no matter how small, weak, broken, or seemingly “disposable” in the eyes of the world. Our faith in Jesus is the foundation and reason for our deep conviction, our unshakable faith, in the dignity and worth of each of our brothers and sisters, including the “least of these brothers of mine.” They are all created in the divine image and likeness; they are all our brothers and sisters.

As we thank the Author of Life today for all of His blessings to us and our families, let’s not forget the littlest and poorest among us, and let’s commit to continue the fight for life.

The theme for this year is Pro-Life + Pro-Woman Go Hand in Hand. Of course. There are lots of ways parishioners can acknowledge January 22, the date on which the US Supreme Court overturned every state’s abortion laws and made abortion legal through all nine months of pregnancy by their decision in Roe v. Wade. The obvious way to mark the day is to go to the March for Life itself, and it’s not too early to reserve a bus for your parish. If you need help doing that just contact Linda in the Respect Life Office at life@archbalt.org. We post the list of buses going to the March on our March for Life webpage. If your parish does not sponsor a bus, you’ll find a group on that webpage that your parishioners can join. Or, you can take the MARC train to DC – very simple. We’re planning to make our Archdiocesan presence more visible than ever with flags, scarves, and lots more of our folks on the Mall. Come join us!

For those who cannot attend the March in person, or who want to be part of a great novena of prayer, 9 Days for Life is an excellent way to participate.  It is easily accessible by phone, computer or download.  Need one good reason to join in the prayer effort?  Here are 9 of them.  The novena intentions will include many respect life issues:  death penalty, adoption, infertility, physician-assisted suicide, abortion, pornography and domestic violence.

Other ways to commemorate the USSC decision of Roe vs. Wade:

• Include one or more of these intentions in the daily Mass of January 22, or each day that week.
• Particpate in  these January events
• Use the Respect Life Program throughout the year.  It includes articles on many topics as well as suggestions for organizing parish or group Coffee and Conversation.

Have a safe, happy, and blessed Thanksgiving! And please share how your parish will be participating in the March for Life on January 22, 2016.