Respect Life

Who We Are

Saint Joseph Catholic Community's Respect Life ministry is a group of people dedicated to the fight for life. Our purpose is to promote and uphold the sanctity of all human life, from conception to natural death. Through prayer, service and education, we help women in crisis pregnancies find alternatives to abortion through service and support in the spirit of the Catholic Church. We focus on issues such as euthanasia and the death penalty, as well.

Our primary areas of service include the annual March for Life, Gabriel Project, Rosaries for Life, Support for the Elderly and Bereaved, and Project Rachel. With the help of God, we try to acknowledge and fight problems in today's world and educate our fellow parishioners.

Read on for specifics on our outreach programs!

How Can You Make a Difference?

What simple pro-life activities can almost everyone do with very little effort, which brings the Pro-Life message to people at minimal cost?

1. Put Pro-Life stickers or address labels on all your mail.
2. Include a piece of literature in ALL bills you pay.
3. Put a Pro-Life bumper sticker or decal on your cars.
4. Pray for an abortionist in your town or state, that they might experience a change of heart.
5. Go to yard sales and buy baby clothes and maternity clothes and donate them to your local Crisis Pregnancy Center or maternity home.
6. Use Pro-Life checks. Every time you write a check you share the Pro-Life message.
7. Boycott organizations who support abortion.
8. Visit the elderly, sick or lonely.
9. Write your congressman with your views on the death penalty. These letters don't have to be long. Simply state your position and how you would like them to vote.
10. And for those who feel the call, join st. Joseph's Respect Life Committee! Call Mary Pulick for information: 410-795-7838.

Some people you "know" have spoken for Life:

"My mother was initially devastated to find that she was pregnant with her 14th child. A priest told her that she had no right to go against nature (by having an abortion) ...So I have to admit that in a way, I owe my life to a priest." Celine Dion, 2000

"I was once pro-choice. The thing that changed my mind was when I read my husband's biology and medical books. What I learned is simply what it states - this isn't even a moral question - this is pure biology. At the moment of conception a life starts; and this life has its own unique set of DNA, which contains a blueprint for the whole genetic being. The sex is determined. Now people ask the question, well, is it a human being? We know there's a life because it's growing and changing." Supermodel Kathy Ireland, 1998

"The value of a human life is priceless because God's love is priceless. The elderly, the infirm, the unborn child, the condemned criminal: All bear the imprint of God's love. All bear His likeness. Every life, no matter how confused or broken, is valuable." U.S. Catholic Conference, 2000

Great links to check out this month:

Priests for Life - an officially approved Catholic association of priests, deacons, and lay auxiliary members who make a special commitment to spread the Church's teachings on sanctity of every human life from fertilization to natural death: www.priestsforlife.org

Little One Posters from the Archdiocese of Baltimore Spiritual Adoption Program - photos depict and describe in words the baby's development each month. These posters are an attempt to restore the "humanity" of the unborn child in the minds and hearts of all who see them: Little One Posters

Month 1 - "My heart started beating today!"
Month 2 - "I can suck my thumb now!"
Month 3 - "I grabbed my hand today!"
Month 4 - "I had a dream today!"
Month 5 - "Mommy felt me kick today!"
Month 6 - "I rolled over today!"
Month 7 - "I looked around today!
Month 8 - "I like to listen to my Mommy's voice!
Month 9 - "Here I am!"

Highlights of What We Do!

	The Gabriel Project: is an interdenominational network of churches working with crisis pregnancy centers throughout Maryland committed to helping women through a crisis pregnancy. We see in the birth of each baby afresh expression of God's unfailing love. We offer immediate and practical help, including: - Material needs - Occasional transportation - Temporary day care - Basic car maintenance - Counseling - Friendship and Prayer Call 1-800-533-0093 for a crisis pregnancy center near you, or Mr. Paul Cooke, 410-549-0779.
	March for Life: The National Right to Life Committee asks us to march on Washington, D.C. every January 22nd. The year 2004 marked the 30th such March, held annually since the first March for Life on January 22, 1974, exactly one year after the U.S. Supreme Court repealed the abortion laws of all 50 states (Roe v. Wade and Doe v. Bolton). Join St. Joseph parishioners as they join 100,000 plus marchers in 2005. We'll keep you posted here and in Sunday's bulletin as the date approaches!
	Project Rachel - Do you know someone who is carrying the grief and sorrow of past abortions? Do you know someone who needs to move from brokenness to reconciliation? Share with them the "good news" of God's merciful love. Call Project Rachel for a confidential referral to a priest/counselor. Phone: 1-800-286-4224, Maryland only.