Sanctity of Life
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Life is sacred. Life is a mystery. Life must be protected, nurtured, respected. The Gospel of Life is the centerpiece of the Church’s social teaching…It is our task to witness to the truth that love, compassion and solidarity can build a just society that will be safer for the poor, the unborn and those on the periphery.”
Seán Cardinal O’Malley, OFM Cap, Pro-Life Homily - 1/23/20
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Who is my neighbor? Luke 10:29-37
This Ministry seeks to promote the sacredness of life from conception to natural death within our parishes and our community. Members sponsor and arrange education on various issues and promote grassroots action by parishioners in cooperation with the Pregnancy Care Center, Your Options Medical, the Knights of Columbus, the Massachusetts Citizens for Life, and the Archdiocesan Pro-Life Dicastery. The ministry regularly conducts a January Baby Bottle Drive to the Pregnancy Care Center and Your Options Medical, and the Walk For Life in June.
Contact for more information: Jonathan Nauman
telephone: 978-922-7015 or email: jonnauman@hotmail.com
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What does it mean to be “pro-life”?
- Being pro-life certainly means opposing abortion but, for Catholics, being pro-life also means more than just opposing abortion. The Church calls us to care for and respect the dignity of life at all stages, from its earliest days in the womb to the time of our natural death – and at all stages in between.
In a special way, we are called to provide care to the most vulnerable and marginalized among us which includes the unborn, the terminally ill, those with severe disabilities, those on death row, and refugees and migrants around the world who have been displaced by war, famine and civil unrest.
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The Sanctity of Life Ministry organizes activities and events to promote Church teachings on respect for life from conception to natural death. We direct fundraisers for local pregnancy care centers, sponsor visiting speakers on relevant issues, and post bulletin spots to raise parish awareness on pro-life topics.
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Those who follow local and national politics will have heard that in June of 2022 the Supreme Court of the United States overturned Roe vs. Wade, a notoriously unjust decision that the Court handed down back in 1973. Roe vs. Wade, a document now thankfully obsolete, was consistently opposed both by the Church and by many thoughtful men and women outside of the Church because it denied human rights to children in the womb, who are in biological reality just as irreplaceable and unique as adults and children whose birthday has already happened.
This change at the national level will allow the people of our country to make rules to protect new life in the womb. In Massachusetts many elected officials are persuaded that abortion is the presumed and preferred solution whenever men and women who have created new life find the prospect of raising a child inconvenient. This unfortunate state of affairs has not changed our Church’s commitment to urge our society and government to protect life at all stages and to support pregnant women and families in need. The Reading Catholic Community is grateful to renew its longstanding partnerships with the Pregnancy Care Center, and with A Woman’s Concern/Your Options Medical, life-friendly local organizations who give their clients opportunity to make truthful and loving choices with continuing support after childbirth.
Those interested in the details of Church teaching on morality and public policy in relation to these issues are urged to read Pope St. John Paul II’s encyclical The Gospel of Life (Evangelium Vitae).
If you would like o receive a free copy of this document in book form, please contact Jonathan Nauman jonnauman@hotmail.com
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Annual Events"9 Days for Life Novena" - January
Baby Bottle Drive - Supports Pregnancy Care Center and Your Options Medical
Dates TBA
A Holy Hour for Life, Forgiveness and Healing - January
A part of the Archdiocesan observance of the National Day of Prayer and Penance. We pray together for respect for the dignity of human life from conception to natural death; for those who have been wounded by abortion; for those facing death; and for increased holiness in the Church. The Holy Hour for Life, Forgiveness and Healing is organized by Boston Deacons for Life in collaboration with the Office of Diaconal Life and Ministry & the Pro Life Office of the Archdiocese of Boston.
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