Greetings and blessings in this Respect Life Month!
By now your pastor should have received the USCCB Respect Life Program packet for your parish; I encourage you to make an appointment to sit down with your pastor to walk through the packet and determine what resources would best suit your parish. USCCB resources for Respect Life Month may also be found online here.
This month there are a multitude of opportunities for your parish community to support the cause of life. The 40 Days for Life-Dallas campaign started last week with a Kickoff Rally at the Oak Cliff Bible Fellowship Church where we heard an inspiring message from David Bereit, National Director of 40 Days for Life, about the global influence of Texas pro-lifers like yourself. This year's prayer vigil is daily from 6 a.m. - 6 p.m. (new hours!) outside the new Planned Parenthood mega abortion facility at 7989 West Virginia Dr (new location!). Thank you to all of you who have adopted a time of prayer during the campaign. If your church has not yet had a chance to adopt a time prayer, please contact Susan Platt at [email protected] or 214-392-7545 to select your day or part of a day. Promotional and instructional items for your parish participation are available here.
And that's not all! On October 18, the Dallas Diocese will mark Respect Life Month with a multitude of family-friendly events, beginning with the Respect Life Month Mass at 8:30 a.m. at Holy Spirit, Duncanville, with a special blessing for all persons who volunteer or work in respect life ministries. Mass will be followed by Eucharistic Adoration and a Rosary Procession by bus to the nearby new Planned Parenthood. Later that same day will be the 40 Days for Life-Dallas Youth Day & Midway Rally beginning at 11 a.m. at 2812 Prince George Ave with the disbursement of LIFE balloons for a prayerful procession to the vigil site outside Planned Parenthood, and then returning for a picnic lunch and rally featuring Missy Martinez with Students for Life of America. If you have not had an opportunity to take part in this event, I strongly encourage you to go with your families and experience the powerful witness of hundreds of youth standing witness for their brothers and sisters in the womb lost to abortion.
Also this month is the CPLC Classic / Bishop's Cup Pro-Life Charity Golf Tournament on October 13 at the Scotland-inspired golf course -- The Tribute. If you are a golfer or know one, or a business that would like to support the cause of life, be sure to visit prolifedallas.org/golf for more information, registration and sponsorship opportunities.
Also this Fall on November 15 is one of our most popular events -- the annual Christ Child Christmas Gift Market & Luncheon at the DoubleTree Hotel in Richardson, benefiting the Catholic Pro-Life Committee as well as the Birth Choice and White Rose Centers. This year's luncheon speaker is Father James Yamauchi of St. Thomas Aquinas Parish. As always, you may shop the market for free, without attending the luncheon. Visit prolifedallas.org/luncheon for more details and to make your luncheon reservations.
Below are some additional opportunities to mark Respect Life Month:
And don't forget -- the last day to register to vote -- is next Monday, October 6. Please spread the word! And you can help your parish prepare to vote with a Responsible Voting Seminar. Contact Susan Platt at 214-392-7545 or [email protected] to schedule a seminar in English or Spanish.
Beginning in November, we will also have a special first -- a one-day Proyecto Jose Retreat for men suffering from the pain of abortion held in Spanish on November 8. Our inaugural Project Joseph Retreat in English was this past May; the next English retreat will be held on June 27, 2015. More information about this new outreach may be found at projectjosephdallas.org.
Finally, please mark your calendar for the next Parish Pro-Life Coordinators Meeting on November 8 at St. Ann Parish in Coppell. If you can't attend, please send a representative to receive important information about the 2015 Roe Memorial Events on January 17, plus much more! They're right around the corner!
As we Celebrate Life this October, we are keenly aware of the challenges that face us and the dedication demanded of us until every human life is protected from conception until natural death. As we face that sometimes intimidating goal, we can take inspiration from St. Jude Thaddaeus, one of Jesus' twelve apostles whose feast we celebrate on October 28. He is invoked in desperate situations because in a letter he stresses that the faithful should persevere in harsh, difficult circumstances, just as their forefathers had done before them. He is believed to have been martyred with another apostle, St. Simon, in Persia. Sometime after his death, St. Jude's body was brought from Beirut to Rome and placed in a crypt in St. Peter's Basilica. According to tradition, after his martyrdom, many who came to his grave to pray experienced his powerful intercession, thus earning him the title, 'Saint for the Hopeless and Despairing'. St. Bridget of Sweden and St. Bernard had visions from God asking each to accept St. Jude as 'The Patron Saint of the Impossible'. Today, the culture battle may often seem 'impossible,' but we continue to work for the cause of Life, despite difficult circumstances. Let us invoke St. Jude to help us to never despair or give up hope.
May you all have a meaningful and blessed Respect Life Month. Please let us know what activities your parish is planning for this month to reflect and advocate for the greatest cause of all -- LIFE!
Thanks for all you do for Life and God bless,
David
David Carr
P.S. For a unique way to support life this month, check out our new Adopt a Hopeful program supporting mothers struggling to make the choice for life for their unborn children. More info at prolifedallas.org/hopeful.
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