Beloved in the Lord,
The Respect Life Month 2025 theme is, “Life: Our Sign of Hope." God encourages us to continue to proclaim this hopeful and healing message in word and action. We are cooperating with God to protect the dignity of the human person during every stage, condition, and circumstance of life.
A reflection on this theme is on the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops' website, which includes this statement: "We are called to be signs of hope to all people, especially those whose goodness, value, and dignity are undermined. As members of the Body of Christ, we carry this hope with us as we continue Jesus’ mission on earth. Pope Leo XIV encourages us, 'How important it is that each and every baptized person feel himself or herself called by God to be a sign of hope in the world today'"
The Church in the USA serves millions of people (whether they are Catholics or not) in our network of educational, medical, and social service institutions. Many parishes have social service and social justice ministries.
For every child to have a chance in life, they need to have a chance to live. Yet, our advocacy does not end at the beginning stages of life. We address issues about caring for the poor and helping them out of poverty, working for racial justice, promoting education, treating immigrants and refugees with dignity, fostering peace with justice at home and abroad, among other things.
Here are some ways in which HFC Parishioners are serving as signs of hope:
-- Prayer: HFC prays daily for respect for the inherent dignity of human life during Holy Mass. The Spiritual Adoption Program accompanies a child conceived in October, the child's mother and loved ones.
-- Poor Box: Donations for programs that support those at every stage of life.
-- Donations to Women’s Center West, Catonsville: Through the Poor Box donations in October, and the annual Baby Bottle Campaign rom Mother's Day to Father's Day, HFC has donated over $30,000 in the past ten years. This does not include material donations as well.
-- Donations to the Hannah More Family Homeless Shelter: Material items to benefit adults and their children.
-- Food Pantry Donations: Helping people throughout the year, including at least 60-70 households for Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter. Parishioners donate almost 4,000 food items for each holiday. Additional donations throughout the year.
-- Project Rachel: A confidential Archdiocese of Baltimore inistry which helps women and men to heal in the aftermath of an abortion;
Respect for the gift of human life is good news! It is a hopeful and healing message. From the moment of conception -- and during every stage, condition, and circumstance of life -- we have an inherent dignity. The right to life is the fundamental right upon which other rights can be exercised.
Sincerely yours in Christ,
Father Raymond Harris
Pastor