SALT LAKE CITY — With prayer and public advocacy for the protection of unborn children, Catholics in the Diocese of Salt Lake City marked the weekend preceding the anniversary of the legalization of abortion in the United States.
“Each and every human life is of great value and dignity, worthy of respect, protection and safety,” said Bishop Oscar A. Solis at the beginning of the Jan. 18 diocesan Mass for the Unborn, which was celebrated at the Cathedral of the Madeleine. “Any threat to human dignity and life must necessarily be felt in the Church’s very heart. Therefore, we gather this night to pray and dedicate ourselves again to advancing the Gospel of life as proclaimed to us by our savior, especially for those who are most vulnerable and defenseless.”
Concelebrants were Fr. Martin Diaz, rector of the Cathedral of the Madeleine; Fr. Hernando Diaz, a retired priest of the diocese; Fr. J.J. Schwall, pastor of Our Lady of Lourdes Parish (Salt Lake City); Fr. John Evans, pastor of St. Thomas More Parish; Dominican Fr. Lukasz Misko, chaplain of St. Catherine of Siena Newman Center; and Fr. Joseph Delka, parochial vicar of St. Joseph Parish (Ogden). Several deacons of the diocese assisted at the Mass.
In his homily, Bishop Solis said those gathered in the cathedral were there to pray for the millions of babies who have been aborted, and also in reparation for the sin.
“This sad and horrifying tragedy shakes our consciousness and impels us to reflect on God’s precious gift of life as well as to grieve on the loss of so many innocent lives,” he said.
The Mass was a reminder the Church’s fundamental belief in the sanctity of life and the dignity of every human person, which forms the basis of Catholic Social Teaching as well as natural law, he said.
More than 50 million abortions have occurred in the United States since the 1973 U.S. Supreme Court decision of Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion, the bishop reminded those in the congregation, and “we cannot remain indifferent and insensitive to the evil of abortion, because it is morally wrong and radically in-compatible with the love of God and the dignity of the human person – the human person created in the image and likeness of God. We cannot allow a culture that disregards and discards precious life like disposable trash.”
As people of conscience, “we have to do something to save innocent and precious lives,” the bishop said.
At the closing of the Mass, Bishop Solis thanked all those who attended and asked them to pray “to continue to be a light to all people, that we may be a witness of God in the midst of darkness brought by abortion.”
Among those who attended the Mass were Jared and Lindsay Burge, who brought their 20-month-old daughter. Members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, the Burges are pro-life and went to the cathedral “to support the cause that we believe in,” Lindsay Burge said.
“We love that the Catholic Church is such a strong ally in protecting life,” Jared Burge said.
The Mass for the Unborn will be an annual event, Bishop Solis said in an interview afterward.
“We have to emphasize and teach and share the beautiful principle of the Catholic teachings of the dignity and sanctity of human life because it is being attacked on different fronts,” he said. “We know that there are pervasive threats in all sections and on all fronts – abortion, euthanasia, assisted suicide, genetic engineering, and all sorts of crazy stuff that somehow diminishes the dignity and sanctity of human life that God has given us. We have the responsibility to let the world know the teachings of Christ so that they can value life more in all its stages.”
On Saturday, dozens of Catholics joined the several hundred Utahns who participated in the annual March for Life from Washington Square to the Utah State Capital. Among them was Salvador Ceja-Monroy, a St. Joseph parishioner who is president of the Catholic Association for Social Action at Weber State University.
For him, the pro-life message includes not only opposition to abortion but to euthanasia and the death penalty as well, he said.
“Abortion isn’t really freedom, it takes away the life of another,” he said, adding that he also believes that those who promote a pro-abortion position target minorities. He was at the march because “forty years ago I didn’t have a voice [against] the racial tensions in the country, and there were people who had a voice for me who fought for civil rights, and now it’s my turn, now that I have a voice, to fight for those who are defenseless and for those whom society deems not human or does not give them their personhood.”
About 15 members of the diocesan Cursillo Movement recited the rosary as they marched because “we need our Blessed Mother’s help as we’re doing this work for her,” said Connie Gallegos, a St. James the Just parishioner.
“We wanted to pray the rosary to pray for the unborn babies, and for those who have to make the choice not to abort,” added Rita Stelmach, the St. Patrick parishioner who organized the Cursillo marchers.
The winter storm that day tempted St. Therese of the Child Jesus parishioner Teri Mueller to stay home, but she decided to march “because we’re getting so close to the change of heart in this country, and we need to be visible, we need to show that this is important, that all these little lives matter, and there’s no good for an abortion,” she said.
On Jan. 21, about 50 people of all ages gathered at Mount Calvary Catholic Cemetery for the annual diocesan Rosary for Life. Bishop Solis welcomed those present, and said that now is a critical time to witness to the dignity and sanctity of human life. He asked them to pray for a blessing from God, “that we will have the courage to promote the Gospel of life, as well as to be able to make a difference in our world and our society so that we can attain the teachings of Christ on the dignity and sanctity of human life from the moment of conception to natural death, and in all its stages.”
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