Seminar planned to respect life in many ways

TAYLORSVILLE — The diocesan Respect for Life Commission will sponsor "Respect for Life," a day that will begin with a Latin Mass, followed by food and speakers who will focus on the dignity of life in many ways. The event will be held at Saint Martin de Porres Catholic Church in Taylorsville. The Mass will be celebrated by Father Jan Bednarz, pastor.

When does human life begin according to science? How do we treat life once it has started? How do we treat those who are in prison? "These are the questions and topics that will be answered and the reasons why the speakers have been selected," said Veola Burchett, director of the Diocese of Salt Lake City’s Family Life Office.

Dr. Maureen Condic, a University of Utah professor in the School of Medicine, Department of Neurobiology and Anatomy, will give a scientific perspective on "When Does Life Begin?" She would like people to gain a better understanding of the facts of human development and to consider the question of when human life begins in light of these facts, she said.

Fr. Bednarz will surprise the audience with his life story, he said. He was ordained a priest in 1972 in his native Poland. Fr. Bednarz also visits the incarcerated youth and adults. "Many miracles happen at the county jail," he said. "All these people need Christ."

Illa Wright, Detention Ministry coordinator for Salt Lake County, will speak about why everyone and everything created by God deserves respect. Wright has been in the detention ministry for over 50 years; she first started visiting the incarcerated in the Utah State Prison, and then Wasatch Prison before visiting the youth, she said.

Carol Ruddell, a member and past chairwoman of the Commission for People with Disabilities, will address the sanctity of life.

"If you believe that life begins at conception, life cannot end at birth," Ruddell said. "It’s more than being against abortion or the death penalty. These bookends are but a moment in the lifespan of each person. Living our baptismal calling means having the same passion we feel about abortion in every moment of our lives. What are the threats to the lived life? The proposed organ donation process, the civil commitment process, assault weapons ban, clean water and charitable choices will be discussed. How can we be warriors for the living in our families, communities and the world?"

The Respect Life Day came about as a result of the Respect Life Commission wanting to educate people on the issues surrounding life, said Burchett. "Even though abortion is a primary issue, because without life the other rights are nonexistent, there are also rights the Catholic Church is concerned about and sometimes these issues get lost, but they are also a part of Catholic teaching. We have to look at life in the light of all the Church’s teachings."