Suggested Pro-Life Household Topics for the
Week of March 25 (Day of the Unborn) to March 31, 2012
(Note: March 26 is The Feast of the Annunciation)
HOUSEHOLD TOPIC 1: REFLECTION ON THE ANNUNCIATION
Mary is troubled by the Angel Gabriel’s greeting, but still, Mary rejoices to do the Lord’s Will. Let us pray that all mothers who conceive a child may place their trust in God our Father, and know that the little one they have conceived, no matter what circumstances were in place, should be nourished and protected.
Scripture:
And Mary said, ‘Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it unto me according to Thy Word.’
- Luke 1: 38
Reflection:
Our mother is a model of correspondence to grace. If we contemplate her life, our Lord will give us the light we need to divinize our everyday existence. Throughout the year when we celebrate feasts dedicated to Mary, such as the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, and frequently on other days, we Christians can think of our Mother Mary. If we take advantage of these moments, trying to imagine how she would conduct herself in our circumstances, we will make steady progress in defeating the culture of death in our own land.
The scene of the Annunciation is a very lovely one. Mary is recollected in prayer. She is using all her senses and her faculties to speak to God. It is in prayer that she comes to know the Divine Will. With prayer she makes it the life of her life. Do not forget the example of our Mother Mary.
The Nativity story has all of the elements of a crisis pregnancy situation that one might see in modern society. A young mother, hopeful about her future but unsure what impact an unplanned pregnancy will have on it. A father who isn’t quite ready to become one. A couple who don’t believe they have the resources or capacity to care for a child they never expected.
In this trying time for our country and the world, with the promotion of abortion reaching historic proportions across the world, the uplifting story of the birth of Jesus brings us real hope for the future of our nation and an assurance that God has a plan.
Scripture:
And Mary said, ‘Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it unto me according to Thy Word.’
- Luke 1: 38
Reflection:
Our mother is a model of correspondence to grace. If we contemplate her life, our Lord will give us the light we need to divinize our everyday existence. Throughout the year when we celebrate feasts dedicated to Mary, such as the Feast of Our Lady of Guadalupe, and frequently on other days, we Christians can think of our Mother Mary. If we take advantage of these moments, trying to imagine how she would conduct herself in our circumstances, we will make steady progress in defeating the culture of death in our own land.
The scene of the Annunciation is a very lovely one. Mary is recollected in prayer. She is using all her senses and her faculties to speak to God. It is in prayer that she comes to know the Divine Will. With prayer she makes it the life of her life. Do not forget the example of our Mother Mary.
The Nativity story has all of the elements of a crisis pregnancy situation that one might see in modern society. A young mother, hopeful about her future but unsure what impact an unplanned pregnancy will have on it. A father who isn’t quite ready to become one. A couple who don’t believe they have the resources or capacity to care for a child they never expected.
In this trying time for our country and the world, with the promotion of abortion reaching historic proportions across the world, the uplifting story of the birth of Jesus brings us real hope for the future of our nation and an assurance that God has a plan.
Prayer:
Father, I need a place to rest my head, as the world can cause me so much distress and worry about children who are as yet, unborn. Reflecting on the words of Our Lady, ‘Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it unto me according to Thy Word’, Mary simply answered, ‘Yes, Thy Will be done’. Teach me to answer yes in every present moment, so I may submit myself totally in trust to Your Divine Will in protecting the little ones.
I bring to You all mothers who are afraid because of their pregnancy; may You grant them the courage to trust in Your Will, so they may choose Life and answer, ‘Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it unto me according to Thy Word’. I make this prayer through the wounds of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
Eternal Father, I offer You the Body, the Blood, the Soul and the Divinity of Your dearly beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ in atonement for our sins and the sins of the whole world. For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world. Amen.
Father, I need a place to rest my head, as the world can cause me so much distress and worry about children who are as yet, unborn. Reflecting on the words of Our Lady, ‘Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it unto me according to Thy Word’, Mary simply answered, ‘Yes, Thy Will be done’. Teach me to answer yes in every present moment, so I may submit myself totally in trust to Your Divine Will in protecting the little ones.
I bring to You all mothers who are afraid because of their pregnancy; may You grant them the courage to trust in Your Will, so they may choose Life and answer, ‘Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it unto me according to Thy Word’. I make this prayer through the wounds of Your Son, our Lord Jesus Christ.
Eternal Father, I offer You the Body, the Blood, the Soul and the Divinity of Your dearly beloved Son, our Lord Jesus Christ in atonement for our sins and the sins of the whole world. For the sake of His sorrowful Passion, have mercy on us and on the whole world. Amen.
Household Topic 2:
The Annunciation… And Then the Angel Left Her by Geraldine Farrell
Source: http://unbornwordoftheday.com/2009/12/01/my-nine-month-journey-with-my-mother-the-first-month-2/
My mother said ‘yes’ and the Holy Spirit overshadowed her – although I was miraculously conceived, I began life as one cell just like any other unborn baby. And then the angel Gabriel left her… she had become my mother.
Meditation
The following reflections are from Cardinal Bérulle 1575-1629 (founder of the French School of Theology). Some of the most notable followers of the French School were St. Louis de Montfort, St. John Eudes, and Father Jean-Jacques Olier.
“Stuttering rather than speaking, this is what we can say about things that so greatly surpass the human mind and even the angelic mind. These are the first thoughts of the incarnate Word. This is the first conversation of Jesus in the Virgin. This is the Virgin’s first contemplation, or better yet, this is the Virgin’s first ecstasy before the Son of God made Son of Man in her.” p. 166
“The Virgin is involved with Jesus and she is the only one in the whole world involved with Jesus. Thus she is the only one in the whole world adoring the mystery of the Incarnation, which was brought about on earth for the earth but unknown to the earth. She is the only one adoring Jesus. The more that she is the only one captivated by such a great subject, the greater is her involvement. She is devoted to it with all her faculties. All her senses are brought to bear on it, for it is a tangible mystery and tangible within her. All her senses should pay homage to her God made tangible for human nature. Her whole mind is concentrated on it. And the Spirit of Jesus, which enlivens this little divinized body, enlivens the spirit and body of the Virgin as well, through grace, love and a holy, gentle influence.” p. 164
Bérulle and the French School: selected writings By Pierre de Bérulle, edited by William M. Thompson
The following is a footnote by William M. Thompson
“The authors of the French School were so struck by the humiliation and sublime grandeur of Jesus living in Mary’s womb that they counted his time on earth from the moment of conception…Bérulle implies that Nazareth and not Bethlehem is where the “first birth” of Jesus occurs. It is fascinating to note that, although he intended to write about all of Jesus’ thirty-four years on earth, Bérulle’s Life of Jesus, through its thirty chapters, never moves beyond the nine months of gestation.” p. 187
Bérulle and the French School: selected writings By Pierre de Bérulle, edited by William M. Thompson
Household Topic 3: WHAT DOES MY LITTLE SAVIOR LOOK LIKE? FIRST TRIMESTER
Source: http://unbornwordoftheday.com/2010/12/05/what-does-my-little-savior-look-like-first-trimester/
Painting from Gemaldegalerie Berlin
On this Day of the Unborn Child – keeping in mind the pregnant Virgin Mary and her growing unborn baby – this is a good time to ask, “What does our little Savior look like?”
The Zygote Christ Child is a mere one cell and you can’t even see Him. This cornerstone cell of the Christ Child’s Body is a male human living cell with 46 chromosomes. Jesus at this one cell stage is literally bursting with Grace! This is “the grace of union”, when the Son of God assumed a human nature from His very conception, which St. Thomas Aquinas taught was the source of every other grace. He is One Cell and one with us.
The Blastocyst Christ Child at about one week development now consists of more than 100 cells; a one hundredfold blessing for humanity. He is implanted into the lining of Mary’s womb and is clearly focused on His Incarnation Mission.
The Embryonic Christ Child is between 1/12 to 1/6 of an inch in length (around 4 weeks gestation). He is “the least among us” but has the most to give! His primitive Sacred Heart is beating for love, a tempo that this world has never heard before, with a meaning that will take a life time to comprehend. (Memo to Mary: Your little baby has taken charge of this redemptive pregnancy already, sending chemical-hormonal messages from His body to yours – thank you Mary for passing on essential nutrients to your Embryonic Christ Child, you are building up His tiny body and preparing Him for His Redemptive Mission.)
The Fetus Christ Child (around 8 weeks gestation) is 1 ¼ to 1 2/3 inches in length and weighs about 1/3 ounce. He is not heavy, He is our brother, in solidarity with all unborn children, embracing our humanity in His body and Soul. In proportion to the rest of His rapidly growing body, Christ’s head and heart are very big; He knows us and loves us. His Sacred Heart beats at about 140 beats per minute.
As His First Trimester ends, Unborn Jesus shows extraordinary signs of typical growth for an unborn baby. All vital organs are fully formed, His hair is growing, you can count the fingers on His hand and His finger nails are growing too! See each ear taking on its final shape and the iris forming in His eye. “Incline thy ear, O Lord, and hear; open thy eyes, O Lord, and see….”(Isaiah 37:17) In the buoyant liquid environment in which He grows, Unborn Jesus is showing not just a ‘walking reflex’ but vigorously stretches His limbs and can even be seen leaping.
“Behold, he comes, leaping upon the mountains, bounding over the hills.
My beloved is like a gazelle, or a young stag.
Behold, there he stands behind our wall,
gazing in at the windows, looking through the lattice.” Song of Songs 2:8-9
My beloved is like a gazelle, or a young stag.
Behold, there he stands behind our wall,
gazing in at the windows, looking through the lattice.” Song of Songs 2:8-9
Maestro Francesco, XIII century
Madonna Platytera fra tre santi , Venezia, Scuola di S.
Madonna Platytera fra tre santi , Venezia, Scuola di S.
HOUSEHOLD TOPIC 4: THE INCARNATION – GIFT TO HUMANITY
Sometimes words such as ‘gift’ and ‘giving’ – like the word ‘love’ – seem over-used, employed too often and too superficially, thus inclined to have their true meaning and intent eroded. But to call the Incarnation a ‘gift from God’ is not only appropriate, it is almost understatement. Consider this observation by John Paul II:
“The conception and birth of Jesus Christ are in fact the greatest work accomplished by the Holy Spirit in the history of creation and salvation: the supreme grace – “the grace of union,” source of every other grace, as St. Thomas explains.” (# 50 The Holy Spirit in the Life of the Church and the World)
Here is a very rough paraphrase: The Incarnation of Jesus Christ is the supreme gift – given by God to humanity.
John Paul goes on to say of the Incarnation that it is the “source of every other grace” – and every other Divine gift. Later in the same document, John Paul elaborates on this concept further:
“Creation is thus completed by the Incarnation and since that moment is permeated by the powers of the Redemption, powers which fill humanity and all creation.” #52
As we approach Easter, we know that it is a day to thank God for His plenteous and overflowing gifts, especially the gift of the Risen Jesus. What better place to begin our thanksgiving recollection than in Nazareth?
In the time of Christ there was a rather dismissive popular expression: “Can anything good come out of Nazareth?” (Jn 1:46)
“Yes” we might respond, “All Good – ‘the supreme grace’ of God, the true ‘powers of the Redemption’ filling humanity to overflowing, ‘grace upon grace’, and enduring hope!”
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HOUSEHOLD TOPIC 5: “WE ARE PEOPLE OF LIFE AND FOR LIFE” – ARCHBISHOP GOMEZ
Source: http://unbornwordoftheday.com/2011/10/17/we-are-people-of-life-and-for-life-archbishop-gomez/
(The following column by Los Angeles Archbishop José Gomez appeared in the Friday, Oct. 7, issue of the archdiocesan newspaper The Tidings)
Blessed John Paul II said that as Christians we are called to be people of life and for life.
Our religion, in a beautiful and mysterious way, is deeply identified with human life. What other world religion remembers the time when its founder was in his mother’s womb?
Yet in our sacred Scriptures, we preserve the story of Jesus’ conception, his birth, and even some events from his early childhood. We retell these stories in our worship, year after year — at Christmas time, in feasts like the Annunciation. We remember the name of Jesus’ mother in our confession of faith, when we say Jesus was “born of the Virgin Mary.”
Biblical religion is a religion in which family and children, and the promise of children, plays a big role.
Think of the stories of Abraham and Sarah and God’s promise to give them a son. Think of God’s words to the prophet Jeremiah: “Before I formed you in the womb, I knew you.”
Again and again in the salvation history we read in the Bible, God’s plan is enacted through a woman who is with child. “Behold a virgin shall conceive and bear a son …”
God loved us so much that he entered into this world as each one of us did — through the womb of a mother.
Blessed Mother Teresa of Calcutta used to love the Gospel story of the Visitation. She always pointed to this detail — how St. John the Baptist leapt in St. Elizabeth’s womb when Mary walked into the room.
She said: “Something very beautiful, something very wonderful happened. The first human being to recognize the presence of Jesus was the little one in the womb of his mother — who leaped with joy. It is so beautiful to think that God gave that little unborn child the greatness of proclaiming the presence of Jesus on earth.”
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