Father Timothy MarcoeRecently, I’ve been reading about various rivers throughout the world being granted the legal status of personhood with its associated rights and privileges. Often, such action is motivated by a genuine concern for the beliefs of indigenous peoples, some of whom see certain rivers as sacred. The intention to preserve the river from pollution and other assaults is good. But, the idea of the state assigning personhood to an inanimate object, while denying personhood to living human beings – such as unborn babies in the womb – is completely contradictory.
A person, as defined by the dictionary, is “a living human.” This definition has undergone virtually no challenges for thousands of years, and yet recently, there has been much confusion about the nature of human life. Questions arise like: Are babies in the womb people? Should animals or even rivers be declared persons? Why are there restaurants for pets in some cities while millions of people starve around the world? Should people who are non-citizens receive equal treatment in our society? There is much confusion about being a person these days. And in the face of all the confusion, we cry out to heaven and ask God, “What is going on?”
The Prophet Habakkuk, in our first reading, also cried out to God, as he saw all the injustice going on in his time. And even though such issues as legalized abortion, euthanasia, and physician-assisted suicide as we know them today were not even in existence at the time of this prophet, we can place his words on our own lips today: “How long, O LORD? I cry for help, but you do not listen! … Destruction and violence are before me; there is strife, and clamorous discord.”
My friends, today in the Church we celebrate Respect Life Sunday. And I ask the question: What does it mean to respect life? In a general sense, we could say it means anything from not kicking the dog to helping an older person cross the street. More specifically though, when we talk about Respect Life Sunday, we’re talking in a focused way about protecting human life and standing up for those who are not able to defend or protect themselves – the vulnerable and defenseless of our society. This is what it means to be pro-life.
Now, if I would ask practicing Catholics and evangelical Christians if they were pro-life, many would probably say, “Oh yes, I’m pro-life – I defend life.” And, I would be happy to hear that. But, what if I would ask a follow-up question: “How do you show that you’re pro-life?” – and people responded, “Well, I just am. I mean, I don’t support using embryonic stem cells, and I’m against the death penalty. I’m pro-life.” “But, how do you show you’re pro-life?” It’s not enough to defend life just by our thoughts or feelings or beliefs. Rather, we’re called to respect life in our actions, day in and day out.
In the first Letter of John, we hear the following words: “Whoever does not love a brother whom he has seen cannot love God whom he has not seen.” I’d like to take this and apply it to a fundamental respect for human life: “If we do not love the person we can see, we will certainly not love the person we can’t see.” If we don’t uphold the dignity of the person on the street who cuts us off in traffic, how will we really be able to value the dignity of the street person living in an alley?
If we don’t treat with respect our family members who we see each day, how will we really be able to respect life in the womb which is hidden within? If we don’t love the person for how they appear on the outside, how will we really be able to love the heart of the person on the inside?
My friends, in this world there is a rapidly increasing lack of respect for others: between children and parents; between those of different political persuasions; and, between so-called “friends” on social media cyber-bullying one another. As Christians, if we do not manage to respectfully treat one another with love and dignity, why would the world listen to us when we talk about those hidden in society – the unborn, the incarcerated, the terminally ill, and the immigrant?
And so, on this, Respect Life Sunday, the Church invites us to renew our personal commitment to really being a follower of Jesus who respects life in our daily words, thoughts, and actions. Will people thank us for doing so, or give us a gold star? More likely it will go unnoticed, at best. But we respect life because God is the author of life, and we are His people.
To close, I offer the following prayer by Mother Theresa to comfort and inspire us in living out our defense of life: “If you are kind, people may accuse you of selfish, ulterior motives. Be kind anyway … What you spend years creating, others could destroy overnight. Create anyway … If you find serenity and happiness, some may be jealous. Be happy anyway … The good you do today, will often be forgotten. Do good anyway … In the final analysis, it is between you and God. It was never between you and them anyway.” God bless you.
(Father Marcoe is the pastor of St. Francis Xavier Parish in Gettysburg.)
By Father Timothy D. Marcoe, Special to The Witness
