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2005 Issue Four
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Priests for Life Canada 2005 Issue Four We can rely on our patrons Our Lady of Guadalupe, St. Joseph & St. Michael |
Click here for the English version of EUTHANASIA online
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PRO-LIFERS and MARY (Woman of Advent) |
| In This Issue: PRO-LIFERS AND THE EUCHARISTIC
SCHOOL OF MARY MARIAN INFLUENCE ON PRO-LIFERS MICHAEL O'BRIEN ANSWERS PRO-LIFE QUESTION FREE AUDIO TAPES OF SYMPOSIUM 2005 CO-REDEEMERS AND THE CULTURE OF LIFE |
PRAYER FOR LIFE Hail Mary, full of grace, the Lord is with thee. Blessed art thou among women, and blessed is the
fruit of thy womb, Jesus. Holy Mary, Mother of God, pray for us sinners, now and at the hour of our death. Amen. |
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Our Lady of Guadalupe
Patroness
of the Americas
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In order for pro-lifers to understand our relationship with the Eucharist, we must not neglect to turn to Mary, the Mother of God, the Mother of Life, and the Mother of the Eucharist. She is the one who accepted life in the name of all.
Pope John Paul II wrote “Mary is a woman of the Eucharist in her whole life” (Ecclesia de Eucharistia, #53). Since she is the mother and model of the Church, pro-lifers should turn for guidance to the Eucharistic school of Mary, for she was present at the Eucharistic celebrations of the first generation of Christians who were devoted to the “Breaking of the Bread” (Acts 2:42) and continues to be present at every Eucharistic celebration. Mary, as Mother of the Church and the Eucharist, cannot be separated from the Church or the Eucharist.
When Mary accepted the Angel Gabriel’s invitation to become the Mother of the Most High (Mother of God), she gave us the Holy Eucharist. St Thomas Aquinas reminds us that at every Holy Communion we should take notice that the Flesh and Blood of Jesus we receive is of the maternal flesh and blood of Mary. Since the Eucharist is the incarnation continued on earth today, Mary is the origin of the Holy Eucharist. Mary’s womb became the first Tabernacle in which the Son of God allowed Himself to be adored by Elizabeth and John the Baptist.
All that Christ accomplished by His passion and death is present in the memorial of Calvary: “Do this in remembrance of Me” (Lk 22:19). Consequently, all that Christ did in regard to His mother is also present (Ecclesia de Eucharistia, #57). He gave her the beloved disciple, John, and in him, each of us: “Behold your son”. To John, and to each of us, He says: “Behold your mother” (Jn 19:26-27). In experiencing the Eucharist we continually receive this gift of Mary as our mother anew. As pro-life disciples, we invite and welcome her to lead us in “Building a Culture of Life”. We consecrate ourselves to Jesus, through Mary, and do all we do with Jesus and Mary. I am all yours and all I have is yours, Jesus, through Mary (St. Louis de Montfort). Mary praises God through Jesus, in Jesus, and with Jesus. This is the Eucharistic attitude - the spirit of Mary that we must all strive for. A Marian spirituality is essential for pro-lifers in experiencing the mystery of the Eucharist.
Pope John Paul II entrusted the third millennium to Mary. She is the one who prepares (Advent) and leads us to the Cross, to Jesus in the Eucharist. She is the radiant dawn and sure guide for us. His proposed plan for the third millennium emphasized seven priorities centered on the Eucharist: holiness, prayer (reciprocal), centrality of the Eucharist (in Catholic belief and practice), frequent confession, living by grace and the Holy Spirit, frequent meditation of the Scriptures and new Catechism, and the new evangelization. (Novo Millennio Ineunte, Jan. 6, 2001). The essence of this plan of contemplating the Face of Christ is the Eucharist. He added an eighth priority: to contemplate the “Face of Christ” in union with Mary as our guide, Our Lady of Guadalupe, the Star of the New Evangelization, Mother and Queen of the Americas (Pope John Paul II, May 6, 1990).
We know Our Lady of Guadalupe stopped the Aztecs from their annual killing and offering of human sacrifices (20,000 + per year - all ages). Over nine million Aztecs were converted and baptized in a period of seven years. She can do the same for us as she is our refuge. She will protect, nourish, and intercede for the unborn in her role as Co-redemptrix, Mediatrix, and Advocate. If we acknowledge her mission we are to crown our Catholic heritage with a daily Recitation of the Rosary, (Rosarium Virginis Mariae, Oct. 16, 2002). To encourage and promote this plan, Pope John Paul II wrote Ecclesia de Eucharistia on April 17, 2003) and inaugurated the year of the Eucharist in October, 2004. Echoing the words of Jesus, he stated: “Woman, behold your children” (cf. Jn 19:26). He addressed Mary as Mother of the Eucharist (Ecclesia de Eucharistia, #57) and Mother of Life. Drawing from Lumen Gentium describing Mary as Mother of Believers (Evangelium Vitae, #103), and of the Living” (Lumen Gentium, #56), she is the Mother of all who are reborn to life. She is the Mother of Life by which everyone lives. She is the model of how life should be welcomed and cared for by all pro-lifers. +
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PRO-LIFE HOMILIES
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To sign the petition to solemnly define as Christian dogma, the Papal definition of Mary: Coredemptrix, Mediatrix, and Advocate,
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Pro-lifers, as children of Mary, know her as Daughter of the Father, Mother of the Son, and Spouse of the Holy Spirit (De Mariam Nunquam Satis). “Concerning Mary, one can never say enough” (Ratzinger Report, 1985). At the present time there are four dogmas of the faith about the person of Mary: Divine Motherhood (Council of Ephesus, 431 A.D.), Perpetual Virginity (Lateran Council, 649 A.D.), Immaculate Conception (Ineffabilis Deus, 1854 A.D.), and the Assumption (Munificentissimus Deus, 1950 A.D.).
The second Vatican Council invoked the Blessed Virgin in the Church under the titles of “Advocate, Helper, Benefactress, and Mediatrix” (Lumen Gentium, #62). Mary’s role in redemption is described as: “She committed herself wholeheartedly and devoted herself totally to the person and work of her Son, under and with Him, serving the work of Redemption” (Lumen Gentium, #56). Pro-life disciples must commit themselves totally to imitating Mary’s “yes” to promoting and protecting life, and to offering and accepting suffering in our work. She has merited the Church’s title, Co-redemptrix, meaning “with the Redeemer”. We can do no less. We can find no better model to follow.
Mary, Co-redemptrix, is about Mary’s maternal mission: objective redemption, the acquisition of graces, and subjective redemption, the distribution of graces. “Mary, who was conceived and born without any stain of sin, participated in a wonderful way in the suffering of her Son in order to become Co-redemptrix of mankind” (Pope John Paul II, Sept. 8, 1982, Address to the Sick). “Mary’s role as Co-redemptrix did not cease with the glorification of her Son” (Papal Address, Guayaquil, 1985). “May Mary, our Protectress, the Co-redemptrix to whom we offer our prayer with great outpouring, make our desire generously correspond to the desire of the Redeemer” (Pope John Paul II, Palm Sunday, 1985). “The Mother of the Redeemer has a precise place in the plan of salvation” (Redemptoris Mater, 1987, #1). Pope John Paul II drew attention to Mary at the foot of the cross in some two hundred instances. Pro-life disciples belong at the foot of the Cross with Mary, as prayer warriors, helping to build a “Culture of Life, Love, and Justice”.
Dr. Mark Marivalle inaugurated Vox Populi Mariae Mediatrici in 1993, a movement to have the fifth Marian Dogma, “Mary, Co-redemptrix, Mediatrix, and Advocate” proclaimed. A petition of over five million signatures was presented to Pope John Paul II in 1996. The Holy See asked the 12th International Marian Congress (Rome, 1996) to study the possibility and opportuneness of defining the dogma of Mary, Co-redemptrix, Mediatrix, and Advocate. The resulting report stated that the designation was not mentioned in the Vatican II documents, was somewhat ambiguous, that the doctrine was already believed and would be a problem for ecumenism. Cardinal Gagnon, President of the Pontifical Committee for International Eucharistic Congresses stated, “Our faith in the role of Mary must he clearly defined and proclaimed. If we have faith in our hearts we should confess and proclaim it» (Jan. 1, 1997, cf. Rom 10). Pope John Paul II reopened and deepened the discussions on theological foundations in clarifying the meaning and use of the definition of Mary as Co-redemptrix, Mediatrix, and Advocate. He was influenced by the fact that the vast majority of theologians subscribed to this doctrine prior to 1960. True ecumenism must be Marian, open to the whole truth, the person, and the mission of Mary.
International Congresses were held in Rome in 1996, 1997, 2000, and in 2005, as well as in England, in 2000 and in 2002. Over 42 Cardinals, 550 bishops, and more than 157 countries have participated in petitioning for the fifth Dogma about Mary’s Mission. In order for Mary to pour the graces of the Triumph on her children, we must acknowledge, believe, and proclaim her maternal role of suffering as Co-redemptrix, her nourishing role as Mediatrix, and her pleading role as Advocate. Preparations are being made for a new petition to Pope Benedict XVI (now eight million). We, as pro-lifers, can pray for God’s will and timing in this endeavour. Mary is the Mother of Life by which everyone lives, the Mother of all who are reborn to life, the model of how life should be welcomed and cared for by pro-lifers. +
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VOLUNTEERS
NEEDED
Priests for Life Canada, in an effort to minimize costs, uses an extensive volunteer program. At the present time we have a need for various program development and management volunteers. Though you will work as a volunteer from you own home, Priests for Life Canada is able to cover out-of-pocket expenses. To apply, or for more information about any of these volunteer positions, please contact:Michael Vande Wiel
Priests for Life Canada, P.O. Box 43, Cumberland, ON, K4C 1E5
Tel: 613-732-3950; Fax: 613-732-9196 mikevw@priestsforlifecanada.com---------------------------------
1. PROMOTER: SPIRITUAL ADOPTION PROGRAM
As a self-starter and self-motivated person, in cooperation with Priests for Life Canada, you will take charge in designing, implementing, promotion, and development of the Priests for Life Canada "Spiritual Adoption" program. This program will encourage Catholic grade schools (Grades K-8) across Canada to take part in a pro-life/pro-family effort to encourage both staff and pupils to take part in spiritually adopting an unborn child. A similar program is in existence and managed by the Archdiocese of Baltimore (www.archbalt.org/respect-life/spiritual-adoption). A prior positive relationship with grade school participation would be an asset. Knowledge of both English and French would be a further asset.
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2. ARTIST: PRO-LIFE/PRO-FAMILY COLOURING/ACTIVITY BOOK
As an artist, and in cooperation with Priests for Life Canada, you will be responsible for designing and drawing a 24-page “Family and Life Colouring/Activity Book”. This book will be designed to appeal to Canadian Catholic children in the K-5 grade range. Though this is a volunteer program managed from your own home, Priests for Life Canada will cover out-of-pocket expenses. Prior artistic experience with this age group would be an asset.
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3. PROMOTER: PRO-LIFE/PRO-FAMILY COLOURING/ACTIVITY BOOK
As a self-starter and self-motivated person, you will be responsible to assist in promoting the Priests for Life Canada “Family and Life Colouring/Activity Book”. This book is being designed to appeal to Canadian Catholic children in the K-5 grade range. Your function will be to take charge in promoting the use of this book by schools, parishes, and other suitable outlets. Though this is a volunteer program managed from your own home, Priests for Life Canada will cover out-of-pocket expenses. A prior positive relationship working with grade schools would be an asset. Knowledge of both English and French would be a further asset.
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4. PROMOTER: INTERNATIONAL PERPETUAL ROSARY FOR LIFE
You have a special devotion to Our Lady and the Most Holy Rosary. As a self-starter and self-motivated person, in cooperation with Priests for Life Canada, you will take charge in promoting the Priests for Life Canada “International Perpetual Rosary for Life” program (already existing at: www.priestsforlifecanada.com). This program is meant to encourage people throughout the world to join in praying the Most Holy Rosary in an effort to defend life from conception to natural death. Participants pray the Rosary (five decades or more) at a specific time each day, or just once a week. As this is an international effort, access to, and some knowledge of the internet is required. Though this is a volunteer program managed from your own home, Priests for Life Canada will cover out-of-pocket expenses. Knowledge of both English and French would be a further asset. +
MICHAEL D. O’BRIEN ANSWERS QUESTION
ON ABORTION AND RAPE
The following question on abortion and rape was asked after a talk titled, “Are We Living in Apocalyptic Times?”, given recently at St. Patrick's Basilica in Ottawa, by Michael D. O’Brien (see “Thought Crime Becomes a Reality in Canada”, by Michael D. O’Brien, in the 2005, Issue 3, of Priests for Life Canada news magazine).The complete article, “Are We Living in Apocalyptic Times?”, along with the question period following, can be found on the internet at:
www.studiobrien.comQuestion: So, if the family of a raped girl is trying to help the girl make a decision about whether or not to have an abortion, you’re saying that the right decision is for her to have the baby, and to look past the embarrassment and distress this would cause, financially and emotionally, etc. They’d be making a decision for God?
O’Brien: To choose life is to choose the path God has commanded all of us to follow. Yes, all kinds of hardships may result from the birth of this child. But if Our Lord shows us anything about the role of the Cross in our lives, our uniting of our own sufferings to His, it’s this: Even the most severe blows of suffering, which may be the result of our own sins at times, or the result of sins committed against us, can be turned into fruitfulness. Indeed it can even bring about a great good, if we give it enough time, if we don’t lose heart and don’t grasp at hasty solutions. The Christian community is called to rally around women who are suffering in this way, who are faced with the choice to destroy their child or to give it life. To kill a child because its conception came about through the evil act of rape simply compounds one evil upon another evil. This child has done no evil. The child in the womb is an eternal soul.
Some years ago, after one of my talks, a fine young woman in her early twenties came up to me and told me a little about herself. She was studying at university, was obviously intelligent, thoughtful, and a fervent Catholic. She also told me that she was conceived when her mother was raped as a teenager. She went on to say that she and her mother love each other very much, and have a deep relationship. Over time, the pain of her origins has been healed. Her mother married a good man and they have a large and happy family. Her mother chose life, and in time her choice for life brought about great fruitfulness, life flowing from life, life spreading life. The young woman expressed herself with a radiant face, a face full of love—how grateful she was for her life, and for her mother’s choice. +
For other articles by Michael D. O’Brien, see: www.studiobrien.com
CO-REDEEMERS AND
THE CULTURE OF LIFE
by Fr. Jim Whalen
In the beginning, God planted a garden of paradise with a tree of knowledge, good and evil, at its centre. In typology, the garden represents the home of God’s culture. Man and woman (Adam and Eve) disobeyed God and kept the garden badly. God’s plan was to save man (redemption) and reintroduce him to the garden of paradise with access to the Cross, the tree of life, on the hill of Calvary. God is the divine gardener and the tree of life is the Cross, and most specifically, the Eucharist. Pro-life disciples are called to be coredeemers at the foot of the cross with Mary.
Man was forbidden to draw near the tree of knowledge but was invited to come to the Cross, the tree of life, Christ in his human nature, taken from the new Eve. The Virgin Mary has tended the garden well and in Him we can keep the garden centered on the tree of life: the Cross; the Eucharist. The culture of God’s garden is the civilization of life which respects His plan for the family. It is opposed to the “Culture of Death”, which sets up the cult of self. The “Culture of Life” stands in the breach of secular ideology and defends tradition against social evils such as: relativism, secularism, hedonism, promiscuity, contraception, abortion, euthanasia, divorce, pornography, homosexuality, etc.
Co-redemption is a crucial dogma because of its implication regarding the whole social and cultural order. It is a first principle upon which a culture of life, and a civilization of love, can be built. Its power will be discovered at the heart of social order - the family. The culture of the garden of God has been transformed by the redemption of Christ and the coredemption of Mary. A culture of life must be ultimately committed to centering life, in all its facets, on the worship of Jesus, on the tree of life - the Cross; the Eucharist.
When we speak of culture of life, before all else, we mean the Eucharistic culture of family life. Perfecting Trinitarian life is the purpose of culture and of family life. Coredeemers stand at the foot of the tree of life, accepting the cross, and living a communion of life and love.
Mary’s life as Coredemptrix is the personal proof that suffering is redemptive. All Christians are called to be co-workers, co-adjutors, and coredeemers in Christ. “We are God’s co-workers” (1 Cor 3:9). We are called “to make up for what is lacking in the sufferings of Christ, for the sake of the body, that is the Church” (Col 1:24).
Pope John Paul II explained the need for suffering and our co-redeemer role: “Those who share in the sufferings of Christ preserve in their own suffering a very special particle of the infinite treasure of the world’s redemption and can share His treasure with others” (Salvifici Doloris, #27). We must do our part as pro-life disciples in releasing the graces of redemption to the human family by caring for the most vulnerable: the unborn, the handicapped, and the chronically ill; by providing protection for human life; and by living lives of charity and chastity with courage and conviction. Becoming pro-life co-redeemers is achieved by following Mary, through consecration, by our participation through meritorious suffering, and by doing good Christian works for the sake of the Church today.
As pro-life co-redeemers, our prayers are needed to promote the proclamation of the dogma of Mary: Co-redemptrix, Mediatrix, and Advocate. The blessings and benefits of this step would be a source of renewal and order in the Church. The dignity of the human person, human freedom, and the dignity of woman would be affirmed. The fifth Marian dogma would benefit the gospel of suffering and teach us that all suffering with Christ can be redemptive. It would cultivate a Catholic family culture that is fully Marian in attitude and spirit. It would lead to world action, total entrustment to Jesus through Mary. It would focus on Eucharistic reception and adoration, the importance of daily offering of our joys, our sorrows, and our lives; the Rosary; penance; sacrifice; and the Mass. It is the key that can unlock and release the inestimable graces of the triumph of the Immaculate Heart of Mary and establish the reign of the Sacred Heart of Jesus, a civilization of love, justice, and peace. Mary, Star of the New Evangelization, by this proclamation, will be commissioned to bring us once again the gifts of eternal salvation. Who will stand with Mary at the foot of the Cross as pro-life co-redeemers? +
Suggested Readings
Mary: Coredemptrix, Mediatrix, Advocate, Mark I. Miravalle, S.T.D., Queenship Publishing Company, Santa Barbara, CA, USA, 1993, pp. 80.
Mary: Coredemptrix, Mediatrix, Advocate : Theological Foundations, Towards a Papal Definition? Mark I. Miravalle, S.T.D., Queenship Publishing Company, Santa Barbara, CA, USA, 1995, pp. 328.
Mary: Coredemptrix, Mediatrix, Advocate: Theological Foundations II, Papal, Pneumatological, Ecumenical, Mark I. Miravalle, S.T.D., Queenship Publishing Company, Santa Barbara, CA, USA, 1996, pp. 331.
The Dogma and the Triumph, Mark I. Miravalle, S.T.D., Queenship Publishing Company, Santa Barbara, CA, USA, 1998, pp. 153.
A New Marian Dogma, Mother of all Peoples, Coredemptrix, Mediatrix of all Graces, Advocate, Basic Answers to Common Questions, Mark I. Miravalle, S.T.D., Queenship Publishing Company, Santa Barbara, CA, USA, 1998, pp. 20.
Mary at the Foot of the Cross, Mark I. Miravalle, S.T.D., International Symposium on Marian Coredemption, Academy of the Immaculate, Ratcliffe College, Fosse Way, England, Published by Franciscans of the Immaculate, 2001, pp. 410.
Mary: Coredemptrix - A Response to Seven Common Objections, Mark I. Miravalle, S.T.D., Queenship Publishing Company, Santa Barbara, CA, USA, 2001, pp. 44.
Mary at the Foot of the Cross II, Mark I. Miravalle, S.T.D., International Symposium on Marian Coredemption, Academy of the Immaculate, Ratcliffe College, Fosse Way, England, Published by Franciscans of the Immaculate, 2002, pp. 472.
Mary Coredemptrix, Doctrinal Issues Today, Mark I. Miravalle, S.T.D., Queenship Publishing Company, Santa Barbara, CA, USA, 2002, pp. 274.
[Some documents regarding Mary as Coredemptrix, Mediatrix, Advocate can can be found at:
www.christendom-awake.org (follow the Mark I. Miravalle link)].
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20 July 2005
Comment by the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops
on the approval of Bill C-38,
An Act respecting certain aspects of legal capacity for marriage for civil
purposes
Although Bill C-38, An Act respecting certain aspects of legal capacity for marriage for civil purposes, has now been approved as federal legislation in Canada, the fundamental and universal reality of marriage remains the exclusive union of a man and a woman for life. From the perspective of the Catholic Church, the new federal statute falsifies moral values and principles. Catholics are to continue to oppose it, and to ensure that all provincial and territorial regulations on the solemnization of marriages provide full protection for freedom of conscience and religion, as guaranteed in the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
The Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops notes with deep gratitude and respect the efforts that so many Canadians of all faiths and also of no religious adherence have invested, and continue to invest, in ensuring that the universal definition of marriage is maintained and protected. A number of citizens, including public officials, have defended the true reality of marriage with great courage and considerable personal sacrifice, even at the risk of their own careers.
Unfortunately, there are also some Catholics who have promoted the redefinition of marriage, including politicians who have voted in its favour. In this regard, they are in dissent from the teaching of the Church as enunciated by the Holy Father and the Bishops. This is a serious and problematic matter.
Canadians in general have been and remain deeply divided about changing the nature of marriage and altering its basic meaning. It is clear this debate is far from over, and that it will be a significant issue in the upcoming federal election.
The Roman and Eastern Catholic Bishops of Canada will be studying the immediate ramifications of these decisions. Pastors and all the faithful can be assured there will be further reflections by this Conference and from individual Bishops to assist in the ongoing defence of marriage and family life.
With respect to homosexual persons, they must always be treated with respect, compassion and sensitivity. At the same time that the universal and traditional definition of marriage is to be upheld, every unjust discrimination in their regard is to be avoided (Catechism of the Catholic Church, no. 2358). +
Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops
[Emphasis is from the internet site of the CCCB: www.cccb.ca].
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