The Gospel of Life

For almost 40 years now, I have worn either a Rose for Life or the Precious Feet pin on some item of clothing. Both are a silent testimony, widely recognized as a commitment to

e. First created in 1974, just a year after the Roe v. Wade decision, the Precious Feet pin is the exact size and shape of an unborn child’s feet at 10weeks. But much has happened in that child’s life by the time he or she reaches the age of 70 days. Already at conception, every detail of the entire genetic blueprint is present; only time and nurture is needed to allow it to unfold as the months and years go by. By 24 days, the heart has begun to beat; by 42 days, the skeleton is formed and brain waves can be detected as the child begins simple but coordinated movements. And by nine weeks, unique fingerprints – and toeprints – are present. Already some 800 years before Christ, the author of Psalm 139 could only marvel: “Truly You have formed my inmost being; you knit me in my mother’s womb. I give you thanks that I am fearfully, wonderfully made. My soul also you knew full well, nor was my frame unknown to you when I was made in secret.” These words are true for each of us, and for every person to whom God gives the gift of life. As St. John Paul II said, respect for life must begin with this sense of awe, with wonder that we exist at all.

One of the most decisive and enduring gifts that Christian faith has given to the world is this conviction that every person is made in the image of God and has equal, inviolable dignity – not just when we are in the womb or newborn, but throughout the entire span of our lifetimes, and into eternity. Faith reveals that no life is a mistake, an accident, unplanned or unwanted by God. Whether a life is marked by wealth or poverty, success or misery, robust health or chronic suffering, many years or only a few hours – all of this is secondary to the fundamental fact that God has given each person the gift of life, a life that will last forever. Those who are most vulnerable, dependent on our care, those who need us to help them, remind us that we are called to love and care for the real individuals in our midst. It can be hard to recognize Christ in the faces of those we do not know or do not like – whether they be the unborn or the aged or the immigrant or the troubled, or just the people that are different than we are used to. Every person we see is among those Jesus refers to in those words that are both unsettling and truly ennobling: “Whatever you do to the least, you do to Me.” This truth remains a disturbing challenge at times to our own comfort and convenience, our preferences and projects, and I freely admit that I fail too often to live it. But that truth remains one that calls forth the best in ourselves: compassion, patience, love.The hard-won wisdom of St. Teresa of Kolkata reminds us, as she said: “God does not ask us to be successful, only faithful.” For as she knew, conversion of hearts is the work of the Holy Spirit; we evangelize most effectively by simply living our own faith with conviction so that others can see what the Gospel of Life looks like when put into action. There are inspiring examples of this witness in these parishes and everywhere in the Church; thank you for the work you do for the Gospel in your homes and schools and workplaces, with your friends and neighbors.

The Precious Feet and the Rose for Life call to mind the dignity of each human life; but especially those Feet might also remind us of the words of Jesus at the Last Supper, calling us to serve: “If I washed your feet – I Who am Teacher and Lord – then you must wash each other’s feet. What I did was to give you an example – as I have done, so you must do.”