Pro-Life Activities

Public Policy | Prayer and Worship | Parish Contact Program | Project Rachel
Living Will and Proxy for Medical Directives | Video/audio Lending Library

"In our present social context, marked by a dramatic struggle between the "culture of life" and the "culture of death," there is a need to develop a deep critical sense, capable of discerning true values and authentic needs. What is urgently called for is a general mobilization of consciences and a united ethical effort to activate a great campaign in support of life. All together, we must build a culture of life."
- Pope John Paul II, Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life), No. 95.

Statement of Purpose

The Department for Pro-Life Activities promotes the Gospel of Life in its entirety through implementation of the November 2001 statement of the U.S. Catholic Bishops entitled Pastoral Plan for Pro-Life Activities, A Campaign in Support of Life. Consistent with this plan, department initiatives fall into four major categories.

To receive periodic email messages and legislative action alerts from the Department for Pro-Life Activities and to be placed on our e-mail list, click here.

Public Information and Education

"The first and fundamental step towards this cultural transformation consists in forming consciences with regard to the incomparable and inviolable worth of every human being. . . . Closely connected with the formation of conscience is the work of education, which helps individuals to be ever more human, leads them ever more fully to the truth, instills in them growing respect for life, and trains them in right interpersonal relationships."
- Pope John Paul II, Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life), Nos. 96 and 97.

Public Information initiatives are intended to deepen understanding of the sanctity of life and the mission of the Church to witness to and serve.

Parish Respect Life Contacts/Committees: Parish Respect Life Contacts are appointed by their pastor to coordinate parish implementation of the diocesan Respect Life Program. In many parishes, the contact works with a committee. Parish contacts are encouraged to collaborate with other parish committees and parishes in their cluster. For example, it is appropriate for the Parish Contact for the Department for Pastoral Care for Persons with Disabilities (PCPD) to be involved with the parish Respect Life Committee. (See PCPD Contact Program information in the index)

The duties of the Parish Respect Life Contact/Committee are to:

  • work collaboratively with the archdiocesan respect life office in the distribution of information and the planning of events
  • attend semi-annual vicariate meetings held by the Department in order to receive direction and resources
  • promote the Respect Life Program among parish organizations, especially schools and religious education programs
  • increase awareness of pregnancy counseling services, as well as post-abortion counseling services, including Project Rachel
  • encourage and support parish involvement in services to help those who are ill, disabled, or dying, and their families
  • promote the Spiritual Adoption Prayer Program for unborn babies and their mothers, as well as prayer for the dying, those with disabilities, and prisoners on death row
  • encourage an intercession for life in the weekly Sunday Prayers of the Faithful
  • promote attendance at the annual Respect Life Mass and March for Life
  • foster awareness of the need to restore legal protection to the unborn and to safeguard in law the lives of those who are ill, disabled, or dying.

Annual USCCB Respect Life Program Each October, Respect Life Month, the USCCB Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities issues a Respect Life Program for use by parishes throughout the United States. The Program includes clip art, posters, educational materials, and a liturgy guide. These Program packets are sent to each parish contact and pastor in late August each year. Respect Life Sunday is celebrated the first Sunday in October with Mass at the Cathedral Basilica of SS. Peter and Paul.

Annual High School Pro-Life Leadership Day This annual event sponsored by the Department for Pro-Life Activities and the Office for Catholic Education provides an opportunity for high school students and faculty throughout the Archdiocese to come together for educational workshops and worship to foster their development as pro-life leaders within their school communities.

Video/Audio Lending Library and Print Materials The Department has a library of tapes and videos available for use by parish groups, schools and individuals. Printed materials are also available covering a wide range of pro-life topics. Call the office to arrange use of the materials and videos.

Living Will and Proxy for Health Care Decisions Many individuals reach a point in their life when they are unable, due to physical or mental incapacity, to express their decisions about their health care. The Living Will and Proxy for Health Care Decisions is used to plan ahead for the time when decisions must be made about the use of life-sustaining interventions. This document, authorized by the Bishops of Pennsylvania, is used to designate a proxy and substitute proxy to make end-of-life decisions consistent with Catholic moral teaching and Pennsylvania law. Multiple copies of the form are available for parish information racks. To download and print a copy of the Living Will and Proxy for Health Care Decisions, click here.

Speakers: Office staff are available and welcome the opportunity to speak to your parish or school group on various pro-life topics, including chastity, cloning and stem cell research, post-abortion syndrome, end-of-life decisions, and Church teaching on life issues. The office can also assist in referring speakers on selected topics.

Public Policy

"Today I believe the Lord is saying to us all: do not hesitate, do not be afraid to engage the good fight of the faith (cf. 1 Tim 6:10). When we preach the liberating message of Jesus Christ we are offering the words of life to the world. Our prophetic witness is an urgent and essential service not just to the Catholic community but to the whole human family."

- Pope John Paul II, 1998 Ad Limina address to the Bishops of the United States

In collaboration with the Archdiocesan Office for Public Affairs the Department seeks to influence state and federal legislation to uphold the sanctity of human life. Advocacy is accomplished through voter education and Get Out the Vote (GOTV) campaigns prior to elections, action alerts to parishes through Project Life, and through public statements and letters to elected officials.

Advocacy efforts are coordinated with:

US Conference of Catholic Bishops Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities: www.usccb.org/prolife

National Committee for a Human Life Amendment:
www.nchla.org
www.endroe.org

Pennsylvania Catholic Conference of Bishops: www.pacatholic.org

March for Life, Annually January 22, (or the following Monday) Washington D.C: The Department coordinates bus parking registration for the March for Life held annually in Washington, D.C. on January 22, the anniversary of the U.S. Supreme Court Roe v Wade decision which legalized abortion on demand. The Archdiocese of Philadelphia, through parishes and schools, provides one of the largest contingents to the March for Life.

Find your representative and Guide to Writing to Elected Officials

 

Prayer and Worship

"Prayer is the foundation of all that we do in defense of human life. Our efforts - whether educational, pastoral, or legislative - will be less than truly fruitful if we do not change hearts and if we do not ourselves overcome our own spiritual blindness."

- Pastoral Plan for Pro-Life Activities: A Campaign in Support of Life. A Statement of the U.S. Catholic Bishops

The Department encourages and provides resources for parishes to sponsor programs of communal and private prayer and fasting.

Spiritual Adoption(SA) Prayer Program: Schools, religious education programs, and parishes participate in the spiritual adoption prayer program. Participants in the program pledge to pray for a woman facing a crisis pregnancy and her unborn baby, whose life is in danger of abortion. Participants pray for them daily for nine months, and on the baby's birthday, a shower may be held for a local crisis pregnancy center or mother's home. Through monthly bulletin announcements describing the growth of a baby, participants also become educated on the humanity of the unborn.

Word of Life Liturgy Guide for Parishes: This monthly liturgy guide, published by the USCCB, is available via fax to parishes on request. A Spanish language version is available. The guide contains intercessions for life, bulletin briefs, and homily helps on occasion. Call the Department for Pro-Life Activities to be added to the fax list. This guide is also available at usccb.org/prolife/liturgy

Respect Life intercessions and bulletin spots are sent to each parish quarterly by the Department via the priests' mailing.

General intercessions, bulletin and homily materials are also available from Priests for Life @ www.priestsforlife.org/liturgy.

Prayer vigils at various abortion facilities are held around the archdiocese. For a weekly schedule call 215-885-8150 or http://chooselifepa.org/vigils.htm