During the Archdiocese of Louisville’s annual Mass for Life Jan. 18, more than 370 worshipers were encouraged to pray for public policy that reflects Catholic teaching on the dignity of life.
“We gather today to pray that our society’s laws will mirror our Catholic faith. We have a responsibility, our faith teaches us, to be faithful citizens who work together for our nation’s common good,” said Father Jeffrey Nicolas, pastor of St. Bernadette Church, who delivered the homily.
“Do good rather than evil. That’s Jesus’ message and it’s simple. … Do good rather than evil, save life rather than destroy it.”
— Father Jeffrey Nicolas
The liturgy, held at St. Gabriel Church in Fern Creek, was celebrated by Archbishop Shelton J. Fabre and it included members of the Knights of Columbus, the Ancient Order of Hibernians, Ladies Ancient Order of Hibernians, families with children and high school students.
Opening the Mass, Archbishop Fabre said he was “honored and pleased” to welcome those in attendance. He prayed that “through our efforts and through our prayer we might soon see a respect for the dignity of all human life.”
He told them that prayer has an effect: It strengthens them and sends them forth in the work they do to protect the dignity of life.
During his homily, Father Nicolas reflected on the Gospel story about the man with a withered hand who was brought to Jesus to be healed on the Sabbath — something that was against Jewish laws.
The Pharisees in the temple watched Jesus closely to see if he’d break the law, Father Nicolas said.
“The Gospel has a challenge built into it for us: Do good rather than evil. That’s Jesus’ message and it’s simple. … Do good rather than evil; save life rather than destroy it,” said Father Nicolas.
One detail of the Gospel story that caught his attention, he noted, was the fact that the Pharisees who tried to trick Jesus weren’t identified.
“We don’t know who they are. … One thing we know, however, is that Pharisee hearts are hardened,” he said. “They thought they could create a law and it was game over. … No more to be done than to enforce the law.”
Their hardened hearts had blinded their faith, and they weren’t even aware of it, Father Nicolas said.
“God’s law had to go deeper than just human law,” he explained. “God’s law has to be written on hearts; hearts softened by mercy.
“Today we pray. We pray for the legal protection of unborn children. We pray our society’s laws mirror our faith’s heart for life, and we pray our hearts more deeply beat for life.”
During the liturgy, 53 white roses were presented to the archbishop. The roses represented the years since 1972, when the United States Supreme Court legalized abortion with the Roe v. Wade decision. That decision was overturned in 2022, leaving abortion policy to be determined by each state.
The Mass concluded with another presentation of roses to dozens of schools, churches and organizations represented at the liturgy as a show of appreciation for their commitment to pro-life ministry.
