For the month of October, the Catholic Church in the United States celebrates Respect Life month. The Catechism of the Catholic Church says, “The dignity of a human person is rooted in his creation in the image and likeness of God.” We are called to Respect Life of each person, believer or not, no questions asked, because we are each created in the image and likeness of God.
Respect Life means respecting the life of the entire person from conception to natural death. Our society has turned the belief of respecting life into anti-abortion, and yes, being against abortion is part of the belief, there is a lot of life lived between conception and natural death that must be respected.
It is easy to say, “I respect life” or “I believe this teaching”, but it is difficult to truly live a life of respecting life in our daily interactions, especially when someone frustrates us or something inconveniences us. This Respect Life month is a great time to pause and reflect on our own daily interactions to see if we are truly respecting life.
To do this, I like to consider Mother Teresa’s famous quote, “Not all of us can do great things, but we can do small things with great love.” We all won’t make a huge contribution to change the trajectory of our society in respecting life, but we can all do small acts each day with great love that respects life one interaction at time. And if done well, we will live our whole life respecting life.
The Catholic Church gives us the Corporal Works of Mercy based on Matthew 25: 31 - 46. There are seven Corporal Works of Mercy and they are:
Feed the hungry
Give drink to the thirsty
Clothe the naked
Shelter the homeless
Visit the sick
Visit the imprisoned
Bury the dead
We respect life by supporting charities whose mission is to do these things. We can expand how we respect life by looking at the Corporal Works of Mercy through a different lens.
Are we feeding the hunger of genuine connection with our friends and family? Or are we starving the relationships in our life?
Are we providing drink to those who thirst to be seen?
Are we clothing our minds, and others, with truth and beauty when the world strips them with lies?
Are we providing a shelter for those in ours life to find refuge when they feel lonely, anxious, overwhelmed, or any other feeling they may feel?
Are we limiting our classification of the sick as those who suffering from a disease that is visible? Or are we also considering those around us who are suffering from invisible wounds?
Are we supporting the ones around us who a trapped in an unhealthy situation?
Do we bury the dead and support our loved ones in the moment then forget? Or are we also remembering the grief that is felt months and years later when anniversaries and birthdays roll around?
Respecting life is helping lift the other up; building them up to be who God desires them to be and ensuring they feel the tangible love of Jesus through our hands.
Respecting life is how we should live each day with each interaction. The movements of our hearts and minds should be built on seeing God in the person across the table from us, on the street corner, in the cubicle next to us, and every other daily interaction.
My favorite song to mediate with on Respect Life is called Send Me by Bethel Music. Give it a listen!