Today, Tuesday, January 22, 2019 we read in our daily Mass Heb 6:10-20; Mark 2:23-28. It is also the Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children. “The General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM), no. 373, designates January 22 as a particular day of prayer and penance, called the “Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children.” (Source: www.usccb.org)
As a gift from God, every human life is sacred from conception to natural death. The life and dignity of every person must be respected and protected at every stage and in every condition. The right to life is the first and most fundamental principle of human rights that leads Catholics to actively work for a world of greater respect for human life and greater commitment to justice and peace.
For orphaned children throughout the world,
and especially those
who are abused or neglected:
that we might work to save them;
We pray to the Lord:
For children who are unwanted by their parents:
that God’s grace might send others to love
and care for them;
We pray to the Lord:
For the children of our country,
especially those who are forgotten or neglected:
that their presence might remind us
of the infinite value of human life;
We pray to the Lord:
For every little child:
That we might accept and preserve each one
as a sign of the infinite love of God for us;
We pray to the Lord:
For all unborn children:
that our love for them may keep them safe
until the joyous day of their birth;
We pray to the Lord:
That the Lord,
who rescues the life of the poor
from the power of the wicked,
might send an angel to guard and protect
all unborn children;
We pray to the Lord:
For every little child,
and especially for those who
live in their mother’s womb:
that they might grow
in the image and likeness of
the God who made them;
We pray to the Lord:
For the littlest child in her mother’s womb:
that in her life we may see the infinite love of God;
We pray to the Lord:
That through the intercession of Saint Vincent
who spilled his blood for the defense of the Gospel,
the lives of unborn children may be spared;
We pray to the Lord:
For all children who have died from abortion:
that God might cradle them in his arms
and grant them eternal peace with him;
We pray to the Lord:
For every child who lives in the womb:
that God might send an angel to guard and protect
the innocent and defenseless;
We pray to the Lord:
For all unborn children,
and especially for the babies of unmarried mothers:
that God might send an angel to protect them;
We pray to the Lord:
For the children who have died from abortion in our nation,
and for their mothers and fathers:
for mercy, peace and the loving embrace of Christ;
We pray to the Lord:
For little children,
who await the birth of a brother or sister:
that they may learn to cherish
the child in her mother’s womb;
We pray to the Lord:
For all little children,
and especially for toddlers:
that we might lead them to what is holy and true;
We pray to the Lord:
For children who have been abandoned or abused:
that God might teach us how to heal and protect them;
We pray to Lord:
For all children born today:
that we might receive them as a sign of hope
and of God’s never-ending care;
We pray to the Lord:
Amen!