FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:  Jerry Horn

540-785-4733

Date: January 12, 2006

Pro-Life Clerics Green-Lighted by Amarillo Bishop

January 12, 2006, Amarillo, Texas – In a ground breaking move, the Catholic Church has approved a new clerical society devoted solely to advancing the pro-life cause.  The group, Missionaries of the Gospel of Life, will begin operations immediately. 

“This is historic,” declared Father Frank Pavone, National Director of Priests for Life and founder of the new group. “Never before has there been a community within the Church specifically dedicated to ending abortion and euthanasia. The society’s work will involve a broad spectrum of pro-life action, including motivating people to elect pro-life candidates, lobbying for the confirmation of Supreme Court Justices, and advocating for people like Terri Schiavo. We will not tire until the mass-killing of children ends, and every human life, from conception to natural death, is valued and protected in America. ”

Authorization for the Missionaries came in a December 12, 2005, decree by Bishop John W. Yanta and Reverend Michael Colwell, JCL, Vicar General-Chancellor of the Diocese of Amarillo.   The decree grants the Missionaries the right to “officially and in the name of the Church” train priests, deacons, and lay missionaries to advance the dignity of human life.

The Missionaries will be holding Discernment Retreats throughout the year, and are accepting inquiries at vocations@priestsforlife.org. Fr. Pavone and his collaborators are also available for media interviews about the new Society.