Celebrant: God knew us, and our needs, before we were born. We therefore pray with great confidence.

Deacon/Lector: 

That those appointed in the Church to proclaim God's Word may find open hearts and minds among those who hear them, we pray to the Lord... 

That government leaders may have the gifts of faith, hope, and love, to acknowledge God and be of true service to those they govern, we pray to the Lord... 

That God, who knows and loves us even from the womb, may inspire and sustain our work to eliminate abortion and the conditions that lead to it, we pray to the Lord... 

That our youth may learn the ways of God and become faithful disciples of Christ, and that our Catholic schools may be ever more effective in that mission, we pray to the Lord... 

That the sick may grow in faith and in health, we pray to the Lord...

That those who have died may be welcomed into the joys of eternal life, we pray to the Lord... 

Celebrant: 

Father,

As you answer our prayers,

Give us the faith and hope we need in this life,

And above all let us grow in your love which lasts forever.

We ask this through Christ our Lord. Amen. 

The Pope on Life 

Every child who is born brings us God's smile and invites us to recognize that life is his gift, a gift to be welcomed with love and preserved with care, always and at every moment. God entrusts every child who is born to his parents: so how important is the family founded on marriage, the cradle of life and love!  The House of Nazareth where the Holy Family lived is the model and school of simplicity, patience and harmony for all Christian families. I pray the Lord that your families too may be welcoming places where these little ones can not only grow in good health but also in faith and love for God. -- Pope Benedict XVI, January 7, 2007  

Jer 1:4-5. 17-19
1 Cor 12:31-13:13 or 13:4-13
Lk 4:21-30

Watch a video with homily hints

Being a person of life while living amidst a culture of death requires the lessons of today’s first reading and gospel regarding what a prophet faces. We are all prophets by our baptism, and therefore share both in the blessings and burdens of that particular vocation. We are blessed in that we have and know with certainty the Word and will of God regarding the sanctity of life. The burden we have is that we must speak that word – in fact, proclaim it – amidst people who may not necessarily want to hear it. The lesson of these readings is that a) we should expect opposition, not be surprised at it, and b) we should not measure the success of the prophetic mission by how well we are accepted, but rather by how faithful and loving we are in carrying out the mission entrusted to us. 

The prophetic stance we take on behalf of life is not only a stance of example, but also of word. The good example we set must at times be explained.Pope Paul VI (who is now a canonized saint), in his landmark document “Evangelii Nuntiandi” (On Evangelization in the Modern World) made this point when he explained that the witness of life must at times be accompanied and explained by the word of life. Our people need our encouragement – as well as concrete tools – to be able to explain their pro-life position.

The second reading, of course, provides an entire lesson in itself about the meaning of love. The pro-life movement is a movement of love. It can be summed up as a movement which objects to the fact that the unborn are excluded from the most basic requirement of love (that is, the protection of one’s life), and which loves them intensely in order to make up for the lack of love they receive from others. Love ultimately says, “I sacrifice myself for the good of the other.” Abortion says, “I sacrifice the other for the good of myself.”