“No, you have approached Mount Zion and the city of the living God, the heavenly Jerusalem, and countless angels in festal gathering, and the assembly of the firstborn enrolled in heaven, and God the judge of all, and the spirits of the just made perfect, and Jesus, the mediator of a new covenant, and the sprinkled blood that speaks more eloquently than that of Abel.” (Heb. 12:21-24).
“Your hands are full of blood! Wash yourselves clean…learn to do good. Make justice your aim: redress the wronged, hear the orphan’s plea, defend the widow” (Is. 1:15-17).
Father of Mercies, God of Love,
What wonders You have shown us
In giving Your only Son,
Not to condemn the world but to save it.
Father, You have been pleased
To gather us together in Your Son
And in the Holy Spirit
As a community filled with the joy of life
And of intimacy with You.
Father, You have made this possible
Through the blood of Jesus Your Son, our Savior.
As we see that blood shed for us,
We realize that no sin can ever discourage us again,
And no accusation of the Evil One can drag us down.
We are redeemed, we are forgiven, we are set free in Christ!
We are no longer scattered by sin,
But gathered, in joyful celebration, in Your Son!
Lord, we know that the blood of the innocent children
Who have been killed by abortion
Stains our land and cries out to heaven.
That blood also cries out to us,
To our hearts broken over the sin of abortion,
And to our consciences,
As we realize we must work to end this violence.
But what joy we have
In knowing that the blood of Your Son
Is speaking on our behalf
And is overpowering the voice
Of violence, sin, shame and guilt.
Father, may every person
Who has been guilty of cooperating in abortion,
By what they have done
Or by what they have failed to do,
Take new courage from the blood of Christ,
Turn to You in life-giving repentance,
And rejoice in the forgiveness and freedom
That is ours in the same Christ our Lord. Amen.
Fr. Frank Pavone, National Director, Priests for Life