Day 26: Reverence for All Human Life
Intention
Despite our sinful treatment of each other, God values each of us immensely and teaches us reverence for all human life.
Scripture
“Come now, you rich, weep and howl for the miseries that are coming upon you. Your riches have rotted and your garments are moth-eaten. Your gold and silver have rusted, and their rust will be evidence against you and will eat your flesh like fire. You have laid up treasure for the last days. Behold, the wages of the labourers who mowed your fields, which you kept back by fraud, cry out; and the cries of the harvesters have reached the ears of the Lord of hosts. You have lived on the earth in luxury and in pleasure; you have fattened your hearts in a day of slaughter. You have condemned, you have killed the righteous man; he does not resist you.”—James 5:1-6
Reflection
Every human life is, from conception, created by God and is infinitely precious in his sight. God’s plan for every human life is that we might have life, and life to the full (John 10:10).
This is not some idiosyncratic Christian obsession; any deep and rich humanism puts the dignity of the human person first. But the Good News of Jesus Christ is that despite all the evil for which we human beings are responsible, despite all those things we do, still “God so loved the world and gave his only Son, that we might have eternal life.”
The God of love does not abandon us even when we act out of hate; the God of life does not turn His back on us even when our civilization deals in death; the God of peace does not despair of us even as we make terrible war on unborn and newborn, and young men and old women.
But in the face of innumerable indignities perpetrated by humanity and suffered by victims, God and His people return with words of love, with hope for life, and with the balm of peace.
“Beware,” says St. James; hear his chilling final words that to live your life of comfort and luxury you allowed slaughter to continue: “It was you who condemned the innocent and killed them; they offered you no resistance.”
And if that sounds like St. James or Christians are getting “too political” it must be that Jesus is getting political when He says of us that it is better to chop off your hand or foot or pluck out your eye than to get in the way of one of these little ones—get in the way of them having life, and life to full (Matthew 18:8).
But much better than being lame or blind, we can join Christ in the defence of the defenceless, including the newly conceived or soon to be dead, all life, each an image of God.
Prayer
We pray that you send your Holy Spirit to awaken in each of us a new reverence for all human life, so that we might reverence and welcome every human person; especially the unborn members of our human family. Fill us with love and compassion, make us Ambassadors of Life wherever there is a culture of death, that one day there will be no more killing, hatred or fear of any human being. Amen.
Prayer Points for October 2020
1. Pray for a Breakthrough for LIFE, specifically an end to abortion and euthanasia in our nation. Exodus 20:13
2. Pray for a Breakthrough for INDIGENOUS LIFE, specifically an end to high youth suicide and premature death due to ill health. 3 John 1:2
3. Pray for new POLITICIANS for LIFE, especially pray for the upcoming elections in Queensland (31st October), ACT (17th October) + USA (3 November) & New Zealand (17 October). Proverbs 29:2
4. Pray for the Revitalisation of SPIRITUAL LIFE, namely repentance, renewal & transformation, that our nation might return to God. 2 Chronicles 7:14
Catholic Archbishop of Sydney since 2014, Archbishop Anthony Fisher serves in many and varied roles. He has published extensively in bioethics, moral theology, history, law and spirituality. His most recent books include: “Catholic Bioethics for a New Millennium” (Cambridge University Press, 2012); “The Healing Peace of Christ: Reflections on Illness and Recovery, Death and New Life” (St Paul’s, 2017); “War and Terror, Peace and Hope” (St Paul’s, 2018); and “My Dear Young Friend: Letters on Youth, Faith and Future” (St Paul’s, 2018). He has a popular weekly column in “The Catholic Weekly” and engages through Facebook and Twitter.
We invite you to join the daily 1-hour Zoom video National Prayer Call every night:
DATES: 1st– 31st October 2020
TIME: 8pm-9pm AEST
ZOOM URL LINK: https://zoom.us/j/776881184
ZOOM MEETING ID: 776881184
See Zoom tutorial here.
Daily devotions brought to you by the Canberra Declaration.
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