ProLife.ie - We are an education and awareness organisation committed to the promotion of the culture of life.

European bishops called on Catholics gathered on December 30 in Madrid’s Colombus Square for a public Mass to uphold family values in an increasingly hostile society. During the event, Archbishop Jean Pierre Cattenoz of Avignon in France voiced gratitude for the Christian family “at a time in which the world is seeking to destroy the family and life.” He defended what he called the traditional family which stems from the union of one man and one woman, against other concepts of the family that have become widespread in France and Europe. He also urged Europeans not to lose hope in their efforts to support Christian principles on the dignity of human life.
 
Bishop Zbignierw Kiernikowski of Siedlce in Poland urged Europeans to strengthen their faith in Christ and to help marriages become more stable by resisting “the present-day circumstances that are against the family.” He called the family the “backbone” of society and “the place where new lives can grow” and where children find support. This kind of stability comes from “good preparation” and above all, from faith, because “without faith there is no guarantee for stability in marriage,” he said. Cardinal Christoph Schonborn of Vienna also addressed the families gathered for the Mass and said the family is “a very powerful sign of hope” amidst today’s society, “which has lost its taste for the family and for life.” By attending the Mass, he said, families were “courageously saying yes to the gift of life” despite “the daily difficulties” that they encounter.
 
The family also featured prominently in Pope Benedict’s message for World Day of Peace (January 1). He appealed to parents to give their children “the most precious of treasures,” the gift of their time. The Pope also urged governments to make it possible for parents to choose the type of education they want their children to receive and to enact immigration reforms aimed at “reuniting families separated by the need to earn a living”.
 
Educating people in justice and peace begins in the family, where they learn to value the gift of life, solidarity, respect for rules, forgiveness and hospitality, he said. He also called on governments to put more resources into education and job creation and appealed to parents and teachers to be more attentive to the hopes and fears of young people.
 
The Pope appealed to young people “to be patient and persevering in seeking justice and peace, in cultivating the taste for what is just and true, even when it involves sacrifice and swimming against the tide”. Peace and justice are built on “a profound respect for every human being and helping others to live a life consonant with this supreme dignity,” he said. Too many young people today are missing that basic human formation because “we are living in a world where families, and life itself, are constantly threatened and not infrequently fragmented,” he said.
The Irish Catholic. December 29. CNA. January 4.