- God is the Lord of life and commands reverence and love for every person
- the Church is committed to preaching 'the Gospel of Life' and to championing the cause of the victims of 'the culture of death' especially the unborn child, and to bringing compassion and forgiveness to other victims such as women wounded by abortion
- attacks on human life are always wrong, such as abortion, embryo experimentation, infanticide of the handicapped, suicide, euthanasia, unjust war?
- the Church understands the many pressures, social and economic, that may draw or drive people to seek violent solutions to their problems, and recognises that these pressures may reduce their personal responsibility
- through its extensive network of health, education, welfare and aged care services the Church supports human life and promotes health at all stages of life
Catholic Moral Teaching in sexual and family ethics proposes the following foundational teachings:
- all people are called to reverence their bodies and those of others, to live chastely according to their state in life, and to support the institutions of marriage and the family
- sexual intercourse means marriage and so is only appropriate as an act of love-making between spouses; sex outside of marriage is wrong, as is sex within marriage that is either contraceptive or that is not an act of love
- marriage is the free commitment of a man and a woman to unite as husband and wife exclusively and for life
- married couples should love, honour and serve each other, be faithful companions for the whole of life, procreate responsibly and raise their children lovingly and fairly
- fertility is a gift and couples can receive or postpone the blessing of a child through natural family planning (NFP) which respects each other's bodies in their goodness and wholeness; NFP teachers will be at the Love and Life Site
- the family is "a school of deeper humanity" and "a domestic church"
From its earliest days of planning, WYD08 has recognised and collaborated in the scoping of World Youth Day events oriented around these principles.
To this end, the following elements of WYD planning can be noted:
- a major 'Love and Life' Youth Festival Site will present Catholic teaching in this area through dynamic, interactive lectures, debates, breakout sessions, exhibitions, concerts, prayer, adoration, healing service etc. The Love and Life Site will provide a meeting place for young pilgrims and an opportunity for them personally to encounter the Church's vision of life, love and the dignity of the human person.
- a number of other Youth Festival activities such as films and music will have pro-life and pro-chastity themes
- issues of life and love will be treated in WYD preparatory programmes and post-event activities
- religious congregations, movements and Church agencies are planning events and forums before or during WYD08 focused on these issues
- a cross-section of Catholic groups focused on life, chastity, NFP, marriage and family issues have been invited to contribute in various ways to the planning and delivery of WYD08
- the WYD08 Vocations Expo will present the vocations of marriage and parenting
- WYD08 will seek to assist young families to take part in WYD; for example, we will have a family room at the Love and Life Site to give young families a place to rest and relax
Respect for love and life underlies every aspect of World Youth Day. One illustration of this is the rich example of the lives of the World Youth Day Patrons.
- Saint Therese of Lisieux was raised in a family that modelled for her daily the beauty of self-giving love. Her parents not only welcomed the gift of life of their nine children, but they supported their children in their vocations to respond selflessly to the call to serve God as consecrated religious. Saint Therese knew that love was at the heart of her vocation and of every vocation; she said yes to 'being love in the heart of the Church.' Saint Thérèse of Lisieux, witness to trust and simplicity - pray for us.
- Saint Faustina learned much about love in her family, in which she was one of ten children. Understanding the beauty of generosity, she pursued the call she perceived in her heart to religious life even when she was denied admission to several convents. Saint Faustina experienced and proclaimed that Divine Mercy is at the heart of all love. Saint Faustina, witness to God's mercy and compassion - pray for us.
- Saint Maria Goretti lovingly gave of herself to help raise her five younger siblings after her father's early death. A prayerful young girl, she had an exceptional appreciation for the rich beauty of purity. When attacked for refusing to give in to the sexual pressures of a young man, she preferred to sacrifice the life of her body to guard the life of grace in her soul and prayed that her attacker would repent and share life eternal with her in heaven. Saint Maria Goretti, witness to chastity and forgiveness - pray for us.
- Saint Peter Chanel responded to Christ's love for him by following His call to serve not only as a priest, but also as a missionary. Leaving behind his homeland of France, Saint Peter Chanel showed respect for the bodily and spiritual life of the people of Wallis and Futuna, tending the sick and administering the sacraments. Saint Peter Chanel's love in action was so influential on the island that the warrior friends of the king killed him to guard the power of their king, but love triumphed in the conversion of the islanders to Catholicism. Saint Peter Chanel, Pacific witness to the faith unto death - pray for us.
- Blessed Peter To Rot of Papua New Guinea grew in love through his faithfulness to his wife and his devotion to their three daughters. His desire to lead others to Christ, which began with his own family, extended to others through his ministry as a lay catechist. His opposition to the legalising of polygamy led to his martyrdom, a sacrifice mirroring his profound understanding of marriage as modelled on Christ's laying down of His life for His Bride, the Church. Blessed Peter To Rot, witness to family and faith - pray for us.
- Blessed Mary MacKillop witnessed the value of fidelity through her mother's steadfast love in their tumultuous early family life. Faithful to Christ's call, she dedicated her life to Him and to the education of all Gods' children, especially the poor. Blessed Mary affirmed the dignity of every person and remained faithful to her consecration to God even through times of great trials and misunderstanding. Blessed Mary MacKillop, witness to the young and the distant - pray for us.
- Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati lived life to the full! Blessed with a dynamic personality, a gift for friendship, and a passionate concern for social justice, he led his friends closer to Christ by his example of prayer and purity. In his letters, he emphasized remaining close to Christ in the Eucharist as a key to receiving Love Himself so as to put love into action. Blessed Pier Giorgio Frassati, witness to justice and charity - pray for us.
- Blessed Teresa of Calcutta was so united to Christ that she saw and reverenced Him in every person, especially in 'the distressing disguise of the poor.' She began her work as a Missionary of Charity by picking up a dying person from the streets of Calcutta. She witnessed daily to the beauty and the dignity of every life from conception until natural death and the right of every person to be treated with compassion. Blessed Teresa of Calcutta, witness to the poor and the dying - pray for us.
- Having witnessed the brutalities of totalitarian regimes, Pope John Paul II was a tireless defender of human rights, especially the most fundamental of all rights - that to life itself. His testimony to the goodness of the human body and the sacredness of God's plan for self-giving love is the foundation for the revolutionary Theology of the Body which has led many people to re-discover the beauty of human sexuality. Pope John Paul II lived out his priestly vocation with the love to which he called all the world; he witnessed to what he preached. Servant of God, John Paul II, father of World Youth Day - pray for us.
- Mary, Our Lady of the Southern Cross and Help of Christians, is the model of receiving and returning the great gifts of love and life. Full of grace, she accepted the call to live totally for God and to be the Mother of His Son. The purity of Mary's love enabled her to embrace all God's children, and she continues to intercede for us in our pilgrimage to the fullness of Love and Life in Christ. Our Lady of the Southern Cross, Help of Christians - pray for us.
Your ideas on how we might better engage with some of these issues can be sent to
lifeandlove@wyd2008.org
.
Suggested Websites
|
.jpg)
