The respect for human life is an important part of the values and ethics of the Catholic faith. Every year, on the first Sunday of October, the Church commemorates Respect Life Sunday to kick off the month of October as Respect Life Month. This month’s theme is Mary, Mother of Life, which is wonderful since October is also a month dedicated to Mary and dedicated to praying the rosary.
When the angel Gabriel appeared to Mary to tell her that she would conceive and bear a son, Mary responded with her fiat, “May it be done to me according to your word” (Lk 1:38). Mary conceives Christ in her womb, becoming the mother of God, the mother of Jesus. Jesus himself tells us that he is “the way and the truth and the life” (Jn 14:6). In becoming the mother of Jesus, Mary becomes the mother of life. Mary’s acceptance in this unforeseen moment demonstrates how each of us must welcome the gift of new human life, even when that gift is unexpected or calls us to make sacrifices.
We can contrast our Mother Mary to Eve, who was called “mother of all the living” in the book of Genesis. Eve brought sin into the world through her disobedience. Mary, however, through her obedience to God, brought salvation into the world through the birth of her son, our savior. Mary is seen as the new Eve, the new mother of all the living.
After the annunciation, Mary travels to the hill country to visit her cousin Elizabeth. She spends the next several months with her cousin, both of the women expecting children. In her selfless service to Elizabeth, Mary give us a model of how we are called to accompany expectant mothers as they prepare to welcome new life into the world.
Then we have Mary standing by her son as he carries the cross and is crucified. On Calvary, Mary stands at the foot of the Cross with the beloved disciple St John. With his final breaths on the Cross, Jesus entrusts Mary and the beloved Disciple to each other. This action also symbolizes the maternal relationship that will always exist between Mary and the Church, as Jesus’ words are addressed not only to St John, but to each one of us. Mary, the physical mother of Jesus, becomes the spiritual mother of the Church and the mother of all the faithful. St John takes Mary into his home and cares for her as she advances in age; this demonstrates our responsibility to care for all human life from the moment of conception to the monument of natural death. Mary taught all of us how to nature human life in the way she cared for her son. Mary in turn, receives this same honor and care.
Today, on respect life Sunday, we hear the parable of the wicked tenants from Matthew. The owner of the vineyard is met with violence and anger when he sends his servants and his son to collect the harvest from the tenants. We can see this Gospel message as a reflection of human life that is given to us as a sacred gift from God. The landowner lovingly cared for this land by planting a vineyard, putting a hedge around it, digging a wine press in it, and building a tower. This is a symbol of how God is the creator of our world and our lives, how we should see ourselves as the caretakers of this sacred gift he gives us. The tenants had their hearts hardened and became self-centered, which produced destruction, a disrespect for God, for their neighbor, and for God’s creation. The tenants rejected the beloved son of the landowner. So many in society reject God’s son, Jesus, and the gifts he offers us. We fail to protect God’s creation and the most vulnerable in society.
As we recognize Respect Life Sunday today, may we think of ways we are honoring God and his creation and the most vulnerable in society.
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