Philip Kosloski – published on 10/13/18
He asks the intercession of the Virgin Mary to look graciously upon the unborn, poor and elderly.
October is known both as “Respect Life Month” and as a month dedicated to the Holy Rosary. It is a time to recognize the great beauty of life and to invoke the Virgin Mary’s protection over the most vulnerable of society.
St. John Paul II lived out this reality throughout his entire life, constantly advocating for the protection of life as well as keeping a close relationship with the Blessed Mother.
These two spiritual themes are present in a beautiful prayer John Paul II wrote at the end of his encyclical, Evangelium Vitae, “The Gospel of Life.” It is a prayer that is extremely fitting for “Respect Life Month,” especially as we honor the Virgin Mary this month.
O Mary,bright dawn of the new world,Mother of the living,to you do we entrust the cause of lifeLook down, O Mother,upon the vast numbersof babies not allowed to be born,of the poor whose lives are made difficult,of men and womenwho are victims of brutal violence,of the elderly and the sick killedby indifference or out of misguided mercy.Grant that all who believe in your Sonmay proclaim the Gospel of lifewith honesty and loveto the people of our time.Obtain for them the graceto accept that Gospelas a gift ever new,the joy of celebrating it with gratitudethroughout their livesand the courage to bear witness to itresolutely, in order to build,together with all people of good will,the civilization of truth and love,to the praise and glory of God,the Creator and lover of life.
