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As Catholics, we believe that every life is sacred, from the moment of conception until natural death. Every person is made in the image and likeness of God, and so each and every person has inherent dignity.
Each October during Respect Life Month, the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops launches a new cycle of the Respect Life Program—a year-round, nationwide effort to help Catholics understand, value, and help cultivate respect for human life.
As a Church we are called to help create the conditions that will lead to a better life for everyone on the planet and a better life of the planet which is essential to all life. This is what it means to be pro-life in the 21st Century.
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Angela Daczko
St. Joseph's Pro-Life Representative for the Diocesan Office of Pro-Life, Marriage & Family -
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A Wide Spectrum of Respect Life Issues
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Contraception - In 1968, Pope Paul VI issued his landmark encyclical letter Humanae Vitae (Latin, “Human Life”), which reemphasized the Church’s constant teaching that it is always intrinsically wrong to use contraception to prevent new human beings from coming into existence.
Abortion - God loves each human life from the instant of his or her conception and entrusts this gift to the protection of a mother and father. Abortion ends the life of a child and offends God. It also deeply wounds the women and men involved.
Rights of the Disabled - Persons with disabilities are called to discipleship just as any other group is. But, in our efforts to integrate persons with disabilities it is important to recognize their “sameness” but also their “differentness.”
Human Trafficking - This modern-day form of slavery that consists of the illegal trade of human beings through force, fraud, or coercion for the purposes of commercial sexual exploitation or forced labor is condemned by the Church. Every form whether it be for prostitution, pornography, and other forms of sexual exploitation or for forced labor in agriculture, sweat shops, and domestic servitude ignores or forgets the person's God-given human dignity.
Domestic Abuse - Violence against women, inside or outside the home, is never justified. Violence in any form-physical, sexual, psychological, or verbal is sinful; often, it is a crime as well.
Access to Health Care - Concern for the health of its citizens requires that society help in the attainment of living-conditions that allow them to grow and reach maturity: food and clothing, housing, health care, basic education, employment, and social assistance.
End of Life Care - The Church does not promote vitalism (preserving physical life at all costs) but rather asks us to embrace the virtues of fidelity (faithfulness to those in need), compassion (suffering with those who are suffering), and individual dignity.
Death Penalty - In the light of the Gospel the death penalty is an attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person, and the Church now advocates for capital punishment to be abolished worldwide.
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Links
- Respect Life
- Catholic Relief Services
- Respect Life Facebook Page
- United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
- Natural Family Planning
- Pastoral Statement on Persons with Disabilities
- Person & Identity Project
- LGTBQ+ Issues
- Pastoral Response to Domestic Violence Against Women
- FAQs About End of Life Care
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Pro-Life Booth at Fair
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The Catholic Conference of Ohio represents the Church's position before the Ohio General Assembly, various state departments, bureaus, agencies and other organizations. The Conference also provides facilitation, coordination and joint programming for diocesan groups involved in various Church ministries. There are four departments within the Catholic Conference of Ohio. They are: Administrative Services, Education, Health Affairs, Social Concerns. Departmental membership includes clergy, religious, and laypersons engaged in related activities from each of the dioceses of Ohio.
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