Dear friends,

I just walked across from the rectory to the office as the sun was setting and cast the most beautiful pink/purple hue on the clouds and onto Mount Rainier. I am so grateful to be here and to enjoy the natural beauty of this great state, especially here in this lush and verdant valley. There are so many blessings and benefits to living here and at the same time there are great challenges. The greatest challenges come to us from our culture and are hostile to our faith. These challenges are opportunities to grow. Some of us choose to look the other way. Some jump into the fray without counting the consequences. The Church wants us to gently, kindly, joyfully witness to the world the beauty of our faith.

This week is a wonderful opportunity for us to do just that. This week is the Mass for Life at St. Martin’s on Tuesday, January 20, at 9:30am. Usually Archbishop Sartain celebrates this Mass at the pavilion, but this year he is convalescing after having surgery on his neck and back. As I looked at the latest issue of the Northwest Progress it advertised that he would be celebrating the Mass. Due to the circumstances it looks like maybe Bishop Elizondo or another great priest from the Archdiocese is up for the celebration this year. I can’t wait to see who got tapped. It is always wonderful to see hundreds of Catholics gathered to pray together for the respect for life in the context of the Mass. Each year I look forward to this event and to the day when we will not have to have it. After the Mass we go to the Capitol to gather and pray on the steps. We are joined by the legislators who work to defend life and by leaders and members of different Christian denominations. Each year there are thousands who gather and each year it gets bigger. I encourage you to come if you can.

I learned something new as I attended the Cornerstone Conference this past October (well I learned a lot of new things, but in particular) listening to Bishop Joseph Tyson, Bishop of Yakima and former priest of Seattle. He asked how many people lived in WA in 1973. A few hands went up. Then he proceeded to tell those of us who were not around at that time that even before the decision of Roe v. Wade that legalized abortion in the United States, Washington had legalized abortion through a vote. So even if the decision of Roe v. Wade were to be overturned, abortion would still be legal here in Washington and we would still have to advocate for the abolition of the law that is currently on the books.

We all struggle living in a culture that is hostile to our faith and the way of life that we know to be right. Jesus knew that we would be put into such circumstances. This is why He encourages us to be “in the world and not of the world,” to be “sly as serpents and gentle as doves,” and to know with assurance that “Blessed are they who are persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven,” and “Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you [falsely] because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven. Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you.”

Please join the faithful across our beautiful country in praying for the respect of all life and for the end to abortion in our country and in our state. You can get resources and information at this website.