The New Year Brings Two Opportunities to be Respect Life Advocates

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The 2,022nd year of Our Lord may bring the end not only of the ramifications of Roe v. Wade in the United States but also capital punishment in Utah. These developments are highly anticipated or feared, depending on a person’s perspective, but are critical first steps in building a culture that values every human being. Our work as Catholics, however, is only just beginning with each decision.

While many people will rejoice if the U.S. Supreme Court overturns Roe, many women fear what such a ruling might mean in their difficult or dangerous pregnancies. We must look through eyes of love and offer accompaniment to these women, regardless of the outcome of the court case. Those who respect life must do more than cheer on the courts as we address the imperative to preserve the life of an unborn child carried by, for example, a rape victim who continually relives the perpetrator invading her body through the presence of the growing child carrying his DNA in her womb.  

We can begin to, or continue to, walk with moms in need in our parishes long before the court rules. There are myriad programs to provide financial, emotional and other support to pregnant women and moms. But for many women in need, wading through the different agencies and applications can seem impossible. Walking with moms in need means helping women in our communities navigate the various resources available to them. It means providing much-needed layettes when they are pregnant, but also offering assistance when the child is born, when the kids are in school and mom needs a carpool, when a teen is struggling and mom and dad just don’t know where to turn or what to do, when mom is overwhelmed and under-supported.

On the other end of the spectrum, there is much we can do to ensure our state respects the lives of those who we may think do not deserve such respect, but whom we are called by our faith to love anyway. The work to undo our barbaric system of state-sanctioned executions will occur during the 2022 legislative session, which begins Jan. 18 and runs through March 4. The bill to repeal the death penalty proposes replacing capital punishment with a 45- year- to-life sentence. A sentence of life without parole also remains an option.  

These days leading up to the legislative session are the perfect time to learn more about the bill, our Church teaching, and how to be advocates for life before and during the session.  

Two opportunities to become respect life advocates in Utah will take place this January.  First, the Diocese of Salt Lake City is partnering with Catholic Mobilizing Network to provide a one-hour webinar on Jan. 20 at noon on the death penalty and the proposed legislation. The webinar will include the opportunity to hear from a victim’s family member and the former prosecutor who successfully pushed for the death penalty for the victim’s murderer, later to regret his decision. Register for the webinar at https://catholicsmobilizing.org/event/webinar-ending-death-penalty-utah.

The second opportunity is the Respect for Life Day to be held on Jan. 29 at Blessed Sacrament Parish in Sandy from 9 a.m. to noon. Register at https://www.dioslc.org/events/56.  

Catholic theology regarding the dignity and sanctity of life is unique in its consistent insistence that every life has dignity and must be preserved from unnatural death. Please join us in these opportunities to practice what we preach in meaningful and grace-filled ways.

Jean Hill is the director of the Diocese of Salt Lake City’s Office of Life, Justice and Peace. Contact her at jean.hill@dioslc.org.