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Friday, October 10, 2025Faith

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I am so grateful to the organizers and participants of the Hope for Life conference for showing us the abundance of God's life and its expression in every human person . . .

Archbishop Richard G.
Henning

Last Saturday, I participated in the "Hope for Life" at the New Balance Track in Brighton. I would like to express my gratitude to all those who worked so hard to plan, promote, and execute the many demanding tasks for such a large event. Sylvia Fernandez of the Archdiocesan Pro-Life Office and Mother Olga of the Daughters of Mary of Nazareth conceived and bore the greatest weight in the planning. The Men of Divine Mercy of Quincy were also remarkable in their generosity and did much of the physical "weightlifting" for the event. So many others gave time, vision, and effort. Blessings and thanks to them all!
First and foremost, this gathering rejoiced in the beauty of life and the gift of one another. We heard from people who have experienced health challenges and disabilities and from those who have walked with them on that journey. They witnessed to the grace and mercy of God on the journey and the way in which the deepening of relationships and the increase of compassion have brought a new sense of hope and a sense of purpose, meaning, and joy. It was not a one-way tale of compassion for those who are struggling. It was clear that the people struggling were themselves a gift of God to all those who had the grace to know and walk with them. It was a very concrete and moving proclamation of the infinite value and awesome beauty of every life.

In particular, the examples of children and young people stood at the core of the day. One teenage girl who lives with Down syndrome shared her ferocious embrace of the beauty of life and made an impassioned plea for our society to see her, to know her, and to love her. She reminded us of the cruelty of contemporary culture, which seems to prefer to ignore and even discard human beings who are different. She told us of her joy in life and all that she has to offer. Her witness, and that of so many others, will stay with me until the end of my days.
The final session of the day involved a conversation with the actor Jonathan Roumie, who depicts Jesus in the television program "The Chosen." Jonathan gives glory to God through his artistic gifts in acting and through a life of humble discipleship. He spoke of how he immersed himself in the Scriptures before filming his scenes and saw them as a way of bringing the power of the Gospel to millions around the world. In one part of the conversation, he addressed the place of the sick and the lame in God's plan and in God's heart. All there felt the prophetic power of that meditation, reminding us of the gift of the sick, elderly, and infirm and the way in which they reveal God's presence and grace. His witness was especially powerful at a time when too many nations and U.S. States have passed laws permitting the killing of the sick and vulnerable.
In our divided and angry culture, the pro-life truths of the Gospel and of our Catholic faith are frequently mocked as "anti-choice," "extremist," and many other epithets. The very anger of the culture of death tells you about its pathology. It cannot abide the joy and beauty of life because it cannot admit its own failure to exercise compassion and solidarity. We proclaim mercy to a merciless age.
Jesus told us that He came so that we might "have life and have it to the full." I am so grateful to the organizers and participants of the Hope for Life conference for showing us the abundance of God's life and its expression in every human person, including "the least of these" that are so close to the heart of Christ.

- Archbishop Richard G. Henning is the Archbishop of Boston