Evangelium Vitae Novena - Closing Prayer #EVN2016

Happy 21st Anniversary of Evangelium Vitae and Feast of the Annunciation!

Thank you so much for joining us in prayer for an end to the ill effects of the Culture of Death. As Saint John Paul II taught us in his encyclical Evangelium Vitae, all life is immeasurably valuable and beloved by God. During these past nine days we have invoked the intercession of a saint who had great love for life and showed the world an example of a holy death. May Saint John Paul II continue to be a protector of all people - from fertilization until natural death. As the faithful people of God and brethren of Our Lord Jesus Christ, we have a duty to continue to put on the armor of God and protect those who are spurned.

Closing reflection: March 25 - The Feast of the Annunciation.

On this Feast of the Annunciation, let us reflect on the gift God has given us, the great gift of His heavenly Mother. May she always be our model of purity, holiness and motherhood.

The "woman clothed with the sun" - the Book of revelation tells us - "was with child" (12:2). The Church is fully aware that she bears within herself the Savior of the world, Christ the Lord. She is aware that she is called to offer Christ to the world, giving men and women new birth into Christ's own life.But the Church cannot forget that her mission was made possible by the motherhood of Mary, who conceived and bore the One who is "God from God", "true God from true God." Mary is truly the Mother of God, the Theotokos, in whose motherhood the vocation to motherhood bestowed by God on every woman is raised to the highest level. EV 103

Daily prayer: Pope Saint John Paul II's Prayer to our Lady.

O Mary
bright dawn of the new world,
Mother of the living,
to you do we entrust the cause
Look down, O Mother,
upon the vast numbers
of babies not allowed to be born,
of the poor whose lives are made difficult,
of men and women
who are victims of brutal violence,
of the elderly and the sick killed
by indifference or out of misguided mercy.
Grant that all who believe in your Son
may proclaim the Gospel of Life
with honesty and love
to the people of our time.
Obtain for them the grace
to accept that Gospel
as a gift ever new,
the joy of celebrating it with gratitude
throughout their lives
and the courage to bear witness to it
resolutely, in order to build,
together with all people of good will,
the civilisation of truth and love,
to the praise and glory of God,
the Creator and lover of life.