Novena for Life: Day Seven

God, + come to my assistance.
--Lord, make haste to help me.
Glory to the Father, and to the Son, and to the Holy Spirit:
--As it was in the beginning, is now, and will be forever. Amen.

GOSPEL
John 6:53
Jesus said to the Jews who were present: "Amen, amen, I say to you, unless you eat the flesh of the Son of Man and drink his blood, you do not have life within you."

SILENT PRAYER

REFLECTION
The man who has died, appears to be dead. But if he has eaten and drunk of the Body and Blood of Christ, he is not really dead, but merely awaits the day when Christ will raise him up to eternal life. Only God is the arbiter of life and death. Our poor human attempts to affect God's plans for life and death seem almost comical. For we are so little, so liminal, so weak. And God is so great, so infinite, so strong. It is he who creates the baby in the womb, and welcomes home to eternity the faithful servant who has been joined to his only Son in Holy Communion.

LITANY
On nurses who love little babies,
--Lord, have mercy.
On nursing students,
--Lord, have mercy.
On those who first hear the heartbeat,
--Lord, have mercy.
On those who first feel a kick,
--Lord, have mercy.
On nurses who cradle the newborn,
--Lord, have mercy.
On nurses who foster the unborn,
--Lord, have mercy.
On all who protect defenseless life,
--Lord, have mercy.

PRAYER
God our loving Father,
grant wisdom to those who govern us,
compassion and courage
to those who work to defend human life,
and safety and care to every human being.
For you alone who formed us in our mother's wombs,
and who call us home to heaven,
are God, for ever and ever.
Amen.

Secretariat for Pro-Life Activities
United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
3211 4th Street NE, Washington DC 20017-1194
Phone 202.541.3070
Copyright 2001 by United States Conference of Catholic Bishops
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