Growing up has always had its difficulties, but young people today face a particularly challenging environment in our country – rising violence, such as riots and horrific school shootings; civil discourse that is increasingly uncivil; and a secularist culture that continues to push faith to the margins as weekly religious practice declines.

In previous generations, American society, while far from perfect, generally reinforced the important values and virtues taught in Catholic homes and Catholic schools. That is often no longer the case. Therefore, faithful and effective Catholic schools and religious education programs are needed more than ever. They are essential partners with students’ parents, who remain the primary religious educators of their children.

St. John Baptist de la Salle, patron saint of teachers, put into words what the Church has long understood, that instruction in the faith is done largely by the witness of discipleship – living the Gospel and not just teaching it. In a reflection to his teachers, he wrote: “In your teaching, the [children] in your charge must see by the way you teach that you are true ministers of God, full of true charity and sincere in carrying out your task. It is most important for you to realize that you are ministers not only of God but also of Jesus Christ and the Church.”

Pope St. Paul VI echoed the importance of personal witness in his 1975 apostolic exhortation, Evangelii nuntiandi, in which he wrote: “for the Church, the first means of evangelization is the witness of an authentically Catholic life, given over to God in a communion that nothing should destroy and at the same time given to one’s neighbor with limitless zeal. . . . Modern man listens more willingly to witnesses than to teachers, and if he does listen to teachers, it is because they are witnesses” (EN 41).

The charge to Catholic teachers is thus to educate students for this life and prepare them for the next by instruction and by example. The very nature of authentic Catholic education is the search for goodness, beauty and truth and the cultivation of wisdom and virtue under the guidance of the Church. The various arts and sciences are pathways for growing closer to God since students learn in these the endless wonders of His creation. A passion for learning is a passion for Jesus Himself, who is the Way, the Truth and the Life. Catholic schools play an important role in forming disciples to know, love and follow Jesus. The teacher-ministers, principal-ministers and support staff of Catholic schools reflect this every day as they not only teach, but also model, the faith for our more than 40,000 students in this archdiocese. For that I am very grateful.

Although not all our students are Catholic, it is the mission of our schools to be Catholic in every classroom, lunchroom, hallway and gym. They are Christ-centered communities rooted in the Gospel message. At the same time, as I have frequently noted, Catholic schools are everybody’s schools because they form students into leaders who will help to make the world a better place – more peaceful, more civil, more faith-filled.

Please join me in keeping all students, parents and school principals, faculty and staff in our prayers as this new school year begins.

“Pro-life” is not just a slogan or even a philosophy; it is the Christian way of life that respects, defends and promotes what Pope St. John Paul II called “the dignity of every human person, at every moment and in every condition of that person’s life” (Evangelium Vitae 81). This issue of The Catholic Telegraph highlights some of the many pro-life efforts that support expectant mothers in difficult circumstances, both during pregnancy and after their child is born.

Abortion has a special claim on our attention because it is an intrinsic evil that cuts life short at its most vulnerable moment. That has been the clear teaching of the Church since the first Christian century. Science now confirms that everything making a human being human is present in the earliest stages of pregnancy–a vulnerable being whose inherent and sacred dignity demands respect.

For the nearly 50 years since the U.S. Supreme Court struck down almost all state laws limiting abortion in its infamous Roe v. Wade decision, Catholics joined others of good will in picketing at abortion clinics and marching in Washington. These peaceful protests sought reversal of a judicial ruling that even some abortion supporters concede had no basis in constitutional law.

However, the reversal of Roe v. Wade would not by itself change people’s hearts to “love them both,” mother and unborn child. That is best accomplished by the good example of joyful witnesses to the culture of life generously assisting women in need. At the time of this writing, there has been no final decision on the Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization case, but the Church has always stood ready to help women during pregnancy and after delivery.

Pope St. John Paul II noted in his encyclical Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life) that challenges facing expectant mothers include lack of support from the father, financial strains, concerns about her own health and that of her child, and pressures from family and friends. Crisis pregnancy centers have been there to help in such situations since even before Roe v. Wade. And in our local Church, numerous Catholic organizations have long offered pregnancy counseling. Yet, more can be done. As Pope Francis said in 2015, our parishes should be “islands of mercy in a sea of indifference.”

In 2020, in honor of and in response to the 25th anniversary of The Gospel of Life, the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops (USCCB) launched a nationwide, parish-based effort called “Walking with Moms in Need.” Its purpose is to increase the Church’s outreach and support to pregnant women facing difficult or unexpected pregnancies, and to effectively communicate those efforts. This ministry enables parishioners to know these moms in need, listen to them and help them obtain necessities for themselves and their children.

Pope Francis, in his apostolic exhortation Evangelii Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel), called for the Church to be an evangelizing community of encounter and accompaniment, “standing by people every step of the way, no matter how difficult or lengthy this may prove to be” (EG 24). The pregnancy care centers and pro-life ministries across our archdiocese are among the many answers to that plea.

Please join me in this prayer for pregnant mothers offered by the USCCB: O Blessed Mother, you received the good news of the incarnation of Christ, your Son, with faith and trust. Grant your protection to all pregnant mothers facing difficulties. Guide us as we strive to make our parish communities places of welcome and assistance for mothers in need. Help us become instruments of God’s love and compassion. Mary, Mother of the Church, graciously help us to build a culture of life and a civilization of love, together with all people of good will, to the praise and glory of God, the Creator and lover of life. Amen.

June 24, 2022

Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Today’s Supreme Court decision in Dobbs v. Jackson Women’s Health Organization, which reverses the Roe v. Wade decision of 1973, is a welcome and potential watershed moment in the history of the United States. This decision means that states, including Ohio, now have the option to legally protect the most vulnerable of all human beings: babies in the womb.

The constant teaching of the Catholic Church is that human life begins at conception. God alone is the Author and Lord of life. Therefore, the intentional taking of innocent human life is intrinsically evil and must always be opposed. Modern science only strengthens the Church’s opposition to abortion, as advancements in genetics and prenatal imaging increasingly demonstrate that a unique human life begins at conception.

For the past 50 years, Catholics and other people of good will have peacefully prayed in front of abortion clinics, marched in Washington, D.C. and petitioned their lawmakers, hoping that the blessed day would come when communities would no longer be required by law to sanction the killing of innocent human beings in the womb. Equally important, we have assisted women in unexpected or crisis pregnancies with material resources and personal accompaniment, both during pregnancy and after their child is born. Expectant mothers can face many challenges, including lack of support from the father, financial strains, concerns about her own health and that of her child, and pressures from family and friends. Thank you to the pregnancy centers, Catholic Charities, St. Vincent de Paul conferences, Catholic healthcare systems and other wonderful pro-life ministries that have steadfastly walked with women in need, helping them navigate these difficult circumstances.

For a listing of the many resources available for women in unexpected or crisis pregnancies in the Archdiocese of Cincinnati, please go to https://catholicaoc.org/forlife.

Despite these efforts, more than 65 million innocent children have lost their lives to abortion in the United States since Roe v. Wade. This sad fact demonstrates the desperate need for conversion of hearts and minds to a culture of life in our country, one that respects the inherent dignity and sacredness of every human being from conception to natural death.

The reversal of Roe v. Wade will not by itself bring about this conversion, but prayer and a joyful outpouring of love and support for pregnant women, especially those most in need, will bring us closer. No woman should feel so alone, coerced or hopeless that she chooses to end her child’s life through abortion. I urge everyone in our archdiocese to both pray for and actively assist all expectant mothers. Together, let us redouble our commitment to caring for women, children and families so that abortion is not only illegal, but unthinkable.

            O Blessed Mother, you received the good news of the incarnation of Christ, your Son, with faith and trust. Grant your protection to all pregnant mothers facing difficulties.

            Guide us as we strive to make our parish communities places of welcome and assistance for mothers in need. Help us become instruments of God’s love and compassion.

            Mary, Mother of the Church, graciously help us to build a culture of life and a civilization of love, together with all people of good will, to the praise and glory of God, the Creator and lover of life. Amen.

Sincerely yours in Christ,

Most Reverend Dennis M. Schnurr

Archbishop of Cincinnati

A PDF version of this letter is available: Letter Regarding Overturning of Roe v Wade – English

A PDF version of this letter is available: Letter Regarding Overturning of Roe v Wade – Spanish