NEWSLETTER INSERTS - TWELFTH SUNDAY OF ORDINARY TIME AND DAY FOR LIFE

‘Over 90% of abortions in Ireland take place in the first twelve weeks but, in a society that is otherwise collapsing under the weight of research statistics, there is no attempt to even find out why.  Neither the State, nor the mainstream media, seem to have any interest in exploring what leads women to choose abortion or what happens to them afterwards’.

Irish Bishops, ‘Offering Hope in Crisis’

'The defense of human life is neither a partisan issue nor a confessional interest: it is a goal of civilization.  Every human life must be recognized and safeguarded from conception to its natural end, in every circumstance of its existence.  When this certainty is obscured, the most vulnerable are the first victims, and the law loses its deepest meaning: to serve and protect every person.  For this reason, the moral greatness of a nation is manifested, above all, in its capacity to accompany, protect and love those lives that are most fragile.'

Pope Leo XIV, Address to Spanish Parliament, 8 June 2026.

‘Human rights are inviolable, since they are inherent in the human person and in human dignity. Consequently, they are universal and inalienable. Precisely because they are grounded in the common dignity of every man and woman, they have practical consequences and legal effects, for it would be vain to proclaim human rights if, at the same time, everything were not done to ensure the duty of respecting them, respect by all, in all places and for all. Among these rights, the first is the right to life, from conception to its natural end, without which it is impossible to exercise any other right. When this fundamental right is denied — as in the cases of induced abortion, killing of the innocent and euthanasia — we are faced with choices that the Church considers gravely wrong.’

Pope Leo XIV, Magnifica Humanitas, 55.

‘Each day deep within ourselves, Israel departs from Egypt; each day it is nourished with manna; each day it fulfills the law; each day it must engage in combat.’

H. de Lubac

‘It is the paradox of history that each generation is converted by the saint who contradicts it most’

GK Chesterton

‘Jesus never promised us that being his disciples was going to be easy. In fact, he said it would be tough. Our faith does not spare us from suffering but gives us the strength to cope with it. Our faith roots us in Christ where his strength and courage becomes our own. United with the Lord, we face down our fears to witness to the truth, to threats to our safety and our fears that we don’t matter. These are the first steps to our world becoming a less fearful and more loving place’.

Fr Billy Swan