July 1, 2009

Eager faithful attend first Spanish Pro-Life Congress in archdiocese

By Lara Montoya

On June 13, feast of St. Anthony of Padua, more than 200 Hispanics gathered for the first Pro-Life Congress organized by the Respect Life and the Hispanic Ministry offices of the Archdiocese of Denver. 

The event took place at the John Paul II Center in south Denver. Organizers called the congress a great success.

“One of the best results of the congress,” noted Abraham Morales, associate director of Hispanic Ministry and Centro San Juan Diego, “is the commitment of the majority of the attendees to the pro-life movement. Most of them, for example, after learning about the sacredness of life, have gotten involved in the Gabriel Project and Project Rachel ministries, and as promoters of life issues in their parishes.”

The congress began with Mass presided by Denver Archbishop Charles Chaput, O.F.M. Cap. In his homily, the archbishop urged the faithful to defend the life and rights of the unborn.

“The love of Christ is one of the reasons why Catholics are very involved in the pro-life movement,” the prelate said. “Because the love of Christ impels them to do this.

 “We, as Catholics,” he added, “care about what Jesus thinks and we stand with him, even in the face of opposition of the culture. Our role as his disciples is to renew the face of the earth and this means to bring a new culture of life to the United States. So this is a great challenge. And we must follow the example of St. Anthony, preaching and teaching the Gospel with our words and actions.

“As Catholics, we stand with the unborn,” the archbishop declared. “We believe they have a dignity that cannot be violated. If you don’t believe this, you are not a Catholic.”

 The faithful are called not simply to believe that the unborn have dignity, he added, but to work even in the face of opposition to change the laws of the land to protect the unborn.

After the Mass, the prelate noted that 51 percent of the Church in northern Colorado is Hispanic.

“Your voice is very important to the transformation of society,” Archbishop Chaput said. “You all agree that it is more important to be Catholic than to be Democrat or Republican and the most important thing is to be children of God, this comes before party loyalty.”

In her opening remarks, Mimi Eckstein, director of the Respect Life Office, spoke of the beauty of Hispanic culture, noting it believes in the sanctity of human life and values family.

 “We want to invite you to bring your richness and your dedication to family life to the Respect Life work of the Archdiocese of Denver,” said Eckstein.

In his presentation, Luis Soto, director of Hispanic Ministry and of Centro San Juan Diego, the archdiocese’s center for pastoral and family care for Spanish-speaking Catholics, used the Old Testament figures of Cain and Abel to represent the contemporary conflict between those building the culture of life and those committed to the culture of death. 

“Cain turned away from God, and the culture of death is precisely that: to live far from our creator,” he said. “But we are called to walk in the presence of God, so let us walk in accordance with Christ. 

“We cannot remain silent,” he continued, “because we are called to live the gospel of life and the topic of life is a topic not only for the Church but one that must be discussed at the Capitol.  Let’s make our voices heard there.”

Father Jorge Rodriguez, vice rector at St. John Vianney Seminary, warned the attendees to be aware of the different attacks against the teachings of the Church, including pre-marital sex, homosexuality, masturbation, contraceptives, abortion and euthanasia.

“This is an egocentric culture,” Father Rodriguez said, “clearly opposed to our Christian values. One of the voices that has been raised courageously and strongly against this culture of death is the voice of the Catholic Church, faithful to Jesus and his message.”

Later, Father Jorge De Los Santos, vicar for Hispanic Ministry, participated in a panel discussion that also included natural family planning consultant Dr. Carlos Vera, who operates a Catholic family practice in Northglenn, and lawyer Dolores Martinez Hernandez.

The Congress ended with a bilingual rosary for the unborn.