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This edition of Life Issues Forum is available in English and Spanish, and has also been posted to our website.
The Life Issues Forum is a bi-weekly column by Pro-Life Secretariat staff addressing the latest issues on the culture of life. Columns may be reprinted as they appear here (in full and without alteration) without further permission. In Christ,
The Pro-Life Secretariat
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LIFE ISSUES FORUM FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Guiding Words
June 10, 2016
By Kimberly Baker
There
was once a four-year-old girl who had some delays with speech
development. Her doctor and parents agreed that she should work with a
speech-language pathologist to correct this difficulty. There were times
during the sessions when it was frustrating, not being able to form her
mouth or move her tongue the right way to make sounds which came so
easily for everyone else. There were also those rare, joyful moments
when suddenly she was able to speak more clearly and pronounce the word
exactly as she had intended. After several years, the speech
difficulties were corrected, the sessions came to an end, and the girl
continued on with her life.
That
little girl was me. When I look back at those years, I remember the
speech therapist as a woman who tirelessly encouraged me to try again
and again as I worked to overcome my difficulties. I no longer remember
her name, but she is one of those special teachers I will always
remember from my early childhood. I wonder how many other young children
benefited from her gentle reassurance and guidance.
Today,
it is easy for me to take for granted what I can do with my incredible
power of speech. We live in a world which takes delight in wit, quick
"comebacks," and clever wordplay in political discourse, entertainment,
and, of course, in everyday conversation. It is easy to forget the power
of words to either tear down or to affirm others, and even easier to
take for granted the ability to speak at all.
A
culture that respects life seeks to accompany others in various life
circumstances, reminding them of their worth and dignity, which cannot
be taken away. When we encounter fragility and brokenness, especially in
those who are struggling or suffering in some way, we each have the
capacity to guide others to the light of God's love through our
attentiveness and tender encouragement-especially through our words.
It
is in concrete circumstances that we can each be a ray of light to
another, reflecting back his or her dignity through the words we choose.
The person may be facing a terminal illness, wondering whether life is
worth living; living with a disability and questioning her value; or
struggling with depression, lacking the hope to continue on. God has a
purpose for every life he creates, and it is amazing to know that each
one of us has been loved from all eternity.
We
have each been created with a tremendous capacity to love. Let us be
attentive to the daily opportunities to speak to others of their
sacredness in God's eyes. How much are we willing to gently guide others-sometimes out of very dark places-closer
to the light of God's love? However brief the encounter, you never
know how much your loving, affirming words can positively impact one
life.
Kimberly
Baker is Programs and Projects Coordinator for the Secretariat of
Pro-Life Activities, U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops. For more
information on the bishops' pro-life activities, please visit www.usccb.org/prolife.
