Here are the most recent updates form the Confirmation Program. The first is, that due to many candidates being out of town on January 8th we have decided to cancel that session in order to give families an opportunity to spend more time together during this beautiful season in which we celebrate the birth our Savior. With this in mind, our January 15th session will therefore be a half day retreat which will include the Pro-Life Walk as previously mentioned.
For January 15th retreat our main focus will be centered on what it means to be Pro-Life as our Catholic faith asks of through the example of Jesus Christ. Our day will begin with a Mass at 9:00am. The goal of this retreat is not to only focus on abortion, but rather on everything Pro-Life related; capital punishment, euthanasia, suicide, murder, and abortion. These talks will begin given by different invited guests speakers who will approach these topics (as we are all supposed to as good and faithful Catholics) in a loving, merciful and non-judgmental manner. The Catholic Church has always considered this “Seamless Garment” to be crucial in talking about these life issues that bring to light the dignity that each human person deserves. We will be having live music and snacks (candidates will bring their own lunch) and by 1:20pm, we will be loading into buses and going to City Hall in Santa Maria. From there, we will walk to Planned Parenthood in the hopes to help shed some light on human dignity and most especially the dignity of children in the womb which very often do not have a voice to defend themselves. Many of our Josephite priest from our community will be joining us during our retreat by giving talks and during the Pro-Life walk as well. We will hopefully be back by 4:30pm.
*The Prolife walk will substitute the Santa Barbara Youth Day held in Ventura in March.
What is the Pro-Life Walk on January 15th?
The Pro-Life Walk or Walk for Life is an annual pro-life walk that hopes to raise awareness of abortion, and in doing so, put an end to it. However, as previously mentioned, this involves more than abortion. It involves capital punishment, euthanasia, murder and suicide. The walk is held every year on or near January 22nd, “the anniversary of Roe v. Wade, the U.S. Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion.” The goal is to be a vocal and visual message that people of the West Coast stand for life, to reach out to women harmed by abortion and to inform society of the damage done to women by abortion. Participating in the Walk for Life in our community of Santa Maria (January 15th), is a way to take the Gospel outside of our Church’s walls and to preach against social immorality and injustice and defend the dignity of every human person. We become a voice for the respect of human dignity, something that the Catholic Church has done since its beginning.