Respect Life News
For more information please contact the Respect Life Coordinator Katherine Miller at ksmillerhome@verizon.net.
Respect Life Living Rosary Sign-ups thru Ash Wednesday, Feb 17th

Each day during the Lenten season Catholics traditionally give something up or do something extra in terms of service, prayer, alms, study, etc. as part of a desire to see God touch our hearts, transform us, and get us ready to celebrate Easter with a renewed heart that brings us closer to God and His people. 

In this Lenten tradition, the Respect Live Committee is asking for volunteers to sign up to join Living Rosary teams. The Living Rosary, is where 20 people combine to be on a rosary team. Each member of a rosary team says one assigned decade (an Our Father, 10 Hail Mary’s and Glory Be) of the Joyful, Luminous, Sorrowful or Glorious mysteries of the Rosary, each day during Lent for a pro-life intention. Do it from home or in the car–anywhere–and it takes less than 5 minutes!  

To participate, please text, call or email one of the people below with the following message: “Please assign me a decade of the Rosary to say daily during Lent.…<YOUR NAME>.   The person you contacted will respond with an assigned decade. 

We encourage you and your entire family (kids are welcome) to join a team! We will have “How to Say the Rosary” pamphlets at the entrance tables next to the bulletins for those wanting to learn more about this powerful weapon of prayer. There are also online instructions on How to Pray the Rosary and Pro-Life Meditations for each decade. The Living Rosary starts on Ash Wednesday February 17th and ends on Holy Saturday April 3rd. ​

  • Holy Family’s Gabriel Network Angel Friend Team is in need of a new Coordinator – Gabriel Network Angel Friend Teams consist of trained volunteers who walk with mothers throughout pregnancy and beyond. They help families facing crisis pregnancies by providing practical, emotional, and material support - both directly through their Team and through the support of their parish. This support includes providing diapers and wipes, offering a small baby shower to each mom, weekly phone calls or texts to the mom, and prayer support. In these ways, a vulnerable woman in a crisis pregnancy can know that a community of believers is supporting and helping her.

The Angel Friend Coordinator helps their parish’s Angel Friend Team grow, serves as the Gabriel Network representative at the church, and is the primary point of contact between Gabriel Network staff and the Angel Friend Team. The Coordinator is responsible for communication between Gabriel Network staff and their Team and is in charge of connecting nearby Gabriel Network moms, who call the Gabriel Network office, with their Angel Friend Team. Contact me for more information or if interested in joining or leading Holy Family’s Angel Friend Team. ​
 
WHY SHOULD I PRAY AT PLANNED PARENTHOOD?
BECAUSE IT BRINGS THE LOVE OF CHRIST TO WOMEN WHO ARE IN CRISIS
Our world is difficult and challenging, and many women, when they are with child, are stressed.  To know that people are praying about this issue—not judging but praying—has been a comfort to some women who have seen the “40 Days” participants praying on West Street outside of the Annapolis Planned Parenthood, and at other prayer vigils across the nation.  How do we know this?  They have approached us and told us… that, far from feeling judged or criticized, they took heart at knowing that other people cared.

BECAUSE IT HELPS PEOPLE TO KNOW THAT THEY HAVE OPTIONS
Did you know that 78.3% of women experienced “pressure” to abort their babies, 58.3% chose abortion “to make others happy” and 66% said they knew they were making a mistake? The Annapolis Pregnancy Clinic (at 934 West Street) across the street from Planned Parenthood of Annapolis, offers sonograms, ongoing counseling, and financial/other assistance, to women who are pregnant. If you talk to someone who is considering an abortion, you have more than just “good will” to offer women who are under pressure and afraid.  You can turn them to a large group of caring and loving people—at the Annapolis Pregnancy Clinic—who want to help them.

BECAUSE A CHILD IN THE WOMB IS A CHILD OF GOD
Through public witness, we can help people remember that a child’s life is sacred. Abortion is an emotional issue, and one that can bring up hurtful memories for men and women who have been involved in an abortion. For healing after an abortion contact www.project-rachel.net.

Natural Family Planning

Sara Shaffer, CNM
and Tracie Severson

  Learn how these methods can positively impact your marriage and spiritual life.
 You will learn about the science behind and the effectiveness of several methods of NFP.
 Sara and Tracie are Holy Family parishioners and members of the Respect Life Committee. 
 
For more information contact Sara Shaffer at sarashaff@gmail.com.