US Bishops prepare materials for worldwide vigil for human life requested by Holy Father


A couple of weeks ago, it was announced that on Saturday 27 November, the Holy Father will celebrate a “Vigil for All Nascent Human Life” at St Peter’s Basilica, coinciding with first vespers of the First Sunday of Advent. The Holy Father has also requested that:
all Diocesan Bishops (and their equivalent) of every particular church preside in analogous celebrations involving the faithful in their respective parishes, religious communities, associations and movements.
Cardinal DiNardo, the chairman of the United States Catholic Conference of Bishops (USCCB) Pro-Life Committee said that the request from the Holy Father was unprecedented and encouraged all Americans to participate in the event whether at home or travelling (the weekend is part of the US Thanksgiving holiday.)

Parish Priests in other countries may appreciate a reminder at this stage to prepare something for the evening of 27 November in order to participate in this worldwide vigil requested by the Holy Father.

The purpose of the vigil is to 'thank the Lord for his total self-giving to the world and for his Incarnation which gave every human life its real worth and dignity,' and to 'invoke the Lord's protection over every human being called into existence.'

(See: Zenit report)

The website of the USCCB has announced:
An outline for the Vigil was provided from the Congregation for Divine Worship and the Discipline of the Sacraments and the Pontifical Council for the Family. Given the importance of the Holy Father’s request, the USCCB Secretariat of Divine Worship and the Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities have collaborated in developing Vigil prayer aids for dioceses and parishes.
They have produced four options for parishes to use:
Full Option One: Evening Prayer, Rosary and Benediction
Full Option Two: Marian Procession, Rosary, Evening Prayer and Benediction
Simplified Option One: Evening Prayer and Benediction (no Rosary)
Simplified Option Two: Marian Procession, Rosary and Benediction (no Evening Prayer)
These are provided on the website in three formats:
Microsoft Word Formatted (formatted with images)
Microsoft Publisher (formatted with images and easily modified)
Microsoft Word Unformatted (unformatted text without images)

See the dedicated page at the USCCB website.

I took the above photo at the Casa Santa Maria, the American house of studies for graduate priests in Rome. The picture of Our Lady of Guadalupe dates back to the 16th century.

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