This morning, Bishop Rivituso celebrated Mass for the 8th graders to help us prepare to march for life. In the first reading, Samuel talks about how David was in hiding because Saul was out to kill him. After a lot of thought, David came to realize that Saul was a person chosen and made by God. He began to see that he was in fact the Lord’s anointed and a father to him. David finally realized the sacredness of the person he was up against and the sacredness of his life. He began to treat Saul with compassion and mercy which led to Saul’s conversion.

Bishop Rivituso began his homily by asking the room why we are here. What are we hoping to accomplish? Are we really making a difference?

Since 1973 with Roe v. Wade, 59 million babies have been aborted. But Bishop Rivituso encouraged us to keep marching because over the last 10 years in Missouri, abortions have decreased by 39%. We know that the power of good is greater than the power of evil. He encouraged us to see the sacredness of every human person, as David saw in Saul. We need to learn to see everyone as David saw Saul; to see and respect all people, friend or foe. By being here today and marching, we are giving a great witness to the Gospel of Christ. Our witness is helping to move hearts from a culture of death to a culture of life. Bishop Rivituso reaffirmed to us that Jesus wants us to be strong witnesses who continue to carry out His mission of proclaiming the Gospel of Christ. We need to be true to what Christ is asking of us, as we are called to uphold the sacredness of ALL life. He reminded us that this is not just a one-day thing; we daily need to be a witness to the Gospel of Christ.

He concluded his homily with this:

“May our witness renew the sacredness of ALL life and advance the Gospel by living out the power of Christ’s love. We can’t do this on our own merit, only by the help of God.”