January 22 - Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children

"Only with prayer - prayer that storms the heavens for justice and mercy, prayer that cleanses our hearts and souls - will the culture of death that surrounds us today be replaced with a culture of life."

--Pastoral Plan for Pro-Life Activities, U.S. Catholic Bishops

January 22, 2013 marks the 40th anniversary since the January 22, 1973 Roe v. Wade Supreme Court decision legalizing abortion in the United States.

Each year in the Catholic Church in the United States, the date is observed as a Day of Prayer for the Legal Protection of Unborn Children:

"In all the Dioceses of the United States of America, January 22 (or January 23, when January 22 falls on a Sunday) shall be observed as a particular day of prayer for the full restoration of the legal guarantee of the right to life and of penance for violations to the dignity of the human person committed through acts of abortion. The liturgical celebrations for this day may be the "Mass For Giving Thanks to God for the Gift of Human Life” (no. 48/1 of the Masses and Prayers for Various Needs and Occasions), celebrated with white vestments, or the Mass “For the Preservation of Peace and Justice” (no. 30 of the Masses and Prayers for Various Needs and Occasions), celebrated with violet vestments.” (From The General Instruction of the Roman Missal (GIRM), no. 373.)

Visit www.ehd.org for amazing facts on human embryonic development.

Mass Collect for January 22 Mass for Giving Thanks to God for the Gift of Human Life:

God our Creator, we give thanks to you, who alone have the power to impart the breath of life as you form each of us in our mother's womb; grant, we pray, that we, whom you have made stewards of creation, may remain faithful to this sacred trust and constant in safeguarding the dignity of every human life.  Through our Lord Jesus Christ, your Son, who lives and reigns with you in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.