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Respect Life resources for faith formation settings LEADERS' TOOLKIT Faith Formation This leaders' toolkit is provided to help catechists build a culture of life throughout the year, whenever Respect Life themes best fit into your faith formation curriculum. The provided resources, ideas, and activities are only suggestions. We encourage you to adapt them as necessary for your faith formation program. Feel free to get creative as you build "an authentic civilization of truth and love" ( Evangelium vitae , 6). Check out our Action Guides for additional ideas and step-by-step instructions for highlighting Respect Life themes year-round! ACTION GUIDES (Available in English and Spanish) POSTER & PRAYER CARD Consider hanging the Respect Life poster in your classroom or meeting space and using it to introduce the Church's teaching on the dignity of the human person. This Respect Life poster features the Eucharist and Jesus’ message in John 10:10, “I came so that they might have life.” Incorporate "A Prayer for Life to Jesus in the Blessed Sacrament" into your class prayers and send a copy home with students. POSTER PRAYER CARD (Available in English and Spanish) REFLECTION This short reflection unpacks the 2024-2025 Eucharistic Respect Life theme, highlighting how Catholics are called to be lights in the darkness. You can use the reflection to integrate Respect Life topics any time of year. The reflection could be read aloud as a class to open a larger discussion. For example, students could be asked to reflect on how they can bring Jesus' light to others, focusing on ways to build a culture that welcomes, protects, and defends human life. VIEW DOWNLOAD (Available in English and Spanish) INTERCESSIONS Prayer is the basis of all our efforts to build a culture of life. The provided intercessions are appropriate for use during Mass in the Prayer of the Faithful, but they can also be used in various other ways. Consider incorporating one or more of the intercessions into your prayer time during class, and invite students to add their own prayer intentions related to the sanctity of human life. You could also send home one or more of the intercessions and encourage families to pray for them together at home. "...in our daily prayer as individuals and as a community, praise and bless God our Father, who knitted us together in our mother's womb..." Evangelium vitae, 84 That the life of every person, from conception to natural death, will be protected in our laws and cherished in our hearts; We pray to the Lord: For women and men suffering after abortion: May the Church’s abortion healing ministry, Project Rachel, help them find peace and healing through Christ’s endless mercy; We pray to the Lord: For those nearing the end of life: May they receive care that respects their dignity and protects their lives as they place their hope in the promise of eternal life; We pray to the Lord: May God grant us the wisdom and courage to lovingly protect His gift of human life at every stage, in sickness and in health; We pray to the Lord: Looking for more intercessions to incorporate in your classroom year-round? Check out our series of Action Guides , which each include additional intercessions that are connected to annual observances and liturgical feasts. You can also subscribe to our monthly parish liturgical resource, Word of Life . ACTION GUIDES WORD OF LIFE (Available in English and Spanish) VIEW & DOWNLOAD Blank poster template with instructions available as PDF in English and Spanish. SAMPLE ACTIVITY This activity invites students to create their own poster to help them connect Respect Life themes with their own lives. Each student receives a poster template with an empty bulletin board. They are then instructed to fill the bulletin board with images and/or words that represent respect for life from the beginning of life to its end. For younger students, they can be asked to color, draw pictures, or write about what reminds them of God's presence in their lives. Older students can be asked to bring in items and photos that represent respect for life and attach them to their bulletin board. You could also bring in an old stack of magazines and have students cut out words and photos. They can also write their own prayer intentions on their bulletin board. *This activity can also be completed as a group. Check out our Respect Life Month Action Guide for instructions that can be adapted for any time of year. VIEW & DOWNLOAD Blank poster template with instructions are available as PDFs in English and Spanish. ARTICLES Our library of Respect Life articles are especially helpful as educational tools for higher grade levels, adult faith formation, or RCIA classes. Each article is available to read online or to print as a handout. Many are also available to order as pamphlets. The articles can be used to integrate Catholic moral teaching into a variety of catechetical topics. VIEW ARTICLES VISIT STORE

RESPECT LIFE About ABOUT RespectLife.org is a project of the USCCB Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities . The Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities, under the guidance and direction of the USCCB Committee on Pro-Life Activities, works to teach respect for all human life from conception to natural death, and organize for its protection. To serve this goal, we develop resources on pro-life topics in support of the Church's mission to proclaim that every human life is a precious gift from God. Our work is guided by the Pastoral Plan for Pro-Life Activities , which calls upon the Church—its people, services, and institutions—to pursue this effort in four major areas: prayer and worship, public information and education, public policy, and pastoral care. We create resources to help dioceses, parishes, ministries, and individual Catholics share the Gospel of Life. All the materials and resources on this website are provided for free download, and select printed materials are available to order in the Respect Life Store . Learn more about the Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities by visiting usccb.org/prolife . iStock.com/3DFOX Support S UP PORT The work of the USCCB Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities is supported by People of Life —the pro-life action campaign of the Catholic Church in the United States—which serves the Church's mission to proclaim that each human life is a precious gift from God. You can support People of Life with a tax-deductible donation through our direct mail campaign . #iGiveCatholicTogether also accepts funds to support People of Life. Your support can help us to continue to produce high-quality, pro-life materials at no cost to Catholics across the country to help build a culture of life and civilization of love . LEARN MORE

Signup Confirmation Thank you for praying the 9 Days for Life novena, and please invite your family and friends to join at 9daysforlife.com ! New this year, join dioceses nationwide every day of the novena through live-streaming prayer events like Masses, Rosaries, and Holy Hours. Live-Streaming Events Novena Model used for illustrative purposes only. iStock.com / RyanJLane. Get the most recent prayer guide here ! View Prayer Guide

A Novena for Life honoring the Feast of the Visitation Thank you for praying! You will receive the novena by email beginning May 22. Learn More