Mission Statement
The mission of the Office for Pro-Life Ministry of the Archdiocese of Indianapolis is to proclaim God’s truth that the gift of human life is sacred from the moment of conception to natural death. Through pro-life education, evangelization, catechesis, pastoral outreach, works of charity, and public policy formulation and awareness, the Pro-Life Office promotes the establishment of a culture of life that respects and supports the sacredness of human life.
The Pro-Life Office serves as a resource for imparting the Church’s teachings on a wide range of life issues, such as abortion, embryonic stem-cell research, human cloning, assisted suicide, euthanasia, human sexuality, contraception, marriage, infertility procedures and the death penalty.
Latest...
Archdiocese appoints director of Pro-Life and Family Life Ministries
Faithful Citizens Rosary Procession: Downtown Indy - On the 4th Saturday of each month following the 12:10 Mass at St. John's Catholic Church.
4th Annual Local Solemn Observance of Roe vs. Wade -- The March for Life in Washington, D.C., will take place on Wednesday, January 22, 2014. To coincide with the pro-life events taking place in Washington D.C., the Archdiocesan Local Solemn Observance of Roe vs. Wade will also be held in Indianapolis from 12 noon to 4 p.m. on Wednesday, January 22, 2014. Mass begins at noon at SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral in Indianapolis.
Pictures and homily from the Local Solemn Observance on January, 25, 2013 are below.
- Pictures can be viewed here.
- More pictures can be viewed here.
- Archbishop Tobin's homily can be heard here.
- Listen to the talk given by one of our speakers, Branden Stanley here.
Catholics United for the Faith (CUF), Abba, Father Chapter will conduct a bible study on the book of Revelation. The series will be 11 sessions long running Thursday, February 7, to Thursday, July 18, 2013. The series will be held at the Catholic Center on the first and third Thursday of the month. A flier with more detailed information can be downloaded here.
5th Annual Archdiocesan Sanctity of Life Dinner will be held on Thursday, March 6, 2014 at the River Walk Banquet Center and Lodge, located at 6729 Westfield Blvd, Indianapolis, IN 46220.
- More information will be posted as it becomes available.
Talk by Msgr. Joseph F. Schaedel at the Archdiocesan Sanctity of Life Dinner in Indianapolis on March 8, 2012
The Gospel of Life and Pre-Natal Screening
Project Rachel and Archdiocesan Post-Abortion Healing
The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops has an excellent website on post-abortion healing. Log on to http://hopeafterabortion.com/ to learn more about Hope After Abortion. I encourage our archdiocesan clergy and all those engaged in pastoral ministry to visit the website that is informative and helpful.
A very informative presentation was made at the General Assembly on post-abortion syndrome and post-abortion healing. Please follow the link to view and listen to the presentations http://usccb.org/about/leadership/usccb-general-assembly/video-on-demand.cfm#tuesday.
I encourage all our priests to download the post-abortion manuals from the USCCB that appears below in English or Spanish. If you would like the Office for Pro-Life Ministry to prepare a manual for you and mail it to you, please call 317-236-1521, or e-mail Maria at mbarnes@archindy.org.
Rachel’s Vineyard Retreat
A Rachel’s Vineyard Retreat for post-abortive women and men will be conducted in the Spring 2014. For more information on the retreat and post-abortion healing, contact the Healing Hotline at 317-452-0054. The deadline for registration is Thursday, February 28. Don’t be afraid to begin the healing process. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain! This reconciliation program is confidential. All calls are confidential.
To learn more about archdiocesan post-abortion healing, please log on to http://www.archindy.org/prolife/ministry-rachel.html or view the flyer here.
Protecting Conscience Rights in Health Care: Our Voice is Needed!
About our Ministry
Since the year 2000, the Pro-Life Office has responded to the needs of our time by providing a variety of pro-life ministries. Listed below are some of our ongoing works.
The Conference of Catholic Bishops envision that the entire year be focused on pro-life education, pastoral care, advocacy, prayer and worship that affirm the value of human life. The Office for Pro-Life Ministry distributes the Respect Life packets to all pastors and coordinators of parish pro-life groups, and thereby encourages year-round education and evangelization in the local parishes.
The first Sunday of October is observed as Respect Life Sunday. The Archbishop of Indianapolis presents the Archbishop O’Meara Respect Life Award and the Our Lady of Guadalupe Pro-Life Youth Award to outstanding leaders in the pro-life movement at the conclusion of the Respect Life Mass at SS. Peter and Paul Cathedral. In collaboration with local ecumenical groups, the Pro-Life Office promotes the Life Chain along Meridian Street on Respect Life Sunday.
Through the Birthline ministry, dedicated volunteers serve impoverished women and their babies by offering material assistance in the form of clothing, supplies and equipment. Approximately 10,000 women and babies have been served during the past eight years.
In addition to outreach to the poor, Birthline telephone hotline volunteers counsel hundreds of women experiencing crisis pregnancies. These abortion-minded callers receive pastoral, practical and life-giving options. Each year, dozens of abortions are prevented through this ministry.
Through our post-abortion ministry including Rachel’s Vineyard Retreats, Rachel’s Network and Rachel’s Counselors, the Pro-Life Office serves to post-abortive women and men. With the help of trained facilitators and professionals, these spiritually wounded individuals discover reconciliation, healing and peace through Christ and his Catholic Church.
The Pro-Life Office has taken seriously its mission to communicate the enduring message of the Gospel of Life through its electronic and written communications. Topics routinely discussed are abortion, embryonic stem cell research, human cloning, end-of-life issues, sexual immorality, contraception, capital punishment and legislation that destroys human life. These communications have empowered the faithful of all ages to address the pro-life issues that define our values as an American people.
Since education and evangelization of our youth is so important, the Pro-Life Office initiated the annual Youth Pilgrimage for Life to Washington, D.C. As a result, thousands of youth from the archdiocese have traveled to our nation’s capital to protest the 1973 Supreme Court decision that legalized abortion. The four-day pilgrimage helps in training our youth to become the pro-life leaders of tomorrow, who will insist that innocent human life be once again protected by law. Since 2011 the Youth Pilgrimage for Life has been sponsored by the Office for Youth Ministry.
