“Indeed, God did not send the Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him” (John 3:17).

The Sisters of Life, who have their Centre for Life in the rectory of St. Peter’s Church, run a ministry for those who have had an abortion called “Hope and Healing.” This ministry is intended to help bring Christ’s “light into the midst of darkness.” Through this ministry, the Sisters of Life invite those who have had an abortion, or helped an individual to receive one, to “step into His mercy and receive a new beginning.”

This ministry, called “Hope and Healing,” is so important because it is central to the kind of healing which Christ came into the world to bring to all people.

Sadly, so often when a person does something wrong she/he thinks that God is no longer interested in them and that they are condemned forever. This kind of thinking is so opposite to the message of Christ and that of the Church. In fact, the idea that any person is without hope and cannot be saved is the work of the Devil. The kind of darkness and despair that cause a person to think that she/he is lost and without hope is exactly the kind of thinking that Jesus came to dispel and cast out. Sin can lead all of us to think that we are lost and no longer loved by God. When we give our lives over to despair, the darkness can overwhelm us and we are inclined not to resist sin as we think we are already lost to God’s love. However, as the readings this Sunday proclaim, no one is ever lost to God’s love. Continue reading →