Schools urged to participate in Respect Life Week activities

Materials are available to assist middle and high school students in fully participating in the inaugural Respect Life Week interdisciplinary program throughout the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.During the week of Sept. 30 through Oct. 4, schools are invited to engage students in study and discussion of “the most critical human rights issues of our time through the lens of Catholic Social Teaching and the infinite love of Christ for each and every person,” said kathleen-domingo, Life Coordinator in the Office of Life, Justice and Peace. “Middle and high school students are challenged to wrestle with these issues in every academic area and through hands-on service. We need the innovation and creativity of our future leaders as together we build a culture of life, justice and peace in the Archdiocese of Los Angeles.”All Catholic elementary and high schools have received this information, a joint project of the Department of Catholic Schools and the Office of Life, Justice and Peace “to immerse Catholic middle and high school students in the understanding of the dignity of every human person and our call to proclaim the Gospel of Life in our community,” said Domingo. All materials — including daily lesson plans, student handouts, PowerPoint presentations and teacher resources — are available on http://archla.org/respectlifeweek. Each day offers students service-learning opportunities that can be done individually, as a class, or as an entire school. There are links to videos, articles, blogs and websites for each grade level, discipline and class period length. The week is divided as follows:—Sept. 30: Incomparable Worth of the Human Person Created in the Image of God. Suggested discipline: Whole school involvement; classroom suggestions for Social Studies, English, Science and Religion.—Oct. 1: Threats to Human Life: Abortion & the Pro-Life Generation. Suggested discipline: Social Studies grades 6-9, 11-12; Religion grade 10.—Oct. 2: Solutions to Crime and Conflict Capital Punishment, Incarceration, and Restorative Justice. Suggested discipline: English/Language Arts.—Oct. 3: How Does this Affect Me? An Exploration of Poverty. Suggested discipline: Mathematics.—Oct. 4: Living for LIFE: Loving those Most in Need: The sick, the elderly, and those with special needs. Suggested discipline: Religion.Parish respect life ministers are invited to offer themselves as resources to schools, to utilize the resources on the website in any way that is helpful, and to enlist other parish ministries — including religious education, liturgy, RCIA, sacramental preparation, and prayer or devotional groups — in participation.The program precedes national Respect Life Sunday on Oct. 6. This year’s theme is “Open Your Hearts to Life,” a favorite theme of Pope Francis. “Opening our hearts to life means that we reject the killing of human beings from the moment of their conception to natural death,” says a USCCB Secretariat of Pro-Life Activities brochure.Additionally, “Christian Service 4 Life,” the third annual youth-oriented event that celebrates and encourages actions by youth that help build a culture of life, will take place Oct. 9 at the StubHub Center (formerly Home Depot Center) in Carson. LIFE SoCal and the Office of Life, Justice and Peace are coordinating the event (last year’s was “Go to Bat 4 Life” at Dodger Stadium) that will integrate with the Respect Life Week curriculum. Archbishop José Gomez will be present as will various speakers to inspire middle and high school students. Reservations are encouraged: (626) 755-7323 or www.lifesocal.org.For information on all Respect Life events and activities in the archdiocese, call (213) 637-7236.{gallery width=100 height=100}gallery/2013/0913/respectlife/{/gallery}