FAITH FORMATION INFORMATION:

  Information about the Physician Assisted Suicide Novena and the Letter to the Governor Campaign:

,Blessed greetings to you. I am following up on a Diocesan Updates post invitation from the Office of Life Issues, Bishop Matano, and the NYS Catholic Conference asking all our NYS faithful citizens in the DOR to participate in a Diocesan Letter Writing Campaign reminding and urging Governor Hochul of the importance of vetoing the proposed legislation and how it can affect our suffering brothers and sisters, our young people, and the medical personnel who are put in the position to “offer this assistance” while at the same time asked to uphold the oath to “do no harm”. Each of the eight (arch)dioceses in NYS are doing a similar campaign. The letter we are using has been personally edited by Bishop Matano. Our Diocese will focus on the weekend of Nov. 15-16, where we ask that a special emphasis be placed on how important this issue is to us as Catholics as we are called to accompany with dignity and faith those who suffer.

The invitation has been posted in various ways with access to print the letter: www.dor.org homepage, the www.liferoc.org homepage, Diocesan Updates, Facebook https://www.facebook.com/share/p/16yiiSzfEW/, emails to priests and deacons, and reaching out to various groups who will also share the letter. I am also attaching it to this email making it easily accessible to you in English and bilingual options. Please make physical copies available to all that weekend and encourage them to sign the letter, prepare it for mailing with their address on the envelope and mail it out to Albany. You can also forward it to any and all ministries in your communities that it may go far and wide.  We want to “shower” the Governor’s office with our voices as one Church who celebrates the dignity of all human life from conception to natural death.

I have also attached a Novena for the Protection and Care at End of Life created by the parishes of St. Mary of the Lake in Watkins Glen and St. Benedict in Odessa celebrating that November is National Hospice and Palliative Care Month. Parishes are welcome and free to pray, share, print, etc. the novena. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me. Blessings to you and the faithful in the communities you serve.

Yours in Christ,

Elizabeth M. Johnston

Coordinator of Life Issues & Cultural Ministries  (*Se habla español.)

Click on the link below to access the Novena developed for this Issue

End of Life – Novena Final parish Bath, NY