Respect Life

PATERSON  Bishop Serratelli, the main celebrant of the annual diocesan Respect Life Mass Nov. 18 at the Cathedral of St. John the Baptist here, encouraged Catholics to remain “persistent” and unyielding in their faith-filled efforts to lobby in the public square for laws that “hold human life sacred from conception until natural death.”

Faithful from around the Diocese filled St. John’s for the 10 a.m. liturgy — the first Respect Life Mass held in the cathedral since it was rededicated by Bishop Serratelli in June — to pray for the intentions for all humans, born and unborn, and for ongoing work in the pro-life cause. Numerous local priests concelebrated the Mass, which has been organized by the Paterson Federation of the Knights of Columbus each year. Also, many deacons — among them Deacon Anthony Fierro of St. Bonaventure Parish, Paterson, who chaired the Mass — assisted and supported the concelebrating priests during the liturgy, which included participation from a Knights of Columbus honor guard.

“This morning, we gather together to acknowledge the dignity of every human person. As we enter the great mystery of the Eucharist, we acknowledge all of God’s gifts,” Bishop Serratelli told the congregation, which also consisted of religious sisters and laity, including families with children.

The Respect Life Mass — formally known as the Mass for the Unborn — represents the commitment of the Knights, the largest Catholic fraternal service organization, to pro-life issues. Also in the gathering spaces of St. John’s, pro-life advocates set up tables with displays that urged Catholics to get involved in the state-wide 20/20 Project. Created by a non-denominational coalition of pro-life groups throughout New Jersey, including many that are Catholic, the initiative has been lobbying for a state prohibition on abortions after 20 weeks post-fertilization by 2020.

In his homily, Bishop Serratelli took issue with an argument by a University of Wisconsin professor in a New England Journal of Medicine article that, “the State has the right to dictate conscience and should require health professionals to violate their own consciences, when dealing with life issues” in public policy. The professor and others like her assert, “Life issues are a private matter” — an argument that “is blatant propaganda for the culture of death — a culture that is written apart from the moral fabric of our country.” The Bishop asserted instead that, in matters of Respect for Life, the state must give way to moral conscience.

“Every area of life is morally significant. No area of life is outside the scope of God the Creator’s benevolent design for his creatures. The Gospel of Jesus Christ holds the dignity of every person — the vulnerable or the aged, the weak or the strong, the young or the old and the healthy or the sick,” Bishop Serratelli said. “Committed to the Lord, who was sanctified by his life from the moment of conception to the moment of natural death, we cannot — we will not — stop defending life in the public square. We will persist until our laws reflect God’s laws and all life is held sacred,” he said.

In a talk toward the conclusion of the Mass that Saturday morning, Michael Vaclavicek, federation president, encouraged Catholics to value life — “one of the greatest gifts that we can have” — by “taking time to look around at our friends and our families.”

During his talk, Vaclavicek got emotional speaking about his family, including his oldest daughter, Renee Zalocha of Our Lady of the Holy Angels Parish, Little Falls, who was told that she would never have a child, “but has a son.” His youngest daughter suffered through a difficult pregnancy and was told that her child would need “an immediate operation and could be autistic but she had a daughter, “who is healthy.” Trying to speak through his tears, Vaclavicek also talked about his late parents — his mother with autism and his father with an incurable disease — who “never gave up, because they wanted to be with their family as long as they could.”

“When you make your choice from the heart, don’t ever give up on life,” said Vaclavicek, who publicly thanked Bishop Serratelli, priests, deacons, Knights and music ministers for participating in the Mass and the many local Catholics for taking their places in the congregation. “Everyone — for you to be with us in attendance means so much to us.”

Likewise, Bishop Serratelli expressed his thanks at the end of the Mass to his brother priests, deacons and the Knights, who “continue their work of safeguarding the right to be born — the right to life.” He also urged the faithful to get involved in the 20/20 Project.

As the faithful filed out of St. John’s after the Mass, Emily and Matt D’Antuono of St. Elizabeth Parish, Wyckoff, in the Newark Archdiocese, got an opportunity to pose at the altar with Bishop Serratelli and their seven children — four boys and three girls— ranging in age from 2 to 12. Three of them are biological, while four of them are adopted, they said.

“We came to the Mass because we are very pro-life and very Catholic. We believe that our rights come from God and that all life is precious,” Emily D’Antuono said. “I like that the Bishop told us not to give up on life and have persistence.”

Also after Mass, Jacob Zalocha, Vaclavicek’s nine-year-old grandson, posed with the Bishop. His mother Renee, spoke to The Beacon about her heartbreak of being told that she would not be able to conceive a child.

“I gave up after a while. I cried a lot. But 12 years later, Jacob was part of God’s plan. He has been the greatest gift,” said Renee Zalocha, who also talked about the insights that resonated with her from Bishop Serratelli’s homily. “Our faith has to be strong for life. In this disposable society, our faith needs to be our moral compass,” she said.

Both Bishop Serratelli and Deacon Fierro, also a past Grand Knight, stopped after the Mass to speak with Jacob Zalocha, who called the liturgy “very good.”

“It’s sad to kill a child, when someone doesn’t want [him or her]. It’s better to adopt — a least let the child live,” Jacob Zalocha told The Beacon.