December 4, 2001
MEMO
TO:
All Black Catholic Leaders and those
FROM:
Father Jim Goode, OFM,
Apostolate for Life
SUBJECT:
KWANZAA FOR LIFE
December 26, 2001 – January
1, 2002
CC:
Bishop J. Terry Steib, SVD,
National Black Catholic Apostolate for Life
Dr. Beverly A. Carroll
National Conference of Catholic Bishops
African American Catholics
KWANZAA FOR LIFE
As we gather together, for Kwanzaa 2001
let
us share our rich heritage
and
the many gifts of harvest.
Let
us also remember during these days of Kwanzaa,
to
pray for the sacredness of life.
May
each value we celebrate during Kwanzaa bring us
closer
to God and closer to each other.
In
his encyclical Evangelium Vitae -
The Gospel of Life,
Pope
John Paul II states with urgency:
We
need to bring the Gospel of life to the heart of every man
and
woman and make it penetrate every part of society”.
The
core of this Gospel, the Holy Father tells us, is
“the
proclamation of a living God who is closer to us,
who
calls us to profound communion with himself
and
awakens in us the certain hope of eternal life.”
It
is the proclamation that Jesus has a unique relationship
with
every person, which enables us to see
in
every human face the face of Christ”.
God
so loved the world that he gave his only begotten Son.
John 3:16
Jesus Christ is our life:
Come, let us adore him, alleluia!
Kwanzaa
for Life
Response:
JESUS
THE GIVER OF LIFE,
HELP
US TO RESPECT AND DEFEND THE SACREDNESS OF ALL HUMAN LIFE.
Umoja Unity
TO
STRIVE FOR AND MAINTAIN UNITY IN THE FAMILY, COMMUNITY, NATION, AND RACE.
Response
Kujichagulia Self-Determination
TO DEFINE OURSELVES, CREATE FOR OURSELVES, SPEAK FOR OURSELVES INSTEAD OF BEING DEFINED, NAMED, CREATED FOR, AND SPOKEN FOR BY OTHERS.
Response
Ujima Collective Work and Responsibility
TO BUILD AND MAINTAIN OUR COMMUNITY TOGETHER AND TO MAKE OUR SISTERS’ AND BROTHERS’ PROBLEMS OUR PROBLEMS AND TO SOLVE THEM TOGETHER.
Response
Ujamaa Cooperative Economics
TO BUILD AND MAINTAIN OUR OWN STORES, SHOPS, AND OTHER BUSINESSES AND TO PROFIT FROM THEM TOGETHER.
Response
Nia Purpose
TO MAKE OUR COLLECTIVE VOCATION THE BUILDING AND DEVELOPING OF OUR COMMUNITY IN ORDER TO RESTORE OUR PEOPLE TO THEIR TRADITIONAL GREATNESS.
Response
Kuumba Creativity
TO DO ALWAYS AS MUCH AS WE CAN, IN THE WAY WE CAN, IN ORDER TO LEAVE OUR COMMUNITY MORE BEAUTIFUL AND BENEFICIAL THAN WE INHERITED IT.
Response
Imani Faith
TO
BELIEVE WITH ALL OUR HEARTS IN OUR PEOPLE, OUR PARENTS, OUR TEACHERS, OUR
LEADERS, AND THE RIGHTEOUSNESS AND VICTORY OF OUR STRUGGGLE.
Response
During
Kwanzaa for Life
(December 26- January lst)
we
will also offer the following prayers:
Lord
of Life and Goodness, as we celebrate Kwanzaa and the fruits of our
African
American heritage, we give you thanks and praise for another day’s journey.
In
your divine mercy, grant us the grace to cherish the gift of Life.
With
your guidance may we uphold the dignity and respect for human life
from
the moment of conception to its natural end.
We
ask all these things in the name of Jesus Christ, our Savior and Redeemer.
AMEN.
The
Lord’s Prayer.
The
Marian Prayer: Hail Mary.