About Us
Overview
The Office of Respect Life and Pastoral Care addresses our Church's call for "A vigorous affirmation of the value of human life" on issues including Stem Cell Research and Human Cloning, Capital Punishment, Abortion, Physician-Assisted Suicide and Euthanasia. We are committed to building a Culture of Life in our communities.
Our Mission
Our mission is to Serve, Educate and Care by developing and overseeing spiritual and compassionate efforts to promote a culture where all are worthy, wanted and loved.
We:
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Promote compassionate and practical assistance for those in need and the development of Parish Respect Life Ministries
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Coordinate Rachel Hope and Healing Ministry for men and women hurt by abortion
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Coordinate and promote development of Parish Bereavement Ministry
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Coordinate and train volunteers for Respect Life affairs
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Coordinate Caring for the Whole Person Initiative in our Diocese
Our Logo
Lilies
Symbolize purity and virtue. These are characteristics that represent the Holy Family and are worthy of imitating them in our daily lives.
The Holy Family
The Holy Family is the ideal family. Not as a family that never suffered or had any problems, for we know that is not true. But a family that always followed God's will.
St. Joseph
St. Joseph is at the center of our logo because he represents our ministry as a whole. He is the defender of life, protector of mother and child, foster parent of the Redeemer, and patron of happy death.
Our world needs the example of St. Joseph.
Our Motto
Our Motto is included at the bottom of our logo to always remind us the two most important qualities we need to have as we move forward in this ministry.
Keep scrolling below to find out more of what "Creatively Courageous" means.
Creatively Courageous
"If the first stage of all true interior healing is to accept our personal history and embrace even the things in life that we did not choose, we must now add another important element: creative courage. This emerges especially in the way we deal with difficulties. In the face of difficulty, we can either give up and walk away, or somehow engage with it. At times, difficulties bring out resources we did not even think we had."
(Pope Francis, Patris Corde, 5)
Pope Francis in his Apostolic letter, Patris Corde, attributes the title of "Creatively Courageous father" to St. Joseph. He says, "Joseph was the man chosen by God to guide the beginnings of the history of redemption. He was the true “miracle” by which God saves the child and his mother. God acted by trusting in Joseph’s creative courage. Arriving in Bethlehem and finding no lodging where Mary could give birth, Joseph took a stable and, as best he could, turned it into a welcoming home for the Son of God come into the world (cf. Lk 2:6-7). Faced with imminent danger from Herod, who wanted to kill the child, Joseph was warned once again in a dream to protect the child, and rose in the middle of the night to prepare the flight into Egypt (cf. Mt 2:13-14)."
Creative Courage comes by first, accepting the Will of God and secondly finding creative ways to move forward with what we have. God will never abandon us, putting our trust in Him completely will lead us to accomplish extraordinary things. The example of
St. Joseph and the stories of many other saints inspires us to move forward in the mission God has for us. "God always finds a way to save us, provided we show the same creative courage as the carpenter of Nazareth, who was able to turn a problem into a possibility by trusting always in divine providence." (Pope Francis, Patris Corde, 5)
In our ministry we move forward trusting always in the Divine Providence of the Father, creatively finding solutions, and courageously advocating for the most vulnerable.
Contact
Address
Opening Hours
1201 E. Highland Ave
San Bernardino
CA 92404
Mon - Fri: 8:30 am - 4:30pm
909-475-5350
respect&care@sbdiocese.org