Bishop Martin Hayes of Kilmore
Homily of Bishop Martin Hayes for Day for Life Sunday
Every human being is endowed with an infinite dignity “simply by virtue of existing, of having been willed, created and loved by God” – Pope Leo XIV.
The first Christians were known for their conviction and the joy they shared. They transmitted their conviction about the compassionate love of Jesus with joy. The first disciples exuded such joy and conviction that the Gospel message took hold. The early Christians lives were transformed and their lives attracted people to their way of living, their conviction about their purpose in life, their passion for life and appreciation of life created by God and was expressed in their sharing of resources in common for the common good.
According to Prof Huston Smith (1) the love, respect for each other, and the equality that was evident in the first Christian communities contributed to their growth. He highlights that the unity among them expressed itself in joy. They celebrated that joy that Jesus wanted for them, “that their joy would be complete” (John 15:11). They had an inner peace that radiated from them. It meant that they cared for each other, especially, the weak, the vulnerable, the sick, the disabled, the elderly and their children as they acknowledged God as our Creator of all of life.
Today, as Christians, we are called to transmit that peace, joy and appreciation of life especially to the those who are most vulnerable; children who are beginning life, people who are suffering in life and persons at the end of their journey of life on earth. We have our opportunity to reflect on these priorities on this Day for Life (2), today. On this Day for Life 2026 we give thanks for ‘the wonder of life in the womb’. On this Father’s Day, as we celebrate fatherhood, we focus on the mothers and fathers who have lost a child before birth and in infancy. We reach out to them in sympathy and prayer today.
We are called to extend our concern to those women who find themselves facing an unplanned pregnancy. We must do all we can to support them in their pregnancy to birth, to provide for them in the belief that all life is created by God for a purpose as confirmed by the prophet Jeremiah, “Before I formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born, I consecrated you” (Jer 1:5). Indeed, in our Gospel, today we hear Jesus articulating the dignity of human life with the words, ‘why, every hair on our heads have been counted’.
I invite you to visit the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Council for Life website (3) to read the full statement issued for the Day for Life today. It elaborates on how science reveals the wonder of our genetic makeup, ‘every hair on our head’ and makes the case for how life must be protected by law. The Day for Life message is affirmed by Pope Leo XIV who reminds us in his recently published, Encyclical Magnifica Humanitas,(4) meaning ‘magnificent humanity’, that from the very moment of conception every human being is endowed with an infinite dignity “simply by virtue of existing, of having been willed, created and loved by God” (5).
Regrettably, the fundamental right to life is no longer recognised here in Ireland, and unfortunately, the period of three days of reflection for a woman considering abortion is going to be removed arising from a vote in the Dail during the past week. While, I am saddened by this reality, we can give thanks for those who continue to advocate for the protection of life from conception until its natural end. (On Saturday, 20th June, I had the opportunity to join in the Pilgrimage for Life at Knock).
We pray that we may grow in our appreciation of life created by God and help others to realise that we do not have the right to end life from its beginning at conception, in its inevitable suffering and with aging. Jesus came among us to carry us through the challenges of life and to bring us to life beyond this life, eternal life with God, our Creator and Father, the ultimate model of fatherhood, reaching out to us always.
Our Gospel of today calls us to value body and soul, human life, precious life. In appreciating life, we grow in our care of the sick, we provide for the disabled, value the elderly and protect the unborn.
It means that we as the Christians of today, together with like-minded world religions, are called to stand up for our beliefs in the face of opposition. We are and we will be disparaged like the prophet Jeremiah as outlined in our 1st Rd this morning. We are encouraged by Jeremiah that the Lord is at our side, and we are inspired by him in committing our cause to God. We, in the spirit of our Gospel are called to continue to declare ourselves for Jesus in the presence of our contemporaries. We can give witness for the dignity of life and be strengthened in our advocacy for life animated by our prayer.
In our Responsorial Psalm today, we prayed: “This is my prayer to you, my prayer for your favour. In your great love, answer me, O God, with your help that never fails: Lord, answer, for your love is kind; in your compassion, turn towards me”. We pray that we may be those instruments of compassion towards all who are troubled and suffering.
May we like the first Christians radiate that compassion of God shown by Jesus to all who are suffering. Today, on this Day for Life, we remember those women and men who are faced with an unplanned pregnancy and those parents who have suffered the loss of a child before birth and in infancy.
ENDS
- Bishop Martin Hayes is Bishop of Kilmore and a member of the Council for Life of the Irish Catholic Bishops’ Conference. This homily was delivered during Mass on ‘Day for Life’ Sunday, 21 June 2026, in the Cathedral of Saint Patrick and Saint Felim, Cavan.