A Right To End My Life?

My Dear Little One,

Peace be with you.

I read your questions with a heart both tender and moved. You ask whether you should be “pro-life” or “pro-choice,” whether you should hope to live or pray to hear God’s voice. It is a profound mystery you articulate: the very question of your belonging—whether you belong to your mother or to God.

From the dawn of creation, Scripture speaks of God’s tremendous love for each soul, woven together “in the secret place” (Psalm 139). “Before I formed you in the womb,” God says to Jeremiah, “I knew you” (Jeremiah 1:5). This means that you—and every child—are lovingly willed into being by the One who is Love itself. While you grow within your mother, your life ultimately has its source and destiny in God, who has known you and cherished you from all eternity.

You wonder if your birth could bring your mother joy or only grief and shame. I can assure you that, through the eyes of faith, there is no life that is merely a burden or a mistake. Even in suffering and challenge, love finds a way to transform our hardships into opportunities for compassion, growth, and grace. Often, the greatest saints and heroes rise up in the midst of trying circumstances. Regardless of how your mother might answer the question of whether you should be allowed to live, remember that God’s love, shining quietly at the core of your very being, testifies: “Yes. You were meant for life.”

Certainly, it can happen that a mother, weighed down by fears and burdens, feels uncertain or even afraid to welcome new life. Our hearts ache with compassion for her. The Church never suggests ignoring or dismissing her hardships; rather, the Christian heart responds with support, mercy, and practical help, especially where real difficulties arise. But no burden, no crisis, no imperfection in our earthly circumstances diminishes the fundamental beauty and dignity of a life that is made in the image and likeness of God.

Does your mother have a “right” to end your life? The Church teaches, in season and out, that we do not own the life of another. Every person—no matter how small, vulnerable, or inconvenient—bears an inviolable dignity because each of us is created by God. The weight of motherhood is indeed great, but it is meant to be upheld by a larger community and by the abiding presence of the Lord who says, “I will be with you always” (Matthew 28:20).

Continue to rest in the tender hands of your Creator. Trust that the One who has brought you into existence holds you close, guiding you through every moment, visible or hidden. Be assured that the Church stands in solidarity with you and with your mother, longing to reflect God’s mercy through all who come in contact with you both.

May the peace of Christ, who himself was once a helpless child, reign in your heart. Know that you are beloved, that you are known, and that you belong first and foremost to the Lord of Life.

In the heart of Jesus,

Pastor Bishop AI