Dear Faithful Brothers and Sisters of the Diocese of Madison,

Walking with Moms in Need, a recent initiative in every diocese in the country, seeks to accompany, support, and assist women who face crisis pregnancies and the challenges of motherhood. One of many ways the Church seeks to build a culture of life, respect, and love—in which every person created by God reaches their human potential—Walking with Moms in Need helps parents to welcome and nurture the precious life of their children. This culture of life is intimately bound in the very fabric of our nation.

The fundamental, founding vision of the United States is the Declaration of Independence, which states that “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights, that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness.” This right to life is the most basic foundation necessary for true human flourishing.

Without the right to be born and to live, every other right is worthless. Do we want to live in a country that welcomes the wonder of every human life, supports marriages and families, helps the needy and suffering, seeks justice for all, and builds a civilization of love, or, do we want a society which aborts its children, leaves struggling parents without support, and lives a radical autonomy with no reference to the dignity of life and the common good? Do we elect civic leaders who stand on the unshakeable moral principle that every human life is sacred and of immeasurable worth, or, do we elect those who disregard the fundamental dignity of life and advocate for taking the life of the most innocent in the womb?

Such questions we should ask ourselves as we exercise our moral and civic duty to vote.

“I have set before you life and death, the blessing and the curse. Choose life then, that you and your children may live.” Deuteronomy 30:19

In the love of Christ,

+Donald J. Hying

Bishop of Madison