As the movement of Life Teen, we are outraged, saddened, and grief-stricken by the horrific deaths of George Floyd, Breonna Taylor, Ahmaud Arbery, and too many others, and by the division and violence across our country. We believe that racism is a life issue. It is a disregard for human life and an ongoing danger that must be met directly. As members of the Church, we are called to stand up against injustice so that we might not embrace indifference. As Catholics, we cannot turn our eyes away from these atrocities and still profess to respect human life. We serve a God of love, mercy, and justice. With that comes the responsibility to love, to show mercy, and to seek justice.

We stand committed to continuing this conversation with young people as we believe real change can happen, and that God is still working miracles today. We have previously developed a resource called “At the Table” to help you and your teens discuss this important topic, and we are offering it for free on our website at this time — https://lifeteen.com/cym/resource/at-the-table

We pray for an end to racism, and an end to the violence in the wake of this tragedy. We pray for comfort for grieving families and friends. We pray for peace across the United States. We pray that through these trying days, real change will happen.

Finally, we beg God to heal our deeply flawed views of each other. As Jesus said, “By this, everyone will know that you are my disciples if you have love for one another” (John 13:35). Let us love one another.

Mother Mary, Pray for us!

Randy Raus
Life Teen President / CEO