Father Frank Pavone released a new video today with more thoughts about the passing of Baby Joseph Maraachli, the infant whose parents had to stage an international battle with a Canadian hospital to have a tracheotomy to help him breathe as he suffered from a rare medical condition that would eventually take his life.
Joseph’s parents wanted him to have the medical procedure done in the same way their daughter had one before she passed away. Joseph finally got one after Pavone of Priests for Life intervened and helped arrange the procedure at a Catholic hospital in the United States.
Below are Pavone’s initial comments upon learning of the passing of Baby Joseph:
“I learned with sadness tonight of the passing of Baby Joseph, and extend my prayers to his family,” Pavone said. “This young boy and his parents fulfilled a special mission from God. Amidst a Culture of Death where despair leads us to dispose of the vulnerable, they upheld a Culture of Life where hope leads us to welcome and care for the vulnerable.”
“From my first conversation with Baby Joseph’s parents, they expressed to me their trust in God. They had no demands of Him regarding how long their son would live. They just wanted to fulfill their calling to love their child unconditionally and to protect him from those who considered his life worthless,” Pavone added.
“I praise God tonight for the tens of thousands who stood with Priests for Life and other prolife groups to save Baby Joseph. We remain convinced that the value of life is not measured in months or years, but rather reflected in the love we share moment by moment. We all loved Joseph, because God entrusts us to the care of each other. In that conviction we will continue to counteract the culture of death and restore protection and equality to all, born and unborn,” he continued.
“Our mission to save Baby Joseph and help his family was never based on any prediction of the future, but rather on the value of his life here and now,” Priests for Life director Father Frank Pavone said. “Our critics, on the other hand, looking into the crystal ball that ‘right to die’ advocates seem to always think they have, claimed our intervention was futile because Joseph would only end up having a machine do his breathing for him.
“We don’t have to answer their criticism; Joseph is doing that for us, with every breath he takes. He has gained benefit from his tracheotomy, is breathing on his own, and is going home to live with his parents, who will love and care for him for as much time as God gives them together,” Pavone continued. “Baby Joseph’s victory over the culture of death is especially powerful now, as we prepare for Easter, a time when Christians everywhere celebrate Jesus’ victory over death.
