Motherhood as Antidote to Current Humanitarian Myths
Honouring St. Gianna’s Brave Yes to Life
St. Gianna Beretta Molla was an Italian pediatrician born in Magenta in the Kingdom of Italy on October 4, 1922.
Persistent global humanitarian crises have resulted in the domination of reproductive ‘rights’ frameworks that discourage population growth and births in the name of ‘healthcare’. Providentially, with key global policies and aid now being reversed, this is a crucial moment for Catholic voices to engage with renewed moral clarity. St. Gianna Beretta Molla – a mother, wife, physician and medical missionary – whose feast we celebrated on April 28th, offers a courageous witness that bridges personal integrity and public responsibility – reminding us that faith must inform both practice and policy.
On 28th April 1962, St. Gianna chose to risk her life to save her unborn child, now Dr Gianna Emanuela Molla – a decision not rooted in ideologies but firm conviction that every tiny, hidden and defenceless human life holds infinite value. Her legacy continues to resonate today, particularly as global debates feature concerns about overpopulation and resource scarcity. Sadly, the movement towards depopulation is growing – framed by technocratic narratives such as human capital, sustainable development, public health interventions – that positions population reduction as an administrative, economic, productivity and technical concern. These mindsets hinge on domains of control, efficiency, management and power – disconnecting ethical and moral dimensions of human experience in governance and policy.
Counter to this current, Gianna’s life, alongside witnesses of St John Paul II, St. Teresa of Calcutta, St. Josephine Bakhita and Bl. Hanna Chrzanowska – serve as ethical and theological anchors – reminding us that the problem here is not population but injustice. Pope Francis affirms this in Laudato Si, 50 – calling out greed and structural inequality as root causes of suffering “Instead of resolving the problems of the poor and thinking of how the world can be different, some can only propose a reduction in the birth rate”. We see mothers offered contraception before vital sustenance in refugee camps, conflict zones and health programs across the Global South – framing fertility as a threat rather than a gift.
The Church’s recent declaration ‘Dignitatis Infinita’ highlights that human dignity is neither conditional nor dispensable – thus, cannot be measured by utility and economic cost but intervened by removing systems of injustices that could only be facilitated by a permanent inner conversion. Pope Francis, in Fratelli Tutti, 110 iterates that “A truly human and fraternal society will be capable of ensuring in an efficient and stable way that each of its members is accompanied at every stage of life. Not only by providing for their basic needs, but by enabling them to give the best of themselves, even though their performance may be less than optimum, their pace slow or their efficiency limited”.
As Catholics, we cannot withdraw from humanitarian discourses but shape truth into policy by radiating a non-violent diplomacy that is not merely about law and doctrine but about presence, tenderness and courage. Upholding this truth demands moral courage that boldly resists cultural, economic and political pressures and charitable creative solidarity that defines truth not as an opposition but cornerstone to implementing life-giving alternatives into community, systems and policies.
Here, a faith-based multi-sectorial response is direly need – where Catholic humanitarian aid agencies and organizations, healthcare and academic institutions, religious orders and lay movements join forces to uphold consistent ethics of life. This means resisting all forms of anti-natal agendas – by prioritizing mother and child health as inseparable, embracing the spiritual dimensions of caregiving and recognizing Marian strength as interwoven into every mother’s vocation: “…she [The Church] sustains the deep conviction that we cannot separate faith from the defence of human dignity, evangelization from the promotion of a dignified life, and spirituality from a commitment to the dignity of every human being” (Dignitatis Infinita). After first renewing ourselves, we then step forward to build bridges across faiths and nations by calling for multireligious and cross-national patient diplomacy – uniting traditions and nations in a quiet courage of building life-affirming systems grounded in shared human dignity and compassion for the most vulnerable.
Aside from opposing abortion, honoring St. Gianna’s heroism entails reaffirming motherhood as a public good – not burden. Pursuits for dignity-based systems that safeguards mother-child dyads does not solely require pro-natal policies that protect pregnant women from exploitation and promote maternal health (prenatal care, maternity leaves, postpartum support) but also reaffirms male responsibility by teaching men to honour the dignity of women and children – just as Pietro Molla, husband of St. Gianna, mirrored sacrificially.
In an age where policies are overshadowed by depopulation and technocratic control, St. Gianna calls us to rebuild a universe where motherhood is revered, life is protected and dignity, not utility, defines our future. This is because motherhood is the Church’s living parable of hope, founded on Mary’s fiat at the Annunciation (Luke 1:38) and Christ’s command to love “the least” (Matthew 25:40) – countering humanitarian myths not with power, but with accompaniment and gentleness; not with fear, but with the dignified and courageous life-giving love.
Additionally, the CCC asserts that the womb is not a battleground of choice but a hidden sanctuary to the sacred beginning of life and imprint of God that is humanity’s hope: “Human life must be respected and protected absolutely from the moment of conception. From the first moment of his existence, a human being must be recognized as having the rights of a person…” (#2270); and “The dignity of the human person is rooted in his creation in the image and likeness of God…. in the very revelation of the mystery of the Father and of his love, makes man fully manifest to himself and brings to light his exalted vocation” (#1700-01).
Therefore, in honoring motherhood, we reject the falsehood that pregnancy and nurturing are a burden and reclaim the truth that welcoming life is not merely an act of love – but the very foundation of dignity, justice and peace. Let’s unite in seeking St. Gianna’s miraculous intercession:
For a world that needs to re-discover healing, joy and love
For couples afraid of parenthood
For mothers facing impossible choices
For mothers in warzones and refugee camps who are choosing life amid chaos
For families struggling to raise children in poverty and persecution
For healthcare workers seeking to live their faith in conscience
For policymakers and aid workers that may serve without violating dignity; and
A conversion of hearts in a culture that has forgotten the beauty of life
Through the prayers of St. Gianna and under the mantle of the Blessed Virgin Mary who at the Annunciation embraced life with her fiat, may homes become cradles of life, wombs sheltered in grace, hearts strengthened in virtue, and societies awakened to the sacred dignity of every human person, born and unborn.
