Against gray skies and falling snow, thousands of people flocked Jan. 19 to the nation’s capital for the national March for Life, gathering them under the theme “for every woman, for every child,” showing their resolve amid the piercing cold to make abortion eventually “unthinkable” in the U.S.

Life Fest, held at the D.C. Armory, was sponsored by the Sisters for Life and the Knights of Columbus.

Jesus Christ’s words in the Gospel reading for Jan. 18, “I am with you always until the end of the age,” are critical as “an instruction for how to live in this broken world” and “bring goodness to it,” the U.S. bishops’ pro-life chairman said in his homily at the opening Mass of the National Prayer Vigil for Life.

Respect for the dignity of every person and for his or her values is as much a part of the identity of a Catholic university as faith is, Pope Francis said.

The proposed enhanced Child Tax Credit released Jan. 16 by a bipartisan group of lawmakers on Capitol Hill received an enthusiastic, if guarded, response from members of a Georgetown University panel held the same day.