MORNING LIGHT: MISCARRIAGE, STILLBIRTH AND EARLY INFANT DEATH
FROM A CATHOLIC PERSPECTIVE
by Bernadette Zambri,(1998)

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This book was written by a bereaved Catholic mother and stories shared are mainly from Catholic bereaved mothers and bereaved fathers who are all at different stages on their faith and grief journeys. This book has the IMPRIMATUR of Cardinal Aloysius Ambrozic, Archbishop of the Archdiocese of Toronto. The FOREWORD was written by Archbishop T. Prendergast of the Archdiocese of Halifax. The entire book has been reviewed by a Catholic medical doctor, Catholic psychologist, Catholic moral theologian, Catholic systematic theologian, Catholic New Testament and Old Testament theologians.

Some excerpts from the MORNING LIGHT book:

ECTOPIC PREGNANCY
“Upon recognizing the personhood of our baby, my husband and I prayed for a name for our baby, and Joseph Michael was our answer.”
A.S.

MISCARRIAGE
“I felt really bad. We didn’t have a priest because nobody did anything like that for miscarriage. I’ll never forget this baby.” D.C.B.

“I prayed for courage and took a walk outdoors. I think I was the first person the doctor ever had to tell that her baby was dead. She didn’t look at me or offer any consolation. I was told the baby had died at about 11 weeks…I headed for the bathroom to have a good cry. I prayed more and then tried to compose myself as I headed toward the car.”
M.

“I did go through a stage of asking ‘Why me? Why us?’ “
C.L.N.

“I never felt that God had failed me. I’ve often thought that my body failed me and I’ve often wondered why.”
J.

STILLBIRTH
“I knew what we doing was right but I was really worried about my wife during those months (knowing our baby was going to die at birth). Once our son, Daniel, was born at full term I was really glad that we had not had an abortion (what many people said we should do because our son had a condition called anencephaly).”
R.S.

“My husband and I spent several hours with her. The staff took pictures of the three of us. We cuddled, kissed and told Hannah of our dreams for her. These are moments that I’ll treasure forever.”
C.M.

“I kept hoping in the back of my mind they were all wrong and I would hear a baby cry. At first, I was scared to see the baby as I had no idea of what to expect…My wife and I spent five of the most memorable hours with our Hannah. Our baby.”
I.M.

“Friends and family were very unsupportive…those who visited, refused to allow me to talk about our loss. It would take eleven years to be able to have others listen to my grief at the MORNING LIGHT MINISTRY SERIES…Not once did I blame God, but for years I felt that I did something wrong and God took my baby away. But through the MORNING LIGHT meetings, I came to realize that God being a loving God, would not purposely punish me this way.”
L.C.

INFANT DEATH
“Your baby is someone you treasure no matter how many children you have…even though both deaths happened over 40 years ago I never forget them.”
D.C.B.

“Over the past four years since Molly was born (and lived for one hour), I got over the anger I felt towards God. I realized He hadn’t done this to me, He hadn’t wanted this to happen.”
M.B.S.

“Molly was playful and strong, yet graceful and soft. She is our first, and will be with us always…”
T.S.

“Sara survived miraculously for 26 days with a condition called Trisomy 13. I have no doubt that even though her time on earth was short, her stay at home (with Palliative Care), surrounded by the love of her family and friends allowed her to live to the fullness of life. She moved on to live in her Eternal Home with God where she could live in the midst of His warmth, comfort and Love.”
C.S.


SOME COMMENTS ABOUT THE MORNING LIGHT BOOK

“It is wonderful. I read it for two days straight and have started on a second reading. The author managed to show how each story is truly unique and special. She did so in a way which showed how much each baby was loved and the pleasure that they brought to their families in their short lives (inside and outside of the womb).
P., British Columbia, Canada

“Our baby Joseph was stillborn. We found the book helpful in reinforcing our need to plan a proper good-bye. We used parts of the MORNING LIGHT book’s Prayer Service for different parts of the Mass. Our children wrote good-bye letters to Joseph and picked a special toy to go in the casket-all suggestions that we got from the book.”
J., Ontario, Canada

“I received a copy of the MORNING LIGHT book after I experienced two miscarriages. The stories of other women were comforting, but it was this year when another baby died in utero at 4½ months that the book proved invaluable. Despite the deep sorrow we were feeling, but armed with the experience of others (and the Prayer Service) from the book, we were able to choose the time for delivery of our baby instead of being rushed into anything. We delivered our baby, arranged for cremation and held a private memorial service (for all three of our unborn babies) with the help of our priest. I am especially thankful that the book enabled me to insist that our baby be treated with dignity by the hospital and that gave me the opportunity to see this beautiful creation of God. Having this baby being treated as fully human and recognized by the Church finally brought peace.”
K., Alberta, Canada

MORNING LIGHT MINISTRY has given me the spiritual comfort that I could just not find in the secular realm. Since I am a spiritual person secular answers are empty and hollow. Services such as the Prayer Service in the MORNING LIGHT book (which I found to be very helpful) are difficult to obtain elsewhere. MORNING LIGHT MINISTRY picks up where the secular groups leave off. The telephone help is unique and fills in the gap amongst the various self-help methods. The mementos given by MORNING LIGHT MINISTRY and the personal attention given, supercedes any other compassion displayed by any other organization/group so far.”
L., Virginia, U.S.A.

“I have found the book to be a perfect combination of religious support, helpful information and personal stories that continue to help me through the many rough days and help calm my sense of isolation. Bernadette Zambri has written a ‘personal friend’ for each of us who have lost a child so we don’t have to journey alone.”
M., Ontario, Canada

“I found that MORNING LIGHT is really from a Christian perspective rather than just a Catholic perspective. It deals with the raw emotions and spiritual confusion of bereaved parents in a very honest and real way. I personally found it enhanced my spiritual journey. Even though it’s been several years since the death of my son, I found it comforting and helpful to re-visit the Old Testament references to baby loss. I found the suggestion of using lamentation as a form of prayer to be an exciting idea.”
P., (Christian From Another Denomination), Ontario, Canada
 
 

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