Suppressing passphrase prompt

[Steven Handleman]

Hi All,

I am a new user to GPG and I am hoping that someone on this list can 
provide an easy answer to this.  When I try to sign & encrypt a file (--sign --
encrypt --armor), gpg prompts me for a passphrase for my secret key.  Is 
there any way to suppress this prompt?  I need to suppress it because the 
encryption is going to become part of an automated batch file.

TIA,
Steven Handleman
IT Manager
Geewax, Terker and Co.
systems@geewax.com