the Gospel of LifeEvangelium Vitae

10 Evangelium Vitae

March 2020 w The Courier w dowr.org �wenty-five years ago on March 25, St. John Paul II issued his apostolic letter The Gospel of Life. The Catholic Church has always proclaimed the dig nity of all human life. This month, let us recall St. John Paul’s words, which are as timely now as they were 25 years ago (perhaps more): The commandment “You shall not kill,” even in its more positive aspects of respecting, loving, and promoting human life, is binding on every indi vidual human being. It resounds in the moral conscience of everyone as an irrepressible echo of the original covenant of God the Creator with mankind. …

It is therefore a service of love which we are all committed to ensure to our neighbor, that his or her life may be always defended and promoted, especially when it is weak or threat ened. It is not only a personal but a social concern which we must all foster: a concern to make unconditional respect for human life the foundation of a renewed society. (77) The eclipse of the sense of God and of man inevitably leads to a practical materialism, which breeds individualism, utilitarianism, and hedonism. ... The values of being are replaced by those of having. The only goal which counts is the pursuit of one’s own material wellbeing. The so-called “quality of life” is interpreted primar ily or exclusively as economic efficiency, inordinate consumer ism, physical beauty and pleasure, to the neglect of the more profound dimensions – interpersonal, spiritual, and religious – of existence.

In such a context suffering, an ines capable burden of human existence but also a factor of possible personal growth, is “censored,” rejected as useless, indeed opposed as an evil, always and in every way to be avoided. When it cannot be avoided and the prospect of even some future well-being vanishes, then life appears to have lost all meaning and the temptation grows in man to claim the right to suppress it….

In the materialistic perspective described so far, interpersonal relations are serious ly impoverished. The first to be harmed are women, children, the sick or suffering, and the elderly. The criterion of personal dig nity – which demands respect, generosity, and service – is replaced by the criterion of efficiency, functionality, and usefulness: others are considered not for what they “are,” but for what they “have, do, and produce.” This is the supremacy of the strong over the weak. (23) Although laws are not the only means of protecting human life, nevertheless they do play a very important and sometimes decisive role in influencing patterns of thought and behavior. I repeat once more that a law which violates an innocent person’s natural right to life is unjust and, as such, is not valid as a law. For this reason I urgently appeal once more to all political leaders not to pass laws which, by disregarding the dignity of the person, under mine the very fabric of society. ...

[Yet] it is not enough to remove unjust laws. The underlying causes of attacks on life have to be eliminated, especially by ensuring proper support for families and motherhood. A family policy must be the basis and driv ing force of all social policies. For this reason there need to be set in place social and politi cal initiatives capable of guaranteeing conditions of true freedom of choice in matters of parenthood. It is also necessary to rethink labor, urban, residential, and social service policies so as to harmonize working schedules with time available for the family, so that it becomes effectively possible to take care of children and the elderly. (90) What is urgently called for is a general mobilization of consciences and a united ethical effort to activate a great campaign in support of life. All together, we must build a new culture of life: new, because it will be able to confront and solve today’s unprec edented problems affecting human life; new, because it will be adopted with deeper and more dynamic conviction by all Christians; new, because it will be capable of bring ing about a serious and courageous cultural dialogue among all parties. While the urgent need for such a cultural transformation is linked to the present his torical situation, it is also rooted in the Church’s mission of evangeliza tion. The purpose of the gospel, in fact, is “to transform humanity from within and to make it new” (Paul VI, Evangelii Nuntiandi, 18). Like the yeast which leavens the whole measure of dough (Matt. 13:33), the gospel is meant to permeate all cultures and give them life from within, so that they may express the full truth about the human person and about human life. (95) Life, Marriage & Family The Gospel of Life Peter Martin Director of Faith Formation and Life, Marriage & Family pmartin@dowr.org