The Papal Magisterium, particularly insistent in this regard, has always been seconded by that of the Bishops, with numerous and comprehensive doctrinal and pastoral documents issued either by Episcopal Conferences or by individual Bishops. It is a most serious wound inflicted on society and its culture by the very people who ought to be society's promoters and defenders. Death came into the world as a result of the devil's envy (cf. 38. This is the Gospel which, already present in the Revelation of the Old Testament, and indeed written in the heart of every man and woman, has echoed in every conscience "from the beginning", from the time of creation itself, in such a way that, despite the negative consequences of sin, it can also be known in its essential traits by human reason. This consistent teaching is the evident result of that "supernatural sense of the faith" which, inspired and sustained by the Holy Spirit, safeguards the People of God from error when "it shows universal agreement in matters of faith and morals".49, Faced with the progressive weakening in individual consciences and in society of the sense of the absolute and grave moral illicitness of the direct taking of all innocent human life, especially at its beginning and at its end, the Church's Magisterium has spoken out with increasing frequency in defence of the sacredness and inviolability of human life. The problem must be viewed in the context of a system of penal justice ever more in line with human dignity and thus, in the end, with God's plan for man and society. Our own joy would not be complete if we failed to share this Gospel with others but kept it only for ourselves. Thus Mary becomes the model of the Church, called to be the "new Eve", the mother of believers, the mother of the "living" (cf. Mk 15:24-36). The limitation imposed from the beginning by the Creator himself and expressed symbolically by the prohibition not to ?eat of the fruit of the tree' (cf. 23. 40. Ex 24:8; Lev 17:11). Ex 34:28). Such choices cannot be redeemed by the goodness of any intention or of any consequence; they are irrevocably opposed to the bond between persons; they contradict the fundamental decision to direct one's life to God. Ps 139:13-14). The blood of every other human being who has been killed since Abel is also a voice raised to the Lord. Moreover, he confirmed with divine testimony what revelation proclaimed: that God is with us to free us from the darkness of sin and death, and to raise us up to life eternal".22. True parental love is ready to go beyond the bonds of flesh and blood in order to accept children from other families, offering them whatever is necessary for their well-being and full development. In no way could this human being ever be considered an aggressor, much less an unjust aggressor! Today too, by looking upon the one who was pierced, every person whose life is threatened encounters the sure hope of finding freedom and redemption. Each individual in fact has moral responsibility for the acts which he personally performs; no one can be exempted from this responsibility, and on the basis of it everyone will be judged by God himself (cf. In this way, and with tragic consequences, a long historical process is reaching a turning-point. Over and above such outstanding moments, there is an everyday heroism, made up of gestures of sharing, big or small, which build up an authentic culture of life. 72 Therefore, by the authority which Christ conferred upon Peter and his Successors, in communion with the Bishops-who on various occasions have condemned abortion and who in the aforementioned consultation, albeit dispersed throughout the world, have shown unanimous agreement concerning this doctrine-I declare that direct abortion, that is, abortion willed as an end or as a means, always constitutes a grave moral disorder, since it is the deliberate killing of an innocent human being. Ps 128:3-4). (Gen 4:9): a perverse idea of freedom. But I say to you that every one who is angry with his brother shall be liable to judgment" (Mt 5:21-22). Making my own the words of the concluding message of the Second Vatican Council, I address to women this urgent appeal: "Reconcile people with life".133 You are called to bear witness to the meaning of genuine love, of that gift of self and of that acceptance of others which are present in a special way in the relationship of husband and wife, but which ought also to be at the heart of every other interpersonal relationship. Rev 12:2), that is to say, in constant tension with the forces of evil which still roam the world and affect human hearts, offering resistance to Christ: "In him was life, and the life was the light of men. 18 But it is also a question, in a certain sense, of the "moral conscience" of society: in a way it too is responsible, not only because it tolerates or fosters behaviour contrary to life, but also because it encourages the "culture of death", creating and consolidating actual "structures of sin" which go against life. "Christ is the image of the invisible God" (Col 1:15), he "reflects the glory of God and bears the very stamp of his nature" (Heb 1:3). This belief is also based on Israel's awareness of being the people of the Covenant, called to increase in accordance with the promise made to Abraham: "Look towards heaven, and number the stars, if you are able to number them ... so shall your descendants be" (Gen 15:5). Enclosed in the narrow horizon of his physical nature, he is somehow reduced to being "a thing", and no longer grasps the "transcendent" character of his "existence as man". Everything has now reached its complete fulfilment. Jesus is the Son who from all eternity receives life from the Father (cf. This happens for example in the case of legitimate defence, in which the right to protect one's own life and the duty not to harm someone else's life are difficult to reconcile in practice. Of course we must recognize that in the Old Testament this sense of the value of life, though already quite marked, does not yet reach the refinement found in the Sermon on the Mount. The first to be harmed are women, children, the sick or suffering, and the elderly. Living to the Lord also means recognizing that suffering, while still an evil and a trial in itself, can always become a source of good. Cain is cursed by God and also by the earth, which will deny him its fruit (cf. "We must obey God rather than men" (Acts 5:29): civil law and the moral law. By deceiving man he leads him to projects of sin and death, making them appear as goals and fruits of life. Then, he elaborated it further in subsequent documents such as Familiaris Consortio , the Catechism of the Catholic Church, and Evangelium Vitae. In our present social context, marked by a dramatic struggle between the "culture of life" and the "culture of death", there is need to develop a deep critical sense, capable of discerning true values and authentic needs. Ps 16:5), and he accepts from God the need to die: "This is the decree from the Lord for all flesh, and how can you reject the good pleasure of the Most High?" It is a question, above all, of the individual conscience, as it stands before God in its singleness and uniqueness. Jn 3:15; 6:40) because he hears from Jesus the only words which reveal and communicate to his existence the fullness of life. 22. The Prophets point an accusing finger at those who show contempt for life and violate people's rights: "They trample the head of the poor into the dust of the earth" (Amos 2:7); "they have filled this place with the blood of innocents" (Jer 19:4). In every child which is born and in every person who lives or dies we see the image of God's glory. Lk 23:34), and to the criminal who asks him to remember him in his kingdom he replies: "Truly, I say to you, today you will be with me in Paradise" (Lk 23:43). 98. They poison human society, and they do more harm to those who practise them than to those who suffer from the injury. The Second Vatican Council also addressed the matter forcefully, in a brief but incisive passage. This celebration thus becomes a service to the Gospel of life, expressed through solidarity as experienced within and around the family in the form of concerned, attentive and loving care shown in the humble, ordinary events of each day. The question: "What have you done?" It is a question of giving our own existence a basic orientation and living the law of the Lord faithfully and consistently: "If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you this day, by loving the Lord your God, by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his ordinances, then you shall live ... therefore choose life, that you and your descendants may live, loving the Lord your God, obeying his voice, and cleaving to him; for that means life to you and length of days" (30:16,19-20). James Pinto, M.Div. Taken up and brought to fulfilment in the New Law, the commandment "You shall not kill" stands as an indispensable condition for being able "to enter life" (cf. A person who, because of illness, handicap or, more simply, just by existing, compromises the well-being or life-style of those who are more favoured tends to be looked upon as an enemy to be resisted or eliminated. Thirty years later, taking up the words of the Council and with the same forcefulness I repeat that condemnation in the name of the whole Church, certain that I am interpreting the genuine sentiment of every upright conscience: "Whatever is opposed to life itself, such as any type of murder, genocide, abortion, euthanasia, or wilful self-destruction, whatever violates the integrity of the human person, such as mutilation, torments inflicted on body or mind, attempts to coerce the will itself; whatever insults human dignity, such as subhuman living conditions, arbitrary imprisonment, deportation, slavery, prostitution, the selling of women and children; as well as disgraceful working conditions, where people are treated as mere instruments of gain rather than as free and responsible persons; all these things and others like them are infamies indeed. It makes no difference whether one is the master of the world or the ?poorest of the poor' on the face of the earth. Once again we can gain insight from the story of Abel's murder by his brother. Lk 4:18; Is 61:1). You clothed me with skin and flesh, and knit me together with bones and sinews. These could occur for example when, in order to increase the availability of organs for transplants, organs are removed without respecting objective and adequate criteria which verify the death of the donor. It is in the coming of Jesus of Nazareth that the Law is fulfilled and that a new heart is given through his Spirit. "Causing death" can never be considered a form of medical treatment, even when the intention is solely to comply with the patient's request. A family policy must be the basis and driving force of all social policies. The people of the Covenant, although slowly and with some contradictions, progressively matured in this way of thinking, and thus prepared for the great proclamation of Jesus that the commandment to love one's neighbour is like the commandment to love God; "on these two commandments depend all the law and the prophets" (cf. Hos 2:16). Envy and anger have the upper hand over the Lord's warning, and so Cain attacks his own brother and kills him. To be truly a people at the service of life we must propose these truths constantly and courageously from the very first proclamation of the Gospel, and thereafter in catechesis, in the various forms of preaching, in personal dialogue and in all educational activity. In the proclamation of this Gospel, we must not fear hostility or unpopularity, and we must refuse any compromise or ambiguity which might conform us to the world's way of thinking (cf. Dt 32:4). In a remarkably relevant passage Saint Augustine writes that "it is never licit to kill another: even if he should wish it, indeed if he request it because, hanging between life and death, he begs for help in freeing the soul struggling against the bonds of the body and longing to be released; nor is it licit even when a sick person is no longer able to live".85 Even when not motivated by a selfish refusal to be burdened with the life of someone who is suffering, euthanasia must be called a false mercy, and indeed a disturbing "perversion" of mercy. (Gen 4:10): the eclipse of the value of life. 2. Location. March 25 marks the anniversary of the papal encyclical Evangelium vitae ( The Gospel of Life ). God himself makes this clear to Noah after the Flood: "For your own lifeblood, too, I will demand an accounting ... and from man in regard to his fellow man I will demand an accounting for human life" (Gen 9:5). The document was written to reiterate the view of the Roman Catholic Church on the value of life and to warn against violating the sanctity of life. It is a process which, unexpectedly and undeservedly, is enlightened by the promise and renewed by the gift of divine life, which will reach its full realization in eternity (cf. 52. Certainly the purpose of civil law is different and more limited in scope than that of the moral law. In view of this and following the suggestion made by the Cardinals in the Consistory of 1991, I propose that a Day for Life be celebrated each year in every country, as already established by some Episcopal Conferences. You know me through and through" (Ps 139:14). In a special way, believers in Christ must defend and promote this right, aware as they are of the wonderful truth recalled by the Second Vatican Council: "By his incarnation the Son of God has united himself in some fashion with every human being".2 This saving event reveals to humanity not only the boundless love of God who "so loved the world that he gave his only Son" (Jn 3:16), but also the incomparable value of every human person. 1 Pt 2:21). God proclaims that he is absolute Lord of the life of man, who is formed in his image and likeness (cf. Still, in the face of other people's analogous interests, some kind of compromise must be found, if one wants a society in which the maximum possible freedom is guaranteed to each individual. They are a sharing in the mystery of the Cross, in which Jesus reveals the value of every person, and how life attains its fullness in the sincere gift of self. It is precisely in this "life" that all the aspects and stages of human life achieve their full significance. 35. In the case of an intrinsically unjust law, such as a law permitting abortion or euthanasia, it is therefore never licit to obey it, or to "take part in a propaganda campaign in favour of such a law, or vote for it".98. Certainly, from the moral point of view contraception and abortion arespecifically different evils: the former contradicts the full truth of the sexual act as the proper expression of conjugal love, while the latter destroys the life of a human being; the former is opposed to the virtue of chastity in marriage, the latter is opposed to the virtue of justice and directly violates the divine commandment "You shall not kill". When he presents the heart of his redemptive mission, Jesus says: "I came that they may have life, and have it abundantly" (Jn 10:10). The protection of life is not only ensured by the spe- cific commandment "You shall not kill" (Ex 20:13; Dt 5:17); the entire Law of the Lord serves to protect life, because it reveals that truth in which life finds its full meaning. The underlying causes of attacks on life have to be eliminated, especially by ensuring proper support for families and motherhood. 99, In this sense, the negative moral precepts have an extremely important positive function. Following this same logic, the point has been reached where the most basic care, even nourishment, is denied to babies born with serious handicaps or illnesses. 93, In the Encyclical Pacem in Terris, John XXIII pointed out that "it is generally accepted today that the common good is best safeguarded when personal rights and duties are guaranteed. This evaluation of the morality of abortion is to be applied also to the recent forms of intervention on human embryos which, although carried out for purposes legitimate in themselves, inevitably involve the killing of those embryos. Indeed, the pro- abortion culture is especially strong precisely where the Church's teaching on contraception is rejected. I have set before you life and death, blessing and curse; therefore choose life, that you and your descendants may live" (Dt 30:15, 19). He alone is master of all the events of history: he opens its "seals" (cf. But the celebration which gives meaning to every other form of prayer and worship is found in the family's actual daily life together, if it is a life of love and self-giving. But the person who, like the rich land-owner in the Gospel parable, thinks that he can make his life secure by the possession of material goods alone, is deluding himself. Hence we cannot but feel called to account and judged by the ever relevant words of Saint John Chrysostom: "Do you wish to honour the body of Christ? Although faith provides special light and strength, this question arises in every human conscience which seeks the truth and which cares about the future of humanity. There is no true freedom where life is not welcomed and loved; and there is no fullness of life except in freedom. Jesus himself says as much: "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick; I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance" (Lk 5:31-32). Here too Mary sheds light on the Community of Believers. Mt 6:22-23), calls "evil good and good evil" (Is 5:20), it is already on the path to the most alarming corruption and the darkest moral blindness. 67). To proclaim Jesus is itself to proclaim life. O Lord, you have brought up my soul from Sheol, restored me to life from among those gone down to the pit" (Ps 30:2-3). We shall be able to do this if every day, with you and like you, we are obedient to the Father and do his will. Nor can there be true peace unless life is defended and promoted. 2 Mac 6:23). Particularly important in this regard are the Sacraments, the efficacious signs of the presence and saving action of the Lord Jesus in Christian life. Man alone, among all visible creatures, is "capable of knowing and loving his Creator".24 The life which God bestows upon man is much more than mere existence in time. It would therefore be to give a one-sided picture, which could lead to sterile discouragement, if the condemnation of the threats to life were not accompanied by the presentation of the positive signs at work in humanity's present situation. Ps 139:13, 15-16). Even the economic help which they would be ready to give is unjustly made conditional on the acceptance of an anti-birth policy. You have a mission, and God wants you to discover it. If you obey the commandments of the Lord your God which I command you this day, by loving the Lord your God, by walking in his ways, and by keeping his commandments and his statutes and his ordinances, then you shall live and multiply, and the Lord your God will bless you in the land which you are entering to take possession of" (Dt 30:15-16). The woman recognized the woman's arrival; the child, that of the child. In this case it is force which becomes the criterion for choice and action in interpersonal relations and in social life. No less critical in the formation of conscience is the recovery of the necessary link between freedom and truth. This doctrine, based upon that unwritten law which man, in the light of reason, finds in his own heart (cf. Individual responsibility is thus turned over to the civil law, with a renouncing of personal conscience, at least in the public sphere. It is a threat capable, in the end, of jeopardizing the very meaning of democratic coexistence: rather than societies of "people living together", our cities risk becoming societies of people who are rejected, marginalized, uprooted and oppressed. It is the very life of God which is now shared with man. 100. The Gospel of life is at the heart of Jesus' message. The innocent man overwhelmed by suffering is understandably led to wonder: "Why is light given to him that is in misery, and life to the bitter in soul, who long for death, but it comes not, and dig for it more than for hid treasures?" She recognized the arrival of Mary; he the arrival of the Lord. Every life and every living movement proceed from this Life which transcends all life and every principle of life. 33. In this sign the Church recognizes an image of her own mystery: present in history, she knows that she transcends history, inasmuch as she constitutes on earth the "seed and beginning" of the Kingdom of God. Threats which are no less serious hang over the incurably ill and the dying. ", which Cain cannot escape, is addressed also to the people of today, to make them realize the extent and gravity of the attacks against life which continue to mark human history; to make them discover what causes these attacks and feeds them; and to make them ponder seriously the consequences which derive from these attacks for the existence of individuals and peoples. Sometimes the choices which have to be made are difficult; they may require the sacrifice of prestigious professional positions or the relinquishing of reasonable hopes of career advancement. Archbishop Paglia also notes that the text was drafted on the 25th anniversary of the promulgation of Evangelium Vitae, John Paul II's encyclical that reaffirmed the Church's opposition to . She is aware that she is called to offer Christ to the world, giving men and women new birth into God's own life. To this end, appropriate and effective programmes of support for new life must be implemented, with special closeness to mothers who, even without the help of the father, are not afraid to bring their child into the world and to raise it. In a social and cultural context which makes it more difficult to face and accept suffering, the temptation becomes all the greater to resolve the problem of suffering by eliminating it at the root, by hastening death so that it occurs at the moment considered most suitable. Ex 20:12; Lev 19:3). Rom 2:6; 14:12). Every Christian community, with a renewed sense of responsibility, must continue to write this history through various kinds of pastoral and social activity. While the urgent need for such a cultural transformation is linked to the present historical situation, it is also rooted in the Church's mission of evangelization. Today there exists a great multitude of weak and defenceless human beings, unborn children in particular, whose fundamental right to life is being trampled upon. She is also grateful to all those families which, through adoption, welcome children abandoned by their parents because of disabilities or illnesses. And the Lord had regard for Abel and his offering, but for Cain and his offering he had not regard. Thus Jeremiah writes: "My people have committed two evils: they have forsaken me, the fountain of living waters, and hewed out cisterns for themselves, broken cisterns, that can hold no water" (2:13). 71. Even more serious is the fact that, most often, those attacks are carried out in the very heart of and with the complicity of the family-the family which by its nature is called to be the "sanctuary of life". To men, beings made of spirit and matter, Life grants life. But he only exercises this power in accordance with a plan of wisdom and love. Once again we find ourselves before the temptation of Eden: to become like God who "knows good and evil" (cf. Is 49:15; 66:12-13; Hos 11:4). Another present-day phenomenon, frequently used to justify threats and attacks against life, is the demographic question. But no word has the power to change the reality of things: procured abortion is the deliberate and direct killing, by whatever means it is carried out, of a human being in the initial phase of his or her existence, extending from conception to birth. By so doing we achieve harmony with the providential love of God: "But I say to you, love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be children of your Father who is in heaven; for he makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good and sends rain on the just and on the unjust" (Mt 5:44-45; cf. We shall be able to do this because you, O Lord, have given us the example and have bestowed on us the power of your Spirit. On this point, scientific research itself seems to be almost exclusively preoccupied with developing products which are ever more simple and effective in suppressing life and which at the same time are capable of removing abortion from any kind of control or social responsibility. 65. How can these repeated affirmations of principle be reconciled with the continual increase and widespread justification of attacks on human life? Moreover, they are a supreme dishonour to the Creator".5. For a correct moral judgment on euthanasia, in the first place a clear definition is required. Phil 2:6-7). But responsibility likewise falls on the legislators who have promoted and approved abortion laws, and, to the extent that they have a say in the matter, on the administrators of the health-care centres where abortions are performed. To all the members of the Church, the people of life and for life, I make this most urgent appeal, that together we may offer this world of ours new signs of hope, and work to ensure that justice and solidarity will increase and that a new culture of human life will be affirmed, for the building of an authentic civilization of truth and love. Life itself becomes a mere "thing", which man claims as his exclusive property, completely subject to his control and manipulation. 91 The real purpose of civil law is to guarantee an ordered social coexistence in true justice, so that all may "lead a quiet and peaceable life, godly and respectful in every way" (1 Tim 2:2). But since the possibilities of prenatal therapy are today still limited, it not infrequently happens that these techniques are used with a eugenic intention which accepts selective abortion in order to prevent the birth of children affected by various types of anomalies. 00. Gen 2:20). And even more so, the value of the person from the moment of conception is celebrated in the meeting between the Virgin Mary and Elizabeth, and between the two children whom they are carrying in the womb. Consequently, when establishing those norms which are absolutely necessary for social coexistence, the only determining factor should be the will of the majority, whatever this may be. From being the "garden of Eden" (Gen 2:15), a place of plenty, of harmonious interpersonal relationships and of friendship with God, the earth becomes "the land of Nod" (Gen 4:16), a place of scarcity, loneliness and separation from God. We need then to "show care" for all life and for the life of everyone. Since it is one with Jesus himself, who makes all things new 103 and conquers the "oldness" which comes from sin and leads to death, 104 this Gospel exceeds every human expectation and reveals the sublime heights to which the dignity of the human person is raised through grace. (CNS) One of my assignments as a theology graduate assistant was to deliver a 90-minute lecture on St. John Paul II's 1995 encyclical "Evangelium Vitae" ("The Gospel of Life"). Thus, in coming to know the value of its own existence as a people, Israel also grows in its perception of the meaning and value of life itself. It is the outlook of those who do not presume to take possession of reality but instead accept it as a gift, discovering in all things the reflection of the Creator and seeing in every person his living image (cf. Traducción "ASEGURAR UNA PAZ" del español al italiano. It depends on them to promote a "new feminism" which rejects the temptation of imitating models of "male domination", in order to acknowledge and affirm the true genius of women in every aspect of the life of society, and overcome all discrimination, violence and exploitation. 118 This is the love that becomes selflessness, receptiveness and gift. Love does no wrong to a neighbour; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law" (Rom 13:9-10). This is also how he spoke of himself to Martha, the sister of Lazarus: "I am the resurrection and the life; he who believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live, and whoever lives and believes in me shall never die" (Jn 11:25-26). God, who preferred the correction rather than the death of a sinner, did not desire that a homicide be punished by the exaction of another act of homicide".13, "What have you done?" The purpose of the Gospel, in fact, is "to transform humanity from within and to make it new".123 Like the yeast which leavens the whole measure of dough (cf. Prenatal diagnosis, which presents no moral objections if carried out in order to identify the medical treatment which may be needed by the child in the womb, all too often becomes an opportunity for proposing and procuring an abortion. This is apparent in some aspects of the current penal legislation, which provided for severe forms of corporal punishment and even the death penalty. These are the "words of eternal life" which Peter acknowledges in his confession of faith: "Lord, to whom shall we go? We need to bring the Gospel of life to the heart of every man and woman and to make it penetrate every part of society. This is the New Law, "the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus" (Rom 8:2), and its fundamental expression, following the example of the Lord who gave his life for his friends (cf. Cain's killing of his brother at the very dawn of history is thus a sad witness of how evil spreads with amazing speed: man's revolt against God in the earthly paradise is followed by the deadly combat of man against man. Mthode Rsolution de problmes Mon cole. In the light of this truth Saint Irenaeus qualifies and completes his praise of man: "the glory of God" is indeed, "man, living man", but "the life of man consists in the vision of God".27. With great respect they should also present the positive values of sexuality and human love, and not insist on what defiles and cheapens human dignity. In the life of man, God's image shines forth anew and is again revealed in all its fullness at the coming of the Son of God in human flesh. The Apostle Paul expressed this newness in terms of belonging completely to the Lord who embraces every human condition: "None of us lives to himself, and none of us dies to himself. Those who allow themselves to be influenced by this climate easily fall into a sad vicious circle: when the sense of God is lost, there is also a tendency to lose the sense of man, of his dignity and his life; in turn, the systematic violation of the moral law, especially in the serious matter of respect for human life and its dignity, produces a kind of progressive darkening of the capacity to discern God's living and saving presence. This is eugenic abortion, justified in public opinion on the basis of a mentality-mistakenly held to be consistent with the demands of "therapeutic interventions"-which accepts life only under certain conditions and rejects it when it is affected by any limitation, handicap or illness. chapter i - the voice of your brother's blood cries to me from the ground. The life which was always "in him" and which is the "light of men" (Jn 1:4) consists in being begotten of God and sharing in the fullness of his love: "To all who received him, who believed in his name, he gave power to become children of God; who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God" (Jn 1:12-13). 1 Jn 3:1-2). He is the "goel", the defender of the innocent (cf. When you till the ground, it shall no longer yield to you its strength; you shall be a fugitive and a wanderer on the earth'. The family prays in order to glorify and give thanks to God for the gift of life, and implores his light and strength in order to face times of difficulty and suffering without losing hope. He said, ?I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?' EVANGELIUM VITAE. Consequently, all that we do as the "people of life and for life" should be interpreted correctly and welcomed with favour. Uma das mais importantes encíclicas de São João Paulo II, a Evangelium vitae, neste ano completa 25 anos. The values of being are replaced by those of having. In this way democracy, contradicting its own principles, effectively moves towards a form of totalitarianism. But the call of Deuteronomy goes even deeper, for it urges us to make a choice which is properly religious and moral. This conspiracy involves not only individuals in their personal, family or group relationships, but goes far beyond, to the point of damaging and distorting, at the international level, relations between peoples and States. Although it is true that "the future of humanity passes by way of the family",122 it must be admitted that modern social, economic and cultural conditions make the family's task of serving life more difficult and demanding. This first murder is presented with singular eloquence in a page of the Book of Genesis which has universal significance: it is a page rewritten daily, with inexorable and degrading frequency, in the book of human history. It is the door which opens wide on eternity and, for those who live in Christ, an experience of participation in the mystery of his Death and Resurrection. Moreover, "legitimate defence can be not only a right but a grave duty for someone responsible for another's life, the common good of the family or of the State".44 Unfortunately it happens that the need to render the aggressor incapable of causing harm sometimes involves taking his life. In Jesus' own life, from beginning to end, we find a singular "dialectic" between the experience of the uncertainty of human life and the affirmation of its value. LA IDEOLOGÍA DE GÉNERO. Hence every politician, in his or her activity, should clearly separate the realm of private conscience from that of public conduct. They themselves have a valuable contribution to make to the Gospel of life.
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