Section 3: Respecting Human Life and Dignity

Respecting

all life is rooted in

the Fifth Commandment,
You shall not kill.

The

first victims of a society

living by a culture of death
are:

Unborn
Infirm
Elderly

 In

1995, St. Pope John Paul II wrote the encyclical,

The Gospel of Life, speaking about:

Abortion, or the deliberate termination of a pregnancy by

killing the unborn child.

Euthanasia, or a direct action, or deliberate lack of

action, that causes the death of a person who is
handicapped, sick, or dying.

 Death

takes on many forms around the world:

Poverty
Homelessness
Disease
Violence
Abortion
Euthanasia

St.

Pope John Paul II called people to form a

Culture of Life, or a society that holds all life
sacred, from conception to natural death, healthy
or sick.

Culture of Death is a society that does not hold

life to be sacred in all it stages, leading to
structures of sin that attack human life when it is
most vulnerable.

St.

Pope John Paul II identified two causes of the

culture of death:

1. A distorted understanding of human freedom

2. Materialism

 Many

people believe we have the right to pursue

our own personal goals, even if means removing
another persons life.

This is a FALSE conception.

Freedom

is not an absolute right; it is a gift, and as

such it comes with the responsibilities to choose
right over wrong.

Freedom isnt free.

 Materialism

is when
objects become the
primary goal of our life
and not God or other
people.

When

we focus on
material things, we:

Become selfish
Are not willing to sacrifice
to help others

 The

culture of death leads

to an erosion of personal
conscience, or the inner
voice that guides us by
human reason and Divine
Law to choose right over
wrong.

In 1973, Roe v. Wade came before the Supreme Court,

in which it was ruled:
States could not limit a womans ability to have an abortion
Had to occur in the first three months of pregnancy

Before this decision, a majority of U.S. citizens felt

abortion was wrong.

Leadership in the U.S. had an erosion of conscience,

which trickled down to the U.S. citizens.

1. Abortion
Legalized
Roe v. Wade

4. Euthanasia
becomes legal
in some states
in the U.S.A.

5. People begin to
take life for
granted;
increases in
suicide.
3. Society
questions the
rights of
those who
are sick and
elderly

2. Society
questions the
rights and
nature of a
fetus

The erosion of conscience

is an important
contributor to the culture
of death.

We are called to have a

well formed conscience,
formulated through:

1. Human Reason

2. Divine Revelation

3. Truthfulness

Rape
Health Concerns of
Child
Health Concerns of
Mother
Relationship Issues
Finished with
Childbearing
Not Ready
Cant Afford Baby
Lack of Maturity
School Career Concerns
Reasons for Abortion

27 %
0.1 %
3%
8%
20 %
25 %
4%
9%
4%

Percentage

Abortion was the leading cause of

death in the United States in
2007, far surpassing other forms
of violence and crime.

 Since

1973 to 2010, it is
estimated that there have
been 52 million abortions in
the United States.

Building

structures of social
justice that defend all life is
the calling of all Christians in
society.

 During

the first 8 to 10 weeks in the womb, a child

is called an embryo.

Abortion

can take on many different forms,

including:

Suctioning or scraping the child out of the womb (most

common)
Lethal injections into the womb that kill the child
Drugs that are taken days after conception
Contraception which prevents pregnancy

 Direct

abortion is any intentional means to end a

pregnancy and the life of a child.

The woman having the abortion and the doctor(s) are

both punishable by excommunication.

Indirect

abortion is when a mother is ill, needs a

procedure done that is not an abortion, yet
inadvertently ends the life of the child.

The Principle of Double Effect was coined by St.

Thomas Aquinas and describes what happens when a
good action ends up causing something that morally is
bad.

To decide if the result (which morally should be

avoided) is morally tolerable, the following criteria
apply:

1. The original act is either good or morally neutral

2. Person committing the act intends to do good
3. The good effect outweighs the bad effect

 To

understand these concepts, here is an example

situation:

A mother is seriously ill. If a procedure is not done, she

will probably die, which will also end the childs life.
The procedure is done to protect the mothers life and
the childs life. During the procedure, an incident
unforeseen occurs, causing the child to die.

In this situation, the procedure is morally tolerable because

the procedure was not intended to end the childs life, but
rather to save the mothers life; it was an unwanted effect that
occurred during the procedure.

 Some

people say a fetus is

not a human being and
support abortion for this
reason.

The

Church and modern

biology today teaches at the
moment of conception, a
human life is formed.

Keith L. Moore, The Developing

Human: Clinically Oriented
Embryology, 7th edition.
Philadelphia, PA: Saunders, 2003.
pp. 16, 2:
"Human life begins at fertilization,
the process during which a male
gamete or sperm unites with a
female gamete or ovum to form a
single cell called a zygote. This
highly specialized, totipotent cell
marked the beginning of each of us
as a unique individual." "A zygote is
the beginning of a new human
being (i.e., an embryo)."

8 Characteristics of Life

Example in Developing Embryo/ Fetus

1. Made of One or more Cells

1. When the egg and sperm meet, a cell forms

and begins to multiple (mitosis)

2. Displays Organization

2. As cells multiple, they move about to

form certain parts of the body

3. Grows and Develops

3. The fetus grows & develops for up to 38

weeks after conception

4. Reproduces

4. The first glimpses of sexual organ

development occurs as early as 6 weeks

5. Responds to Stimuli

5. A fetus can hear and respond to sounds

outside the womb; can kick
6. For a fetus to develop, he/she converts
nutrients into energy to grow

6. Requires Energy
7. Maintains Homeostasis

7. Bodily functions, such as the liver

producing red blood cells, occurs in fetus

8. Adapts to Environment

8. A fetus uses adaptations all humans have,

i.e. development of body hair

 From

the moment a sperm and egg meet, the cell

they form has a unique DNA that will never be
replicated again.

When

this cell, or zygote, is left alone, it will

always develop into a human being.

3 weeks after conception, the embryos heart beats

9 weeks after conception, the embryo has fingerprints
12 weeks after conception, they sleep, exercise, and
move
18 weeks after conception, they can feel pain

 Adoption

and organizational
support exist that make
abortion unnecessary.

The

Church is the voice for the

voiceless.

The

Church seeks to end

abortion and help those women
who have had an abortion to be
reconciled with God and His
Church.

"It is anticipated murder to prevent someone from

being born; it makes little difference whether one kills
a soul already born or puts it to death at birth. He who
will one day be a man is a man already.
(Tertullian)

 Other

beginning of life issues outside of abortion

are:

Artificial Means of Conception, or the ability to create

new human life artificially, include:

In Vitro Fertilization (fertilizing an ovum in a laboratory and

planting it in a womans womb)
Artificial Insemination (artificially implanting semen in a
womans womb)
Surrogate Parenting (placing a womans fertilized egg in
another womans womb to grow)

While these techniques mean well,

they all share serious moral flaws.

The value of our sexuality is in the fact

that children are created naturally.

The Church supports scientific

research that helps infertile couples
increase their chances of natural
conception through treatment.

Beginning of Life Issues

Morally Acceptable

Morally Unacceptable

Prenatal Testing is when a test is

done that checks for diseases in an
embryo/fetus.

When a test is done

that checks for
diseases in an
embryo/fetus.

When used to decide

whether or not to
abort a child because
of disease.

Genetic Engineering is the

manipulation of an embryos genetic
coding.

When used to prevent

diseases (Gene
Treatment)

When used to change

the physical
appearance of the
child; creating
Designer Babies

Stem Cells are unique cells that

have the potential to reproduce
themselves as ANY human tissue or
organs.

When stems cells are

taken from the
umbilical cord of a
newly born child.

When stem cells are

taken from aborted
fetuses

 The

good intention of stem cell research to

cure diseases does not justify the sin of
abortion.

New

technology does not always foster moral

actions.

We

are called to treat the unborn just as we

would a person who is already born.