TITLE MEANING

Evangelium Vitae, commonly known as The Gospel of Life, was the tag of the encyclical letter written by Pope John Paul II, published at Vatican City on March 25, 1995. It shows the reflection and stand of the Catholic Church about the inherent value and inviolability of human life. Pope John Paul II describes it as the Heart of Jesus Message which has to be preached with immeasurable fidelity as good news to the people of every age and culture. It is noteworthy to mention that the expression Gospel of Life is not found as such in Sacred Scripture. Rather, it does correspond to an essential dimension of the biblical message. The letter points out the sacredness of human life from its very beginning until its end and it also recognizes the right of every human being to have this primary good respected to the highest degree. Moreover, Pope John Paul II metaphorically describe that The Gospel of Gods Love for Man, The Gospel of Dignity of the person and The Gospel of Life, are single and indivisible Gospel. He has also added that threats to human dignity and life affect the very core of the Churchs Faith. Consequently, The Catholic Church is called to engage herself in her mission of proclaiming the Gospel of Life in all, the world and to every creature (Cf. Mk 16:15), it is stressing the institutions evangelizing role as the sign and safeguard of the dignity of the human person The encyclical letter was a fruit of collective efforts of the Catholic Bishops of the world who conceptualize the social doctrine. The encyclical is meant to be a precise and vigorous reaffirmation of the value of human life and its inviolability, Pope John Paul stressed.

AUTHOR

Blessed Pope John Paul II (18 May 1920 2 April 2005) served as Pope of Catholic Church in 26 years, 168 days, being the 2nd longest documented pontificate after Pope Piux (1846 1878). He was the only Polish/Slavic Pope up to date and was the first non-Italian Pope since Dutch Pope Adrian VI. His energetic approach to his office, unprecedented world travel, and firm religious conservatism enhanced the visibility of the papacy in both the Roman Catholic Church and the non-Catholic world. John Pauls view of the church was marked by a distrust of speculations by theologians and moral judgments by lay people, and by a stress on clerical leadership and papal authority.

He was acclaimed as one of the most religious influential leader of the modern time and he improved the Catholic Church relation with other religions such as Judaism, Anglican Community, Islam and the Eastern Orthodox Church. He was also instrumental in ending communism and excessive capitalism. Moreover, he was proclaim venerable by his successor Pope Benedict XVI and was beatified on May 2011. During his pontificate, he wrote 14 papal encyclicals including the Evagelium Vitae and taught about the Theology of the Body. Though critics condemn him of inflexibility, he explicitly reasserted Catholic Moral Teachings against penal that have been presented well over thousand years. Such Theology of the Body, an extended meditation on human sexuality, was a single compilation of a series of 129 lectures. This extension applies condemnation of abortion, euthanasia, murder and other malpractices that constitute part of the Catholic Death, extremely prevalent in the modern stories. In this work, he explicitly reasserts Catholic Moral teachings against these human life-degrading immoral practices.

TO WHOM IT IS ADDRESSED AND WHERE IT WAS WRITTEN

Prior to the conceptualization of the said encyclical letter, an extraordinary consistency was held in Rome in April 4-7, 1991. Many Cardinals participated in discussing the issues of the threats to human life in the present day. After a thorough process of reflection about the problem and about the challenges it poses to entire human family, particularly to the Christian Community, the Cardinals unanimously asked the Pope to assert positively the value and individuality of human life, in the light of the current circumstances and threats attacking human life today. In response to the request, Pope John Paul II, wrote personal letter to all the bishops of the world, asking them to devote their time and cooperation in drawing up a specific document. Consequently, those who responded were of great help providing him valuable facts, suggestions and proposals. These conscious efforts made Pope John Paul II write the Gospel of Life, stressing the fact that there exist a multitude of weak and defenseless human beings who are being oppressed in their fundamental rights to life. Pope John Paul wrote this letter on behalf of the Catholic Church, to speak out with courage and moral stance to those who have no voice. He also points out that the Church could not be silent about any forms of injustices that are compounded alarmingly in many regions in the

Twentieth Century. Thus, in order that the Church fulfills its pastoral mission with regards to the Gospel of life, Pope John Paul II calls bishops, priests, deacons, and all the people of God in faith, the people of life and for life to be instrumental and analysts of change to create culture of life not the culture of death. He appeals to everyone, in the name of God, that every human being must respect, protect, love, and serve life, every human life. Only through this collaboration, we can direct ourselves towards justice, development, true freedom, peace and freedom. The feasibility of the encyclical letter was put into reality when it was published on March 25, 1995 in Vatican City.

CONTEXT SITUATION

The social document was articulated with Christian reflection in response to the challenges of the onset of the Twentieth Century and in continuous struggle to mitigate oppression, prevalently existing in the past centuries. The twentieth century, marked by the advent of scientific and technological progress, is implicitly period where new forms of attacks on the dignity of the human being arise. Also, new cultural climate finds its evil atmosphere, primarily focusing on the quality of life over the sanctity of life. Crimes that were supposed to be called upon with punishment are ironically treated with some forms of authorization and legitimization from State of Civil laws. This in turn allows things through anti-life be exercised with total freedom at the expense of Gods natural law. This explains the way how we treat life and relations with other people. In fact, legislations in many countries, has considered a disturbing proof that show the moral decline of the people in the society. Far from the ideal perspective, choices that once define a crime are now becoming more socially acceptable, particularly in some sectors of medical profession. Medical practitioners do not conform on their duties and responsibilities demanded by the profession. They carry out acts against the person which shows that the very nature of their profession is degraded. As such, abortion and euthanasia is obviously the end product of this contradicting issue. The legalization of capital punishment has also been prevalent in some countries. This event denies the fact that a person has moral dignity that can still be regained as long as a man lives, given the opportunity of departing from a mortal sin. Murder, genocide, and other forms of crimes that violates the integrity of the human person and where people are treated as mere objects of gain, are by products of a darkened conscience. It poisons every member of the society and the society itself having difficulty to discern what is good and evil before Gods law.

These tragic issues serve an alarm to the Catholic Church that the teachings of the Church are far beyond applied by the people of the world today. This puts the Catholic Church to direct appropriate Christian response to the current context; hence, the articulation of the Evangelium Vitae takes place. MAIN TEACHINGS

DENUNCIATION AGAINST LIFE-THREATENING PRACTICES Pope John Paul II stressed the very inherent value and inviolabolity of the dignity of the person. He emphasized that God is the Lord of life and that any forms of acts that go against life is great dishonor to Him. In order that we achieve the fullness of our life, we should conform to the image of Him, by defending life and eliminating any means that destroy it. In pursuit for an authentic culture of life, we are challenged to discourage abortion, euthanasia, death penalty, contraception, infanticide and artificial reproduction that deprive concerned beings of their right to life and existence. Some practices that are as follows:
a. Abortion an unspeakable crime according to Pope John Paul II. It strikes

human life at the time of its greatest frailty, when it is fundamentally helpless and defenseless. It is a deliberate effort to deny the existence of a human being from the moment of conception. In such initial stage of life, his very first fundamental right must be recognized which is the right to life.
b. Contraception works the same way as abortion as it means fear in the total

avoidance of procreation of a new life. This is also in contrary of the full truth of sexual act as the proper expression of conjugal love. This should be discouraged because this comes from the life which result from a sexual encounter could become an enemy that has to be avoided at all cost.
c. Artificial Reproduction should also be an enemy of the people of life and for

life. it is not just considered morally unacceptable, but also a sign of jeopardy for life as it poses high rate of failure. In addition, some extra-embryos are then destroyed or used for research and in fact, reduces human life to the level of simple biological matter to be freely disposed of. d. Prenatal diagnosis technically speaking, if purported in a sensible way receives no moral objections. However, if it is to be carried out in such a way that it accepts life only under certain favorable conditions and rejects it when it is affected by any limitation or deficiency, then it has to be discouraged. It is

supposed to identify medical treatment to treat deformities, not to eliminate that deficiency by depriving the baby the right to life. Infanticide works the same logic as prenatal diagnosis.
e. Euthanasia (mercy-killing) practiced openly and legally in most affluent

societies has to be discouraged for the reason that suffering is viewed in this perspective as an epitome of evil that has to be eliminated at all costs. True compassion leads to sharing anothers pain; it does not kill the person whose suffering is something we cannot hear. Death becomes senseless and inhumane if we take control of death and bring about before its time when in fact, God is the Master of both life and death. The disturbing fact also is that euthanasia is executed in a way to increase the availability of organs for transplants without adequate criteria which verify the death to the donor. Instead, we should focus our concern to developing medical remedies that promises a future not ending a promising experience of the future. Develop methods that prolong and improve life on the unborn, the suffering and those in temporal stage of sickness. In line with the demographic question of controlling the worlds population, we should not patronize massive program of birth control for it favors only the unjust political parties. This is aggravated by the fact that even economic help which they would be ready to give is unjustly made conditional on the acceptance of anti-birth policy. People of God are called to denounce death penalty which renders criminals harmful, denying their inherent dignity. Instead, we should give the chance to renew and reform them. Provide them adequate punishment for the crime as a condition for the offender to exercise freedom. We should conform to Gods commandment You shall not kill and Love your neighbor as you love yourself.

FOCUS/CONCERN

Pope John Paul II, on behalf of the Catholic Church reiterates its position in favor of the unborn, sick, elderly, handicap, children, and the infirm societys weakest members in the social structure. According to him, they are the subjects of the new threats of life that strike most when they are defenseless, terminally ill, and not selfsufficient. Such crimes tend to attack and ignore the sacredness of their rights. These

attacks go directly against respect for life and they represent a direct threat to the entire culture of human rights.

CRITICISMS ON IDEOLOGIES

1. Contraceptive Mentality opposed to responsible parenthood is highly

criticized by the Pope that such fear, which is augmented by the selfish desire against unwanted life is unjustifiable by personal reasons. This is opposed to the virtue of chastity in marriage. The Church precisely opposes it because such belief system connotes that any result from a sexual encounter is definitely an enemy that must be avoided no matter what.
2. Hedonism means that one is unwilling to accept responsibility in matters of

sexuality, implying a self-centered concept of freedom which regards procreation as an obstacle to personal fulfillment.
3. Promethean Mentality means that people can control life and death by

taking the decisions about them into their own hands. The Church condemns this as it overtakes the power of God who is believed the only master of life and death. People should not decide when a person has to end his life because God is the only omnipotent being who could determine ones life and such thing is part of His plan for that person.
4. Individualism primarily the freedom of the strong against the weak that

have no choice but to submit. It excludes the isolated individual in an absolute way and gives no place to solidarity, to openness to others and service of them. In response, the Church reacted that every human being should not be individualistic because we are entrusting to one another. It is in the view of this entrusting that God gives everyone freedom which possesses an inherently relational dimension.
5. Utilitarianism characterized by the criterion of efficiency, functionality and

usefulness. It comes on the notion of having instead of being. Consider a person for what he is, not for what he has, do and produce.
6. Practical Materialism carried out in pursuit of ones material well-being. It is

interpreted primarily or exclusively as inordinate beauty and pleasure to the neglect of the more interpersonal, spiritual and religious of existence. body as no longer perceived as a properly personal

consumerism, physical profound dimensions This view considers the reality, a sign and place

of relations with others, with God, and with the world. It is reduced to pure materiality: it is simply a complex of organs, functions and energies to be used according to the sole critics of pleasure and efficiency (sexual desires or selfish satisfaction or instincts). In contradiction, the Church teaches the body as the temple and dwelling place of the holy spirit, not an object of selfish interest
7. Democracy the original and inalienable right is demand on the basis of

parliamentary role or the will of one part of the people even if it is the majority. The right of a person is no longer firmly founded on the inviolable dignity of the person but it is made subject to the will of the stronger part. These ideology defeats its purpose as it departs towards TOTALITARIANISM. The State is no longer the common home, where all can live together on the basis on principles of fundamental equality but is transformed into a tyrant state, which arrogates to itself the right to dispose of life of the weakest and most defenseless members, from unborn child to the elderly, in the name of public interest which is really nothing but the interest of one part.

WRITINGS RELATED TO EVANGELIUM VITAE

Veritatis Splendor or "The Splendor of Truth" is also an encyclical written by Pope John Paul II in 1993 regarding the fundamental role of the Church in moral teachings. Like the Evangelium Vitae it also focuses on questions about man's ability to discern good, the existence of evil, the role of human freedom and human conscience, mortal sin. Pope John Paul II also stressed that moral truth is recognizable, that the choice of good or evil has a profound effect on one's relationship with God, and that there is no true contradiction between freedom and following the good. Humanae vitae on the other hand is an encyclical issued by Pope Paul VI on July 25, 1968, It also talks about the traditional teaching of the Roman Catholic Church regarding abortion, contraception, and other issues pertaining to human life and the family. Like the Evangelium Vitae it stressed that the sexual act must retain its intrinsic relationship to the procreation of human life; the direct interruption of the generative process already begun is unlawful. It agrees that abortion, even for therapeutic reasons, is unquestionably forbidden, as is sterilization, even if temporary. Likewise, every action specifically intended to prevent procreation is forbidden whether it is by chemical means or barrier methods of contraception. All these are held to directly contradict the moral order which was established by God.

GUIDING PRINCIPLES All who commit themselves to following Christ are given the fullness of life: the divine image is restored, renewed and brought to perfection in them To defend and promote life, to show reverence and love for it, is a task which God entrusts to every man calling him as his living image to share in his own Lordship over the world The deepest element of Gods commandment to protect human life is the requirement to show reverence and love for every person and life of every person You shall love your neighbor as you love yourself. Love does no wrong to a neighbor; therefore love is the fulfilling of the law The task of accepting and serving life involves everyone; and this task must be fulfilled above all towards life it is at its weakest The mission of Jesus, with many healings he performed, shows Gods great concern even for mans bodily life. Jesus is the physician of the body and the spirit You shall not kill. This is the entire law of the Lord serves to protect life, because it reveals that the truth in which life finds its full meaning We are called to give out lives for our brothers and sisters, and thus to realize in the fullness of truth the meaning of our existence The human being is to be treated and respected as a person from the moment of conception To proclaim Jesus is itself to proclaim life, for Jesus is the Word of life The family as the sanctuary of life and domestic Church; the place in which life the gift of God can be properly welcomed, has special role throughout the life of its members, from birth to death