Grave violations of human dignity

The Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith’s new document 'Dignitas infinita' took five years to complete, and builds on the papal magisterium of the last decade: from war to poverty, from violence against migrants to violence against women, from abortion to surrogate motherhood to euthanasia, from gender theory to digital violence. Three chapters offer the foundations for the fourth, which is dedicated to "some grave violations of human dignity.

That’s the structure of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith’s new Declaration Dignitas infinita, which commemorates the 75th anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and reaffirms "the indispensable nature of the dignity of the human person in Christian anthropology " (Intro.)

The main novelty of the document, which is the fruit of five years' work, is the inclusion of a number of key themes from the recent papal magisterium that accompany the bioethical ones. In the 'non-exhaustive' list that is offered, abortion, euthanasia and surrogate motherhood are listed as violations of human dignity alongside war, poverty and human trafficking.

The new text thus contributes to overcoming the dichotomy that exists between those who focus exclusively on beginning-and-end-of-life issues, while forgetting so many other attacks against human dignity and, conversely, those who focus only on defending the poor and migrants while forgetting that life must be defended from conception to its natural conclusion.

The Declaration then presents the list of "some grave violations of human dignity". This includes "all offences against life itself, such as murder, genocide, abortion, euthanasia, and willful suicide” must be recognized as contrary to human dignity ", but also "all violations of the integrity of the human person, such as mutilation, physical and mental torture, undue psychological pressures "... And, finally, it includes "all offences against human dignity, such as subhuman living conditions, arbitrary imprisonment, deportation, slavery, prostitution, the selling of women and children, degrading working conditions where individuals are treated as mere tools for profit rather than free and responsible persons"... The death penalty is also cited, since it "violates the inalienable dignity of every person, regardless of the circumstances" (34).

More at:  https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2024-04/human-dignity-ddf-document-migration-gender-surrogacy-war-theolo.html

 The full text of the Declaration Dignitas infinita on the Holy See website

Source: https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2024-04/human-dignity-ddf-document-migration-gender-surrogacy-war-theolo.html

Palliative care seeks to accompany people...

In an interview with Vatican News Bishop Noël Simard, The Bishop of Valleyfield, Quebec, Canada, who is chairing a Symposium on Palliative Care on 20.05.2024 in Toronto, Canada, under the auspices of the Canadian Conference of Catholic Bishops and the Pontifical Academy for Life said that "Palliative care is not about “terminating someone’s life.” Instead, it means accompanying each person as their earthly life draws to a close, and attending to their physical, emotional, psychological, social, and spiritual needs.

Bishop Simard noted the confusion around palliative care, where euthanasia is permitted under the euphemism “medical assistance in dying,” or MAID. The practice involves doctors or nurse practitioners to either administer drugs to end a patient’s life, or provide drugs that are administered by the patients themselves. 

Palliative care, by contrast, “is accompanying people’s lives,” said Bishop Simard, attempting to respond to all the person’s need. “So yes, we need to answer the problem of suffering and pain,” the Bishop says, “but at the same time, there are many other needs” that must be addressed. 

This week’s conference, entitled “Towards a Narrative of Hope: An International Interfaith Symposium on Palliative Care,” is aimed at promoting good palliative care, while also working to develop “a culture of responsibility” with regard to end-of-life care.”

Accompaniment is one of the major themes of the Symposium, and Bishop Simard was careful to explain what the term means. A key part of accompaniment is assuring the dying that they are not a burden to others but instead have dignity, which is never lost.

“We are telling them: ‘You are still a person loved by God. You have your place in society. And we are here to tell you that we love you,’” the Bishop said. 

It also means assuring them that they are not alone and expressing to them the compassion and tenderness of God that never leaves them. 

Bishop Simard likewise highlighted the importance of listening to the person, “to her fears, to her anxiety, and also to what she is unable to say... accompanying helps them to express” their hopes and fears as they approach the end of their lives. 

Palliative care, he continued, is also concerned for family members and other caregivers, for whom accompaniment can be a challenge. “We have to be there to listen to them and maybe offer them some respite,” he said, adding that listening to all those involved in palliative care is “essential.”

The Canadian Bishop also emphasized the necessity of accompaniment in the dying person’s spiritual life. Prayer and the reception of the Sacraments are important means to help the person prepare themselves “to go and join the Lord in glory,” reflecting the “very important role” of palliative care for the spiritual life. 

Bishop Simard concluded the interview by recalling Pope Francis’ regular calls for “closeness,” and highlighting the importance of being present, of holding a loved one’s hand and assuring them that they are not alone.

Info: https://www.vaticannews.va/en/church/news/2024-05/bishop-simard-palliative-care-aims-at-accompaniment.html, https://www.vaticannews.va/sk/papez/news/2024-05/papez-sympoziu-v-toronte-eutanazia-je-zlyhanie-lasky.html

 

Catholic Bioethics and Social Justice

Catholic health care is one of the key places where the church lives Catholic social teaching (CST). Yet the individualistic methodology of Catholic bioethics inherited from the manualist tradition has yet to incorporate this critical component of the Catholic moral tradition. Informed by the places where Catholic health care intersects with the diverse societal injustices embodied in the patients it encounters, this book brings the lens of CST to bear on Catholic health care, illuminating a new spectrum of ethical issues and practical recommendations from social determinants of health, immigration, diversity and disparities, behavioral health, gender-questioning patients, and environmental and global health issues.

As we are begining a new fall semeter 2023/24 this book is worth reading!! A must-read for undergraduate and graduate students interested in theological bioethics, as well as religious leaders and clinicians engaging the general underrepresentation within Christian healthcare debates concerning justice, the preferential option, and diverse participation across a range of emerging issues. 

More at:  https://litpress.org/Products/8455/Catholic-Bioethics-and-Social-Justice

 

 

Act ethically and responsibly

Pope Francis has applauded the benefits of technology and artificial intelligence, when used for the common good, but has warned against using AI unethically or irresponsibly. He did so when addressing the 'Minerva Dialogues,' a high-level annual gathering of scientists and experts, organized by the Vatican's Dicastery for Education and Culture, on Monday in the Vatican.

As Deborah Castellano Lubov wrote in his article (https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2023-03/pope-francis-minerva-dialogues-technology-artificial-intelligenc.html): "The Pope said he greatly values this ongoing dialogue, especially as it involves the discussion regarding the responsible use of technology, a discussion, he called, "open to religious values." Technology is, and has been, he said, "immensely beneficial" to our human family, especially in the fields of medicine, engineering and communications. In acknowledging the practical benefits of science and technology, he noted, "we also see them as evidence of the creativity of human beings and the nobility of their vocation to participate responsibly in God's creative action... From this perspective," he said, "I am convinced that the development of artificial intelligence and machine learning has the potential to contribute in a positive way to the future of humanity... "At the same time," Pope Francis cautioned, "I am certain that this potential will be realized only if there is a constant and consistent commitment on the part of those developing these technologies to act ethically and responsibly." 

“I would therefore encourage you, in your deliberations, to make the intrinsic dignity of every man and woman the key criterion in evaluating emerging technologies; these will prove ethically sound to the extent that they help respect that dignity and increase its expression at every level of human life.

"The concept of intrinsic human dignity requires us to recognize and respect the fact that a person’s fundamental value cannot be measured by data alone," the Pope said. "In social and economic decision-making," he continued, "we should be cautious about delegating judgments to algorithms that process data, often collected surreptitiously, on an individual’s makeup and prior behaviour. "

Pope Francis warned that such data can be "contaminated" by societal prejudices and preconceptions. "A person’s past behaviour," he noted, "should not be used to deny him or her the opportunity to change, grow and contribute to society."

Source:  https://www.vaticannews.va/en/pope/news/2023-03/pope-francis-minerva-dialogues-technology-artificial-intelligenc.html

What Is Man, O Lord? The Human Person in a Biotech Age

Since the fundamental ethical criterion governing scientific research can only be the defense and the promotion of the integral good of the human person, it follows that any procedure performed on human beings, even at the very dawn of their personal existence, must respect the dignity and rights originating in human nature itself. Far from an extrinsic limitation on human freedom, this moral obligation arises from the very truth about the human person.

Palliative care is a right

The Pontifical Academy for Life organized an online webinar from 9 to 11 February 2022 as a part of project to improve the dissemination of palliative care in the world. I would like to point out to some of thoughts on palliative care:

"We must accompany people towards death, but not provoke death or facilitate any form of suicide. I would point out that the right to care and treatment for all must always be prioritised, so that the weakest, particularly the elderly and the sick, are never discarded. Life is a right, not death, which must be welcomed, not administered. And this ethical principle applies to concerns everyone, not just Christians or believers." (https://press.vatican.va/content/salastampa/en/bollettino/pubblico/2022/02/09/220209a.html) 

Archbishop Paglia spoke of how palliative care "Talking about palliative care,” he said, “does not mean talking about a dimension of care offered when there is nothing more to do. It means accompanying a sick person in the last time before his or her death, so that he or she may receive all possible clinical, human, psychological and spiritual care and assistance... No one should be left alone in one of the most difficult moments or times of their life,” Paglia said, and for believers, it includes an extra spiritual dimension in that death is not the end but a passage. (https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2022-02/pontifical-academy-life-paglia-palliative-care-webinar.html)

Echoing the Pope’s words he said: “We are against suicide absolutely. Killing should be avoided but therapeutic overkill should also be avoided. What these two dimensions have in common is the power over death: either hasten it or delay it. In between” he stressed, “there is accompaniment.” The Archbishop concluded noting the increasing urgency of end-of-life care in an aging world and said Catholic Universities have an important role to play in formation, “in raising awareness of this perspective of what palliative care means: accompaniment at the highest level, clinical, cultural, spiritual and social.” (https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2022-02/pontifical-academy-life-paglia-palliative-care-webinar.html)

 

Theological Ethics of Life

Archbishop Vincenzo Paglia, president of the Pontifical Academy for Life, grants an interview to Vatican Media to explain the goals of the document entitled "Theological Ethics of Life. Scripture, tradition, practical challenges" arriving in bookstores on 1 July.

More at: https://www.vaticannews.va/en/vatican-city/news/2022-06/archbishop-vincenzo-paglia-pope-francis-interview-theological-et.html