For everyone, even fetuses!
Posted on 05/05/2009 9:02:29 PM PDT by ReformationFan
Pope: "Non-Negotiable Human Rights" include "Right to Life and Right to Freedom of Conscience and Religion"
VATICAN CITY, MAY 5, 2009 (LifeSIteNews.com) - Pope Benedict XVI addressed members of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences yesterday at their plenary session which is focused on the theme of Catholic social teaching and human rights, and called for the promotion of universal human rights based on both faith and reason, affirming the "right to life and the right to freedom of conscience and religion as being at the center of those rights that spring from human nature itself."
The Holy Father noted that though these human rights are not strictly "truths of faith, even though they are discoverable - and indeed come to full light - in the message of Christ who "reveals man to man himself," they do "receive further confirmation from faith."
Giving an historical perspective to human rights as "the reference point of a shared universal ethos - at least at the level of aspiration - for most of humankind," the Pope spoke of the "vast suffering caused by two terrible world wars and the unspeakable crimes perpetrated by totalitarian ideologies," as a consequence of which "the international community acquired a new system of international law based on human rights."
(Excerpt) Read more at lifesitenews.com ...
Good paragraph here:
'"Human rights, therefore, are ultimately rooted in a participation of God, who has created each human person with intelligence and freedom," Pope Benedict explained. "If this solid ethical and political basis is ignored, human rights remain fragile since they are deprived of their sound foundation."'
This makes me stand up and cheer, but shouldn’t this be obvious to everyone? When the elites in most Western nations object to such a simple statement, you know that we’re fighting a spiritual battle here, against “principalities and powers.”
Here’s the “money quote”, which could have been lifted directly from +John Chrysostomos’ “On Wealth and Poverty”.
“This perspective draws attention to some of the most critical social problems of recent decades, such as the growing awareness – which has in part arisen with globalisation and the present economic crisis – of a flagrant contrast between the equal attribution of rights and the unequal access to the means of attaining those rights. For Christians who regularly ask God to “give us this day our daily bread”, it is a shameful tragedy that one-fifth of humanity still goes hungry. Assuring an adequate food supply, like the protection of vital resources such as water and energy, requires all international leaders to collaborate in showing a readiness to work in good faith, respecting the natural law and promoting solidarity and subsidiarity with the weakest regions and peoples of the planet as the most effective strategy for eliminating social inequalities between countries and societies and for increasing global security.”
No support in this lecture for the recent heresy spread by some American Roman Catholic bishops that their imagined dogma of being anti-abortion supersedes all other dogmas of The Church. And one wonders how much support the Papal call to international social activism will find among the those who have bought into that peculiar American heresy because it furthers their anti-Obama political agenda.
April 11, 1963
Establishing Universal Peace In Truth, Justice, Charity, And Liberty, Pope John XXIII
“Man’s personal dignity requires besides that he enjoy freedom and be able to make up his own mind when he acts.
In his association with his fellows, therefore, there is every reason why his recognition of rights, observance of duties, and many-sided collaboration with other men, should be primarily a matter of his own personal decision.
Each man should act on his own initiative, conviction, and sense of responsibility, not under the constant pressure of external coercion or enticement.
There is nothing human about a society that is welded together by force.
Far from encouraging, as it should, the attainment of man’s progress and perfection, it is merely an obstacle to his freedom.”
“Hence, a regime which governs solely or mainly by means of threats and intimidation or promises of reward, provides men with no effective incentive to work for the common good.
And even if it did, it would certainly be offensive to the dignity of free and rational human beings.”
“Consequently, laws and decrees passed in contravention of the moral order, and hence of the divine will, can have no binding force in conscience, since ‘it is right to obey God rather than men.’”
Excerpts From Pacem In Terris: Peace on Earth - Encyclical of Pope John XXIII
More regarding rights of conscience, and other God-given rights:
The sort of socialism that conforms to the biblical worldview is the form that is commonly practiced on a small scale within families, within churches, and other organizations. It is always going to be a voluntary sharing of resources.
The Bible teaches that the church and the family should care for the poor rather than the state.
8th Commandment: You shall not steal. This is a guarantee of private property.
10th Commandment: You shall not covet. Again, a guarantee of private property.
Acts 5: Barnabas sellls a piece of property and brought the money to the Apostles.
Ananias and Saphira decided to do the same - except they sold a property - kept some of the money back - and lied about how much they had been paid.
Peter said, ‘Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit, and to keep back part of the price of the land? While it remained, was it not your own? And after it was sold, was it not in your own power?’ “
There you go! An apostolic confirmation of the right of private property. Not only the means of production, but also the results of that production were in Ananias’ and Saphira’s power, not in the power or hands of the state or the church.
Proudhon , the French socialist said, “Property is theft.”
But the commandment forbidding theft teaches the right of private property and is in complete contradiction to socialist concepts.
America’s Founding Principles
“...dedicated to teaching how history, law, logic, and mathematics prove that the ideas that create America’s freedom and prosperity - America’s Founding Principles - are God’s moral rules found in Judeo-Christian Scripture. A big job, to be sure, but to help you quickly see where we are coming from, we summarize these ideas in the blue boxes below. The white boxes give you examples of where these ideas appear in our founding documents, the writings of the Founding Fathers, and the scholarly writings that influenced our founding. We link you to resources where you can learn more, and invite you to explore our site, especially our Freedom 101 and Project Mainspring links ...” http://www.citizensoldier.org/foundation.html
*
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Strikes me as support for a capitalist system.
No support in this lecture for the recent heresy spread by some American Roman Catholic bishops that their imagined dogma of being anti-abortion supersedes all other dogmas of The Church. And one wonders how much support the Papal call to international social activism will find among the those who have bought into that peculiar American heresy because it furthers their anti-Obama political agenda.Kolokotronis - please amplify, what is the 'heresy' you allege and why should anyone not be "anti-Obama", in your opinion?
Yep!
It doesn't supercede any other dogma, like like you and I discussed a few times now.
Ronald Reagan “Shining City” speech at the first CPAC conference in 1974.
“We cannot escape our destiny, nor should we try to do so. The leadership of the free world was thrust upon us two centuries ago in that little hall of Philadelphia. In the days following World War II, when the economic strength and power of America was all that stood between the world and the return to the dark ages, Pope Pius XII said, ‘The American people have a great genius for splendid and unselfish actions. Into the hands of America God has placed the destinies of an afflicted mankind.’”
“We are indeed, and we are today, the last best hope of man on earth.”
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Main excerpt(s):
“...[back] when societies were governed by the inhuman principle: “cuius regio eius religio”. By virtue of this principle, rulers forcibly imposed their own religious convictions on their subjects, violating the basic rights of conscience.
RIGHTS OF CONSCIENCE MUST BE DEFENDED
Pope John Paul II
http://www.ewtn.com/library/PAPALDOC/JP2RTCON.HTM
Homily given on May 22, 1995
....in the difficult post-Reformation period, when societies were governed by the inhuman principle: “cuius regio eius religio”. By virtue of this principle, rulers forcibly imposed their own religious convictions on their subjects, violating the basic rights of conscience. .....
[..]
... One can feel either admiration or hatred for someone who prefers to give his life rather than betray the voice of his own conscience, but certainly one cannot remain indifferent. The martyrs have so many things to tell us; first and foremost, they challenge us about the state of our conscience, they challenge everyone about fidelity to their own conscience.
Our consciences must be based on truth. Conscience...[is called] “man’s most secret core, and his sanctuary” and explains: “Deep within his conscience man discovers a law which he has not laid upon himself but which he must obey. Its voice, ever calling him to love and to do what is good and to avoid evil, tells him inwardly at the right moment: do this, shun that” (Gaudium et spes, n. 16).
As we see from this quotation, conscience is a vitally important issue for every individual. It is our inner guide and also the judge of our actions. How important it is therefore for our conscience to be upright, to make judgements based on truth, to call good and evil, to know howin the Apostle’s wordsto “prove what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect” (Rom 12:2).
Today our homeland is facing many difficult social, economic and political problems. They must be solved with wisdom and perseverance. The most important of all, however, remains the problem of a just moral order. This order is the foundation of every individual’s life and of the life of every society. For this reason, today Poland urgently and primarily needs men and women of conscience!
To be a person of conscience means first of all, obeying one’s own conscience in every situation and not silencing its inner voice, even if it is sometimes severe and demanding. It means working for what is good and increasing it within and around oneself, and never giving into evil, in the spirit of St. Paul’s words: “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good” (Rom 12:21).
To be a person of conscience means being demanding with oneself, getting up again after falling, being ever converted anew.
To be a person of conscience means working to build up the kingdom of Godthe kingdom of truth and life, of justice, love and peacein our families, in the communities in which we live and throughout our homeland. It also means courageously assuming responsibility for public affairs; it means being concerned for the common good and not closing our eyes to the misery and needs of our neighbor, in a spirit of Gospel solidarity: “Bear one another’s burdens” (Gal 6:2).
...Our 20th century has been a period in which human consciences have been particularly violated. In the name of totalitarian ideologies, millions of people were forced to act against their deepest convictions. Central and Eastern Europe has had unusually painful experiences in this respect. We recall this period when consciences were suppressed, when human dignity was despised, when so many innocent people suffered for deciding to remain faithful to their convictions. We recall the outstanding role taken in those difficult times by the Church in defending the rights of conscience, and not only for the benefit of believers.
In those years we often asked ourselves: Can history swim against the tide of conscience? At what price can it do so? I ask again: at what price?... This price is unfortunately the deep wounds in the nation’s moral fiber, open wounds which still need a long time to heal.
Those times, times of great trial for conscience must be remembered, since for us they are an ever timely warning and exhortation to vigilance: that Polish consciences may not yield to demoralization, that they may not surrender to the trends of moral permissiveness, that they may discover the liberating nature of the teaching of the Gospel and the commandments of God, that in making decisions they may be mindful of Christ’s warning: “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his life? For what can a man give in return for his life?” (Mk 8:36-37).
Despite appearances, the rights of conscience must be defended today as well. In the name of tolerance, a powerful intolerance, perhaps an ever more powerful intolerance, is actually spreading in public life and in the mass media. Believers are painfully aware of it. They notice the increasing tendency to marginalize them from the life of society: what is most sacred to them is sometimes mocked and ridiculed. These forms of recurring discrimination arouse great concern and should be a cause for much reflection.
Brothers and sisters! .... do not forget that this life depends first of all on how man will be, on how his conscience will be. Therefore we cry out in prayer:
“Come, Holy Spirit...
Come, Light of men’s hearts.
Wash clean the sinful soul, rain down your grace on the parched soul...
Warm the ice-cold heart, and give direction to the wayward”. Come, Light of consciences!
Christ’s Cross is the sign of our salvation
“Stat crux dum volvitur orbis”. On the paths of the human conscience, which are sometimes so difficult and complicated, God has put up a great “road sign” giving definitive meaning and direction to human life. It is the Cross of our Lord Jesus Christ. ..
Hail, O Cross of Christ! The Cross of Christ is the sign of our salvation, the sign of our faith and the sign of our hope. St. Paul writes: “We preach Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and folly to Gentiles, but to those who are called... the power of God and the wisdom of God” (1 Cor 1:23-24).
The Cross reminds us of the price of our salvation. It speaks of what great value man has in God’s eyesevery man!if God loved him even unto the Cross: “Having loved his own who were in the world, he loved them to the end” (Jn 13:1). How much this “to the end” says to us. God so loves, he loves man “to the end”. The Cross of Christ is precisely the proof of this. Can we remain indifferent to such a proof of love?
Dear brothers and sisters! In our Polish land the Cross has had its own history now for over 1,000 years. It is the history of salvation which has been written into the history of the great human community that is our nation. Down the centuries, in periods of very harsh trial, the nation has sought and found the strength to survive and to rise from its historical defeats precisely in the Cross of Christ! It has never been disappointed! The strength and wisdom of the Cross has been strong! Can that be forgotten?
“...Can one reject Christ and all that he has brought to human history? .. Certainly one can. Man is free. Man can say ‘no’ to Christ. But the basic question remains: is it licit to do this? In whose name is this licit? By virtue of what rational argument, what value close to one’s will and heart would it be possible to stand before oneself, one’s neighbor, one’s fellow citizens, one’s country, in order to cast off, to say ‘no’ to all that we have seen for 1,000 years? To all that has created and always constituted the basis of our identity?
Today, as Poland lays the foundations for its free and sovereign existence, after experiencing so many years of totalitarianism, these words must be recalled. In their light, 16 years later, a profound examination of conscience must be made: Where are we going? In what direction are consciences heading? What answer will Poland give to Christ?
Dear brothers and sisters, dear compatriots! At this great turning-point in our country’s history, as the future shape of our Republic is being decided, the Pope, your compatriot, tirelessly asks you to welcome anew, with faith and love, this legacy of Christ’s Cross. Once again, in a free and mature way, choose the Cross of Christ.... Accept responsibility for the presence of the Cross in the life of each and every one of you, in the life of your families and in the life of this great community which is Poland. Defend it! For the Apostle says: “We have this treasure in earthen vessels” (2 Cor 4:7). ....
...And here, in our presence, at the end of this meditation, is the Christ of St. John’s Revelation, Christ the Good Shepherd and Christ the Lamb of God, who gave his life for his flock (cf. Rv 7:9-14). ...Amen.
***No support in this lecture for the recent heresy spread by some American Roman Catholic bishops that their imagined dogma of being anti-abortion supersedes all other dogmas of The Church.***
The general air of being anti abortion is a recent discovery of the USCCB.
***And one wonders how much support the Papal call to international social activism will find among the those who have bought into that peculiar American heresy because it furthers their anti-Obama political agenda.***
The misapplication of international social activism has gotten us into much of the mess that we find ourselves in.
***For Christians who regularly ask God to “give us this day our daily bread”, it is a shameful tragedy that one-fifth of humanity still goes hungry. Assuring an adequate food supply, like the protection of vital resources such as water and energy, requires all international leaders to collaborate in showing a readiness to work in good faith, respecting the natural law and promoting solidarity and subsidiarity with the weakest regions and peoples of the planet as the most effective strategy for eliminating social inequalities between countries and societies and for increasing global security.”***
The world overproduces food. The problem in the last two centuries have all been either directly manmade such as the mass starvation in Ukraine, or enhanced by the authorities such as the mass starvation in Biafra. The mistakes made in the past century have often centered on revolutionary theology where the clergy took on the role of Che Guevara. Either that, or we have gone in with guns to overthrow the current dictator and replace him with a worse one.
BXVI is right; we have the entire doctrine of the Church to obey, and not just the current headlines.
Great post!
If you work hard and are smart with your money you will please the Lord. You will not be in need from anyone and will have a profit you can share, if you choose to.
I seem to remember the Lord only asks for 10%!
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