Christifidelis Laici 38

It has been Bishop Callahan's desire that we focus in the Diocese of La Crosse on Pope St. John Paul the Great's exhortation on the laity; this is in order to better inform and better direct the considerable energies of our laity in the Diocese of La Crosse.  I have been writing weekly bulletin articles covering this exhortation section by section over the last year; I have even included some of these in this format from time to time.  Here is the latest...

     Last week, in reflecting on paragraph 38 of Pope St. John Paul the Great’s wonderful exhortation on the laity, we recognized that the inviolability of human life comes from God’s own inviolability and the fact of our being made in His own image and likeness.  We also recognized that while God’s inviolability is protected by His very nature, ours must be protected by our continued witness and defense of that inviolability.  Thus, the Church’s constant efforts at witnessing to the right to life, from conception to natural death, and in every condition.

     So, it was of great interest to me when I read, this past week, both in the news and in social media, of this inviolability being used as a reason for why our communities should NOT be opening up.  Those making the argument were positing that if we really were pro-life we would not be supporting the opening up of our community because someone might (in their rhetoric: surely would) contract the Covid-19 virus and die.

     This, sadly, is a mis-application of this fundamental principle; and ironically it was being made by the same people who will pass any abortion legislation that comes before them!  So, what is the proper application of this principle in this concrete situation?

     We must recognize, just as we do in other medical situations, that there are trade-offs which must be considered in every, individual situation.  There are risks to life and limb in so many of the decisions we make every day, whether in a medical context, or even just in our everyday life which must be considered and decided upon.

     Just as in a medical context we must weigh the benefit of a treatment with the burden that it may bring with it, so in our public lives we do the same.  Just as in a medical context we must avoid the extremes of maintaining life for the sake of maintaining it or deciding to cut a life short because we just can’t bear the thought of going forward, so in our civic life we must avoid the extremes of shutting down out of fear for one person dying (or 100,000 within a larger grouping of hundreds of millions) and just living life as we always have with no concern for anyone other than ourselves.

     So, our challenge for this week is:  In my daily choices, do I recognize the need to weigh the benefits and the burdens?  Furthermore, am I respectful of the feelings and fears of others as I seek to participate in my community in a manner that gives witness to my love for my neighbor?