Excerpts from Evangelium Vitae, The Gospel of Life
“The Second Vatican Council in a passage which retains all its relevance today, forcefully condemned a number of crimes and attacks against human life. Thirty years later taking up the words of the Council and with the same forcefulness I repeat that condemnation in the name of the whole Church, certain that I am interpreting the genuine sentiment of every upright conscience: “Whatever is opposed to life itself, such as any type of murder, genocide, abortion, euthanasia or willful self-destruction, whatever violates the integrity of the human person …whatever insults human dignity… whereas people are treated as mere instruments of gain rather than as free and responsible persons; all these things and others like them are infamies indeed. Moreover, they are a supreme dishonor to the Creator.”
“No word has the power to change the reality of things: procured abortion is the deliberate and direct killing, by whatever means it is carried out, of a human being in the initial phase of his or her existence.” (Evangelium Vitae, Section 58)
“American Catholics must be committed to the defense of life in all its stages and in every condition. Abortion, euthanasia are thus crimes which no human law can claim to legitimize. There is no obligation in conscience to obey such laws; instead there is a grave and clear obligation to oppose them.”
“Thus the deepest element of God’s commandment to protect human life is the requirement to show reverence and love for every person and the life of every person. This is the teaching which the Apostle Paul, echoing the words of Jesus, addresses to the Christians in Rome: ‘The commandments, You shall not commit adultery, You shall not kill, You shall not steal, You shall not covet, and any other commandment are summed up in this sentence, You shall love your neighbor as yourself. Love does no wrong to a neighbor, therefore love is the fulfilling of the law.’ (Rom 13:9-10)