Pope to Academy for Life: Promote
humanism of fraternity
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| Pontìfical Academy for Life. |
On the 25th anniversary of the foundation of the Pontifical
Academy for Life, Pope Francis calls on its members to promote human fraternity
and a humanism of life.
By Christopher Wells
Pope Francis made the “human community” the focus of a
letter addressed to the President of the Pontifical Academy for Life on the 25th anniversary
of its foundation by Pope St John Paul II.
God's dream
“The human community is God’s dream even from before the
creation of the world,” the Pope said, emphasizing that we must “grow in the
awareness of our common origin in God’s love and creative act.” He explained
that “in our time, the Church is called once more to propose the humanism of
the life that bursts forth from God’s passion for human beings.”
A state of emergency
After briefly reviewing the history of the Pontifical
Academy for Life, Pope Francis went on to outline the “serious obstacles”
facing humanity today. In particular, he noted the “state of emergency existing
in our relationship with the history of the earth and its peoples.” This
emergency, rooted in concern for oneself at the expense of the common good, has
led to a paradox: despite rapid economic and technological progress, humanity
finds itself “creating our most bitter divisions and our worst nightmares.”
A difficult task for the Church
In response, the Pope said, the Church is called to react
against the negativity that “foments division, indifference, and hostility.”
This is a difficult task for the Church, which is in danger of failing to
recognize the gravity of the contemporary emergency. “It’s time,” he said, “for
a new vision aimed at promoting a humanism of fraternity and solidarity between
individuals and peoples.”
Speaking of the future of the Academy, Pope Francis said,
“We need to enter into the language of men and women today, making the Gospel
message incarnate in their concrete experience.” He expressed his hope that the
Pontifical Academy for Life might be “a place for courageous dialogue in the
service of the common good.” In particular, the Pope spoke of the importance of
seeking universal criteria for making decisions, as well as a deepening
understanding of the relationship between rights and duties. He called, too,
for continued study of “emergent” and “convergent” technologies, mentioning
specifically information and communication technologies, biotechnologies,
nanotechnologies, and robotics.
The unkept promise of modernity
Finally, Pope Francis said, “The kind of medicine, economy,
technology, and politics that develop within the modern city of man must also,
above all, remain subject to the judgment rendered by the peripheries of the
earth.” We should remember, he said, “that fraternity remains the unkept
promise of modernity.”
“The strengthening of fraternity,” he said in conclusion,
“generated in the human family by the worship of God in spirit and truth, is
the new frontier of Christianity.”
Read the full text of Pope Francis' Letter to
the President of the Pontifical Academy for Life for the 25th
Anniversary of the Establishment of the Academy.
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