PopeWatch: A Summary of “Dignitas Infinita”: Part Three

21.  Consequently, the Church believes and affirms that all human beings—created in the image and likeness of God and recreated^[34] in the Son, who became man, was crucified, and rose again—are called to grow under the action of the Holy Spirit to reflect the glory of the Father in that same image and to share in eternal life (cf. Jn. 10:15-16, 17:22-24; 2 Cor. 3:18; Eph. 1:3-14). Indeed, “Revelation ^[…] shows forth the dignity of the human person in all its fullness.”^[35]

We see in this passage what an awkward term dignity is.  In Baptism we are redeemed from sin.  Any “dignity” we have is almost entirely a reflection of our relationship with God.

22.  Every individual possesses an inalienable and intrinsic dignity from the beginning of his or her existence as an irrevocable gift. However, the choice to express that dignity and manifest it to the full or to obscure it depends on each person’s free and responsible decision.

And here we see how slippery the phrase “inalienable and intrinsic dignity’ is.  Assuming this is true, how can our actions “obscure” it?  Get away from the concepts of grace and sin, very clear terms in the history of the Church, and we are left with a college bull session that has gone on way too long.

23.  As Pope Francis has recalled, “In modern culture, the closest reference to the principle of the inalienable dignity of the person is the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which Saint John Paul II defined as a ‘milestone on the long and difficult path of the human race,’ and as ‘one of the highest expressions of the human conscience.’”^[38] To resist attempts to alter or annul the profound meaning of that Declaration, it is worth recalling some essential principles that must always be honored.

Back to the UN again.  It is an indication that something is very wrong when a Vatican document continually goes back to a mendacious tower of wind like the UN.

24.  On the contrary, the Church insists that the dignity of every human person, precisely because it is intrinsic, remains “in all circumstances.” 

Even in Hell?  Now as a matter of pragmatism, or aspiration, one may wish to assign general rights to humanity.  However, that merely underlines that a phrase like “the dignity of every human person” is an empty bag to be filled.  Jefferson in the Declaration immediately names some of the inalienable rights postulated by him to be granted by the Creator.  An empty bag can be filled with many things, and that is the problem with the concept.

25.  Therefore, the duties that stem from recognizing the dignity of the other and the corresponding rights that flow from it have a concrete and objective content based on our shared human nature. Without such an objective basis, the concept of dignity becomes de facto subject to the most diverse forms of arbitrariness and power interests.

At least the Cardinal recognizes the problem.  His solution is a verbal sleight of hand which will satisfy no one other than those predisposed to agree with him.  In this area, only a “Thus sayeth the Lord” can raise an opinion into a Law, and the UN is never a substitute for the Lord.

26.  In fact, as Pope St. John Paul II recalled, freedom is placed “at the service of the person and of his fulfillment through the gift of self and openness to others; but when freedom is made absolute in an individualistic way, it is emptied of its original content, and its very meaning and dignity are contradicted.”^[42]

Freedom, like anything else, can be abused.  The freedom to kill an unborn child is a classic case in point.  The Libertarian “so long as I do no harm to others” is superficially attractive, until we recall that by harming themselves people usually harm others as a consequence.  Philosophical musings in this area tend to become circular rapidly, with freedom being restricted in areas where the muser wishes it to be restricted and not in areas where he does not wish freedom to be restricted.

27.  Human dignity also encompasses the capacity, inherent in human nature, to assume obligations vis-à-vis others. 

A tricky area.  Obligations freely assumed are one thing;  obligations imposed are another.  It likely is a safe assumption that the Mom and Dad who were just sentenced to ten and fifteen years apiece, because their brat murdered four of his classmates in a school in Michigan, freely assumed the obligation of being parents, and are now shocked to learn that includes going to prison for murders they did not commit.

And he said, Woe unto you also, ye lawyers! for ye lade men with burdens grievous to be borne, and ye yourselves touch not the burdens with one of your fingers.

Luke 11: 46

28.  The difference between humans and all other living beings, which stands out thanks to the concept of dignity, should not lead us to forget the goodness of other creatures.

Can’t forget our furry friends!  How twenty-first century.  Incomprehensible to the vast majority of humanity in all times who live life closer to the bone in a day to day struggle to get enough food.

29.  In his letter to the Galatians, St. Paul affirms that “for freedom, Christ has set us free” (Gal. 5:1), recalling the task proper to each Christian, on whose shoulders rests a responsibility for liberation that extends to the whole world (cf. Rom. 8:19ff). This is a liberation that, starting from the hearts of individual people, is called to spread and manifest its humanizing power across all relationships.

Proof that Saint Paul should never be mentioned by a theological lightweight.

30.  Freedom is a marvelous gift from God. Even when God draws us to him with his grace, he does so in a way that never violates our freedom. Thus, it would be a grave error to think that by distancing ourselves from God and his assistance, we could somehow be freer and thus feel more dignified. Instead, detached from the Creator, our freedom can only weaken and become obscured. 

True enough:

Of course the Dathans will say that restricting freedom in the name of God is the negation of freedom.  False prophets throughout history indicate that they are half right.

More tomorrow.  Go here to read the passages summarized.