Consistent Life Ethic
Encyclopedia
The consistent life ethic, or the consistent ethic of life, was a term coined in 1983 by Joseph Cardinal Bernardin to express an ethical, religious, and political ideology
based on the premise that all human life was sacred and should be protected by law. The ideology opposes legal abortion
, capital punishment
, assisted suicide
, economic injustice, and euthanasia
. Adherents are opposed, at the very least, to unjust war
, while some adherents also profess pacifism
, or opposition to all war.
developed the CLE idea in 1983. Initially, Bernardin spoke out against nuclear war and abortion. However, he quickly expanded the scope of his view to include all aspects of human life (according to the church's definition). In one of the first speeches given on the topic at Fordham University, Bernardin said: "The spectrum of life cuts across the issues of genetics, abortion, capital punishment, modern warfare and the care of the terminally ill." Bernardin said that although each of the issues was distinct (euthanasia, for example, was not the same as abortion), nevertheless the issues were linked since the valuing and defending of (human) life (according to the Catholic definition) were, he believed, at the center of both issues. Cardinal Bernardin told an audience in Portland, Oregon: "When human life is considered 'cheap' or easily expendable in one area, eventually nothing is held as sacred and all lives are in jeopardy."
Bernardin drew his stance from New Testament principles, specifically of forgiveness and reconciliation, yet he argued that neither the themes nor the content generated from those themes were specifically Christian. By doing this, Bernardin attempted to create a dialogue with others who were not necessarily aligned with Christianity.
. In addition, Bernardin argued that since the 1950s the church had moved against its own historical, casuistic
exceptions to the protection of life. "To summarize the shift succinctly, the presumption against taking human life has been strengthened and the exceptions made ever more restrictive." Bernardin and other CEL advocates recognize the right of the state to use capital punishment. However, they reject the necessity of this type of punishment for many reasons, arguing that there are more appropriate and effective ways for the state to defend its people.
Traditionally, arguments for the death penalty focus on the idea that it:
The consistent ethic's opposition to capital punishment
is rooted in the conviction that an atmosphere of respect for life must pervade a society, and resorting to the death penalty does not support this attitude. Adherents argue that the result of the death penalty - removing the criminal from society, enacting justice on the criminal, and bringing about feelings of revenge for those affected and the greater society - do not necessarily have to be accomplished by taking a life.
This viewpoint was especially emphasized by Pope John Paul II in his encyclical, 'Evangelicum Vitae' (1995). In English, the title means 'Gospel of Life.' This book-length document outlined the Pope's emphasis on fostering a culture of life based on the New Testament and the life of Jesus. Specifically, he emphasized the value and inviolability of human life.
One of today's most out-spoken and prominent anti-death penalty activists is Helen Prejean
. Prejean is a Roman Catholic Sister of St. Joseph of Medaille. Her books Dead Man Walking and The Death of Innocents: An Eyewitness Account to Wrongful Executions are autobiographical accounts of the time she spent ministering to death row inmates. She also has close ties to the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
, and is the founder of the Moratorium Campaign. Today, Prejean tours around the United States and the world giving talks on social justice, the death penalty, and her experiences. She is fiercely pro-life, and at all times echoes Pope John Paul II's sentiments: "The pope says we should be unconditionally pro-life; against abortion, against euthanasia, against suicide and (that means also) against the death penalty."
, Daniel Berrigan
, Philip Berrigan
, actress Patricia Heaton
, novelist Wendell Berry
, the current Dalai Lama
Tenzin Gyatso, and Village Voice columnist Nat Hentoff
.
In the United States, several organizations have promoted the "consistent ethic of life" approach, including many Vatican-sanctioned Catholic groups, such as the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, as well as independent groups. Two other notable independent Catholic anti-death penalty organizations are Priests for Life and Catholics Against Capital Punishment(CACP). These organizations cite the Catholic catechism, the Bible, and Vatican documents as support for their anti-death penalty and "consistent ethic of life" teachings. There are also broader coalitions, such as Consistent Life, founded in 1987 as the Seamless Garment Network. The ethic and its organizational expressions are difficult to define in terms of the conventional U.S. political spectrum, since those who subscribe to the ethic are often at odds with both the right wing over capital punishment, war, and economic issues and the left wing over abortion, embryo-destructive research, and euthanasia.
In 1971, Roman Catholic pacifist Eileen Egan
used St. John the Apostle's phrase the seamless garment
, referring to describe a holistic reverence for life. The seamless garment of life is a reference from John 19:23 to the seamless robe of Jesus
, which his executioners did not tear apart. The seamless garment philosophy holds that issues such as abortion, capital punishment, militarism, euthanasia, social injustice, and economic injustice all demand a consistent application of moral principles that value the sacredness of human life. "The protection of life", said Egan, "is a seamless garment. You can't protect some life and not others." Her words were meant to challenge members of the pro-life
movement, as well as those who are in favor of capital punishment
, to adopt a consistent life ethic. Egan's view was that there is a unity of Catholic teaching when it comes to human life.
Independent U. S. Presidential candidate Joseph C. Schriner has made the Consistent Life Ethic an important focus of his campaign in his bids in 2000, 2004, 2008, and for 2012.
, "the seamless garment has turned out to be nothing but a loophole for hypocritical Catholic politicians. If anything", he adds, "it has actually made it easier for them than for non-Catholics to give their effective support to legalized abortion—that is, it has allowed them to be inconsistent and unprincipled about the very issues that Cardinal Bernardin said demand consistency and principle".
Regarding the Church's position on the death penalty, Cardinal Ratzinger wrote in 2004 that Catholics could have a legitimate diversity of opinions on the matter, but that any similar dissent on abortion or euthanasia would not be legitimized on the same level as debate on capital punishment might be.
, an American bioethicist, has described the consistent life ethic as an effort "to impose a particular set of theological values upon society-at-large" under the guise of a moral philosophy that is "no less misguided than the Inquisition or the Crusades."
Ideology
An ideology is a set of ideas that constitutes one's goals, expectations, and actions. An ideology can be thought of as a comprehensive vision, as a way of looking at things , as in common sense and several philosophical tendencies , or a set of ideas proposed by the dominant class of a society to...
based on the premise that all human life was sacred and should be protected by law. The ideology opposes legal abortion
Abortion
Abortion is defined as the termination of pregnancy by the removal or expulsion from the uterus of a fetus or embryo prior to viability. An abortion can occur spontaneously, in which case it is usually called a miscarriage, or it can be purposely induced...
, capital punishment
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
, assisted suicide
Assisted suicide
Assisted suicide is the common term for actions by which an individual helps another person voluntarily bring about his or her own death. "Assistance" may mean providing one with the means to end one's own life, but may extend to other actions. It differs to euthanasia where another person ends...
, economic injustice, and euthanasia
Euthanasia
Euthanasia refers to the practice of intentionally ending a life in order to relieve pain and suffering....
. Adherents are opposed, at the very least, to unjust war
Just War
Just war theory is a doctrine of military ethics of Roman philosophical and Catholic origin, studied by moral theologians, ethicists and international policy makers, which holds that a conflict ought to meet philosophical, religious or political criteria.-Origins:The concept of justification for...
, while some adherents also profess pacifism
Pacifism
Pacifism is the opposition to war and violence. The term "pacifism" was coined by the French peace campaignerÉmile Arnaud and adopted by other peace activists at the tenth Universal Peace Congress inGlasgow in 1901.- Definition :...
, or opposition to all war.
Joseph Cardinal Bernardin
Joseph Cardinal Bernardin (April 2, 1928–November 14, 1996) of ChicagoRoman Catholic Archdiocese of Chicago
The Archdiocese of Chicago was established as a diocese in 1843 and as an Archdiocese in 1880. It serves more than 2.3 million Catholics in Cook and Lake counties in Northeastern Illinois, a geographic area of 1,411 square miles. The Archdiocese is divided into six vicariates and 31 deaneries...
developed the CLE idea in 1983. Initially, Bernardin spoke out against nuclear war and abortion. However, he quickly expanded the scope of his view to include all aspects of human life (according to the church's definition). In one of the first speeches given on the topic at Fordham University, Bernardin said: "The spectrum of life cuts across the issues of genetics, abortion, capital punishment, modern warfare and the care of the terminally ill." Bernardin said that although each of the issues was distinct (euthanasia, for example, was not the same as abortion), nevertheless the issues were linked since the valuing and defending of (human) life (according to the Catholic definition) were, he believed, at the center of both issues. Cardinal Bernardin told an audience in Portland, Oregon: "When human life is considered 'cheap' or easily expendable in one area, eventually nothing is held as sacred and all lives are in jeopardy."
Bernardin drew his stance from New Testament principles, specifically of forgiveness and reconciliation, yet he argued that neither the themes nor the content generated from those themes were specifically Christian. By doing this, Bernardin attempted to create a dialogue with others who were not necessarily aligned with Christianity.
Consistent Life and the death penalty
Bernardin and other advocates of this ethic sought to form a consistent policy that would link abortion, capital punishment, economic injustice, euthanasia, and unjust war. Bernardin sought to unify conservative Catholics (who opposed abortion) and liberal Catholics (who opposed capital punishment) in the United States. By relying on fundamental principles, Bernardin also sought to coordinate work on several different spheres of Catholic moral theologyMoral theology
Moral theology is a systematic theological treatment of Christian ethics. It is usually taught on Divinity faculties as a part of the basic curriculum.- External links :*...
. In addition, Bernardin argued that since the 1950s the church had moved against its own historical, casuistic
Casuistry
In applied ethics, casuistry is case-based reasoning. Casuistry is used in juridical and ethical discussions of law and ethics, and often is a critique of principle- or rule-based reasoning...
exceptions to the protection of life. "To summarize the shift succinctly, the presumption against taking human life has been strengthened and the exceptions made ever more restrictive." Bernardin and other CEL advocates recognize the right of the state to use capital punishment. However, they reject the necessity of this type of punishment for many reasons, arguing that there are more appropriate and effective ways for the state to defend its people.
Traditionally, arguments for the death penalty focus on the idea that it:
- deters further violence
- enacts just retribution on the criminal (effectively gaining a sense of revenge for society or specifically those affected by the crime)
- seeks to reform other criminals with the threat of such severe punishment
- and, protects society from those criminals which the government has deemed to be the most heinous
The consistent ethic's opposition to capital punishment
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
is rooted in the conviction that an atmosphere of respect for life must pervade a society, and resorting to the death penalty does not support this attitude. Adherents argue that the result of the death penalty - removing the criminal from society, enacting justice on the criminal, and bringing about feelings of revenge for those affected and the greater society - do not necessarily have to be accomplished by taking a life.
This viewpoint was especially emphasized by Pope John Paul II in his encyclical, 'Evangelicum Vitae' (1995). In English, the title means 'Gospel of Life.' This book-length document outlined the Pope's emphasis on fostering a culture of life based on the New Testament and the life of Jesus. Specifically, he emphasized the value and inviolability of human life.
One of today's most out-spoken and prominent anti-death penalty activists is Helen Prejean
Helen Prejean
Sister Helen Prejean, C.S.J., is a Roman Catholic religious sister, a member of the Congregation of St. Joseph, who has become a leading American advocate for the abolition of the death penalty.-Death row ministry:...
. Prejean is a Roman Catholic Sister of St. Joseph of Medaille. Her books Dead Man Walking and The Death of Innocents: An Eyewitness Account to Wrongful Executions are autobiographical accounts of the time she spent ministering to death row inmates. She also has close ties to the National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty
The National Coalition to Abolish the Death Penalty is a large organization dedicated to the abolition of the death penalty in the United States...
, and is the founder of the Moratorium Campaign. Today, Prejean tours around the United States and the world giving talks on social justice, the death penalty, and her experiences. She is fiercely pro-life, and at all times echoes Pope John Paul II's sentiments: "The pope says we should be unconditionally pro-life; against abortion, against euthanasia, against suicide and (that means also) against the death penalty."
Other supporters
Notable exponents, according to the Consistent Life organization, include Eileen EganEileen Egan
Eileen Egan was a journalist, Roman Catholic pacifist and activist, and co-founder of the Catholic peace group, American PAX Association and its successor Pax Christi-USA, the American branch of International Pax Christi...
, Daniel Berrigan
Daniel Berrigan
Daniel Berrigan, SJ is an American Catholic priest, peace activist, and poet. Daniel and his brother Philip were for a time on the FBI Ten Most Wanted Fugitives list for their involvement in antiwar protests during the Vietnam war....
, Philip Berrigan
Philip Berrigan
Philip Francis Berrigan was an internationally renowned American peace activist, Christian anarchist and former Roman Catholic priest...
, actress Patricia Heaton
Patricia Heaton
Patricia Helen Heaton is an American actress, comedienne, producer and model, best known for portraying Debra Barone on the CBS sitcom Everybody Loves Raymond from 1996 to 2005, for which she won two Emmy Awards....
, novelist Wendell Berry
Wendell Berry
Wendell Berry is an American man of letters, academic, cultural and economic critic, and farmer. He is a prolific author of novels, short stories, poems, and essays...
, the current Dalai Lama
Dalai Lama
The Dalai Lama is a high lama in the Gelug or "Yellow Hat" branch of Tibetan Buddhism. The name is a combination of the Mongolian word далай meaning "Ocean" and the Tibetan word bla-ma meaning "teacher"...
Tenzin Gyatso, and Village Voice columnist Nat Hentoff
Nat Hentoff
Nathan Irving "Nat" Hentoff is an American historian, novelist, jazz and country music critic, and syndicated columnist for United Media and writes regularly on jazz and country music for The Wall Street Journal....
.
In the United States, several organizations have promoted the "consistent ethic of life" approach, including many Vatican-sanctioned Catholic groups, such as the National Conference of Catholic Bishops, as well as independent groups. Two other notable independent Catholic anti-death penalty organizations are Priests for Life and Catholics Against Capital Punishment(CACP). These organizations cite the Catholic catechism, the Bible, and Vatican documents as support for their anti-death penalty and "consistent ethic of life" teachings. There are also broader coalitions, such as Consistent Life, founded in 1987 as the Seamless Garment Network. The ethic and its organizational expressions are difficult to define in terms of the conventional U.S. political spectrum, since those who subscribe to the ethic are often at odds with both the right wing over capital punishment, war, and economic issues and the left wing over abortion, embryo-destructive research, and euthanasia.
In 1971, Roman Catholic pacifist Eileen Egan
Eileen Egan
Eileen Egan was a journalist, Roman Catholic pacifist and activist, and co-founder of the Catholic peace group, American PAX Association and its successor Pax Christi-USA, the American branch of International Pax Christi...
used St. John the Apostle's phrase the seamless garment
Seamless robe of Jesus
The Seamless Robe of Jesus is the robe said to have been worn by Jesus during his crucifixion...
, referring to describe a holistic reverence for life. The seamless garment of life is a reference from John 19:23 to the seamless robe of Jesus
Seamless robe of Jesus
The Seamless Robe of Jesus is the robe said to have been worn by Jesus during his crucifixion...
, which his executioners did not tear apart. The seamless garment philosophy holds that issues such as abortion, capital punishment, militarism, euthanasia, social injustice, and economic injustice all demand a consistent application of moral principles that value the sacredness of human life. "The protection of life", said Egan, "is a seamless garment. You can't protect some life and not others." Her words were meant to challenge members of the pro-life
Pro-life
Opposition to the legalization of abortion is centered around the pro-life, or anti-abortion, movement, a social and political movement opposing elective abortion on moral grounds and supporting its legal prohibition or restriction...
movement, as well as those who are in favor of capital punishment
Capital punishment
Capital punishment, the death penalty, or execution is the sentence of death upon a person by the state as a punishment for an offence. Crimes that can result in a death penalty are known as capital crimes or capital offences. The term capital originates from the Latin capitalis, literally...
, to adopt a consistent life ethic. Egan's view was that there is a unity of Catholic teaching when it comes to human life.
Independent U. S. Presidential candidate Joseph C. Schriner has made the Consistent Life Ethic an important focus of his campaign in his bids in 2000, 2004, 2008, and for 2012.
Right-wing criticisms
According to writer Joseph SobranJoseph Sobran
Michael Joseph Sobran, Jr. was an American journalist and writer, formerly with National Review and a syndicated columnist, known as Joe Sobran. Pundit Pat Buchanan called Sobran "perhaps the finest columnist of our generation", although Sobran was fired from National Review by his one-time mentor...
, "the seamless garment has turned out to be nothing but a loophole for hypocritical Catholic politicians. If anything", he adds, "it has actually made it easier for them than for non-Catholics to give their effective support to legalized abortion—that is, it has allowed them to be inconsistent and unprincipled about the very issues that Cardinal Bernardin said demand consistency and principle".
Regarding the Church's position on the death penalty, Cardinal Ratzinger wrote in 2004 that Catholics could have a legitimate diversity of opinions on the matter, but that any similar dissent on abortion or euthanasia would not be legitimized on the same level as debate on capital punishment might be.
If a Catholic were to be at odds with the Holy Father on the application of capital punishment or on the decision to wage war, he would not for that reason be considered unworthy to present himself to receive Holy Communion. While the Church exhorts civil authorities to seek peace, not war, and to exercise discretion and mercy in imposing punishment on criminals, it may still be permissible to take up arms to repel an aggressor or to have recourse to capital punishment. There may be a legitimate diversity of opinion even among Catholics about waging war and applying the death penalty, but not however with regard to abortion and euthanasia.
Left-wing criticisms
Jacob AppelJacob M. Appel
Jacob M. Appel is an American author, bioethicist and social critic. He is best known for his short stories, his work as a playwright, and his writing in the fields of reproductive ethics, organ donation, neuroethics and euthanasia....
, an American bioethicist, has described the consistent life ethic as an effort "to impose a particular set of theological values upon society-at-large" under the guise of a moral philosophy that is "no less misguided than the Inquisition or the Crusades."
See also
- Culture of lifeCulture of lifeThe phrase "culture of life" is a term used in discussion of moral theology, especially of the Catholic Church. Its proponents describe it as a way of life based upon the theological truth that human life at all stages from conception through natural death is sacred...
- AhimsaAhimsaAhimsa is a term meaning to do no harm . The word is derived from the Sanskrit root hims – to strike; himsa is injury or harm, a-himsa is the opposite of this, i.e. non harming or nonviolence. It is an important tenet of the Indian religions...
- Christian democracyChristian DemocracyChristian democracy is a political ideology that seeks to apply Christian principles to public policy. It emerged in nineteenth-century Europe under the influence of conservatism and Catholic social teaching...
- Reverence for LifeReverence for LifeThe phrase Reverence for Life is a translation of the German phrase: ""...
- Pro-life feminismPro-life feminismPro-life feminism is the opposition to abortion by a group of feminists who believe that the principles which inform their support of women's rights also call them to support the right to life of prenatal humans...
- Hardline (subculture)
- Death penalty
External links
- All Our Lives. (advocacy for nonabortion/abortion-reducing reproductive choices; global in scope)
- Consistent Life
- Index of articles