Mr. Salter
Morality
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Pope JP II in The Gospel of Life - is the encyclical that
speaks of the “culture of death”
Explicit violence – a situation that someone is
physically harmed or killed by direct action
Hidden violence - a situation in which
someone is harmed or killed indirectly
because of various social factors
 poverty, malnutrition
 unjust distribution of resources (e.g., in 3rd world
countries, lack of opportunity)
 ecological injustice
 illegal drugs
 certain kinds of sexual activity
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JP II (Gospel of Life) identifies four underlying
causes for the violence that stains our world:
◦ Skepticism
 No clear standard of right and wrong, therefore anything
goes
◦ Breakdown of family, community life
 Lack of, must fend for self; lack of discipline, character
development
◦ Social and economic problems
 Poverty
 Inequality
◦ The way we view one another
 Indifference
 As enemy
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Righteous anger provides energy to overcome
injustice and to do right; when used
constructively
 Figure out the best way to confront the evil doer; step
up and stand up for yourself
 If we are not willing to confront injustice, we must let
the anger go
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How does the book describe “scandal?”
◦ Scandal is a form of murder
 The sin of scandal is grave when it leads others to mortal
sin by deed or omission (cf. CCC 2284
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Church’s stance is that Capital Punishment is
acceptable only when society has no other means
of defending itself (The Gospel of Life #56)
Did the U.S. Supreme Court outlaw capital
punishment? Yes, for a time
◦ Is Capital Punishment practiced today?
 Yes, by 38 states
Three justifications traditionally advanced for
punishment:
◦ * deterrence, * rehabilitation, * retribution,
 Particular deterrence - the individual who committed the
crime is deterred from committing it again;
 General deterrence - Generally the fear of punishment
inhibits people from committing certain crimes
Three justifications traditionally advanced for
punishment:
◦ Deterrence
 Particular deterrence - the individual who committed the
crime is deterred from committing it again;
 General deterrence - Generally the fear of punishment
inhibits people from committing certain crimes
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Rehabilitation - Punishment aimed at training and
reforming wrongdoers to no longer commit
crimes refers to
Retribution – restores a sense of social order,
declaring that certain behaviors will not tolerated
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The Catholic Bishops Statement on Capital
Punishment call for abolition of capital
punishment (do not have to memorize):
a. To break the cycle of violence
b. To demonstrate the unique worth and dignity of
each person
c. To reaffirm that God is indeed the Lord of life
d. Follows example of Jesus who taught and
practiced forgiveness of injustice
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Why even bother with what the Catholic
bishops think?
◦ Their teaching is formed by the Word of God and
Catholic Tradition, in which they desire to integrate
Christ and the mind of God into culture.
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Summary “War and Respect for Life” - Human
life is sacred
Catholic teaching begins in every case with a
presumption against war and for peaceful settlement
of disputes
The bishops acknowledge that war is permissible
when entered into for defensive purposes
Challenge of Peace: God’s Promise and Our Response
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Just Cause - War is permissible only to confront “a real
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Competent Authority - War must be declared by those
and certain danger…”
with responsibility for public order
 Last Resort- All peaceful alternatives must have been
exhausted
◦ All citizens and all governments are obligated to work
for the avoidance of
 Probability of Success- With a fair degree of certainty,
intended results are like to be achieved
 Proportionality - The damage to be inflicted and the
costs incurred by war must be proportionate to the good
expected by taking up arms
 Non-combatants, wounded soldiers, and personnel must be
respected and treated humanely
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Nuclear deterrence – is the proposition that
when two nations possess the ability to inflict
nuclear damage on each other, then neither
nation is likely to use its nuclear weapons in
the first place (MAD – Mutually Assured Destruction)
Nuclear proliferation - an increase in the
number of nations that possess nuclear weapons or
that have the capability to build them
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The rationale for the bishops condemnation
of further nuclear proliferation (do not need to
memorize)
1.
2.
3.
4.
It
It
It
It
doesn’t ensure peace
aggravates the causes of war
impedes efforts to help people in need
thwarts development
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JP II’s 4 Pillars of Peace (215)
Truth – will build peace if every individual sincerely
acknowledges not only his rights, but his own duties
towards others
Justice – will build peace if in practice everyone respects the
rights of others and actually fulfills his duties towards them
Love – will build peace if people feel the needs of others as
their own and share what they have with others – especially
the values of mind and spirit which they possess
 Is this possible when terrorists are willing to use women and
children as suicide bombers against other innocent people?
Freedom – will build peace and make it thrive if, in the choice
of the means and the ends, people act according to reason
and assume responsibility for their own actions
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Mahatma Gandhi of India helped his country
achieve independence from England without
relying on violence.
Civil rights leader Martin Luther King Jr.
used non-violent means to combat racism
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Conscientious objector
◦ One who on moral of religious principles is
opposed to serving in the armed forces or bearing
arms
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Noncompliance with the draft
◦ Being a “draft dodger”; not registering for the draft
or simply refusing induction into the military
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Selective-conscientious objection
◦ One who believes that a particular war in which he
or she would be called to fight is against his moral
or religious principles