“Life is beautiful”

In the two most recent articles of the “Media and Religion” column, we concentrated on the major problems of cherishing and respecting human life. We suggest summing up our contemplations on the topic with a conversation with Monsignor Renzo PEGORARO, chancellor of the Pontifical Academy for Life which researches the issues of bioethics.

Since you are the chancellor of the Pontifical Academy for Life, could you, please, tell us about this institution’s activity and projects?

“The Academy was founded in 1994 by Pope John Paul II. It was created as a study and discussion center for research of socially important issues, including those of bioethics. The specific feature of this institution is its scientific base and interdisciplinarity, since it employs medical doctors, philosophers, priests, lawyers, and experts in other areas. All this gives the Church an ability to react to challenges on an internal level and also to be open to the world in cooperation with academic environments and public leaders. The Pontifical Academy has over 130 members, who represent a multitude of countries. The institution’s main headquarters is located in Rome. The Academy holds an annual General Assembly which is dedicated to specific bioethical issues. The next assembly will take place in February, 2014. Its topic is old age, loneliness, and the end of life. Lately, the Academy for Life brought up a number of issues, among them the status of the human embryo, last days of a person’s life, the problem of the post-abortion syndrome. We publish the results of discussions after every meeting. In future we plan to develop in two directions. The first one is the problem of old age, its reasons, loneliness, decrease of social activity; therefore, we plan to support the elderly. The second direction is an attempt to immerse into fundamental bioethical issues. For example, two years ago the Pontifical Academy raised the issue of infertility. We want to concentrate on encouraging scientists and doctors to use various methods of infertility treatment in order not to abuse the assisted reproductive technology. It is important to realize that the Church is not trying to prohibit fertilization in vitro, but we want to remind that there are options, like surgical treatment and others. Besides, we are trying to promote a lifestyle that would prevent infertility.”

There is a large number of documents by the Catholic Church on bioethical issues today. Are there any bioethical issues that need to be reviewed by the Church?

“The Church must not express its own reflections on bioethical matters, for secular scientists or theologians also might try to give their own answers. Today we have many countries with their own specific environments. And all these specific features should be taken into consideration. I think that the Church should stress the principles and values that are fundamental for preservation and respect of human life. In the modern world, it is important to provide the definitions of the human being, his or her life, and relation of these definitions with the world. After we comprehend this, we will be able to define the role of science, technology, and medicine for ourselves, as well as their influence, which should only be positive and never negative. That is why, the first level is anthropological, and after we understand it, we shall be able to determine other directions: ethical and moral. There is no doubt that there is much to work on in the issues of bioethics. The start of human life, prenatal and preimplantation diagnostics are among those issues. The other set of issues that I have already mentioned is assisting a person in their last moments of life, care for elderly people. A separate matter is medical care, especially its business aspect, since illness should not be made a source of profit. And one more thing we have to emphasize is environmental problems, which undoubtedly have a negative impact on human health.”

When we talk about a dialog between the Church and society, we often see that one side rejects the views of the other. What are the ways of making this dialog more effective?

“There are things worth discussing. Firstly, the Church must understand why society does not accept the things it is talking about. We all should realize that there is always someone who will never accept these views. We must leave naivety behind. Secondly, it is important to understand society, its positive and negative aspects. We need to arrange communication in a way that would help society understand that the Church wants to help it.”

When the Church tells society about its views (it is often quite noticeable due to bioethical problems), people often say that the Church is limiting them in their own decisions. Are they right?

“Pope Francis has been raising this issue in the recent months as well. He often says that God is gracious and saves the whole humankind. When society realizes this basis of the Christian doctrine, it will plan its development in an absolutely different way. The Pope emphasizes that when a person accepts God, they say ‘yes’ to Him, but this does not exclude a ‘no’: ‘yes’ to love, justice, life, respect for others, freedom and responsibility. Therefore, when we say ‘yes’ to these things, we automatically say ‘no’ to their opposites. However, if a person does not know the importance of ‘yes,’ they will not be able to determine the value of ‘no.’”

A few weeks ago, Swedish bishops protested against the draft law by the Commission of Education and Science on legal selection and use of human embryos for research. We have already talked about the importance of scientific presence in the dialog between the Church and society. But at the same time, the scientific point of view on human life often appears to be consumeristic, unfortunately.

“In this matter we obviously refer to the status of the human embryo. I think that everyone, including scientists, philosophers, and doctors must participate in this discussion. Of course, the human embryo must be respected in this aspect. And selection, which creates eugenics, that is selection of the best organisms outside a mother’s womb, does not have any moral justification. That is why there is always a question of the extent to which something popularized by science can be morally acceptable for us. Because of that, society faces another temptation today: control over all processes.”

Media are undoubtedly an important compound of promoting the dialog between the Church and society. In what way can modern mass media effectively facilitate this dialog?

“Pope Francis has very good relations with journalists (as did the late Pope John Paul II), because their service is truly valuable. On the next day after being elected at the Conclave, Pope Francis gathered all journalists (and there were six or seven thousand of them!) for a press conference. The Pope tried to find efficient means of communication with them, aware that there were a lot of non-believers among them. This example shows us how important the cooperation between the Church and mass media is. It is important for journalists to be true professionals, free from ‘logic of the market’ and independent of media owners.”

If you were asked to define what life is in one sentence, what would you say?

“Life is beautiful. I think we should not try to limit it to some definitions, or measure it in terms of benefits and money. Life is life, we must discover its mysteries, gifts, beauty, and dynamism. From a Christian perspective, life is Love, which also includes Joy!”