With Madalaine Elhabbal

Baltimore, Maryland, November 15, 2024 / 17:00

U.S. bishops meeting in Baltimore this week discussed plans to implement the above-mentioned mission. Dignitas InfinitaVatican’s 2024 statement on Catholic doctrine on human dignity.

Dignitas InfinitaPublished by the Dicastery of the Doctrine of the Faith AprilIt addresses rising concerns such as abortion, poverty, human trafficking, and war, as well as gender theory, gender reassignments, surrogacy, and euthanasia. He notes that the church addresses these concerns in the area of ​​human dignity “with hope, trusting in the power that comes from the risen Christ to fully assert the integral dignity of every man and woman.”

Bishop Robert Barron, chairman of the United States Committee of Catholic Bishops’ Conference on Secularity, Marriage, Family Life, and Youth, taught in his opening remarks: Dignitas Infinita can serve as an antidote to the social ills experienced in the United States today.

“As we all know, cultural and political divisions continue to polarize our American society, with no way to address the glaring injustices that deepen those divisions.”

“If one group emphasizes a particular set of evils, another group invariably opposes another group, a group seemingly in competition with the first,” he observed, adding: “ Dignitas Infinita“Following in the footsteps of Pope Francis, he defines human dignity as the common value that is violated in all these cases of injustice.”

Barron specifically highlighted how in the United States the “radical emphasis on individual autonomy at the expense of relationship” characterizes situations where we see “pervasive violations of human dignity.”

Bishop Thomas Daly, chairman of the USCCB’s Committee on Catholic Education, and Bishop Michael Burbidge, chairman of the Pro-Life Activities Committee, joined Barron in presenting plans to implement the document on behalf of their committees.

For his part, Barron explained that the Secularism, Marriage, Family Life and Youth Committee now shares information on how the Church calls its members to approach sex and gender issues, as follows: Dignitas Infinita on its website lovemeansmore.orgPart of the Love Means More initiative to share We teach the Church’s basic principles about love in a way that both Catholics and non-Catholics can understand.

Barron said the website “addresses a wide range of topics revolving around the nature of love and the human personality.”

“Inspired by this declaration, Love Means More publishes toolkits for pastors, parents, educators, and other groups that address gender theory as well as other topics,” he continued.

Speaking about the document’s relevance to Catholic education, Daly, bishop of Spokane, Washington, called for a re-examination of the Catholic school curriculum and advocated for a pedagogical approach that would guide students to an enriched understanding of human dignity.

“There are studies that show young people are giving up faith because they think science and faith are incompatible,” Daly told CNA in an interview before his presentation. “We must look at our curriculum, our pedagogy and how we address these issues so that our young people know themselves as beloved sons and daughters of God, created in his image and likeness.”

Daly told CNA that “too often our schools focus on the ability to produce, teach and test” without concrete instruction about the “Catholic imagination” or the appropriate scope in which students can view reality according to their faith.

“In many ways, that’s what’s captured in classical Catholic schools,” Daly told CNA. “But that’s just one way to do it.” He said schools need to “look” at what their curriculum is doing. “Catholic schools are not about producing literate people; they are about producing and graduating educated people.”

Daly explained to CNA that in an increasingly technological age, students who connect to the internet, whether through social media platforms like TikTok or otherwise, are constantly exposed to content that promotes issues like transgenderism.

“When I taught from 1992 to 2011, this wasn’t an issue,” he said. “I think we’re just trying to address this explosion from social media.”

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Regarding the document, Daly emphasized its central claim: “There are so many things in our society that are complicated, available, dehumanizing.”

However Dignitas Infinita Daly said he ultimately aims to address these issues and say “some things are right, some things are wrong.” “And we need to guide young people to see that.”

Applying Dignitas Infinita Promoting lessons in Scripture, prayer, social justice and moral theology into schools’ curricula opens up the possibility for young people to follow Jesus, Daly said.

Finally, Burbidge, bishop of the Diocese of Arlington, Virginia, spoke about the Pro-Life Activities Committee’s efforts to develop wisdom-based resources. Dignitas Infinita.

The bishop began by acknowledging the victories won by the pro-life ballot initiative in the recent election. However, he noted, “we still have much work to do to protect the unborn, to preserve the sanctity of all human life and the dignity of every human being as a child of God.”

“On the sanctity of life and the protection of the unborn, Pope Francis and Dignitas Infinita Remind us that unborn children are the most vulnerable and innocent among us,” Burbidge told the meeting.

The bishop later explained that his committee had developed an abbreviated summary of his teachings on life issues, along with a study guide and short bulletin supplements designed to “encourage Catholics to live out the gospel of life in their own lives.”

“Our job is not just to change laws,” he continued, “it is to change hearts, change minds, inspire and inform.”

Burbidge also noted that the resources cover not only abortion but also end-of-life issues, offer clarity to Church members on teachings on assisted suicide, palliative care and hospice, and offer guidance on how to care for those approaching. death.

Burbidge said of the document: “The clarity of the teaching and the pastoral approach to the dignity of every person and every human being is very welcome.”

Madalaine Elhabbal is a staff reporter for the Catholic News Agency in EWTN’s Washington, D.C. bureau. He was published by CatholicVote and also worked as a foreign language assistant in France. He is a graduate of Benedictine College.