Consistent Life

“If you want peace, work for justice.”

The Oblate JPIC initiative is under-girded by a consistent life ethic. Our work is deeply rooted in the respect for life and human dignity. We believe respect for fundamental human rights is paramount.

A consistent life ethic has been articulated as “the protection of life, which is threatened in today’s world by war, abortion, poverty, racism, capital punishment and euthanasia.” We believe these issues are connected as manifestations of mankind’s broken relationship with God. They emerge from the Oblate charism of valuing the dignity of the human person and being in solidarity with the poor and marginalized.

The Oblate JPIC initiative is a member of Consistent Life, an organization devoted to serving the anti-violence community by connecting issues, building bridges, and strengthening the case against each kind of socially-approved killing by consistently opposing them all. The Consistent Life website explains the consistent life ethic and offers suggestions for understanding and action. They offer a number of brochures.

Sign up for Consistent Life’s weekly E-newsletter at the bottom of their home page.

The Church has spoken many times on the sanctity of all life:

• Article 27 of the Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, (Vatican II, Gaudium et Spes), titled Respect for the Human Person, says “everyone should look upon his neighbor (without any exception) as another self,” and lists as crimes: “all offenses against life itself, such as murder, genocide, abortion, euthanasia and willful suicide, all violations of the integrity of the human person, such as mutilation, physical and mental torture, undue psychological pressures; all offenses against human dignity, such as subhuman living conditions, arbitrary imprisonment, deportation, slavery, prostitution, the selling of women and children, degrading working conditions where men and women are treated as mere tools for profit rather than free and responsible persons; all these things and the like are criminal; they poison civilization; and they debase the perpetrators more than the victims and militate against the honor of the creator.”

• The US Bishops, in their document Forming Consciences for Faithful Citizenship, speak clearly about the sanctity of life. Read excerpts from Faithful Citizen. Learn more about the Bishops’ Faithful Citizenship initiative and download their documents.

The Bishops also have a vigorous anti-abortion campaign. Click here for their Pro-Life Activities webpage and more information.

• Joseph Cardinal Bernardin’s famous “Seamless Garment” speech: A Consistent Ethic of Life: An American-Catholic Dialogue (Download PDF)

The Oblate JPIC initiative reflects a consistent life ethic in the work we undertake on:

• Pro-Life Initiatives
• HIV/AIDS
• Human Rights
• Death Penalty
• Torture
• Human trafficking
• Immigration
• Indigenous Peoples
• Faith-Based Community Organizing
• Economic Justice Issues
• Integrity of Creation
• Faith Consistent Investing
• Peace

Please click on the links above for more detailed information and website resources.

We work to address these concerns through education, advocacy, faith consistent investing, and grassroots organizing.

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