News

Details

Last Updated: 19 February 2013

VATICAN CITY, JUN 4, 2007 (VIS) - Cardinal Secretary of State Tarcisio Bertone S.D.B. sent a telegram, in the Pope's name, to Archbishop Paulos Faraj Rahho of Mossul of the Chaldeans, Iraq, for the killing in that city yesterday of Fr. Ragheed Aziz Ganni and three sub-deacons. The text of the English-language telegram follows:

"The Holy Father was deeply saddened to learn of the senseless killing of Fr. Ragheed Aziz Ganni and sub-deacons Basman Yousef Daoud, Ghasan Bidawid and Wadid Hanna, and he asks you kindly to convey to their families his heartfelt condolences. He willingly joins the Christian community in Mossul in commending their souls to the infinite mercy of God our loving Father and in giving thanks for their selfless witness to the Gospel. At the same time he prays that their costly sacrifice will inspire in the hearts of all men and women of good will a renewed resolve to reject the ways of hatred and violence, to conquer evil with good and to cooperate in hastening the dawn of reconciliation, justice and peace in Iraq. To the families and to all who mourn their dead in faith and in the hope which draws its certainty from the resurrection His Holiness cordially imparts his apostolic blessing as a pledge of consolation and strength in the Lord."

TGR/KILLING PRIESTS:DEACONS/MOSSULVIS 070604 (240)

Details

Last Updated: 19 February 2013

VATICAN CITY, JUNE 4, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone says the waiting is nearly over for the much-discussed papal document that will reportedly liberalize the use of the Tridentine Mass.

The Vatican secretary of state said this in an interview with the Catholic newspaper Avvenire on Sunday.

"I believe that we will not have to wait much longer for its publication," Cardinal Bertone said. "The Pope is personally interested in seeing this happen. He will explain it in an accompanying letter, hoping for a serene reception."

Code: ZE07060404

Date: 2007-06-04

Details

Last Updated: 19 February 2013

Mosul, Jun. 4, 2007 (CWNews.com) - A Chaldean Catholic priest and three deacons were gunned down in Mosul, Iraq, on Sunday, the AsiaNews service reports.

Father Ragheed Ganni and three deacons from his parish-- Basman Yousef Daud, Wahid Hanna Isho, Gassan Isam Bidawed-- were killed after celebrating the Eucharistic liturgy on Sunday.

As they left the church, the clerics’ car was stopped by a group of armed gunmen, who shot all 4 men and then rigged their car with explosives so that no one would dare remove their bodies. The car with the four murdered me remained in the city street, bearing witness to the killings, for several hours until a police bomb-squad defused the devices.

The parish where they served, the Church of the Holy Spirit, had been bombed and vandalized in the past, and Father Ganni had been threatened by Islamic militants, AsiaNews reports. The three deacons had been accompanying the priest constantly, hoping to protect him.

Chaldean Patriarch Emmanuel III Delly referred to the attack as “a crime against God.”

Christians in Iraq have been the objects of a nationwide campaign of intimidation, forcing tens of thousands of members of the Christian minority to leave Iraq for safety in neighboring lands.

Details

Last Updated: 19 February 2013

"Friends of Jesus and Witnesses of His Holiness"

VATICAN CITY, JUNE 3, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Here is a translation of the homily delivered today by Benedict XVI during the canonization Mass of Father George Preca, Father Szymon of Lipnica, Father Charles of St. Andrew and Mother Marie-Eugénie of Jesus.

* * *

Dear brothers and sisters,
 
Today we celebrate the solemnity of the Most Holy Trinity.

After Eastertide, after having relived the event of Pentecost, which renews the Church's baptism in the Holy Spirit, we turn our gaze, so to speak, to the "opened heavens" to enter with the eyes of faith into the depths of the mystery of God, one in substance and three in persons: Father and Son and Holy Spirit.

As we allow ourselves to be caught up in this great mystery, we admire the glory of God which is reflected in the life of the saints; we contemplate it above all in those whom I have a short while ago proposed for the veneration of the universal Church: George Preca, Szymon of Lipnica, Father Charles of St. Andrew and Mother Marie Eugénie of Jesus.
 
To all the pilgrims who have come to pay homage to these exemplary witnesses of the Gospel, I extend my cordial greetings.
 
I greet, in particular, the cardinals, the presidents of the Philippines, of Ireland, of Malta and of Poland, my venerable brothers in the episcopate, the government delegations, and the other civil authorities who are taking part in this celebration.
 
In the first reading, taken from the Book of Proverbs, wisdom comes on the scene, standing at God's side as assistant, as "architect" (Proverbs 8:30).

The panorama of the cosmos seen with wisdom's eyes is stupendous. Wisdom confesses: "I played upon the surface of his earth; and I found delight in the human race" (8:30). Wisdom loves to dwell among men because in them she recognizes the image and likeness of the Creator.

This preferential relationship of wisdom with men makes us think of a celebrated passage in another sapiential book, the Book of Wisdom: "Wisdom," we read there, "is an aura of the might of God and a pure effusion of the glory of the Almighty; therefore nothing that is sullied enters into her. For she is the refulgence of eternal light, the spotless mirror of the power of God, the image of his goodness. And she, who is one, can do all things, and renews everything while herself perduring; and passing into holy souls from age to age, she produces friends of God and prophets" (Wisdom 7:25-27).

This last suggestive expression invites us to consider the manifold and inexhaustible manifestation of sanctity in the people of God through the centuries. God's wisdom is manifest in the cosmos, in variety and beauty in its elements, but its masterpieces are the saints.
 
In the passage from the letter of the Apostle Paul to the Romans we find a similar image: that of God's love "poured out into the hearts" of the saints, that is the baptized, "through the Holy Spirit" who has been given to them (cf. Romans 5:5). It is through Christ that the gift of the Spirit passes, "Person-Love, Person-Gift," as the Servant of God John Paul II defined him ("Dominum Vivificantem," No. 10).

Through Christ, the Spirit of God comes to us as principle of new, "holy," life. The Spirit puts the love of God in the heart of believers in the concrete form it had in the man Jesus of Nazareth. In this way what St. Paul says about "Christ in you, hope of glory" (Corinthians 1:27) is realized. The "tribulations" are not in contrast to this hope, indeed, they help to realize it through "patience" and "proven virtue" (Romans 5:3-4): It is the way of Jesus, the way of the cross.
 
In the same perspective, of God's wisdom incarnate in Christ and communicated by the Holy Spirit, the Gospel suggested to us that God the Father continues to manifest his plan of love through the saints. Even here there occurs what we have already noted about wisdom: The Spirit of truth reveals God's plan in the multiplicity of the elements of the cosmos and he does it above all through human persons, in a special way through saints.

In effect, "the image of the invisible God" (Colossians 1:15) is properly only Jesus Christ, "the holy and just one" (Acts 3:14). He is wisdom incarnate, creator Logos who finds his joy in dwelling among men, in whose midst he has pitched his tent (cf. John 16:15). It pleased God to pour "every fullness" (cf. Colossians 1:19); or as he himself says in today's Gospel passage: "All that the Father has is mine" (John 16:15).

Each individual saint participates in the riches of Christ taken from the Father and communicated at the right time. It is always Jesus' own holiness, it is always him, the "holy one," whom the Spirit forms in "holy souls," making them into friends of Jesus and witnesses of his holiness.
 
George Preca was a friend of Jesus and a witness of the holiness that comes from him. George was born in La Valletta on the island of Malta. He was a priest wholly dedicated to evangelization: through preaching, through writing, through spiritual direction and the administering of the sacraments, and above all by the example of his life.

The phrase from John's Gospel "Verbum caro factum est" always gave direction to his soul and to his deeds, and thus the Lord was able to use him to give life to a meritorious work, "The Society of Christian Doctrine," which aimed at providing parishes with the service of qualified, well-formed and generous catechists.

A profoundly priestly and mystical soul, he overflowed with love for God, Jesus, the Virgin Mary, and the saints. He loved to repeat: "Lord God, how much I owe you! Thank you, Lord God, and forgive me, Lord God!"

Saint George Preca, help the Church to always be, in Malta and in the world, the faithful echo of Christ, the incarnate Word.

[In Polish the Pope said:]

The new saint, Szymon of Lipnica, great son of land of Poland, witness to Christ and follower of the spirituality of St. Francis of Assisi, lived long ago, but is proposed to the Church today as a relevant model of a Christian who -- animated by the spirit of the Gospel -- is ready to give his life for his brothers and sisters.

Thus, filled with mercy that he drew from the Eucharist, did not hesitate to bring aid to those struck by the plague, contracting the sickness that also brought about his own death. Today in a special way we entrust to his protection those who suffer from poverty, sickness, loneliness and social injustice. Through his intercession we ask for ourselves the grace of persevering and active love for Christ and our brother and sisters.

[In English the Holy Father said:]

"The love of God has been poured into our hearts by the Holy Spirit which has been given us." Truly, in the case of the Passionist priest, Father Charles Houben of St. Andrew, we see how that love overflowed in a life totally dedicated to the care of souls. During his many years of priestly ministry in England and Ireland, the people flocked to him to seek out his wise counsel, his compassionate care and his healing touch.

In the sick and the suffering he recognized the face of the crucified Christ, to whom he had a lifelong devotion. He drank deeply from the rivers of living water that poured forth from the side of the Pierced One, and in the power of the Spirit he bore witness before the world to the Father's love. At the funeral of this much-loved priest, affectionately known as Father Charles of Mount Argus, his superior was moved to observe: "The people have already declared him a saint."
 
[In French he said:]

Marie-Eugénie of Jesus calls us above all to the importance of the Eucharist in Christian life and in spiritual growth. In fact, as she herself underlined, her first Communion had been the defining moment of her life, although she didn't realize it completely then. Christ, present in the depths of her heart, was working in her, he allowed time to pass according to its own rhythm, so that she could carry out her interior quest that led her to give herself completely to the Lord in religious life, in response to the needs of her times.

She perceived in particular the importance of transmitting to the young generations, and in particular to young girls, an intellectual, moral and spiritual education that would make them into adults capable of taking charge of a family, knowing that in this way they were offering their contribution to the Church and society.

Her entire life she found the strength to carry out her mission in a life of prayer, always associating contemplation with action. May the example of St. Marie-Eugénie invite the men and women of today to transmit the values that will help the youth to become strong adults and joyous witnesses of the Resurrection.

May young people not be afraid to accept these moral and spiritual values, and to live them with patience and fidelity. In this way they will construct their personalities and prepare themselves for their future.

[In Italian the Pope said:]

Dear brothers and sisters, let us give thanks to God for the marvels that he has accomplished in the saints in whom his glory shines forth. Let us be drawn by their examples, guided by their teachings, so that our entire existence becomes, like theirs, a song of praise to the glory of the Most Holy Trinity.

May Mary, the Queen of Saints, and the intercession of these four new "older brothers and sister," whom we venerate with joy today, obtain this grace for us. Amen.

[Translation by ZENIT]

© Copyright 2007 -- Libreria Editrice Vaticana

Code: ZE07060301

Date: 2007-06-03

Details

Last Updated: 19 February 2013

Interview With Author of "The Masonic Plot"

BURGOS, Spain, JUNE 3, 2007 (Zenit.org).- What's true and what's not about the Masons is the topic of a recent book by an expert in the history of religions.

Father Manuel Guerra Gómez, who is an author of 25 books on sects and other topics, recently released "La trama masónica" (The Masonic Plot), published in Spanish by Styria.

Father Guerra is a diocesan priest of Burgos, and a retired professor of the Burgos headquarters of the Faculty of Theology of Northern Spain.

In this interview with ZENIT he says that "the Masonic method, atheistic in nature, reflects historical relativism and leads to the socio-cultural relativism that it promotes."

Q: Is the famous Masonic conspiracy a myth?

Father Guerra: It is necessary to distinguish between Masonry and the Masons. Masonry, as such, does not aspire to power or at least to having it serve its own principles and interests.

Nevertheless, Masons are in fact present in every international organization in which decisions are made and in the multinational corporations that have an influence on economic and political power.

It is logical to think that they try to pass on their ideological principles -- relativism, atheism, gnosticism -- wherever they are and to irradiate them beyond their own context.

On the other hand, in the English-speaking world and in the northern countries, in Turkey, etc., it is not that they seek to gain power, they are the power.

Thus, for example, the sovereign of the United Kingdom is also the grand master of the United Grand Lodge of England, and of the more than 150 grand lodges -- one for every country, and in the United States one for every state. In 1995, in the United Grand Lodge of England there were 750,000 members belonging to 8,000 lodges throughout the world.

Besides this, because of the rule of secrecy, there is no way of knowing for certain where they are active and how far their direct influence extends, and much less do we know the extent of their indirect influence.

Tony Blair's government sought to institute the obligation that Masons declare their membership in the group, especially if they were functionaries of the state, and above all if they worked in the area of justice or in the police. The response of 1,400 English judges who voluntarily declared their membership in the Masons is commendable. Evidently there are many more.

Following the scandals of the secret Propaganda Due Lodge of Licio Gelli in Italy, functionaries in certain areas of Italian public administration must declare whether that they are Masons at the risk of losing their post.

Q: Is it true that 60% of the members of the European Parliament are Masons?

Father Guerra: This and a similar claim were made by Josep Corominas, grand master of the Grand Lodge of Spain up until March 2006. On Feb. 9, 2007, he left the Grand Lodge of Spain, but affirmed that he would continue to be a Mason and wanted to be considered such.

Is this a new division which has given place to a new Masonic obedience, or is it an incorporation into one already existing?

Indeed, all the proposals pertaining to family and bioethics issues, dissenting from the teaching of the Church and even the natural law, have been approved by the European Parliament. There is also the case of the Italian Rocco Buttiglione who was rejected as a European commissioner by an atheist majority of the Parliament.

Q: In Rome a conference has just ended in which the incompatibility of Catholicism and Masonry was recalled. A call for dialogue with Masons on socio-cultural questions was made. How can this happen?

Father Guerra: Despite the objective incompatibility between Masonry and Catholicism, Catholics can dialogue with Masons at different levels, except for those things that the Holy See, aware of the risks, has reserved for its exclusive competence.

In the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith's declaration on Freemasonry it is stated that it "is not within the competence of local ecclesiastical authorities to give a judgment on the nature of Masonic associations which would imply a derogation from what has been decided above, and this in line with the declaration of this sacred congregation issued on Feb. 17, 1981."

It is likewise necessary to consider the reality and consequences of Masonic secrecy. How can you dialogue with someone who wears a mask? Despite this, it is still possible to dialogue about socio-cultural questions. Even if religions and ideologies end up forming and conforming the respective cultures to themselves, there always exists some common ground.

Unlike that which is specifically religious and ideological, the cultural ambit is still a sector about which it is possible to dialogue, at least in theory. It is easier to undertake dialogue on intercultural issues -- like poverty, literacy, the environment, health, globalization, etc. -- than on interreligious issues.

Nevertheless, even on this terrain, dialogue with the Masons encounters serious difficulties, insofar as Masonic atheism, open or hidden, tends to relegate to the margins religious particularities, that which is not common to all religions and moral codes, and tends to enclose it -- like someone under "house arrest" -- in the forum of personal conscience and behind Church walls.

In this sense Masonry works to eliminate the socio-cultural trappings of Christianity in traditionally Christian countries -- such as for example Nativity scenes or representations of symbols of the Christmas mystery -- the star of Bethlehem, the Three Kings, etc.

Q: Does Masonry substitute itself for religion?

Father Guerra: Masonry, in line with one of its products, the New Age, prefers to use the term "spirituality," which has a more subjective resonance than the term "religion."

Some Masons say that they are Christians and deny that Masonry is a religion. They should rather recognize that they belong to two religions: the Catholic one and the Masonic one.

But in fact, at least for many, above all for the Masons who are agnostics and deists, Masonry is a substitute for religion. Indeed, Masonry is called a "religion" and sometimes "the religion" in Masonic writings and those of Masons.

Q: How were you able to get up close to this world if it is so secretive?

Father Guerra: I dedicated many hours of study to the constitutions, rules and rituals of the different federations of Masonic lodges, spoke with Masons and ex-Masons in Spain and Mexico, and read books on Masonry by Masons and non-Masons.

About 10 years ago in Mexico I spent two summers speaking daily with Masonic and non-Masonic university professors. I spent the afternoons visiting the centers of different sects, some of them para-Masonic, that are on the outskirts of the cities.

Q: Does Masonry have more to do with a method than a content?

Father Guerra: Man, besides thinking, also feels and imagines. Sentiments and imagination can interfere with and disturb mental lucidity. But despite this, ideas and beliefs orient man; principles create and orient human institutions. But to achieve the objective it is necessary to use the right "method."

The Greek word "odos" means "way," and "met" means the "goal" at which we want to arrive. In Masonry the method aims at the highest categories and the maximum effectiveness since it in fact constitutes one of the "principles," perhaps the most fundamental, the one that is at the basis of all the others.

It is precisely because of its method that Masonry ends up being incompatible with Christian doctrine.

The Masonic method, atheistic in nature, reflects historical relativism and leads to the socio-cultural relativism that it promotes.

Alain Gérard, one of the directors of the Grand Orient of France, says that "Masonry is only a method." According to him, a Mason can have "opinions" or the beliefs of a particular religion, but the Masonic method obliges him to "call into question" his opinions and to accept the possibility that they will be declared false or surpassed by a more solid rational system and with the support of the majority.

"You cannot have a real discussion if, whatever be the outcome of the discussion, there will always be some points about which you are convinced you are right," Gérard says.

With this the Masonic allergy to dogmas and to dogmatic and revealed religion, especially to Christianity, comes to light.

This also explains why Masons tend to consider democracy as an achievement of Masonry and the democratic method -- approval by majority vote -- as something connatural to Masonry. This democratic method they extend to every reality, including the truth itself, the good, etc.

The present grand master of the Grand Orient of France, Jean Michel Quilardet, in a statement to the Spanish newspaper La Voz de Asturias on Jan. 29, 2007, said that "you can think that a non-atheistic democracy exists -- and non-atheistic means non-Masonic -- but to my way of seeing things and to my way of thinking atheism is an accomplishment of democracy." Thus, those democrats who are not atheists or Masons, if they are democrats, would be second-class democrats.

Q: Are the Masons a creative minority? Are Christians as well?

Father Guerra: Masons obviously do not have a monopoly on creativity. Even if it is of a different nature, creativity also belongs to Christians with the help of divine grace and the influence of the Holy Spirit. And Christian creativity is not of a lesser sort.

To demonstrate this all we need to do is look at the history of the Church and at its adaptation of evangelization to quite variable social and cultural circumstances in the 2000 years of its existence. "The hand of the Lord is not too short" -- Isaiah 59:1 -- in our day.

When, a few years ago, Pope John Paul II called the ecclesial movements "the new springtime of the Spirit," "the renewed Pentecost," "a special gift that the Spirit offers to the Church in our historical moment," I initially attributed it to his incredible goodness.

The good and holy person only sees good in everything, like the greedy man sees lucre and the lustful man sees sexual pleasure.

When, however, I worked on a piece called "The Ecclesial Movements in Spain," and I was able to see the reality for myself, it left a deep impression. What creativity the sons and daughters of the Church, moved and inspired by the Holy Spirit, have today!

How could the Church or the world survive if the ecclesial movements -- the educational projects, the aid work, etc. -- disappeared, leaving a kind of large "black hole" in the ecclesial and socio-cultural galaxies?

Code: ZE07060311

Date: 2007-06-03

Details

Last Updated: 19 February 2013

New Evidence on the Dangers of Marijuana

By Father John Flynn

ROME, JUNE 3, 2007 (Zenit.org).- Many argue that restrictions on so-called light drugs such as marijuana should be eased. The issue is currently under debate in Italy, where government policy is torn between conflicting tendencies.

Health Minister Livia Turco just announced a proposal to send in inspectors to search for drugs in public schools, following concern over schoolchildren using marijuana, the Italian news agency ANSA reported May 28.

"We must also embark on a major information campaign to convince our children to avoid drugs," Turco declared. The latest announcement was in marked contrast with a proposal the health minister floated a short time ago to raise the ceiling on the amount of marijuana, or cannabis, individuals can possess before being prosecute. That proposal seems dead after it drew strong protests.

One of those who intervened in the debate was Father Pierino Gelmini, founder of Comunità Incontro, a community in the central Italian city of Amelia, dedicated to helping addicts. In a lengthy interview published May 27 by Il Messaggero, Father Gelmini claimed that in 44 years of working with drug addicts, he and the community he founded have saved around 300,000 people.

Based on his decades of experience, Father Gelmini was strongly critical of any moves to weaken laws regarding drug use or possession. As it is, he pointed out, every day in Italy dozens of young people die of drug overdose. People want their children to be drug free, not for there to be free drugs, he exclaimed.

People err in thinking that drugs such as marijuana are innocuous, he stated. Moreover, they are often the gateway to other addictions. Father Gelmini added, however, that it is not enough to just take drugs away from addicts; the vacuum within people needs to be filled with ideals and values that will help them build a new life.

Turnaround

Concern over the ill effects of drugs such as marijuana is more than justified. In fact, just recently the Sunday edition of the British newspaper the Independent made a front-page turnaround in its policy of favoring the decriminalization of cannabis.

The newspaper published a series of articles on March 18 regarding marijuana. One of them asked readers to forgive the paper for the position it took in 1997 in favor of decriminalizing cannabis.

In January 2004 the British government downgraded cannabis from a class B drug to class C. This meant that those possessing small quantities of the drug could not be arrested.

Evidence is mounting, however, that the decision was the wrong move. The Independent explained that the cannabis sold today is far more potent than a decade or so ago. There has been up to a 25-fold increase in the amount of the main psychoactive ingredient, tetrahydrocannabidinol (THC), compared with the early 1990s.

More than 22,000 young people were treated last year in Britain for addiction to cannabis, the article stated. The newspaper cited research published in the medical journal The Lancet demonstrating that marijuana is more dangerous than LSD or ecstasy.

The Independent also quoted professor Colin Blakemore, chief of the Medical Research Council, who had originally backed the newspaper's campaign for cannabis to be decriminalized. He has since changed his mind. "The link between cannabis and psychosis is quite clear now; it wasn't 10 years ago," said Blakemore.

Another opinion cited was that of Robin Murray, professor of psychiatry at London's Institute of Psychiatry. Murray estimated that at least 25,000 of the 250,000 schizophrenics in the United Kingdom could have avoided the illness if they had not used cannabis.

"Society has seriously underestimated how dangerous cannabis really is," professor Neil McKeganey, from Glasgow University's Center for Drug Misuse Research, told the Independent. "I think we are faced with a generation blighted by the effects of cannabis use."

Just a few days later, on March 24, the British newspaper the Times published evidence regarding marijuana's dangers. The Times quoted a study published in the journal Addiction, warning that by the end of the decade one in four new cases of schizophrenia could be triggered by smoking cannabis.

The Department of Health, according to the newspaper, says it is now generally agreed among doctors that cannabis is an important causal factor in mental illness.

Not soft

The Independent returned to the debate on March 25. Among other articles was an opinion piece by Antonio Maria Costa, executive director of the U.N. Office on Drugs and Crime.

Cannabis is not at all a "soft" drug, Costa admonished, referring to the dangers for mental health. He recommended that countries invest greater resources in prevention, treatment and rehabilitation instead of weakening legal measures on its possession and use.

Costa gave the example of Sweden, where drug use is only one-third of the European average, and where spending on drug control is three times the European average. "Governments and societies must keep their nerve and avoid being swayed by misguided notions of tolerance," said Costa.

On April 22 the Independent published further material on the dangers of marijuana. A 10-year study followed 1,900 schoolchildren until they were 25. The study compared alcohol drinkers with cannabis users. Those who started to use the drug in their teens had a greater probability of suffering mental illness, having relationship problems, and failing out of school or getting fired from their jobs.

The research was carried out at Melbourne University's Center for Adolescent Heath in Australia and published in the journal Addiction.

"Cannabis really does look like the drug of choice for life's future losers," said professor George Patton, who conducted the study.

More evidence came to light on April 30, with a report by the BBC regarding new evidence on mental health problems. A study carried out at London's Institute of Psychiatry found that people who took the active ingredient in marijuana, THC, showed reduced activity in an area of the brain called the inferior frontal cortex, which keeps inappropriate thoughts and behavior, such as swearing and paranoia, in check.

A second study cited by the BBC, this time by a team from Yale University, found that 50% of healthy volunteers who were administered THC began to show symptoms of psychosis.

Loss of dignity

The Pontifical Council for Health Care Ministry addressed the question of drugs in a pastoral handbook titled "Church: Drugs and Drug Addiction," published in 2001. From a moral point of view the Church cannot approve drug use, the text explained, because it involves an unjustified renunciation of thinking, willing and acting as free persons (No. 43).

The council said individuals have no "right" to abdicate their personal dignity or to harm themselves. Liberalization of drug laws, the council warned, runs the risk of bringing into existence an inferior class of underdeveloped human beings, who depend on drugs to live. This would be a dereliction of the state's duty to promote the common good (No. 51).

Instead of extending access to drugs, the manual proposed greater education that will teach people the true sense of life and give priority to values, starting with the values of life and love, illuminated by faith. The Church also proposes a therapy of love and dedication to the needs of addicts in order to help them overcome their problems (Nos. 53-55). Solutions that are not easy to carry out, but which offer a remedy in accordance with human dignity.

Code: ZE07060329

Date: 2007-06-03