Pope John Paul II

The Death with Dignity Act was first implemented in Oregon during 1997. This law allows mentally competent, terminally-ill adult state residents to voluntarily request to receive a prescription medication to accelerate their death. The purpose of this research is to identify the ethical and religious controversies preventing the Death with Dignity Act from being passed nationwide. As of today, only four states have approved the Death with Dignity Act, including, Vermont, Oregon, California, and…

how much support it gained after the schism. If it weren’t for the East-West Schism “The Roman Catholic Church” would not be as politically involved as it is today, because of how much power the schism brought to the church, and basically gave to the Pope. “Among the saints, the Church venerates many men and women who served God through their generous commitment to politics and government. Among these, Saint Thomas More, who was proclaimed Patron of Statesmen and Politicians, gave witness by his…

Pedro Paramo was written in 1955 in Mexico, a deeply Catholic country. The influence of this Catholicism, along with Juan Rulfo’s disillusionment with the politics of the church, is evident throughout his novella. Through Pedro Paramo, Juan Rulfo criticises the opportunistic nature of the church, portraying the greed of the church elites and their willingness to sell salvation to cater to their own desires while also portraying the elites as an extension of God, thus implicating Him in their…

Social Justice McKenna in his book, A Concise Guide to Catholic Social Teaching, stresses equal opportunities of all members of society in his description of social justice. He says that it is achieved “when people are giving opportunities to be active and productive participants in the life of society as part of their obligations, which is also the duty of the society to do so” (39). Chukwujekwu agrees with McKenna, but explains further that this aspect of justice deals more with “economic,…

This name (Francis), the Pope chose, reflects the blueprint of his pontificate, and in a special way, the document of Evangelii Gaudium. His personal thrust into this document lies in today’s world when the “people’s interior life become caught up in its own interests and concerns…

The year was 1942, the United States of America and Mexico had finally came to an agreement of the Emergency Labor program, which became known as the Bracero Program. (Acuña, 2011, p. 253) The Bracero Program was a reference to the mighty arms , which were also known as “brazos”, of the Mexican men who worked in the labor fields throughout the west and southwest of the United States. This program has allowed U.S. industries, mostly agricultural, to temporarily employ hundreds of thousands of…

The Scarlet and the Black is a 1983 film that follows the efforts of Vatican priest, Monsignor O’Flaherty, as he hides Jews and escaped POWs in Germany occupied Rome in 1943 during World War II. Priest O’Flaherty’s main adversary is SS Head of Police for Rome, Lieutenant Colonel Herbert Kappler. Hundreds of Allied POW soldiers are stealing into the city in hopes of finding refuge within the Vatican walls. When Germany entered Rome, the Vatican declared it’s neutrality in the war with the promise…

Orthodoxy and Catholicism have a place in amongst over 35,000 Christian organizations (Jacobsen 7). I attended a mass at St. John 's Catholic Church and a service at St. John the Baptist Greek Orthodox Church, and the similarities and differences that I observed were extremely intriguing. Both services recite similar prayers, like the Nicene Creed and Our Father, and they celebrate the Eucharist during mass. While the Orthodox Church is demographically Greek, the Catholic Church represents a…

climax of Pope Francis' Encyclical on the Environment he states that, “The poor and the earth are crying out. O Lord, seize us with your power and light, help us to protect all life, to prepare for a better future, for the coming of your Kingdom of justice, peace, love and beauty” (180). These words both truthful and righteous are emblematic of the encyclical in its entirety; the encyclical is about how we as humans have damaged the word and how we must make an effort to right our wrongs. Pope…

One of the convictions Russell B. Connors Jr. discussions in his reading, "Catholic Social Teaching - Convictions and Connections", is Option for the Poor. The Option for the Poor focuses on the good act that can be done for the less fortunate, similarly to The Food Group, which is committed to serving the hunger needs of our communities. Connors define Option for the Poor as, "All members of society have a special obligation to the poor and vulnerable" (p. 252). It should be everyone's…