Eugenics, Compassion, and Cooperating with Evil

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"There are not a hundred people in America who hate the Catholic Church. There are millions of people who hate what they wrongly believe to be the Catholic Church - which is, of course, quite a different thing."
(Bishop Fulton Sheen, Foreword to Radio Replies Vol. 1, page ix (1938), via Wikiquote)

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I think part of the problem many Americans, Catholic and otherwise, have with the Vatican is how the Catholic Church sees human life.

People, Love, and Genocide

The Church says that human beings are people: all human beings.

Every human being is a person, with a built-in dignity. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1700) This includes people who are:

• Not interesting or useful
  • Too young
  • Too old
  • Too sick
  • Weak
• From the 'wrong'
  • Country
  • Church
  • Class
    • Social
    • Economic

We're also told that we should:

• Love God, love our neighbor
  (Matthew 22:36-40, Mark 12:28-31)
• See everybody is our neighbor
  (Matthew 5:43-44; Mark 12:28-31; Luke 10:25-30;
  Catechism of the Catholic Church, 1825)

Going along with cultural values and civil authorities can get awkward, once a person believes that all human beings are people: 'real' people.

For example, we're told that genocide is wrong, and that we shouldn't do it. 'I was only following orders' isn't a valid excuse. (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2313)

"Lebensunwertes Leben" - 1934 to 1945

I doubt that many Americans would say that they support a "lebensunwertes leben" policy.

For one thing, only a few percent of today's Americans speak German. For another, some of us might recognize where "lebensunwertes Leben," "life unworthy of life" or "life not worth living," came from. It was a term used by the German eugenic program in the 1930s and 1940s. ("Origins of the Nazi Genocide," A Teacher's Guide to the Holocaust)

Western enthusiasm for eugenics faded a bit after we got a look at places like Dachau and Auschwitz. The idea of removing undesirable traits - and people - from humanity never really went away, and that's another topic. (August 24, 2012, , October 7, 2011)

Happily, leaders of a remarkable number of countries around the world now say that genocide is a bad idea. Maybe we learned something from the horrors of the 20th century.

Then again, maybe not so much.

Quality of Life - 1973 to 2012

I haven't heard "quality of life" used as a reason for killing a defective person for quite a while. The idea is still very much with us, though.

A significant difference between today's America and the earlier effort to 'cleanse' Europe's gene pool is, I think, the motives involved.

Contemporary America is, by establishment standards, very compassionate. I didn't accept the idea that:

• 'Defective' people would be better off dead
• A child conceived accidentally
  • Wouldn't be loved
  • Was better off dead

The 'quality of life' argument caught my attention, since I'm one of those 'defective' people. I'm glad that a half-century of pain ended when I swapped out my hip sockets, but I'm also glad that I survived to experience those decades.

By the way: there's an election in the United States tomorrow. I've posted about the current American administration's odd policies regarding health care and religious liberty before. (March 16, 2012)

I'm safe, so far, since I'm old enough to qualify as a 'real' person under current American law. But I'm going to vote for the other major-party candidate, anyway.

It has to do with formal and material cooperation with evil. More about those terms later.

Dealing With 'the Wrong Sort'

Another way that the Catholic Church rankles some folks is, I suspect, the habit priests and bishops have of not heaping verbal abuse on 'sinners.'

Not that I think the mythical 'typical American' would expect - or want - a member of the clergy to act like this lot:


(ArizonaLincoln (talk), via Wikipedia, used w/o permission)

On the other hand, I do think that there's often a desire to have a priest or minister treat 'those people' differently: politicians I don't like, used car salesmen, telephone solicitors, whatever.

A problem, as I see it, with wanting to heap abuse on 'those people' is that - they are people. Like me. Besides, my Lord gave a pretty good reason for accepting folks who were 'sinners.' (Luke 19:1-10)

On the other hand, this 'pillar of the community' was not shown as a good role model:

" 'The Pharisee took up his position and spoke this prayer to himself, "O God, I thank you that I am not like the rest of humanity--greedy, dishonest, adulterous--or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week, and I pay tithes on my whole income." ' "
(Luke 18:11-14)

I've been over this sort of thing before.(July 27, 2010)

Life: It's Complicated, Sort of

The basics are simple: Love God; love my neighbor; see everybody as my neighbor.

After two thousand years of folks trying to weasel out of those simple rules, explanations have gotten a bit complicated. Lengthy, anyway:

• Human life
  • Is sacred
    (Catechism, 2258)
  • Begins at conception
  (Catechism, 2270, 2274)
• Murder is wrong
  (Catechism, 2259-2262, 2268-2270)
• Legitimate defense is permitted
  • But not more violence than necessary
    (Catechism, 2264)
  (Catechism, 2263-2267)
• Abortion is wrong
  (Catechism, 2270-2275)
  • Because even very young human beings are people
    (Catechism, 2273-2274)
• Euthanasia is wrong
  (Catechism, 2276-2279)
• Suicide is wrong
  (Catechism, 2280-2283)
  • But regarding the soul of someone who commits suicide
    • Despair is not an option
    • "The Church prays for persons who have taken their own lives."
    (Catechism, 2283)
  (June 24, 2012)

Moving along.

Dealing With Sin

There's no way I can avoid dealing with sin. The Catholic understanding of original sin is that we live in a fallen world, and are affected by the sin of our first parents: "...but human nature has not been totally corrupted: it is wounded in the natural powers proper to it...." (Catechism, 405; and see Catechism, 390, 391, 402-406)

In a way, I'm always 'cooperating with evil:' doing something that is connected with a sinful act. If I obsessed about that, I might decide to isolate myself from everyone else - which doesn't seem like a sensible option.

Before I get into the difference between "formal" and "material" cooperation with evil, the usual disclaimer: I'm just "some guy with a blog." I don't speak for the Church. On the other hand, I do my best to check out what the Church says.

Formal and Material Cooperation With Evil

Let's say that some fellow decided to kill his neighbor.

This fellow buys a car at an automobile dealer. Then he runs over his neighbor, killing him. That's murder, and it's wrong: an evil act.

The salesman who sold the car might feel guilty, since he provided the murderer with a weapon.

I don't know how American law would sort that out, but unless the salesman knew that the car would be used to kill someone he hadn't formally cooperated with evil. Selling the car was material cooperation with evil: he took part in some of the physical aspects of the murder, but that's all.

Formal cooperation with evil is knowing that an evil act is being or will be committed: and helping anyway. If the salesman had been told that the car would be used to kill someone, and he'd sold it: that would be formal cooperation. Also a very bad idea.

Formal Cooperation With Evil, and the November Election

Maybe this sounds theoretical. Not many folks, even in America, sell cars: and I don't imagine that many of them sell a car to someone who's shopping for a murder weapon.

On the other hand, a great many Americans will vote tomorrow. As usual, none of the candidates are perfect, and that's yet another topic. (August 3, 2012)

I could panic, decide that since there are no perfect candidates I'll stay as far away from the polling place as possible. That doesn't seem to make sense.

Instead, I've got a list of candidates who I think are most likely to do some good; and least likely to continue the national government's current lethal policies.

Deliberately voting for a candidate who has demonstrated support of objective evils such as the (legal) killing of young human beings would be formal cooperation with evil.

I don't need that sort of trouble at my particular judgment. Still more topics. (August 27, 2011)

I put some material about formal¹ and material² cooperation with evil at the end of this post.

Related posts:

• Loving our neighbors
  
  • "Recovering From Sandy: Breezy Point, Queens; Santiago, Cuba"
    (October 31, 2012)
    Particularly
    • "...Every Parish is Making an Analysis..."
  • "Decisions: Ethical, and Political"
    (June 26, 2012)
    Particularly
    • Freedom Means Freedom: For Everybody
    • Life, Death, and Rules
    • "I was Only Following Orders?"
  • "Working Toward the 'Civilization of Love' "
    (May 14, 2012)
    Particularly
    • God, Love, and Neighbors
  • "Hope, Joy, and Working for a Better World"
    (September 13, 2011)
    Particularly
    • The Future Looks Pretty Good - - -
    • - - - And We Have Work to Do
    • Culture, History, Authority, and the Universal Church
  • "Loving Neighbors: No Matter What"
    (May 10, 2011)
• Compassion
  • "Loving Neighbors: Even the One Who Stole Our Gospel Book"
    (September 4, 2011)
  • "Praying for Dr. Death"
    (June 6, 2011)
  • "What Kind of Christian Prays For His Enemies?!"
    (May 18, 2011)
  • "Murder and Suicide at Johns Hopkins: My Take"
    (September 16, 2010)
  • "Minnesota Bishops, Immigrants, Papers and Justice"
    (June 30, 2010)
• Sin
  • "Battling Sin, Living in Hope"
    (July 25, 2012)
  • "Original Sin and the Unfairness of Gravity"
    (July 11, 2012)
  • "Honoring the Body, Within Reason"
    (April 25, 2012)
  • "Wheat, Weeds, and a Tax Collector"
    (July 27, 2010)
  • "Beach Killer Joseph Burgess: A Case of Horribly Warped Christianity"
    (July 24, 2009)
• Responsibility
  • "The Power to Hurt: Or Help"
    (June 27, 2012)
    Particularly
    • Free Will and Natural Law
    • Choice and Responsibility
  • "Sin, Freedom, and Toy Monkeys"
    (May 23, 2012)
  • "Uncertainty, 'Being Religious,' and This Catholic"
    (February 12, 2011)
  • "Original Sin, Free Will, ADD, and There Goes the Air Conditioner"
    (October 15, 2010)
  • "The Catholic Church Won't Even Let People Kill Themselves"
    (January 28, 2009)
    Particularly
    • You Mean, I Can't Even Help Someone Commit Suicide?
    • Catholic Teachings on Suicide Don't Take Today's Science Into Account?

Background:

• Catholic Church
  • "You Shall Love Your Neighbor as Yourself"
    The Fifth Commandment
    (Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2258-2317)
  • "Theological Reflections on Catholics in Political Life and the Reception of Holy Communion"
    Archbishop William J. Levada, via usccb.org (June 13, 2004)
    (From www.usccb.org/issues-and-action/faithful-citizenship/church-teaching/theological-reflections-tf-bishops-politicians-2004-06-13.cfm (January 22, 2014))
  • "Fourth International Forum on Preventing Genocide"
    Secretariat of State for the Holy See, Msgr. Celestino Migliore (January 27,2004)
  • "Declaration of the Holy See to the First World Congress on the Death Penalty"
    (June 21, 2001)
  • "Origins of the Nazi Genocide"
    A Teacher's Guide to the Holocaust, Florida Center for Instructional Technology, College of Education, University of South Florida (2000)
  • "Evangelium Vitae"
    Pope John Paul II (March 25, 1995)
  • "Declaration on Euthanasia"
    Franjo Cardinal Seper (Prefect), Jerome Hamer, O.P. Tit. Archbishop of Lorium (Secretary); Sacred Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith (May 5, 1980)
  • "Humanae Vitae"
    Encyclical Letter of His Holiness Paul VI on the regulation of birth
    Pope Paul VI (July 25, 1968)
• Other
  • Office of The Special Adviser on The Prevention of Genocide
    UN Web Services Section, Department of Public Information, United Nations (2011)
  • "Genocide Information"
    Deiter Berninger, History 401, Genocide in History MSUM (Last updated May 31, 2001)
  • "Life Unworthy of Life: A Holocaust Curriculum"
    Dr. Sidney Bolkosky, Betty Rotberg Ellias, Dr. David Harris; Adapted for online use by Dr. Jamie L. Wraight
    Originally published by the Center for the Study of the Child (Farmington Hills, Michigan),
    Jewish Community Council of Metropolitan Detroit (1987)

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¹ Formal Cooperation

"...Evangelium Vitae also reiterates Catholic moral teaching about the sinfulness of cooperation in evil actions. 'Christians, like all people of good will, are called upon under grave obligation of conscience not to cooperate in practices which, even if permitted by civil legislation, are contrary to God's law. Indeed, from the moral standpoint, it is never licit to cooperate formally in evil' (no. 74). The Encyclical goes on to describe 'formal' cooperation: It 'occurs when an action, either by its very nature or by the form it takes in a concrete situation, can be defined as a direct participation in an act against innocent human life or a sharing in the immoral intention of the person committing it.' Examples of such formal cooperation might be the father of a child about to be aborted urging the woman to have an abortion, or consenting to it; in the case of a doctor performing an abortion, a nurse who prepares for and assists in the procedure willingly would be guilty of formal cooperation...."
("Reflections on Catholics in Political Life and the Reception of Holy Communion" (June 13, 2004)) [emphasis mine]

"...It is necessary to distinguish first of all between formal and material cooperation. To formally cooperate in the sin of another is to be associated with him in the performance of a bad deed in so far forth as it is bad, that is, to share in the perverse frame of mind of that other....."
("Accomplice," Catholic Encyclopedia (1907), via newadvent.org) [emphasis mine]

² Material Cooperation

"...Perhaps the complex moral analysis of the liceity of material cooperation in evil can be helpful as guidance for Catholics in political life. When formal cooperation (evil as intended) is excluded, some degree of material cooperation may be justified, according to the analysis of an individual situation: Is the person's right intention known sufficiently? Will scandal be avoided? Does the cooperation aim at lessening the bad effects of the cooperation? ..."
("Reflections on Catholics in Political Life and the Reception of Holy Communion" (June 13, 2004)) [emphasis mine]

"...On the contrary, to materially cooperate in another's crime is to participate in the action so far as its physical entity is concerned, but not in so far as it is motived by the malice of the principal in the case. For example, to persuade another to absent himself without reason from Mass on Sunday would be an instance of formal cooperation. To sell a person in an ordinary business transaction a revolver which he presently uses to kill himself is a case of material cooperation...."
("Accomplice," Catholic Encyclopedia (1907), via newadvent.org) [emphasis mine]