Culture of life
[1] It opposes abortion, euthanasia, capital punishment (also known as the death penalty),[note 1] studies and medicines involving embryonic stem cells, and contraception, because they are seen as destroying life.
"[8] The term originated in moral theology, especially that of the Catholic Church, and was popularly championed by Pope John Paul II;[9][10] it has been widely used by religious leaders in evangelical Christianity as well.
[16] Matrimony, chastity, fidelity Virtue[26] Human sterilization[27][28][29][30][5] The expression "culture of life" entered popular parlance from Pope John Paul II in the 1990s.
[9][10] He used the term in his 1991 encyclical Centesimus annus,[35] and then more fully expanded upon it in the 1995 encyclical Evangelium vitae ("Gospel of Life"): In our present social context, marked by a dramatic struggle between the "culture of life" and the "culture of death", there is need to develop a deep critical sense, capable of discerning true values and authentic needs.
[46] On October 3, during the 2000 U.S. presidential election campaign, then-Texas Governor George W. Bush, a Methodist, cited the term during a televised debate against then Vice President Al Gore.
"[52][16] The platform's anti-abortion stance included positions on abortion; access to healthcare despite disability, age, or infirmity; euthanasia; assisted suicide; and promoted research and resources to alleviate the pain of the terminally ill.[16] The phrase "culture of life" was also invoked during the Terri Schiavo case of March 2005 when the phrase was used in support of legislative and legal efforts to prolong the life of a woman in an persistent vegetative state.
[54] Following the Boston Marathon bombing, the Catholic bishops of Massachusetts opposed the death penalty for terrorist bomber Dzhokhar Tsarnaev, citing the need to build a culture of life.
Pope John Paul II also used the opposing term "culture of death" in Evangelium vitae (April 1995): In fact, while the climate of widespread moral uncertainty can in some way be explained by the multiplicity and gravity of today's social problems, and these can sometimes mitigate the subjective responsibility of individuals, it is no less true that we are confronted by an even larger reality, which can be described as a veritable structure of sin.
[57]He argued that there was "a war of the powerful against the weak: a life which would require greater acceptance, love and care is considered useless, or held to be an intolerable burden, and is therefore rejected in one way or another.
"[37][58] Any threat to the human person, including wars, class conflict, civil unrest, ecological recklessness, and sexual irresponsibility, should therefore be regarded in his opinion as part of the "culture of death.
The term is used by those in the consistent life ethic movement to refer to supporters of embryonic stem cell research, legalized abortion, and euthanasia.
