Non-Negotiable: Essential Principles of a Just Society and Humane Culture

by Sheila Liaugminas

What gave Abraham Lincoln the authority to declare the freedom and choice to own slaves as immoral? After all, the law of the land allowed it. What gave Rev. Dr. Martin Luther King the authority to lead a whole movement calling civil laws immoral and demanding new civil rights laws that recognized the equal dignity and worth of "all God's children" without exception? After all, segregation was legal. What gave the United Nations the moral authority to claim and designate absolute human rights in an international declaration, though some member nations were already violating them? Principles. First principles. In their founding documents, the United States and the United Nations recognized the principles that all men have inherent dignity and that they deserve equal rights. They both have declared those principles the conditions fundamental to freedom, justice, and peace. Yet both the United States and the United Nations have within them powerful political forces passing laws or resolutions that violate first principles and put at risk the most vulnerable populations. This book goes beyond the politics of pragmatism and cultural relativism to reacquaint the reader with first principles. It demonstrates what the Church has to say about the most important issues of our time and why. It anticipates the questions readers will ask and provides the answers they will need in the struggle to restore respect for human dignity.

Genres: Catholic, Cultural, Nonfiction

160 pages, Hardcover

First published May 20, 2014

Reviews

[Irene · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is not what I expected. I expected a discussion of principles by which various social issues might be evaluated in a pluralistic culture. Instead, this is a reiteration of the conservative Catholic stance on the four hot button culture issues of the day: legalized abortion, legalized euthanasia, defining marriage and employer exceptions to rules that violate their religious beliefs. This was overtly partisan. These issues have been widely argued and this slim book added nothing new to what has been said many times.

[A.i.sanchez · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the most exciting aspects I encountered when studying the Catholic faith for the first time was its deep intellectual tradition. In Non-Negotiable, Sheila Liaugminas (pronounced Log-mee-nas, I believe) draws on this tradition to explain why there remains certain principles that are absolutely necessary to hold up a just society for all human beings. Mrs Liaugminas is a journalist by profession so what you get in this short (about 150 pages) but impactful book is nothing but the best resources and arguments to explain what is required for a truly moral and just society. I had a lot of fun reading this book and the great thing about it is that it makes the average reader think through these important principles.

I want to be clear on this next point: you do NOT have to be a Catholic, or even a Christian for that matter, to read and understand this book. The author is a Catholic and she draws heavy on Catholic thinkers and scholars however, the arguments are not necessarily, uniquely Catholic. In a secular culture suspicious of religion, quoting the bible is not an effective way of making a point, nor should it be. The word of God is absolutely indispensable and sorely needed today but God has also given us the ability to reason. And that is precisely what you find in these pages.

[Winston Jen · Rating 1 out of 5]

Funded by Catholics, for Catholics and Against the World

Abortion is tragic, but better than the alternative (treating women as living wombs with no value beyond that. Consenting to sex should not and cannot be equated with consenting to pregnancy and childbirth. Every adult has sexual urges (unless they are asexual, and that is very rare).

Voluntary euthanasia IS an act of compassion. It's tragic that in most of the world, we treat animals better than human beings (unless they're on Death Row).

I actually stand with the RCC on ESCR. Adult stem cells have performed far better and do not carry the risks associated with ESCR.

I find it curious that Sheila has not argued against marriage equality (at least in this article). Perhaps she has realised that that fight has already been lost.

As far as slavery goes, while the principles of freedom, equality and compassion certainly motivated Lincoln to achieve his goals (the Declaration of Independence does state that all men have an inalienable right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness), Christianity itself had nothing to do with it. The bible does not condemn slavery as an institution, and only a single verse asserts that "in Christ", there are no slaves, genders or races (Galatians 3:28). The problem with this verse is that it only applies to Christians. Anyone else is fair game for discrimination, oppression and unequal treatment under the law. To place Christianity upon its own pedestal is dishonest and insulting to the tens of thousands who fought and died during the American Civil War.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

I think, on the whole, I'm happy I read it rather than not. It certainly didn't inform me of anything I didn't know, but it did manage to be more inspirational than I'd feared. Overall, of course, it's still nearly all about what needs to be changed and precious little about how to go about changing it. That I still have to do for myself.

[Katelyn Marie · Rating 5 out of 5]

"So long as we have the gift of life, we must protect the gift of life. So long as it is threatened, so long must it be defended." (Liaugminas, Sheila. Non-Negotiable: Essential Principles of a Just Society and Humane Culture [p. 143])

This book does an exceptional job of explaining 5 "Non-Negotiable" topics: abortion, euthanasia, the nature of marriage, religious freedom, and human dignity. Liaugminas wraps quotes and excerpts from other people's work around her own words, effectively defending her position. In all, it was a very thorough read and I would recommend it to anyone looking for information on the Christian stance concerning the five "Non-Negotiable" topics listed above.

[Maurisa Mayerle · Rating 4 out of 5]

This will be a great resource to have on hand when defending the first principles of the inherent dignity of every human life and the right to being treated with equality. Published in 2014, author Sheila Liaugminas certainly would have enough material to update this work considering the continuing and accelerating slide into cultural relativism and secularism.

Well researched and wonderfully written.

[Tim Ouellette · Rating 5 out of 5]

I just finished reading NON-NEGOTIABLE and thought the author did a masterful job incorporating essential dignity with various life stages (from the womb and the beginning of life to marriage and then the vulnerability of old age) as well as tying dignity in to conscience, religious liberty and then its overall role and importance in society.

The following passages are very clear: protection of the right to life must be the first principle in any effort to effect a change in the culture, a culture that has grown increasingly hostile to life for far too long:


"The right to life is the first unalienable right held as a self-evident truth in the Declaration of Independence. That is the first of three foundational principles of justice defended in the Manhattan Declaration. And it is alos the first of several other crucial principles the Catholic Church teaches on participation in political life, principles sometimes referred to as 'non-negotiable...If we cannot guarantee protection of the right to life, we can't make a coherent argument for other rights that depend on that first, most basic one" (pgs. 61, 62).


The author makes it a point to draw the reader's attention to the dangers of viewing life, language, gender and marriage from an overtly relativistic perspective, a perspective that endangers a truly just society and humane culture.

[Marlowe Brennan · Rating 2 out of 5]

I disagree with massive swaths of this book and find that it lacks a significant analysis, preferring instead to rely on block quotes and a rehash of Catholic doctrine. All the while it makes no effort to address any of the myriad of ways in which those same religious doctrines have been manipulated to cause harm to innocents the world over. That said this book does force a secular humanist to consider through the views of others what are central concepts to the notions of individual autonomy and personal freedom alongside a wider humanism.

[Debra Minogue · Rating 5 out of 5]

Well written and sourced, Sheila Liaugminas puts forth a very readable explanation of today's culture wars and offers the weapons with which to fight them. A just society begins with, and demands, an understanding and respect for human dignity. This book offers a a comprehensive overview of what that means and offers a Catholic perspective that can, and must, be carried forth into an increasingly secular culture that has lost its human identity.