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Encyclicals of Pope John Paul II
Evangelium Vitae: The Gospel of Life
The Gospel of life is at the heart of Jesus message. Lovingly received day by the Church, it is to be preached with dauntless fidelity as "good news" to the people of every age and culture.
176 pages, Paperback
First published April 17, 1995
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About the author
Pope John Paul II
1,046 books634 followersSaint Pope John Paul II (Latin: Ioannes Paulus II), born Karol Józef Wojtyła was elected Pope at the Conclave of 16 October 1978, and he took the name of John Paul II. On 22 October, the Lord's Day, he solemnly inaugurated his Petrine ministry as the 263rd successor to the Apostle. His pontificate, one of the longest in the history of the Church, lasted nearly 27 years.
Driven by his pastoral solicitude for all Churches and by a sense of openness and charity to the entire human race, John Paul II exercised the Petrine ministry with a tireless missionary spirit, dedicating it all his energy. He made 104 pastoral visits outside Italy and 146 within Italy. As bishop of Rome he visited 317 of the city's 333 parishes.
He had more meetings than any of his predecessors with the People of God and the leaders of Nations. More than 17,600,000 pilgrims participated in the General Audiences held on Wednesdays (more than 1160), not counting other special audiences and religious ceremonies [more than 8 million pilgrims during the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000 alone], and the millions of faithful he met during pastoral visits in Italy and throughout the world. We must also remember the numerous government personalities he encountered during 38 official visits, 738 audiences and meetings held with Heads of State, and 246 audiences and meetings with Prime Ministers.
His love for young people brought him to establish the World Youth Days. The 19 WYDs celebrated during his pontificate brought together millions of young people from all over the world. At the same time his care for the family was expressed in the World Meetings of Families, which he initiated in 1994. John Paul II successfully encouraged dialogue with the Jews and with the representatives of other religions, whom he several times invited to prayer meetings for peace, especially in Assisi.
Under his guidance the Church prepared herself for the third millennium and celebrated the Great Jubilee of the year 2000 in accordance with the instructions given in the Apostolic Letter Tertio Millennio adveniente. The Church then faced the new epoch, receiving his instructions in the Apostolic Letter Novo Millennio ineunte, in which he indicated to the faithful their future path.
With the Year of the Redemption, the Marian Year and the Year of the Eucharist, he promoted the spiritual renewal of the Church. He gave an extraordinary impetus to Canonizations and Beatifications, focusing on countless examples of holiness as an incentive for the people of our time. He celebrated 147 beatification ceremonies during which he proclaimed 1,338 Blesseds; and 51 canonizations for a total of 482 saints. He made Thérèse of the Child Jesus a Doctor of the Church.
He considerably expanded the College of Cardinals, creating 231 Cardinals (plus one in pectore) in 9 consistories. He also called six full meetings of the College of Cardinals. His most important Documents include 14 Encyclicals, 15 Apostolic Exhortations, 11 Apostolic Constitutions, 45 Apostolic Letters. He promulgated the Catechism of the Catholic Church in the light of Tradition as authoritatively interpreted by the Second Vatican Council. He also reformed the Eastern and Western Codes of Canon Law, created new Institutions and reorganized the Roman Curia.
In the light of Christ risen from the dead, on 2 April 2005 at 9.37 p.m., while Saturday was drawing to a close and the Lord's Day was already beginning, the Octave of Easter and Divine Mercy Sunday, the Church's beloved Pastor, John Paul II, departed this world for the Father. On April 1, 2011, he was raised to the glory of the altars and on April 27, 2014 canonized.
Driven by his pastoral solicitude for all Churches and by a sense of openness and charity to the entire human race, John Paul II exercised the Petrine ministry with a tireless missionary spirit, dedicating it all his energy. He made 104 pastoral visits outside Italy and 146 within Italy. As bishop of Rome he visited 317 of the city's 333 parishes.
He had more meetings than any of his predecessors with the People of God and the leaders of Nations. More than 17,600,000 pilgrims participated in the General Audiences held on Wednesdays (more than 1160), not counting other special audiences and religious ceremonies [more than 8 million pilgrims during the Great Jubilee of the Year 2000 alone], and the millions of faithful he met during pastoral visits in Italy and throughout the world. We must also remember the numerous government personalities he encountered during 38 official visits, 738 audiences and meetings held with Heads of State, and 246 audiences and meetings with Prime Ministers.
His love for young people brought him to establish the World Youth Days. The 19 WYDs celebrated during his pontificate brought together millions of young people from all over the world. At the same time his care for the family was expressed in the World Meetings of Families, which he initiated in 1994. John Paul II successfully encouraged dialogue with the Jews and with the representatives of other religions, whom he several times invited to prayer meetings for peace, especially in Assisi.
Under his guidance the Church prepared herself for the third millennium and celebrated the Great Jubilee of the year 2000 in accordance with the instructions given in the Apostolic Letter Tertio Millennio adveniente. The Church then faced the new epoch, receiving his instructions in the Apostolic Letter Novo Millennio ineunte, in which he indicated to the faithful their future path.
With the Year of the Redemption, the Marian Year and the Year of the Eucharist, he promoted the spiritual renewal of the Church. He gave an extraordinary impetus to Canonizations and Beatifications, focusing on countless examples of holiness as an incentive for the people of our time. He celebrated 147 beatification ceremonies during which he proclaimed 1,338 Blesseds; and 51 canonizations for a total of 482 saints. He made Thérèse of the Child Jesus a Doctor of the Church.
He considerably expanded the College of Cardinals, creating 231 Cardinals (plus one in pectore) in 9 consistories. He also called six full meetings of the College of Cardinals. His most important Documents include 14 Encyclicals, 15 Apostolic Exhortations, 11 Apostolic Constitutions, 45 Apostolic Letters. He promulgated the Catechism of the Catholic Church in the light of Tradition as authoritatively interpreted by the Second Vatican Council. He also reformed the Eastern and Western Codes of Canon Law, created new Institutions and reorganized the Roman Curia.
In the light of Christ risen from the dead, on 2 April 2005 at 9.37 p.m., while Saturday was drawing to a close and the Lord's Day was already beginning, the Octave of Easter and Divine Mercy Sunday, the Church's beloved Pastor, John Paul II, departed this world for the Father. On April 1, 2011, he was raised to the glory of the altars and on April 27, 2014 canonized.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
March 17, 2018
*gives standing ovation*
Person: Why are you applauding at your screen?
Person: Why are you applauding at your screen?
October 4, 2020
Two cultures oppose each other. On one side stands the "culture of death," a culture grounded on the idea that life is an accident of time and space, that life and death are equally devoid of value, and that self-actualization is the highest good — even if that requires the sacrifice of life. On the other side stands the "culture of life," a culture grounded on the belief that life is a gift and duty bestowed by God, that life bears eternal value over death, and that the nurturing of life is the highest good — even if that requires the sacrifice of self.
These are the terms laid out in Pope John Paul II's encyclical "Evangelium Vitae," or "The Gospel of Life." Non-Catholic readers will find themselves filtering out uniquely Catholic artifacts, such as the entire conclusion which boils down to an encomium of devotion to Mary. The discerning Protestant reader will often detect the Magisterium's claim to interpret Scripture with full and final authority rather than the other way around.
There are also tough ethical topics which require further thought. For example, John Paul II argues that euthanasia is unacceptable in part because it denies the sanctifying power of suffering, yet he also concedes that palliation is acceptable. If we deny a right to die based on intolerable and terminal suffering, and we deny it on the grounds that suffering is never hopeless but is rather a channel of sanctifying grace, should we not refuse palliative care on the grounds that we're limiting the divine power of that suffering? Similar conundrums could be posed to the Church's opposition to chemical contraception on the one hand and its promotion of "conception avoidance" through natural planning methods on the other, when consistency would seem to dictate that any attempt to "avoid life" is out of bounds.
However, there will always be thorny ethical dilemmas at the shadowy nexus of life and death. All of this is outweighed by the encyclical's powerful promotion of a holistic and all-encompassing love for human life in all its stages, including the middle bits that pro-life advocates sometimes overlook. I doubt there exists a more tightly-written defense of life in our contemporary context, and it should strike the conscience of anyone who finds his or her moral sense dulled by the sheer weight of modernity and the overwhelming power of the "culture of death." I recommend this to any reader who wants to be confronted by and renewed to an appreciation that each human life is beautiful, valuable, and inviolable in dignity — from very beginning to very end, and at every precious stage along the journey.
These are the terms laid out in Pope John Paul II's encyclical "Evangelium Vitae," or "The Gospel of Life." Non-Catholic readers will find themselves filtering out uniquely Catholic artifacts, such as the entire conclusion which boils down to an encomium of devotion to Mary. The discerning Protestant reader will often detect the Magisterium's claim to interpret Scripture with full and final authority rather than the other way around.
There are also tough ethical topics which require further thought. For example, John Paul II argues that euthanasia is unacceptable in part because it denies the sanctifying power of suffering, yet he also concedes that palliation is acceptable. If we deny a right to die based on intolerable and terminal suffering, and we deny it on the grounds that suffering is never hopeless but is rather a channel of sanctifying grace, should we not refuse palliative care on the grounds that we're limiting the divine power of that suffering? Similar conundrums could be posed to the Church's opposition to chemical contraception on the one hand and its promotion of "conception avoidance" through natural planning methods on the other, when consistency would seem to dictate that any attempt to "avoid life" is out of bounds.
However, there will always be thorny ethical dilemmas at the shadowy nexus of life and death. All of this is outweighed by the encyclical's powerful promotion of a holistic and all-encompassing love for human life in all its stages, including the middle bits that pro-life advocates sometimes overlook. I doubt there exists a more tightly-written defense of life in our contemporary context, and it should strike the conscience of anyone who finds his or her moral sense dulled by the sheer weight of modernity and the overwhelming power of the "culture of death." I recommend this to any reader who wants to be confronted by and renewed to an appreciation that each human life is beautiful, valuable, and inviolable in dignity — from very beginning to very end, and at every precious stage along the journey.
June 10, 2016
One of the hallmarks of intelligence is to be able to take a complex subject, and render your opinions in a manner that makes it readily accessible to people of any level of intelligence or understanding. Using this standard, Pope John Paul II proves, in this important work, that he is a man of high intelligence. This encyclical sets forth in clear and very concise language a defense of life, at any of its stages, with powerful arguments. Notwithstanding the fact that it is written by the head of a church and, therefore, makes abundant use of citations to biblical and other religious sources, the logic of this writing easily withstands scrutiny and contrary arguments on the basis of its logic alone.
It is highly unlikely that any proponents of the culture of death, otherwise known as pro-abortionists, or assisted suicide proponents, etc., have ever read this work, nor considered in depth and detail the positions which it takes.
This is an extremely worthwhile read for anyone who is even tangentially interested in the issues of life, whether from the time of conception, or end of life stages, or considering the morality and justice of the death penalty.
It is highly unlikely that any proponents of the culture of death, otherwise known as pro-abortionists, or assisted suicide proponents, etc., have ever read this work, nor considered in depth and detail the positions which it takes.
This is an extremely worthwhile read for anyone who is even tangentially interested in the issues of life, whether from the time of conception, or end of life stages, or considering the morality and justice of the death penalty.
February 5, 2017
енцикліка, тому місцями суха, місцями поетична, здебільшого достатньо абстрактна, щоб із фрагментами з неї можна було їздити в передвиборні тури.
папа, звісно, живе не в країні ельфів, тож розуміє, що в багатьох випадках поява нового життя пов'язана з погіршенням якості поточного, і мусить це визнати. однак його відповідь полягає в тому, що до дупи ту якість життя; можна забити на суспільний добробут, бо прагнути треба до суспільного блага, а що воно таке, вам зараз розкажуть. відповідальність, яку бере на себе (принаймні перед богом) людина, приводячи на світ чи змушуючи до життя іншу особу, якось нікого не цікавить.
і чого тоді хотіти від середньостатистичних пролайферів, які не мають ні освіти папиної, ні його асистентів і консультантів.
папа, звісно, живе не в країні ельфів, тож розуміє, що в багатьох випадках поява нового життя пов'язана з погіршенням якості поточного, і мусить це визнати. однак його відповідь полягає в тому, що до дупи ту якість життя; можна забити на суспільний добробут, бо прагнути треба до суспільного блага, а що воно таке, вам зараз розкажуть. відповідальність, яку бере на себе (принаймні перед богом) людина, приводячи на світ чи змушуючи до життя іншу особу, якось нікого не цікавить.
і чого тоді хотіти від середньостатистичних пролайферів, які не мають ні освіти папиної, ні його асистентів і консультантів.
March 2, 2025
It has been said to me that some of the inspiration the Pontiff relied on was his experience in visiting the United States of America. While he commends its many fruits, he denies and abhors its many social values in a time when a post-sexual revolution era has taken place and was pretty recent in his time. In another book, "Memory and Identity", he compares such democracies that allowed or even promoted concepts like abortion, eugenics, and assisted suicide to be no better than masked totalitarian regimes which have done the same, only that the decisions have a guise of democratic values. This encyclical isn't only addressed to the controversies in America, but he acknowledges the whole world, particularly Western Europe, in other writings.
To have a socially active and intellectually guided Pontiff such as Pope St. John Paul II is a blessing. Not because he was ever impeccable, but because he had a large heart for Jesus Christ.
The great and simple thing about the Church making explicit clarifications on such issues is for the purpose that the lay don't have to go scrutinize thousands of documents from centuries building upon each other as Christian ethics, philosophy, and metaphysics continued to evolve in its elaboration and display. This is one of the prime documents of not just the 20th century but really ever that gives us the position of what's to be believed regarding the sanctity and treatment of human life. It doesn't stand on its own- as there exist many other complementary authoritative writings, but it is one of the prime documents and perhaps the first to be read when we want to begin the discussion on the purpose of being and why it must be cherished for the human person.
To have a socially active and intellectually guided Pontiff such as Pope St. John Paul II is a blessing. Not because he was ever impeccable, but because he had a large heart for Jesus Christ.
The great and simple thing about the Church making explicit clarifications on such issues is for the purpose that the lay don't have to go scrutinize thousands of documents from centuries building upon each other as Christian ethics, philosophy, and metaphysics continued to evolve in its elaboration and display. This is one of the prime documents of not just the 20th century but really ever that gives us the position of what's to be believed regarding the sanctity and treatment of human life. It doesn't stand on its own- as there exist many other complementary authoritative writings, but it is one of the prime documents and perhaps the first to be read when we want to begin the discussion on the purpose of being and why it must be cherished for the human person.
August 6, 2022
Nearly 30 years ago, Pope John Paul II defined the arguments over abortion, euthanasia and other life & death policies as a conflict between a “Culture of Life” and a “Culture of Death”. This encyclical is more than just a work of philosophy and theology from one of the masters of those fields. It is a call to action by a Saint, who as a young man in Nazi controlled Poland and a priest under Soviet domination bore personal witness to the worst secular, authoritarian regimes of the 20th Century. It is his cry from the heart. His call is to embrace the Culture of Life and reject the Culture of Death.
I sought this out the day after the Dobbs decision changed the legal landscape of abortion in the United States. I spent a month and gave it a close reading. While the political environment has been embroiled in every possible way, reading this has been a source of helpful reflection and badly needed perspective. I wish it were much more widely read. Rational, life affirming policy is possible, even where that does not seem to be where things are headed at the moment.
I sought this out the day after the Dobbs decision changed the legal landscape of abortion in the United States. I spent a month and gave it a close reading. While the political environment has been embroiled in every possible way, reading this has been a source of helpful reflection and badly needed perspective. I wish it were much more widely read. Rational, life affirming policy is possible, even where that does not seem to be where things are headed at the moment.
July 12, 2024
Pope John Paul II makes an argument for the intrinsic value of human life that should be upheld by all men and advocating for by Christians. I think Paul II is largely correct in the applications he makes towards the Gospel of Life. His strongest and the base of his argument comes from Gen. 4 looking at Cain and Abel. However, this ends around page 20. The remainder of this piece becomes quite repetitive as he makes the same argument over and over again.
With this being a Roman Catholic piece, there were some things I disagreed with (Apostolic succession, RC sacraments, additions to Scripture, universal motherhood of Mary).
Overall, this was a helpful piece. I thought he did a really good job making applications on how we should care for orphans and widows that I found convicting. I enjoyed reading something out of what I normally do. There were points that I disagreed with Paul II in his application of the Gospel of Life and I found him to say the same thing the same way pretty consistently.
With this being a Roman Catholic piece, there were some things I disagreed with (Apostolic succession, RC sacraments, additions to Scripture, universal motherhood of Mary).
Overall, this was a helpful piece. I thought he did a really good job making applications on how we should care for orphans and widows that I found convicting. I enjoyed reading something out of what I normally do. There were points that I disagreed with Paul II in his application of the Gospel of Life and I found him to say the same thing the same way pretty consistently.
March 28, 2023
I can’t quite put my finger on it but there’s something about these encyclicals--I’ve read five--that makes me feel as though I’m privy to the thoughts of someone extremely intelligent, extremely wise, extremely caring, while simultaneously forceful and having utter conviction. Perhaps it’s the tone. Pope John Paul II has a similar tone to Pope Benedict XVI, characterized by the attributes I mentioned. It’s hard to put into words the thoughts I’ve had reading these encyclicals for the last couple months. I guess that’s the nature of a revelation--ineffable; inscrutable. I’ve realized how I thought about something, in this case Christianity generally and the Catholic Church specifically, was so undercooked, so ill-formed, so shot through with stereotypes, which came from my surroundings, that to see these things with clear eyes, with an open heart, and with a good faith disposition towards the arguments and ideas put forth . . . it’s a revelation because it feels like an incredible discovery.
However, in a few ways it feels like a discovery of something I once knew; or something I have always known to strive for and knew was out there. And that is namely the way in which I should live my life: above all else love for my fellow humans, having kindness, understanding humility, grace, and forgiveness; striving to exhibit every upstanding, dignified, and edifying adjective I can think of that is expressed eloquently not only in this encyclical but the others I’ve read. Furthermore, shun all opposites of these edifying adjectives--in many cases almost the polar opposite (I won’t go through each positive adjective and schematically place them against their pernicious antonym): greed, avarice, arrogance, cruelty, judgmentalism, selfishness, pride, and so on. Avoid acting in all these ways because they disorder the soul and bring one farther away from God. Do the good properly understood and pray for the strength to live these Christian values in one's life and in order to be brought closer to God.
However, in a few ways it feels like a discovery of something I once knew; or something I have always known to strive for and knew was out there. And that is namely the way in which I should live my life: above all else love for my fellow humans, having kindness, understanding humility, grace, and forgiveness; striving to exhibit every upstanding, dignified, and edifying adjective I can think of that is expressed eloquently not only in this encyclical but the others I’ve read. Furthermore, shun all opposites of these edifying adjectives--in many cases almost the polar opposite (I won’t go through each positive adjective and schematically place them against their pernicious antonym): greed, avarice, arrogance, cruelty, judgmentalism, selfishness, pride, and so on. Avoid acting in all these ways because they disorder the soul and bring one farther away from God. Do the good properly understood and pray for the strength to live these Christian values in one's life and in order to be brought closer to God.
September 10, 2025
I appreciate the value Pope John Paul II places on the dignity of all lives, as well as the social policies he advocates to improve the dignity and wellbeing of all people, but aside from his rambling writing style, his largest flaw is his lack of interest in women's feelings and experiences, especially regarding sexuality and reproduction. Not to mention the fact that he advocated human rights while actively making the AIDS crisis worse and covering up clerical sexual abuse within the Catholic Church. So, I value the goodness of some of his teachings while also not being afraid to call out his hypocrisy.
April 19, 2020
Holy cow. This Saintly man is too attuned to the reality of the human person. This is a must-read for all who seek to know the importance of a constant ethic of life.
“Truly great must be the value of human life if the Son of God has taken it up and made it the instrument of the salvation of all humanity!(33)”
“Truly great must be the value of human life if the Son of God has taken it up and made it the instrument of the salvation of all humanity!(33)”
June 16, 2021
My Pro Life group at church is doing a Bible study with this book. This is outstanding. We are having some good discussions with this book. I can't read this quickly . It's more like read, ponder, reread... Then I do want to come back and read again in the future. I have marked it with highlighter - and that helps.
May 21, 2019
Perfect.
November 16, 2020
Didn’t finish — I’ll happily say I’m the problem, but the document felt like it was just repeating itself a lot.
May 27, 2021
4 Letters
J P I I
J P I I
June 9, 2022
Good document, but wordy at times, which baffles the effectiveness.
November 11, 2023
I have no words for how good this was. Just read it.
October 23, 2024
Toute atteinte contre la vie ne peut venir de Dieu. Merci Saint Jean Paul II pour ce livre très riche !
May 31, 2021
A powerful pro-life and deeply Catholic argument given by John Paul II. I wasn't phased by the Catholicism of it all, in fact the consistency was refreshing. Abortion, euthenaisia, suicide and contraception all outright declared sinful. My favorite part in the book is when John Paul II speaks of Moses' words to the assembly of Israel and offers them two ways of being; life or death. To live according to life means that they ought to follow the commandments of God and to live in death would be to disobey them. He then goes on to contrast this with the words of Christ; “I have come that they may have life and life to the full”. This life is the same life proclaimed by Moses and it is freely given to us by Christ. Furthermore, through Christ we are able to keep the law and experience a life to the full. I don't think anyone would say this means to keep all 613 laws of the Torah but that in loving God and our neighbors we fulfill the law like Christ. The societal critique given of a pseudo-democracy that favors the strong over the weak was powerful also.
March 11, 2017
it talks about the Catholic view on life and the disruption of life: abortion, contraception, euthanasia, death sentence. The book managed to give a sense why Catholic forbids them.
February 16, 2017
If you want to get an idea of how to be truly and completely pro-life, read this. It is firm in its teaching of what is not allowed (abortion & euthanasia mainly), but it goes beyond that. JPII lays out that the foundation of being for life is about changing our entire outlook. He speaks about changing our day to day life with our family, friends, strangers, and all society.
To support life is more than just to be against things; it is a call to actively live for things. The last quarter of the encyclical is where he makes his points on this. He addresses parents, social workers, the media, healthcare workers, women, and more directly with thoughts on how they can approach a culture of life.
If you consider yourself pro-life, you should read this to reassess how your life matches with truth. (Example, being against abortion but then not being willing to help teenage mothers is not enough.)
If you do not consider yourself pro-life, this will give you a good understanding of what being pro-life actually means. I expect most people in this category will find themselves pleasantly surprised by what they read.
I will say that while JPII calls out the ability and need to scientifically and logically defend and promote the Church's teachings on life, he does not do so here. I wouldn't expect a person who supports abortion and isn't religious to change their views because of this, but I still think it's worth the read.
To support life is more than just to be against things; it is a call to actively live for things. The last quarter of the encyclical is where he makes his points on this. He addresses parents, social workers, the media, healthcare workers, women, and more directly with thoughts on how they can approach a culture of life.
If you consider yourself pro-life, you should read this to reassess how your life matches with truth. (Example, being against abortion but then not being willing to help teenage mothers is not enough.)
If you do not consider yourself pro-life, this will give you a good understanding of what being pro-life actually means. I expect most people in this category will find themselves pleasantly surprised by what they read.
I will say that while JPII calls out the ability and need to scientifically and logically defend and promote the Church's teachings on life, he does not do so here. I wouldn't expect a person who supports abortion and isn't religious to change their views because of this, but I still think it's worth the read.
November 8, 2012
This can be a challenging book to read, as the late, great Pope John Paul II wrote some pretty thought-provoking material, and I couldn't read too many pages at once without stopping to consider what I had read. At the same time, it is accessible writing and quite thrilling to read the thoughts and teachings of JP II. I can't really do full justice or sum up the entire book, but would like to make a few points about the book:
1. It is an encyclical, a document primarily meant to be circulated to the bishops. However, now these writings are also available as books and electronically on various websites, including http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/joh.... I find it very heartening that the encyclical letter is addressed not only to bishops and those in religious life, but to Catholic lay people and to "all people of good will on the value and inviolability of human life".
2. While it was apparently used in 1993 after the World Youth Day in Denver, the term "culture of death" is really a big part of the theme of this encyclical.
3. If you're not sure if you can read this entire document as a book or on-line, do yourself a favor and read the introduction and the stunning first chapter, which uses the story of Cain and Abel to develop the theme of the book.
1. It is an encyclical, a document primarily meant to be circulated to the bishops. However, now these writings are also available as books and electronically on various websites, including http://www.vatican.va/holy_father/joh.... I find it very heartening that the encyclical letter is addressed not only to bishops and those in religious life, but to Catholic lay people and to "all people of good will on the value and inviolability of human life".
2. While it was apparently used in 1993 after the World Youth Day in Denver, the term "culture of death" is really a big part of the theme of this encyclical.
3. If you're not sure if you can read this entire document as a book or on-line, do yourself a favor and read the introduction and the stunning first chapter, which uses the story of Cain and Abel to develop the theme of the book.
October 16, 2012
This document is required reading for those who want to understand the Catholic Church's teaching on human life. Pope John Paul II reiterates his predecessors' condemnation of abortion and euthanasia and questions the necessity of capital punishment in modern society. He also examines the prevalence of abortion in democratic societies and analyzes why people sometimes end up diminishing the value of life in the name of liberty.
I was particularly interested in the section on defending life in the political square, especially in an election year. He provides a lot of food for thought.
I feel a little strange giving this four stars instead of five, but for such a long encyclical, this is not very well organized. The Pope exhibits his usual flair for examining issues in a general fashion, then swooping in to examine each in detail, and then returning to abstract principles. For some encyclicals (e.g., Fides et Ratio), this works well, but not here. As I am using excerpts of this for a class I'm teaching, I ended up going back through the document and arranging all the paragraphs on abortion together, even though they're scattered across the encyclical.
I was particularly interested in the section on defending life in the political square, especially in an election year. He provides a lot of food for thought.
I feel a little strange giving this four stars instead of five, but for such a long encyclical, this is not very well organized. The Pope exhibits his usual flair for examining issues in a general fashion, then swooping in to examine each in detail, and then returning to abstract principles. For some encyclicals (e.g., Fides et Ratio), this works well, but not here. As I am using excerpts of this for a class I'm teaching, I ended up going back through the document and arranging all the paragraphs on abortion together, even though they're scattered across the encyclical.
April 1, 2012
John Paul II can be a little hard to read at times, but I found that he repeats himself often making it easier to ultimately understand a concept. In this encyclical, he spends a lot of time defending and defining the intrinsic value of human life and rights. He further explains the atrocity of abortion and euthanasia, promoting what changes society needs to make in order for life at these stages to be fully respected. He mentions war and the death penalty, although I wish he would have spent more time on these topics. In one of the final sections, as he encourages the genius of women, there are little winks to his later Letter to Women, which I thoroughly enjoyed.
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August 24, 2012I bought this book by Pope JP2 about a decade ago. Although I picked it up once in awhile I never read more than a page or two and never with any real interest. I think I had just finished listening to an audiotape reading of the New Testament. I bought it not so much for the title but because I wanted to understand the allure of John Paul II.
November 14, 2012
Problem is not the quality of writing - which is fine - but bankrupt morals which advocate torture and murder because "God told me to". People have died in agony because the Catholic church teaches that euthanasia and abortion are always forbidden. These people are not statistics but human beings and I can´t give more stars to this book, writing notwithstanding.
July 27, 2016
Brief and sweet, Evangelium Vitae offers a summary of the Church's teaching on issues of life. Special attention it provided to abortion and euthanasia. The letter is somehow simultaneously riveting and dry; definitely not a letter to be read for pure enjoyment. Regardless, the information is good and intellectually stimulating.
May 26, 2007
If you want to understand the Catholic Church's stance on abortion, capital punishment, euthanasia, etc., and how those doctrine's relate back to the teachings of the New Testament, this is a good, concise source. Be advised this is an encyclical, and so comes across necessarily as academic.
December 29, 2013
There are few books in my life that I can honestly say have fundamentally changed the way I think about a subject. This is one of those books. My view on the sanctity of life was rocked by this JPII encyclical.
May 22, 2017
Un tuffo in quella che è la posizione ecclesiastica nei confronti della vita in ogni sua fase e in ogni problematica che essa presente, con maggior spazio alla condanna dell'aborto e dell'eutanasia.
Complessivamente un inno alla vita.
Complessivamente un inno alla vita.
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June 10, 2007not an easy read but reflects the incredible faithfulness and intelligence of JPII
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