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The New Testament God.’” (Saint John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Evangel-

Jesus identifies with the least of his brethren: “As ium vitae, no. 38.)
you did it to one of the least of these my brethren,
you did it to me” (Mt. 25:40). In biblical language, the
“little ones” are not only the children, but are also the
vulnerable, the most insignificant, the outcast, the
oppressed, the discarded, the poor, the marginalized,
the unlearned, the sick, and those who are downtrod-
den by the powerful. The glorious Christ will judge
by the love of neighbor that consists in ministering
to the hungry, the thirsty, the stranger, the naked, the
sick, and the imprisoned, with whom he identifies (cf.
Mt. 25:34-36).
For Jesus, the good done to every human be-
ing, regardless of the ties of blood or religion, is the
single criterion of judgment. The apostle Paul affirms
that every Christian must live according to the re-
quirements of dignity and respect for the rights of all
people (cf. Rom. 13:8-10) according to the new com- Pope Francis and Cardinal Fernández
mandment of love (cf. 1 Cor. 13:1-13).
The present era Some serious violations
of human dignity
Today, the term “dignity” is mainly used to em-
phasize the uniqueness of the human person, in- In addressing some of the many grave viola-
comparable to all other entities in the universe. From tions of human dignity today, we can draw upon the
this perspective, we can understand how the word teachings of the Second Vatican Council, which em-
“dignity” was used in the 1948 United Nations Declar- phasized that “all offenses against life itself, such as
ation, which speaks about “the inherent dignity and murder, genocide, abortion, euthanasia, and willful
of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of suicide” must be recognized as contrary to human
the human family.” Only this inalienable character of dignity. (Gaudium et spes, no. 27.) Furthermore, the
human dignity makes it possible to speak about hu- Council affirmed that “all violations of the integrity
man rights. of the human person, such as mutilation, physical
To clarify the concept of dignity even further, it and mental torture, undue psychological pressures,”
is essential to point out that dignity is not something also infringe upon our dignity. (Ibidem.) Finally, it de-
nounced “all offenses against human dignity, such
granted to the person by others based on their gifts as subhuman living conditions, arbitrary imprison-
or qualities, such that it could be withdrawn. Were it ment, deportation, slavery, prostitution, the selling
so bestowed, it would be given in a conditional and of women and children, degrading working condi-
alienable way, and then the very meaning of dignity tions where individuals are treated as mere tools for
(however worthy of great respect) would remain ex- profit rather than free and responsible persons.” (Ibi-
posed to the risk of being abolished. Instead, dignity dem.) (…)
is intrinsic to the person: it is not conferred subse-
quently (a posteriori), it is prior to any recognition, The Drama of Poverty
and it cannot be lost. All human beings possess this While not claiming to be exhaustive, the follow-
same intrinsic dignity, regardless of whether or not ing paragraphs draw attention to some grave viola-
they can express it in a suitable manner. tions of human dignity that are particularly relevant.
After the Creation and the Incarnation, Christ’s One of the phenomena that contributes significantly
Resurrection reveals a further aspect of human dig- to denying the dignity of so many human beings is
nity. Indeed, “the dignity of man rests above all on extreme poverty, linked as it is to the unequal dis-
the fact that he is called to communion with God,” tribution of wealth. As Pope St. John Paul II empha-
(Gaudium et spes, no. 19) destined to last forever. sized, “One of the greatest injustices in the contem-
Thus, “the dignity of this life is linked not only to its porary world consists precisely in this: that the ones
beginning, to the fact that it comes from God, but who possess much are relatively few and those who
also to its final end, to its destiny of fellowship with possess almost nothing are many. It is the injustice
God in knowledge and love of him. In the light of of the poor distribution of the goods and services ori-
this truth, Saint Irenaeus qualifies and completes his ginally intended for all.” (Sollicitudo rei socialis, no.
praise of man: ‘the glory of God’ is indeed, ‘man, liv- 28.) Moreover, it would be misleading to make a cur-
ing man,’ but ‘the life of man consists in the vision of sory distinction between “rich” and “poor” countries, u

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