THE POPE'S ADDRESS TO PARTICIPANTS IN SYMPOSIUM ON DOWN'S SYNDROME
The person who is "special" is still a human person
On Tuesday, May 23 1989, in the Clementine Hall the
Holy Father received in audience the participants in an international symposium
on Down's syndrome. The Pope addressed the group in English and Italian as
follows:
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear Friends:
1. I salute each one of you, organizers and participants in this
International Symposium on Trisomy 21.
On this occasion, I am happy to meet the distinguished scientists who have
presented the results of their research at this meeting. Your work aims at a
deeper understanding of the pathogenesis of Down's syndrome, as well as the
development of an effective treatment of those affected by it. At a time when
the allocation of funds for this sort of research tends to be reduced, your
continuing involvement in this work reflects a generosity and commitment for
which we are all grateful.
I also wish to greet the healthcare workers among you. As people devoted to
caring for those afflicted by Down's syndrome, you offer your own experience,
together with your research on the clinical, psychological and social levels, in
order to improve their living conditions. By your efforts, you enable these
patients to develop their native gifts and abilities in a way that allows them,
in various degrees, to overcome the limitations brought on by their illness. My
greeting also goes to the families who give such love and self-sacrifice to
these children. You, more than anyone, know that, despite their handicaps, these
children are worthy of loving care, and readily give so much affection in
return.
2. Reaching out to the suffering and less fortunate is at the heart of the
Gospel of Jesus Christ. The image of the Good Samaritan which Christ himself so
fully embodied reappears time and again even though we often fail to realize it
in the scientist at work in his laboratory, where he works in hope of preventing
or curing illness through the discovery of its causes. The figure of the Good
Samaritan also appears in the health-care and social workers who care for the
sick and help them to live a truly human life in everyday society, And it
appears in all its greatness in those parents who, despite their own limitations
and a frequent sense of frustration at not receiving the support they would
expect, nevertheless strive to ensure for their children a truly loving
upbringing. Each one of you, in his or her own way, is a reminder of that
beautiful image from the Gospel. The gratitude which I express to you is the
same gratitude which Christ himself felt when he said: "Whatever you do for the
least of these, you do for me" (cf. Mt 25:40).
3. Your presence here offers me an opportunity to refer to an important
development in present-day society. More and more, the word "special" is being
used to describe people whose physical or psychological make-up or behavior
appears to diverge in some way from what is considered "normal". Whatever
meaning we may wish to give to the term, one thing is certain: the person who is
"special" is still a human person possessing the same inalienable dignity and
deserving exactly the same respect as any other person.
This truth makes us realize how necessary it is to reaffirm the universal
nature of the transcendent values connected with human life. It urges us to
insist that these values should be recognized in each and every person, and that
they should be promoted with genuine love. It demands that society make every
effort to ensure that sufficient numbers of health-care personnel and adequate
facilities be made available for the care of the sick. Where necessary, existing
structures should be adapted to suit new needs, thus providing an environment
conducive to more humane living. Scientific skill and professional experience
are necessary and indeed indispensable in the delicate work you have undertaken.
But it is to be hoped that these qualifications will always be accompanied by a
spirit of sincere dedication and by concern for the patient as a person, not
only as someone requiring therapeutic treatment, but also as one who needs
comforting and moral support.
The Church calls for a profound commitment to the promotion of Christian
values within our social and health-care institutions. As a case in point, the
increasing use of selective abortion as a means of preventing the birth of
handicapped children requires a firm response from Christians. In our search for
genuine social progress, we can never ignore the law or God. The right answers
to the problems our society is facing will always be marked by justice, respect
for human dignity and the defense of the innocent lives of the vulnerable and
the unborn. The Gospel affirms that every individual is a creature whom God
chose to fashion in his own image, and both Christian revelation and reason
affirm the a existence of a moral order which transcends man himself. These
truths and values require of you a generous commitment to scholarship, a
scholarship enlightened both by rigorous scientific investigation and by
objective ethical and moral principles.
4. The protection and defense of the human person, every person and the whole
person, especially those who are vulnerable and most helpless: this is a task
which the Catholic Church, in the name of Christ, cannot and will not forsake.
We are all heartened when we see science, medicine, society and the family
cooperating in the effort to meet, in a genuinely humane way, the particular
problems of the person who is special in your case, the person with Down's
syndrome.
In paying tribute to the progress made in the past thirty years, from the
time when the causal connection between a clearly defined chromosomal anomaly
and Down's syndrome first became apparent. I express the hope that science and
medicine will soon be in a position to overcome the developmental difficulties
experienced by individuals with this condition. All of you, including the
families concerned, have my appreciation and support. God bless you and your
efforts, May his protection be with those you treat and care for.
5. 1 would now like to address a greeting … expressing my pleasure to all
those who dedicate themselves to the problems concerning Down's syndrome and
Alzheimer's disease, and in particular to the members of the Agostino Gemelli
Institute of Human Genetics of the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery of the
Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, who organized this symposium.
To the families present and to all the families I say that their suffering in
expectation of a better future for their Down's syndrome children is also our
expectation, the expectation of Christ's Church; however I want to assure them
that their courageous confidence, which sees them already greatly involved in
promoting the most attentive and just recognition of the Down's syndrome person
as a part or society, has my heartfelt appreciation and all my support.
With these wishes I impart to all my Apostolic Blessing.
Ladies and Gentlemen,
Dear Friends:
1. I salute each one of you, organizers and participants in this
International Symposium on Trisomy 21.
On this occasion, I am happy to meet the distinguished scientists who have
presented the results of their research at this meeting. Your work aims at a
deeper understanding of the pathogenesis of Down's syndrome, as well as the
development of an effective treatment of those affected by it. At a time when
the allocation of funds for this sort of research tends to be reduced, your
continuing involvement in this work reflects a generosity and commitment for
which we are all grateful.
I also wish to greet the healthcare workers among you. As people devoted to
caring for those afflicted by Down's syndrome, you offer your own experience,
together with your research on the clinical, psychological and social levels, in
order to improve their living conditions. By your efforts, you enable these
patients to develop their native gifts and abilities in a way that allows them,
in various degrees, to overcome the limitations brought on by their illness. My
greeting also goes to the families who give such love and self-sacrifice to
these children. You, more than anyone, know that, despite their handicaps, these
children are worthy of loving care, and readily give so much affection in
return.
2. Reaching out to the suffering and less fortunate is at the heart of the
Gospel of Jesus Christ. The image of the Good Samaritan which Christ himself so
fully embodied reappears time and again even though we often fail to realize it
in the scientist at work in his laboratory, where he works in hope of preventing
or curing illness through the discovery of its causes. The figure of the Good
Samaritan also appears in the health-care and social workers who care for the
sick and help them to live a truly human life in everyday society, And it
appears in all its greatness in those parents who, despite their own limitations
and a frequent sense of frustration at not receiving the support they would
expect, nevertheless strive to ensure for their children a truly loving
upbringing. Each one of you, in his or her own way, is a reminder of that
beautiful image from the Gospel. The gratitude which I express to you is the
same gratitude which Christ himself felt when he said: "Whatever you do for the
least of these, you do for me" (cf. Mt 25:40).
3. Your presence here offers me an opportunity to refer to an important
development in present-day society. More and more, the word "special" is being
used to describe people whose physical or psychological make-up or behavior
appears to diverge in some way from what is considered "normal". Whatever
meaning we may wish to give to the term, one thing is certain: the person who is
"special" is still a human person possessing the same inalienable dignity and
deserving exactly the same respect as any other person.
This truth makes us realize how necessary it is to reaffirm the universal
nature of the transcendent values connected with human life. It urges us to
insist that these values should be recognized in each and every person, and that
they should be promoted with genuine love. It demands that society make every
effort to ensure that sufficient numbers of health-care personnel and adequate
facilities be made available for the care of the sick. Where necessary, existing
structures should be adapted to suit new needs, thus providing an environment
conducive to more humane living. Scientific skill and professional experience
are necessary and indeed indispensable in the delicate work you have undertaken.
But it is to be hoped that these qualifications will always be accompanied by a
spirit of sincere dedication and by concern for the patient as a person, not
only as someone requiring therapeutic treatment, but also as one who needs
comforting and moral support.
The Church calls for a profound commitment to the promotion of Christian
values within our social and health-care institutions. As a case in point, the
increasing use of selective abortion as a means of preventing the birth of
handicapped children requires a firm response from Christians. In our search for
genuine social progress, we can never ignore the law or God. The right answers
to the problems our society is facing will always be marked by justice, respect
for human dignity and the defense of the innocent lives of the vulnerable and
the unborn. The Gospel affirms that every individual is a creature whom God
chose to fashion in his own image, and both Christian revelation and reason
affirm the a existence of a moral order which transcends man himself. These
truths and values require of you a generous commitment to scholarship, a
scholarship enlightened both by rigorous scientific investigation and by
objective ethical and moral principles.
4. The protection and defense of the human person, every person and the whole
person, especially those who are vulnerable and most helpless: this is a task
which the Catholic Church, in the name of Christ, cannot and will not forsake.
We are all heartened when we see science, medicine, society and the family
cooperating in the effort to meet, in a genuinely humane way, the particular
problems of the person who is special in your case, the person with Down's
syndrome.
In paying tribute to the progress made in the past thirty years, from the
time when the causal connection between a clearly defined chromosomal anomaly
and Down's syndrome first became apparent. I express the hope that science and
medicine will soon be in a position to overcome the developmental difficulties
experienced by individuals with this condition. All of you, including the
families concerned, have my appreciation and support. God bless you and your
efforts, May his protection be with those you treat and care for.
5. 1 would now like to address a greeting … expressing my pleasure to all
those who dedicate themselves to the problems concerning Down's syndrome and
Alzheimer's disease, and in particular to the members of the Agostino Gemelli
Institute of Human Genetics of the Faculty of Medicine and Surgery of the
Catholic University of the Sacred Heart, who organized this symposium.
To the families present and to all the families I say that their suffering in
expectation of a better future for their Down's syndrome children is also our
expectation, the expectation of Christ's Church; however I want to assure them
that their courageous confidence, which sees them already greatly involved in
promoting the most attentive and just recognition of the Down's syndrome person
as a part or society, has my heartfelt appreciation and all my support.
With these wishes I impart to all my Apostolic Blessing.
