Ignore the Pope, Jesuit advises

By Diogenes ( articles ) | May 02, 2004

Pope John Paul recently insisted that people in a comatose state have a right to food and water, and that it is wicked to starve them or let them die of thirst. Boston College ethicist John Paris, S.J., thinks the old boy has a hang-up about human dignity.

But Father John Paris, Walsh professor of bioethics at Boston College, said the pope's remarks were tailored to a specific audience and will have little impact. "I think the best thing to do is ignore it, and it will go away," Paris said. "It's not an authoritative teaching statement."

The pope's speech, Paris said, is "causing mischief" and being interpreted with too much alarm by those who aren't Catholic. "The problem is that non-Catholics think when the pope says "Jump,' we all say, "How high?'" he said.

What would the Pope do without his Jesuit light infantry to help him?