Catholic World News News Feature

Prelate sees "terrorism with a human face" in abortion, euthanasia April 24, 2007

Abortion, euthanasia, and embryonic research represent "terrorism with a human face," a leading Vatican official said in his address to a conference on airport chaplaincies.

Archbishop Angelo Amato, the secretary of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, spoke on the problem of evil at a 3-day conference organized by the Pontifical Council for Migrants. The theme of the conference was the role of airport chaplains in the struggle against terrorism.

Archbishop Amato said that while suicide bombers and international terrorist groups command greater media attention, Christians should also be aware of the subtler forms of evil-- sometimes actively promoted by the mass media-- that are commonplace in Western society. Some forms of evil violence are committed by identifiable terrorists, the archbishop said; but other forms of violence are quietly promoted by "laboratories of false opinions, and unnamed powers who brainwash us with false messages."

In a separate address to the conference, Cardinal Renato Martino, the president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, said that military actions and security measures will not be enough to eradicate terrorism. Although their actions are immoral and illogical, the Italian cardinal said, terrorists are ultimately motivated by "genuine grievances," and world leaders must find ways to address those grievances peacefully in order to remove the source of terrorist motivation.