Pope Francis greets a child in St. Peter’s Square during the general audience on April 20, 2016. Daniel Ibanez/CNA
Vatican City, May 8, 2021 / 10:30 am (CNA).
Pope Francis and Jane Goodall both offered perspectives on “what it means to be human” on the final day of an online Vatican health conference on Saturday.
In a video message to the virtual conference on May 8, the pope said that Saint Augustine’s words in “The Confessions” are timeless: “Man is himself a great deep.”
“The Scriptures, and philosophical and theological reflection in particular, have employed the concept of ‘soul’ to define our uniqueness as human beings and the specificity of the person, which is irreducible to any other living being and includes our openness to a supernatural dimension and thus to God,” the pope said.
Pope Francis said that “this openness to the transcendent” is fundamental and “bears witness to the infinite value of every human person.”
Anthropologist Jane Goodall, famed for her work with chimpanzees, also spoke at the Vatican conference on “mind, body, and soul,” giving a talk entitled “What does it Mean to be Human?”
“I think where we fit in into the picture of primates is we are the fifth great ape, and our closest relative among the other great apes… Well, there’s two of them, actually, the chimpanzee and the bonobo. We differ from each other genetically by only just over 1%,” Goodall said.
She offered examples of how chimpanzees can be taught sign language, use the computer, and make drawings. During evolution, she said, humans learned to communicate with words, language, and writing that enables people to be distinguished by their ability to make plans for the future and invent rockets.
“But then when you realize how like us chimpanzees are, and yet how we differ with this explosive development of the intellect, this development of the intellect has not given us a reason to label ourselves as Homo sapiens, the wise ape. We’re not wise. We’ve seen what Mars looks like. We don’t want to live there. We’ve only got this one planet, at least in our lifetimes, and we’re destroying it,” Goodall said.
“All the major religions share the golden rule, do to others as you would have them do to you. If we can apply that to animals, as well as to each other, then I think we shall be coming closer to being able to define ourselves as Homo sapiens,” she added.
The Vatican health conference taking place May 6-8 on “Exploring the Mind, Body & Soul: How Innovation and Novel Delivery Systems Improve Human Health,” has featured more than 100 speakers including Dr. Anthony Fauci, chief medical adviser to U.S. President Joe Biden, as well as Clinton Foundation vice chair Chelsea Clinton and New Age guru Deepak Chopra.
It is the fifth conference of its kind organized by the Pontifical Council for Culture and the Cura Foundation, which describes itself as a “nonsectarian, nonpartisan” group “with a mission to improve human health globally.” This year is the first time that the conference is taking place virtually.
“I am pleased that students from various universities throughout the world, Catholic and non-Catholic, are taking part in this event. I encourage you to undertake and pursue interdisciplinary research involving various centers of study, for the sake of a better understanding of ourselves and of our human nature, with all its limits and possibilities, while always keeping in mind the transcendent horizon to which our being tends,” Pope Francis said.
The pope said that when interdisciplinary research is applied to the medical sciences it “translates into more sophisticated research and increasingly suitable and exact strategies of care.”
“We need but think of the vast field of research in genetics, aimed at curing a variety of diseases. Yet this progress has also raised a number of anthropological and ethical issues, such as those dealing with the manipulation of the human genome aimed at controlling or even overcoming the aging process, or at achieving human enhancement,” he said.
Vatican Secretary of State Cardinal Pietro Parolin also addressed the conference via video message on May 8.
The cardinal said that human beings are distinguished from animals by rationality, “a high degree of self-understanding” and reflection on others and the universe.
“Another unique feature is the moral conscience that allows us to act by distinguishing between what is good and what is bad. This fundamental reference causes us to ask ourselves ethical questions about our actions, about society, about the use of the tools that we develop and make socially usable,” Parolin said.
“A strong moral sense pushes us to denounce and take actions that put an end to injustices through philanthropic and solidarity actions that counteract the manifestations of evil.”
He also noted that humans are capable of contemplating beauty and artistic expression in many different forms, as well as possessing “the openness to the transcendent horizon which in the lives of many of us leads to religious experience, but which also prompts us to question ourselves about the ultimate questions.”
“The ancient thinkers encapsulated this specificity and uniqueness of the human being in a single term, humanitas, which from Cicero onwards became the category with which to indicate the objective principle of a complex system of exquisitely human moral values,” Parolin said.
“Now, this day seals the three days full of content, and is also the final moment of a complex itinerary of reflection. However, it is also an openness to a constant search for human natures conducted by the philosophers and men of culture of the past. My wish is, therefore, to continue to deepening the mystery of our being with enthusiasm and determination, to discover and be fascinated by what makes us truly human,” he said.
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“He likes to call himself a devout catholic. I would urge him (Biden) to begin acting like one, especially on the life issues,” Archbishop Joseph Naumann said. “And to let his faith really inform his conscience and the decisions he is making, not the platform of his party.”
Well, that should do it. Based on this admonition I expect that Biden will now become the most pro-life president we have ever had.
Does anyone believe that Biden will change his spots based on this statement. Is the Archbishop, and are other bishops, making statements like this in the belief that gullible Catholics think that something worthwhile is being done?
I think the upcoming bishops meeting and the proposed document on the Eucharist will tell us much. If nothing is addressed at the scandal that prominent pro-abortion catholic politicians are causing, we will know that their talk is empty.
And a statement, with no names, and seemingly addressed to a nameless bipartisan group of politicians, will not fly.
I strongly differ with Archbishop Naumann.
The Biden administration is not “in the control of abortion extremists.”
The Biden administration ARE the abortion extremists, and all-abortion-all-the-time is their defining issue, their driving force, their litmus test, their animating principle, their end-all and their be-all.
The Democrats’ commitment to abortion is second only to their absolute, unwavering, monomaniacal thirst for power.
And it’s a very close second.
Only an extremely foolish man, who does not fear God would boast to the world about how holy and righteous he is, all the while publically and privately commiting evil deeds and endorsing the works of Satan. It’s truly sad not just for a career politician like Biden but for our entire beloved nation.
I salute you for the courage to state that — “all the while publically and privately committing evil deeds and endorsing the works of Satan.”
Sadly, most of our Bishops fear CNN more than they fear God.
Given that the House Speaker met the Pope and received no admonishment, there is no reason not to expect the same for Joe at Halloween.
Bishop Naumann is being what the pope calls “pastoral” in calling out Chairman Joe for the split personality of his soul; that is, personally (supposedly) being against abortion but not inflicting his belief on others. Jesus didn’t tell the Apostles, “Here’s the Gospel, but keep it to yourselves.” I don’t see that this pope has what it takes to be truly “pastoral,” in teaching what it takes to attain eternal life. He’s busy sucking up to Nancy Pelosi and leaving the impression that she’s doing okay. He will do the same when he sees Chairman Joe later this month. Pastoral requires intestinal fortitude. Pope Francis has yet to show any.
The 7 Gifts of the Holy Spirit are what all wayward bishops and priests and deacons need to have a good retreat upon and then all will know what it means to be pastoral toward the family members of the Lords’ church.
Biden needs to go back to the basics; his head is messed up
May God have mercy on his soul. May God have mercy on our country. Come, Lord Jesus Christ!
The Devils Workshop has to add another shift with Biden/Obama,and Pelosi,Soros,Jarrett,
and the Clinton’s behind the “Curtains” pulling the levers and strings.That make their
consistency dance and sing. We even see how a certain percentage of RINOS love to get on the floor, and clapping their hands join the Devils Dance down to the River Styx.Where Charon waits to welcome them aboard !
I’M GOING TO MAKE A COMMENT NOW AND ITS GOING TO BE BRUTALLY HONEST. I JUST HOPE & PRAY THAT ITS TAKEN IN THAT SPIRIT. SO HERE GOES: I’M SICK TO DEATH OF HEARING JUST HOW ‘DEVOUT’ ALLEGED ‘PRESIDENT’ BIDEN IS. (THINK ‘STOP THE STEAL’) ALSO, BESIDES HIS VERY OBVIOUS SPOTTY RECORD IN DEFENDING HIS “WIN,” THERE’S ALSO HIS HORRIFYING RECORD OF BEING POSSIBLY THE WORST EVER PRESIDENT IN PUSHING ABORTION ON DEMAND NATIONALLY & INTERNATIONALLY. YE GODS, THE MAN NEVER STOPS, THE DEMONIC GIFT JUST KEEPS GIVING. ‘NUFF SAID, THAT’S MY STAND. MAY GOD BLESS ALL.
Finally someone from the USCCB is standing up on two righteous and apostolic feet!
It’s pretty late now for Bishops to condemn Biden. They should have confronted him before the election and he might not have won. I am not a fan of Trump but Biden and his administration are a disaster.
It is so easy to put down and criticize the behavior of others, but my remember that only God knows the truth of our hearts and the state of our souls. Perhaps my faith is too “simplistic.”