Gabrielle Miller
On November 15th Bishop Aquila spoke here at Loyola College on behalf of club “alive”, and informed students about the respect owed for the dignity of each individual human being. Mainly, Bishop Aquila discussed the importance of understanding the current and devastating issue in society, abortion. He encouraged the decision to choose pro-life, in respect to the ethical code of life devoted to every individual. Bishop Aquila also spoke about other morally questioned issues, such as the death penalty, stem cell research and genocide.
Bishop Aquila affirmed that God bestows dignity and value to each human when he creates human life, and therefore it should remain solely in the hands to make decisions on which individuals are worthy of life or death. A major problem in contemporary society is that younger generations are raised with the notion that things like abortion and other government chosen policies are considered to be acceptable and standard practices. However, just as Bishop Aquila reminded his audience, it is extremely important to hold onto our Catholic and Jesuit beliefs, and to continue to encourage others to also seek to choose pro-life without pressuring moral decisions upon others.
This speech provoked me to think back to an event that my senior class attended in high school, the pro-life march in Washington, D.C. I remember this vividly because I had been previously injured in a track meet, and as a result had to experience the march on crutches. However, this hindrance proved to be a blessing in disguise. It was incredible to sit back and watch all of the people gathered together to express a common goal, the preservation of life. I was able to speak to one girl in particular, who was only a year older and had a three-year-old baby. I was so moved by this girl’s story, because she showed me what it means to be strong, and expressed her desire to have the child regardless of the consequences out of respect for that individual’s life. She mentioned that her boyfriend claimed that he worried the baby would not be given fair opportunities, and that throughout her pregnancy her own parents encouraged her to obtain an abortion. However, she chose to have the baby, and said that even though being alone in such a major part of her life, she did not regret her decision one bit and that her child was the greatest blessing in her life. I was amazed at her strength and looked up to this girl knowing that she could stand strong and continued to encourage other girls in her position to make a similar choice, not only for themselves, but in regard to this new human life. This proved that the correct choice can be made, even though society provides an "easy alternative" to difficult situations.
The human conscience is defined as the inner voice which persuades a person to make decisions, and provides us with the ability to decipher between acts of good and acts of malice. This mental perception of morality is often blurred and influenced by actions in society, and therefore it is essential that new generations are reminded of the importance of morality. The Jesuit mission aims to restore justice in an unjust world, this statement applies to helping those in need in addition to enforcing education for the future.