Recently, some people of good will who plainly sympathize with the victims of the culture of death have begun to lose heart about the political struggle to restore the right to life of the unborn and to prevent the introduction of assisted suicide and euthanasia. The pope is here reminding us that political action and legal reform are crucial elements in the struggle to build a culture of life. Far from being alternatives to the cultural transformation which we must bring about if respect for human life is to be restored in our country, they are indispensable means of accomplishing this transformation. Reform of the law is, to be sure, not the only means. Nor is it sufficient.
Prayer is indispensable, too.
So is direct assistance to pregnant women in need. So is education. I have spoken particularly of the Pope's treatment of the evils of abortion and euthanasia. This, I think, is appropriate, in view of the grave threat that these evils pose to so many innocent people in our society. But it is also important to observe that the pope calls attention to other threats to life, other dimensions of the culture of death, other evils which must be overcome in the building of a new culture of life.