Because You and I Have a Soul

Two Lessons

As I was reading Your Life is Worth Living by Venerable Fulton J. Sheen, I came across an insightful quote. The quote was,

We certainly are not as polite in this century as we were in another century. Possibly the reason is because we no longer believe people have souls; they are just other animals and are to be treated as means to our ends. When you believe in addition to a body there is a soul, then you begin to have great respect and reverence for a person.

Reading this made me take note of two important lessons. It made me think of how we need to treat ourselves and how we need to treat others. 

If we take Fulton Sheen’s wise words to heart we realize we need to have self-respect. We should neither think poorly of ourselves nor display ourselves as an object. We should, however, think of ourselves as children of God and be modest in all things. 

Now if we apply this lesson to others we quickly realize that respecting others is a necessity. This may sound like common sense, but when you look deep into your heart have you truly respected your neighbor on all accounts? Whether they are a spouse or a friend, have you treated them with dignity and pure charity and not used them for your own selfish motives? 

Because we are sinners, we have an impulse to think and act only for ourselves. But if we truly surrender our hearts to God and make the effort to follow Him every day in every possible way, we will become the people God created us to be. After all, we were made in His image and His likeness. It is only right that we respect God by respecting ourselves and others. 

Cain and Abel

Furthermore, this quote not only reminds me of how we need to respect ourselves and respect others but brings the topic of the innate right to life to mind. 

In the Bible, I think of the story of Cain and Abel. They both brought gifts to God. God only looked with favor upon Abel’s gift. Filled with jealousy and rage, Cain took Abel out into the field and murdered him. Knowing this, God banned Cain from the soil and made him become a wanderer of the earth. However, what is interesting is what Cain says to God and how God responds. 

‘Since you now have banished me from the soil, and I must avoid your presence and become a restless wanderer of the earth, anyone may kill me at sight.’ ‘Not so!’ the Lord said to him.  ‘If anyone kills Cain, Cain shall be avenged sevenfold.’ So the Lord put a mark on Cain, lest anyone should kill him at sight (Genesis 4:14, 15). 

As Catholics, we believe in the dignity, sacredness, and right to life for all human beings, even criminals such as Cain in Sacred Scripture. That is why God placed a mark on Cain so that he would be protected. 

Capital Punishment

It should be noted that in order for justice to be achieved we must believe in compassion, forgiveness, reconciliation, and conversion. No person should be denied mercy by being subject to Capital punishment. God is the Ultimate Judge and Author of life. God wants to stop the cycle of violence. 

Capital punishment is not only wrong because it denies the conversion of a great sinner, but we also risk becoming less sensitive to the preciousness of all souls. Again, I shall stress this point, every one of us has been created in the image and likeness of God. Each one of us is a unique, unrepeatable human being. 

Pope Francis has said on the issue,

Consequently, the Church teaches, in the light of the Gospel, that ‘the death penalty is inadmissible because it is an attack on the inviolability and dignity of the person”, and she works with determination for its abolition worldwide.’ 

A Prayer to Say

What we can do about it is say a powerful prayer. That powerful prayer is the Chaplet of Divine Mercy. In this prayer, we plead for Jesus’ mercy for the whole world. We also proclaim our complete trust in Our Lord Jesus Christ. 

Today and every day, I challenge you to pray this prayer with a sincere heart thinking of grave sinners who need the Lord’s mercy the most. And, of course, pray for all those who are not respected. 

In embracing this Catholic Social Teaching, we may be persecuted, but in the Beatitudes, God reassures us that we will be rewarded for following Him. 

‘Blessed are you when they insult you and persecute you and utter every kind of evil against you (falsely) because of me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward will be great in heaven. Thus they persecuted the prophets who were before you.’ (Matthew 5: 11,12)

When you put into perspective that each person has a soul that you come into contact with, you will treat them as such. And, so we should.