"We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness" (The Declaration of Independence, July 4, 1776). We have heard and read these famous words many times. Yet, it should be interesting for us to note that of the three fundamental rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, the founding fathers of our nation recognize life as the first of these three unalienable rights.
Why is the right to life the first of these God given rights?
Life is a gift from God. The first pages of the Holy Bible direct our gaze to the awesome gift of life. "And now, from the clay of the ground, the Lord God formed man, breathed into his nostrils the breath of life, and made man a living person" (Genesis 2: 7). Life is entrusted to man as a gift. Thus, man has a responsibility to this gift.
In his encyclical letter "The Gospel of Life", Pope John Paul II reminds us that this responsibility is carried out in three ways: love life, respect life, and promote life... (CONTINUED HERE)
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