Pontifical Academy for Life General Assembly: Human life is sacred

(Vatican Radio) Pro-life experts from the around the world gathered in Rome on Friday for the 19^th General Assembly of the Pontifical Academy for Life.

The Academy was founded by Pope John Paul II, for the promotion and defence of human life, especially regarding bioethics as it regards Christian morality.

This year’s conference focused on the link between faith and human life.

Joseph Meaney is the Director of International Coordination for Human Life International. He spoke to Christopher Wells about the work of the Pontifical Academy for Life, and about the themes of the General Assembly. “It was a very interesting assembly,” he said, “because, essentially, they took the theme from the Year of Faith and applied it to the pro-life issues.”

Meaney said the Academy served as a kind of “think tank of the Church, to come and look at some vital issues with regard to the dignity and sacredness of human life.” The “sacredness of life” he explained, was a term that was brought up again and again in the course of the conference. Meaney said that the fact that human life is sacred “is a key part of our Catholic identity and should be spread around the world.”

Listen to the full interview of Joseph Meaney with Christopher Wells: