Bishops of Paraguay call for laws defending life and the family

Asunción, Paraguay, Nov 5, 2010 / 15:49 pm

The Bishops’ Conference of Paraguay has called for the defense of human life and the family, noting that a series of bills before the country's Congress could pose a threat to the fundamental values of society.

As they met for their plenary assembly, the bishops noted that a number of laws being considered deal with issues such as maternal health, discrimination, domestic violence, responsible parenthood and the implementation of comprehensive sexual education.

The bishops said these types of laws must focus on the proper development of the human person and must respect four key points: the value of life from conception to natural death, a proper anthropological vision, the value and mission of the family, and the inalienable rights of parents over their children.

Pope Benedict XVI “clearly says that there can be no true social development and social ethic without a connection to personal ethics and the defense of each human life,” they stated.  Legislative measures must be based on an anthropological vision that is “faithful to the identity of Paraguayans and their families.  They must clearly express and underscore, without ambiguity, the richness of the meaning of life, and promote education in which human sexuality in its physical, psychological and spiritual dimensions of male and female are expressed.”

Referring to the importance of the family, the bishops stressed that the government has a duty to protect it as “the foundation of society.”  The family “contributes to the stability of society” and “through marriage is called to fulfill a specific mission in society, occupying an essential place.”

Lawmakers must work together with parents and ensure that their rights as the primary educators of the children are respected, the bishops added.  “No institution should substitute the fundamental role of the family,” the bishops concluded.