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PawełBortkiewicz
But<innosphereoflifecanthecivillawtaketheplaceofconscienceor
dictatenormsconcerningthingswhichareoutsideitscompetence’,which
isthatofensuringthecommongoodofpeoplethroughtherecognition
anddefenceoftheirfundamentalrights,andthepromotionofpeaceand
ofpublicmorality
.Therealpurposeofcivillawistoguaranteeanordered
socialcoexistenceintruejustice,sothatallmay<leadaquietandpeaceable
life,godlyandrespectfulineveryway’(1Tim2:2).Preciselyforthisrea-
son,thecivillawmustensurethatallmembersofsocietyenjoyrespectfor
certainfundamentalrightsthatinnatelybelongtotheperson,rightswhich
everypositivelawmustrecognizeandguarantee.Firstandfundamental
amongtheseistheinviolablerighttolifeofeveryinnocenthumanbeing.”
1
PopereiteratesalsotheclearteachingofSaintThomasAquinas,who
writesthat“humanlawislawinasmuchasitisinconformitywithright
reasonandthusderivesfromtheeternallaw
.Butwhenalawiscontrary
toreason,itiscalledanunjustlaw;butinthiscaseitceasestobealaw
andbecomesinsteadanactofviolence.”2Andagain:“Everylawmadeby
mancanbecalledalawinsofarasitderivesfromthenaturallaw
.Butif
itissomehowopposedtothenaturallaw,thenitisnotreallyalawbut
ratheracorruptionofthelaw.”3
ThePope’steachingisinastarkcontrasttotheideologyoftoday’s
distributedso-calledreproductiverights.Thisideologyisalsocontraryto
theoriginalhumanrights,includingtherightsofthechild.Thereflec-
tionundertakenhereinfollowstheabove-describedsituation.Itsstarting
pointistheideologisedconceptoftheso-calledreproductiverights,and
itseeksjustificationintheso-calledreproductivehealth.Thentherights
ofachildwillbeoutlinedinthelightofchosenactsofthepositivelaw
.
Thisshouldallowforthecomplementationofthevisionofpositivelaw
withtheconceptofchildren’srightsproposedbyJohnPaulII,whichis
moreaxiomaticthanjuridical.
1.“Reproductivehealth”and“reproductiverights”
AccordingtotheWorldHealthOrganizationdefinition,the“[repro-
ductive]rightsrestontherecognitionofthebasicrightsofallcouples
1
JoHNPaUlII:EncyclicalLetter“Evangeliumvitae.”March25,1993(henceforth:
EV),no.71.
2SummaTheologiae,I—II,q.93,a.3,ad2um.
3
Ibidem,I—II,q.95,a.2.AquinasquotesSaintAugustine:Nonvideturesselex,
quaeiustanonfuerit;DeLiberoArbitrio,I,5,11:PL32,1227;EV,no.72.
