Taken from The Gospel of Life (Evangelium Vitae)
by Pope John Paul II
From Times Books 1995 – Random House

In his encyclical letter "The Gospel of Life", Pope John Paul II begins by commenting on the story of Cain & Abel. He calls "Cain’s killing of his brother at the very dawn of history…a sad witness of how evil spreads with amazing speed. He remarks that "After the crime God intervenes to avenge the one killed…but instead of showing remorse and apologizing, (Cain) arrogantly eludes the question: "I do not know; am I my brother’s keeper?" (Gen 4:9). ‘I do not know’: Cain tries to cover up his crime with a lie. This was and still is the case, when all kinds of ideologies try to justify and disguise the most atrocious crimes against human beings. ‘Am I my brother’s keeper?: Cain does not wish to think about his brother and refuses to accept responsibility which every person has towards others. We cannot but think of today’s tendency for people to refuse to accept responsibility for their brothers and sisters." The Holy Father notes that we are "facing an enormous and dramatic clash between good and evil, death and life, the ‘culture of death’ and the ‘culture of life’. We find ourselves not only ‘faced with’ but necessarily ‘in the midst of’ this conflict."

Pope John Paul II notes that the commandment "You shall not kill" is reaffirmed in all its force by the lord Jesus. To the rich young man who asks him: "Teacher, what good deed must I do, to have eternal life?, Jesus replies: ‘If you would enter life, keep the commandments’ (Mt 19:16,17). And he quotes, as the first of these: "You shall not kill"’ (Mt 19:18)." The Holy Father goes on to say that "From the beginning, the living Tradition of the Church – as shown by the Didache, the most ancient non-biblical Christian writing - categorically repeated the commandment "You shall not kill": "There are two ways, a way of life and a way of death; there is a great difference between them…you shall not put a child to death by abortion nor kill it once it is born." The Pontiff stresses that "The trivialization of sexuality is among the principal factors which have led to contempt for new life…only a true love is able to protect life." He says, "As far as the right to life is concerned, every innocent human being is absolutely equal to all others…It makes no difference whether one is the master of the world or the ‘poorest of the poor’ on the face of the earth." Offering hope to those who have had abortions the Holy Father says, "I would now like to say a special word to women who have had an abortion. The Church is aware of the many factors which may have influenced your decision, and she does not doubt that in many cases it was a painful and even shattering experience. The wound in your heart may not yet have healed. Certainly what happened was and remains terribly wrong. But do not give in to discouragement and do not lose hope…The Father of mercies is ready to give you his forgiveness and his peace in the Sacrament of Reconciliation.  All together we must build a new culture of life."