Reimagining the Pope’s Visit to America

September 29, 2015

When Pope Francis visited Washington D.C., New York City, and Philadelphia last week, he made history as the first Pope to ever address Congress, but he’s no stranger to using his platform as the Holy Father to elevate the conversation on social justice. In his recent work, Laudato Si: On Care of Our Common Home, he issued a condemnation of consumerism and unbridled development that is leading to rapid environmental degradation and global warming. He cited scientific findings and moral reasoning as a foundation for his call to action to curtail the relentless exploitation of the Earth.

In an increasingly global society, the work of public health research and practice should be strongly rooted in understanding, unraveling, and acting upon these complex and politicized social justice issues that shape the determinants of health for all.

As a champion of social justice and a global thought leader among the religious and secular, the Pope has the ability to sway the minds and hearts of billions. By addressing humanity, he has the power to shape cultural narratives that affect health physically, emotionally, and spiritually.

It was a significant moment when he addressed the United Nations General Assembly in New York City on its 70th anniversary as the UN formally adopted its 17 Global Goals for Sustainable Development. The UN’s Global Goals set an agenda of moral coercion for the world to uplift and empower the poor, protect the Earth, and combat climate change through 2030. These Global Goals are aligned with many of the Pope’s priorities, and he gave them his blessings.

Except for one: #5: Gender Equality.

A full endorsement of all 17 Global Goals verbatim would, among other issues, entail supporting sexual and reproductive health and rights, which directly clashes with centuries of Catholic doctrine. This would mean the Vatican would support abortion, contraception in all its forms, and one’s freedom over one’s body.

If I had time with Pope Francis, I’d like to ask him how he thinks the world should confront the public health issues entangled in gender equality. Pope Francis exercised his imagination effectively in Laudato Si which he used to spark a cascade of positive change for environmental justice. What if he used that same imagination to incorporate sexual and reproductive rights into Catholic doctrine? What if he helped lift the church’s ban on contraception?

Worldwide, there are about 225 million women who wish to avoid pregnancy but do not use reliable contraception, according to the Guttmacher Institute. Providing these women with contraception would prevent 51 million unintended pregnancies, 14 million unsafe abortions and 70,000 maternal deaths.

There is great global agreement among Catholics who support the use of contraception. The sustained violation of sexual and reproductive health rights, particularly against women, is a public health crisis that cyclically and disproportionately affects the marginalized. The Catholic Church is undermining its own mission to advance social justice by turning its back on this issue.

I would ask Pope Francis to overcome the failures of imagination the Catholic Church currently embodies in its birth control ban, and to consider a shift in perceptions on contraception. Allowing the use of contraception can be framed as a preferential option for the poor, which is directly in line with the church’s social justice teachings. A preferential option for the poor is the foundation for the Pope’s message in Laudato Si. A preferential option for the poor is the foundation for health as a human right.

Confronting preconceived notions is at the heart of social change. I want the Catholic Church to embrace this fact. I don’t want to use my imagination to see a world where this is possible.


If you would like to contribute to Mailman Student Voices, please send a three to five-sentence pitch outlining your topic to mailmancomm@columbia.edu.