By: Michael Scaperlanda
In Planned Parenthood v. Casey, reiterated in
Lawrence v. Texas, the Supreme Court said that “[a]t the
heart of liberty is the right to define one’s own concept of
existence, of meaning, of the universe, and of the mystery of human
life.” This paper will explore the anthropological claims
implicit in this account of liberty. Using the rich
philosophical insight of Karol Wojtyla—Pope John Paul II—the paper
will argue that the Court’s understanding of the human quest is
nearly accurate but that nearly is not nearly good enough. In
fact, a near miss in the area of constitutional anthropology, like
a near miss in calculating the trajectory to a distant solar
system, can land us in a completely different world if we are not
crushed in an asteroid field first.