April 06, 2006
As the first anniversary of Pope John Paul II’s death
approached, legal scholars, philosophers, and theologians from
around the country convened at St. John’s University School of Law
on March 23-24 to explore the jurisprudential legacy of this
charismatic and beloved pope. Keynoter
John L. Allen, Vatican Correspondent for the National
Catholic Reporter, summed up the late-pope’s legacy by noting
that John Paul “was not a lawyer-pope, but he was a giant of a
pope, and the law, like every other area of life, could not help
but be touched by his influence.”
Welcoming the participants at the start of the conference, St.
John’s University President Rev. Donald J.
Harrington, C.M. sounded a theme that would echo throughout the
two days. Underlying all of John Paul’s thought, Rev.
Harrington said, was “amazement at the dignity and worth of the
human person.” In Rome for the 10th anniversary of St. John’s Rome campus, Rev. Harrington was in St.
Peter’s Square on April 2, the day John Paul died, marveling at the
outpouring of love and affection for the dying pontiff. The
task of the conference attendees, he noted, “is to come a few more
steps along the path of understanding the breadth of the pope’s
contributions to law, culture and politics.” The end result of
that understanding, he predicted, is that we all “can stand in
amazement at the worth and dignity of this particular human
person.”
Varied Presentations
Over a dozen scholars presented papers, which will be published in
an upcoming issue of the School of Law’s Journal
of Catholic Legal Studies. Commenting on the
Journal, School of Law Dean Mary C.
Daly noted that the “rich tradition of Catholic social teaching
provides particularly fertile ground for scholars trained in the
law, and the Journal of Catholic Legal Studies is
committed to cultivating that scholarship.”
The presentations covered a wide variety of topics and indicated
the breadth of John Paul II’s influence. Topics included the
role of religious rhetoric in public debates, the pope’s vision of
international law, his view of the “preferential option for the
poor,” Biblical roots of his jurisprudence and its relationship to
Jewish understandings of justice, and the particular ways in which
his thought relates to property rights, corporate law,
employer-employee relations, the death penalty, abortion,
euthanasia, and the “Culture of Life.” Underlying many of the
presentations was a recognition of the central role played by the
Pope’s vision of the “essential dignity of the human person.”
Michael
Simons, Associate Dean for Faculty Scholarship and Professor of
Law, served as master of ceremonies throughout the two-day event,
which he co-chaired with Professor Susan
Stabile. Attendees included a wide range of those
interested in John Paul’s legacy, from scholars and clergy to local
residents and students. “There’s more interest these days in
Catholic social thought,” David Kozlowski, President of the
Catholic Law Students Association, said. “The Law School offers a
relatively new course, Catholic Social Thought and the Law, taught
by Professor Susan Stabile, which I’ve taken.”
John Allen Gives Keynote Address
In his address, Allen gave an overview of John Paul’s legal
legacy. He first noted that John Paul’s extensive influence on
law and politics came not from any particular vision of legal
theory, but rather from his “sense of apostolic zeal, which deeply
influenced the way Roman Catholics approach law, politics, and
every other arena of human endeavor.” John Paul’s most
important jurisprudential legacy, Allen said, is the way he
inspired Catholics – including law makers and legal scholars – “to
take seriously the public implications of their faith.”
The Vatican correspondent outlined five areas in which John
Paul’s impact was felt most keenly: he consistently preached
against the “fallacy of legal positivism, the notion that law is
whatever parliaments or courts say it is”; he drew explicit
connections between faith and public policy that became a model and
a challenge for all Catholics; he became “the world’s leading
advocate of human rights”; he became a forceful and effective
advocate against the death penalty; and he urged that the use of
military force be predicated on the norms of international
law
He also identified three areas in which the late Pope’s
jurisprudential legacy has left “open questions,” including the
pastoral approach that the Church should take toward Catholics in
public life, the meaning of the traditional Catholic “Just War”
tradition in the face of modern terrorism, and the ways in which
Catholic institutions balance their mission and Catholic identity
with the civil law under which they operate.
Concluding his remarks, he noted that the conference is a model
for how legal thinkers can bring “the best of Catholic moral and
social reflection together with the highest standards of Western
legal thought.” Allen urged the conference attendees to “set
an example by fostering a conversation which is inclusive and
respectful, but which also has teeth in insisting upon identifiably
‘Catholic’ answers to our challenges.” By doing that, Allen
concluded, the impact of Catholic Legal Studies, like the impact of
John Paul II, “will transcend the boundaries of law and politics,
and become a point of light for all of us.”
A Future for Catholic Legal
Studies
At the end of the conference, Professor Michael Simons praised the
sense of community that had developed at the
conference. “Catholic Legal Studies will grow,” he added,
“through events like this and through publications like the
Journal of Catholic Legal Studies.” Commenting after
the conference,
Gregory Sisk, a professor at the University of St. Thomas
School of Law, expressed similar expectations. “If Catholic Legal
Studies should succeed in becoming a distinct and meaningful
movement within American jurisprudence in the coming decades,” Sisk
noted, “the symposium on ‘The Jurisprudential Legacy of John Paul
II’ at St. John’s University this past weekend will be remembered
as a watershed event. Not only were each of the presentations
wonderful contributions toward a jurisprudence grounded in Catholic
social thought and the Catholic intellectual tradition, but the
spirit of fellowship generated among all the participants was
tangible and powerful.” Sisk added that “what we heard and
felt at the St. John’s symposium makes me greatly optimistic that
we can have an impact on the legal and political culture and do so
in unity while retaining our diversity of approach.”