Gaudium et Spes highlighted one of the most important issues of the time, which is the solidarity of the Church with the whole human family, saying:
“The joys and hope, the grief and anguish of the men of our time, especially of those who are poor or afflicted in anyway are the joy and hope, the grief and anguish of followers of Christ as well.” 573
569 Ibid. The article puts more weight on the rights of children to be legally protected within the juridical system. On the other level, the Church’s social doctrine constantly points out the need to respect the dignity of children. It further says that the above affirmations are true for every child, but it becomes even more urgent the smaller the child is and the more it needs everything when it is sick, suffering or handicapped. This can also be affirmed in John Paul II’s Apostolic Exhortation Familiaris Consortio, 26: AAS 74(1982), 111-112.
570 Ibid. We have some belief systems in Christianity and in other religions that informs us of certain values that must be promoted if at all human rights would be meaningful. To this effect, we do not compromise any of those Gospel values because they have a universal quest for meaning. For instance, any criteria of judging the molarity of an act that discriminates children with disabilities would be contrary to Gospel values and at the same time, they would be contravening the letter and the spirit of human rights for children with disabilities. 571 Children’s Act 38 of 2005, states that the ratification of this Act is to give effect to certain rights of children as contained in the Constitution; to set out principles relating to the care and protection of children; to define parental responsibilities and rights; to make further provision regarding children’s courts; to provide for the adoption of children; to provide for inter-country adoption; to prohibit child abduction and to give effect to the Hague Convention on International Child abduction; to provide for surrogate motherhood; to create certain new offences relating to children; and to provide for matters connected therewith.
572 Ibid.
573 Vatican Council II, (1965), Gaudium et Spes: A Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World, 7th December, 903.
From the quotation above, the Council Fathers took a firm stand in acknowledgement of the current human situation in the world.574 It was one of the most significant statements made by the Council members acknowledging the negative component, particularly the plight of the poor person.575 In confirmation to the observation of the Council Fathers, Giddens, in the debate on globalization, described the current human situation in the world as erratic and dislocated.576 In this debate on globalization, the phenomenon of human suffering particularly the plight of children with disabilities is real and, at the same time, needing urgent attention.577 The world-wide situation has been exposed to a rapid change, which has somehow divided the world into the so-called developed world and the Third World, mostly known as under-developed countries.578 Many people living in the ‘Third World’ still live according to the pattern of an unprogressive life, where poor people fail to cope with the vortex of change.579 To this effect socio-economic changes in the world may have created a situation of imbalances, making the poorer nations become more poorer. Gil Bailie, in his treatise, presented a vivid picture of the current situation, saying:
“The epidemic of crime, drugs, and violence we are now experiencing is just the most conspicuous manifestation of a broader and deeper disintegration of the human family.”580
Bailie be-mourned the reality of the various abuses in the world, particularly the abuses that are directed towards the most vulnerable groups of people in society.581 Children with disabilities may be included in this category.
574 Ibid.
575 Ibid. Paragraph 63 of the encyclical states that while an immense mass of people still lacks the absolute necessities of life in this case, children with disabilities in the rural settings, some people live sumptuously and squander wealth. Luxury and misery rub shoulders. While the few more enjoy very great freedom of choice, the many are deprived of almost all possibility of acting on their own initiative and responsibility and often subsist in living and working conditions unworthy of human beings.
576 Haggis, G., (2005), Making the Connections: Globalization and Catholic Social Thought, in John A. Coleman and William F. Ryan, (Eds), Present Crisis and Future Hope, New York: Oribis Books, 10. 577 Tada, J.E., (2007), Christ’s Compassion for ‘The Least’ and People with Disabilities, Califonia: Lausanne World Pulse Archives, in http://www.lausanneworldpulse.com/themedarticles-php/811/09-2007, Issue:09- 2007. Posted on December 14, 14:42 GMT. In this article, Tada affirmed that the Church can lead the way in transforming the plight most disabled people face by serving and becoming a loving, healing community to this population of people. Christians in cities and villages around the world can truly demonstrate the same compassion of Jesus Christ that he showed towards disabled people throughout the Gospels. How can the Church change its attitude towards people with disabilities? The answer is simple: It begins with you. This is how urgent it is that each one of us ought to change our perception and participate actively in uplifting the lives of our children with disabilities.
578 Pope Paul VI, (1967), Populorum Progressio, an Encyclical letter on the Development of Peoples, AAS 59,257-299. Article 49 affirms the notion of the divided world into two namely the rich and the poor nations, saying; ‘we must repeat that the superfluous goods of wealthier nations ought to be placed at the disposal of poorer nations. The rule, by which in times past those nearest us were to be helped in time of need, applies today to all the needy throughout the world…….
579 Ibid.
580 Baillie, G., (2004), Violence Unveiled: Humanity at the Crossroads, New York: The Crossroad Publishing Company, 4.