In a recent address, Cardinal Víctor Manuel Fernández highlighted the Catholic Church's teachings on human dignity, which underpin its positions on pro-life issues and gender ideology. The cardinal said that "the infinite and inalienable dignity inherent in every human being has practical consequences," including the protection of life from conception to natural death and opposition to gender ideology.

Cardinal Fernández, who serves as the prefect of the Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith, spoke during a conference organized by Germany's Cologne University of Catholic Theology. He noted that those experiencing profound dysphoria are "exceptional situations (which) must be evaluated with great care." However, he criticized what he described as an ideology accompanying many sex-change decisions, claiming it denies the reality of one's body as a gift.

The cardinal also discussed the document "Dignitas Infinita" ("Infinite Dignity"), released by his dicastery in April 2024 and approved by Pope Francis. The document had raised questions about the nature or source of infinite dignity and faced criticism for its condemnation of gender theory and sex-change procedures.

In his talk, Cardinal Fernández clarified that ontological dignity is immutable regardless of a person's state or circumstances. He explained that this understanding is contrary to societal interpretations that may ignore or invent human rights at will. While denouncing discrimination against LGBTQ+ individuals, the document also warned against gender theory as it "cancels differences in its claim to make everyone equal."

Cardinal Fernández emphasized that God's infinite love confers infinite dignity on every human being, echoing sentiments expressed by St. John Paul II during a meeting with people with disabilities in 1980.

Information from this article can be found here.