Radical Life Extension: Implications for Roman Catholicism
What would be the implications for Roman Catholicism if persons were to live for hundreds of years rather than for decades? This is the question I will address in this chapter, along with the further question, what is the likely response of the Roman Catholic Church to the prospect of radical life extension (RLE)? There are no official or even unofficial Roman Catholic responses to these questions, because the issue is so speculative and new. So my chapter here will be a kind of thought experiment, based on my knowledge of Roman Catholic theology and a number of assumptions. What are those assumptions?
I will assume that RLE will occur, that medical techniques will make it possible to arrest aging. In theory this would mean that people would not die of old age, though they might die of other causes, such as accidents, murder, suicide, natural disasters, or war. Presumably, RLE would also mean that major diseases would be cured or be curable. Thus persons born in the age of RLE could look forward to lives measured in centuries, rather than decades. But this also entails the assumption that a high level of futuristic health care would be available continuously for hundreds of years, which in turn means that advanced technical society would be stable for hundreds of years. For if there were social collapse, economic collapse, political unrest, revolution, widespread war, or environmental and resource failure, then in all likelihood the requisite health care would not be available, and people would die of disease, famine, or other disorders. Even a glance at history suggests that it is very unlikely that our highly technological society will continue as is for hundreds of years. We are threatened already with overpopulation, war, terrorism, environmental decline, and resource failure, not to mention declining educational levels in the United States and Europe. So I think it is unlikely that RLE will succeed and become widespread. But for the purposes of this chapter, I will assume that it does. What then would be the implications for Catholicism, and what would be the likely Catholic response? I will approach these questions by considering the implications of RLE for the narratives that are foundational to the Catholic Christian tradition, as well as Catholic doctrines, practices, and institutions. After this, I will consider what I think the likely response of Catholic theologians and bishops would be to RLE.
Narratives
The foundational narratives for Roman Catholicism are the same as for other branches of Christianity: the creation stories in Genesis; the story of the sin and "fall" of Adam and Eve; the Noahic flood; the covenants God makes with Noah, Abraham, and Moses; the Israelite prophetic tradition; and the New Covenant made through Jesus the Christ. What do these narratives tell us about life and life extension?
First of all, they tell us that life is the gift of God. In the Genesis narratives, God creates all animal life and human life. And life is good. God blesses living things, saying, "Be fruitful and multiply" (Genesis 1:22). In the initial picture of creation, the Garden of Eden story, it is not clear if there was death in the world. God gives the green plants to everything that has the breath of life, including humans. This would seem to imply that in the paradisial state of Eden, animals did not eat each other, nor did humans eat the animals. Only after humans have been cast out of Eden were they allowed to eat animals, and then only the flesh without blood, for the blood was thought to be the life, which belonged to God: "You shall not eat flesh with its life, that is, its blood" (Genesis 9:4). Life, then, is the gift of God and belongs to God; there is no hint in the Genesis creation accounts that life is due to a purely natural evolutionary process.
Where, then, does death come from in the foundational narratives? It appears to come from sin. Certainly this is true of humans. The result of the sin of Adam and Eve is that they are cast out of the Garden, denied access to the tree of life, and cursed with death: "You are dust, and to dust you shall return" (Genesis 3:19).
Eschatology
What would be the impact of RLE on Christian and specifically Catholic eschatology? To some extent this depends on our definition of eschatology. There are at least two meanings: (1) eschatology means the end times, when the Lord comes again to judge all the living and the dead and human history on earth (but not in the afterlife) comes to a close, and (2) eschatology means the end time for each individual, which will begin when that individualdies. In Catholic thinking, each individual undergoes a personal judgment immediately upon death. Some, whose love of God and neighbor is complete, are ready for heaven; others, who have turned irrevocably against God, would presumably go to hell (which is nothing else than the absence of God). Others, who have some faith, but whose love of God and neighbor needs purification, would find themselves in Purgatory, a state in which their love of God and neighbor undergoes purification. Or, put another way, purgatory is a state in which persons continue their growth after death into a perfect love of God.
Both views of eschatology are current in Catholic teaching. In practice, however, few Catholics think the second coming or parousia is imminent. In this, Catholics differ greatly from those Protestant groups that expect to be caught up into heaven in their lifetime of "rapture." Though the Church still prays for the second coming in masses, in practice, it seems to me, its expected date has been postponed almost indefinitely. So I doubt that RLE would affect this aspect of eschatology.
It would, however, affect the second aspect of eschatology. When priests or theologians talk about eschatology today, it is often the second meaning they talk about. Each of us will die within some decades and therefore ought to be prepared to meet the Lord in judgment. Since we do not know when we will die -- it could be this very day -- we should be prepared at all times to return to God. This is Jesus's own teaching: "Keep awake, therefore, for you know neither the day nor the hour" (Matthew 25: 13).
What does preparation for death entail? In traditional Catholic spirituality, for example, Robert Bellarmine's The Art of Dying (Ars Moriendi), it means learning to be detached from the world and the goods of the world (especially wealth), developing a deep relationship with God through prayer, learning to forgive and to love, and cultivating hope. In short, it means living according to the ideals of the Sermon on the Mount, and living in the grace of God, especially the grace of faith, hope, and love. Only the presence of God and Christ accompanies us through death, so it is important to try to live in that presence daily, so that whenever one dies, one dies in the presence of God and Christ.
Ideally, of course, from a Christian view, we should live this way all the time. There are several reasons why most Christians do not do this. One reason is sin, or, to use a more modern term, self-centeredness, egotism, or, as the Buddhists say, grasping. The second and related reason is the distractions of the world. The world is full of pleasures, temptations, opportunities, and distractions. The things of the world are good, not evil, but it is easy to become so attached to the things of the world, so distracted, so busy, that we forget about God and his centrality. The onset of death, however, tends to make people realize that the goods of this world are transitory and that what will count in the afterlife is what we might call eternal goods, such as love. The prospect of death calls on people to reflect on their ultimate purpose, which is, in Christian tradition, to become united in fellowship with God, and with the communion of saints. Or, in less theological terms it is to recall people to the primacy of love. We see this happening in a wonderful way in Tuesdays with Morrie. In that book, Morrie, who was not a particularly religious man, came to realize through his process of dying what really mattered was love and forgiveness.
Practices and Institutions
The most obvious practice and institution to be affected by RLE would be monogamous marriage. Let's say people can anticipate living for centuries. How likely is it that they would be willing to commit to a lifelong monogamous marriage, "till death do us part"? But if they would not make such a commitment, what would they do? Get married, have kids, then get divorced and marry again, have another round of kids, and so on for hundreds of years? Possibly they would. But if this was the case, and they were to remain in the Catholic Church, the church would have to change its teaching on divorce. This actually seems to me to be one of the most likely effects of RLE. I have a hard time imagining that many people would commit to marriages which would last hundreds of years. It's more likely that they would not marry at all, but simply live together (this is already becoming more and more common). Or, they would leave the Catholic Church and join a church that allowed divorce and remarriage. Either way, there would be a lot of pressure on the Catholic Church to modify its strict teaching on divorce and remarriage.
There would probably be other changes too. For example, those entering religious orders and the priesthood also make vows that are supposedly binding for life. This might change if life comes to be measured in centuries. In practice, of course, many people enter religious orders or the priesthood, then leave. But there is no history of temporary vows to the priesthood or religious orders. So it is hard to say if these institutions would change. Again, bishops are now asked to retire at 75 and cardinals at 80, and there is no limit to the term of a pope. Would we witness popes who remained in office for hundreds of years? Or would the term limits for bishops and popes be revised upward? It's hard to say. Most likely, term limits would stay in place for bishops and cardinals and would be put in place for popes.
Other: Likely Response of the Magisterium to Radical Life Extension
What would be the likely response of the Catholic Magisterium be to the advent of RLE? I think it will be negative, largely because of the effect of RLE on the Common Good. Right now we are facing a world in which there is relative wealth in the West and massive poverty in third world countries. Millions of people live on less than a few dollars a day. Economic disparity is growing, not shrinking, both in the United States and across the world. We are witnessing an excessive and growing population, declining natural resources, increasing pollution, and increased risk of natural disasters (due to global warming). Furthermore, in the United States and probably worldwide, it is a world in which all these burdens are being passed on to the young. In the United States, for example, we are generating enormous budget deficits and debt, which we are passing on to the young. But at the same time, we are passing on a declining resource base, more pollution, and fewer good jobs.
I believe all these trends, especially population growth and economic disparity, would probably (but not necessarily, for reasons given above), be accelerated by RLE. In a world where most people cannot manage a dollar a day for medical expenses, I cannot imagine that the majority of the world population will ever have access to the medical technology to extend their lives to hundreds of years or more.