The following documents summarize centuries of Church teaching and address life-related issues for the 21st century:

Catechism of the Catholic Church

In its treatment of the Fifth and Sixth Commandments the Catechism, paragraphs 2258-2400, covers church teachings on the sanctity of all human life, the gift of procreation and human sexuality, and the evils of contraception, abortion, and euthanasia. These specific topics are specifically addressed in the “Beginning of Life” and “End of Life” sections of Church Teachings.

Dignitas Personae

This document articulates Church Teaching on the dignity of a human person from conception to natural death. It updates the instruction Donum Vitae which was written twenty years prior.

Donum Vitae - Instruction on Respect for Human Life in its Origin

This document from the Congregation of the Doctrine of the Faith analyzes biomedical techniques which make it possible to intervene in the initial phase of human life to determine if they conform with the principles of Catholic morality.

Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life)

Pope John Paul II’s 1995 Encyclical Letter on the Gospel of Life.

Humanae Vitae (Of Human Life)

Pope Paul VI’s 1968 Encyclical Letter On Human Life.

National Catholic Bioethics Center

The National Catholic Bioethics Center conducts research, consultation, publishing and education to promote human dignity in health care and the life sciences, and derives its message directly from the teachings of the Catholic Church.

Salvifici Doloris: On the Christian Meaning of Human Suffering

Apostolic Letter from John Paul II on the mystery of suffering, its meaning, and the quest to answer the question of why we suffer.