In the 10th anniversary year of the great encyclical "Evangelium Vitae, The Gospel of Life," its author, John Paul II, infused this Gospel with particular meaning to the last moment of his papacy.

Not only by his life, but even in his dying, John Paul II proved that he was right when he said that this Gospel of Life, this good news about life lived in service to others, "has a profound and persuasive echo in the heart of every person," Christians and non-Christians alike. We should reflect on the power of a document that has inspired not only theologians and philosophers, but also journalists, politicians and others to begin facing more honestly the "culture of death" and the possibilities for a "culture of life."

On first read, "Evangelium Vitae," and its characterization of the modern conditions that had provoked its drafting, it seems as if John Paul II was speaking directly and even exclusively to the situation in the United States. Of course he was not, but the picture he painted of the degree and kinds of disrespect for life, and the rhetoric that accompany them, was uncannily descriptive of our own country.

One of its most important components was its dissection of the ideas about freedom that allow arguments against life to succeed in a society, even to the point where killing could become a "fundamental right" at law. No one who has ever encountered U.S. abortion and euthanasia debates could fail to notice that they revolve around the meaning of "freedom" and "rights."

In some of the most accessible philosophy ever written by a pope, John Paul II explains in "Evangelium Vitae" the characteristics of true freedom and contrasts these with the marks of false freedom. John Paul II writes that freedom must have reference to objective truth, must be lived in solidarity with others and needs God.

Without God, human persons are unable to see themselves as "mysteriously different." They are more inclined to regard themselves "merely as one more living being," even a "thing." They tend to regard life as their own property, which can and must be brought under their control.

If this version of freedom prevails in a nation like the United States, where it is claimed that laws are developed through democratic processes, supporters of abortion and euthanasia take all the more comfort that "freedom" has been served. But John Paul II assails this comfort with some of the strongest language in the encyclical: "Really, what we have here is only the tragic caricature of legality; the democratic ideal, which is only truly such when it acknowledges and safeguards the dignity of every human person, is betrayed in its very foundations" (No. 20).

There is really one task — to live as a people of life, for life; to conform our own lives to Jesus Christ so that the quintessential "man for others" becomes our way of life. In a sentence that should by all rights stop readers in their tracks, John Paul II states in "Evangelium Vitae" that the "meaning of life" lies in "being a gift which is fully realized in the giving of self. This is the splendid message about the value of life which comes to us from the figure of the Servant of the Lord ... . " (No. 49).

While of course the task of each person will differ according to his or her station in life, all are charged with some basic, crucial responsibilities. These include prayer and personal conversion to the good news about the sacredness of human life. Fasting and prayer, in fact, are called "the first and most effective weapons against the forces of evil" (No. 100). We are further called to maintain hope. We are called to adopt a lifestyle that clearly communicates the primacy of "being" over "having" — one that makes room for the embrace of those who need us, not merely those we choose. Thereafter, whether we are women or men, intellectuals, citizens, physicians, teachers or women who’ve suffered from an abortion, we have specific contributions to make.

The death of Pope John Paul II, or rather the celebration of his life we have now witnessed, is a call to continued conversion and action for the pro-life cause. "Evangelium Vitae" has made philosophers, theologians and aspiring saints out of ordinary citizens who struggle against the killing of vulnerable human beings. Its effects on us, and on our culture, will be felt for generations.