The Dignity of the Human Person and Realization of the Common Good

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Running head: The Dignity of Human Person and Realization of Common Good
The Dignity of the Human Person and Realization of the Common Good
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Human dignity has been described as a principle in which every human has a right to be
respected, valued as a unique being, and treated ethically with honor. This should be done with

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The Dignity of Human Person and Realization of Common Good
no conditions. It shouldn’t be based on what one is capable of doing, who they are, religious and
political background or the social class they belong. Human dignity can never be earned nor
taken away from someone. The Catholic Church argues that “life is sacred and the dignity of the
human person is the moral vision for the society we live in”. It is therefore evident enough that
human dignity is one of the most important virtues that need to be realized and practiced today
and in the future. Common good on the other hand has been illustrated as what can be generally
accepted and beneficial to all (Condit, 2016). This, therefore, requires consideration of all
people’s interest and their equity in general.
The doctrine of the common good is what should inspire people towards thinking of
health services. The Roman Catholic contends the common good as “the sum total of social
conditions which allow people either as groups or as individuals to reach their fulfillment more
fully and more easily” (Haile,2017). The common good principle completely differs from John
Stuart Mills argument on the common good “greatest good for the greatest number”. This
because it discriminates the minority group in the community and only favors the majority.
Precisely is the term that has been used in our today's living where the majority wins. The
common good must never be administered at the expense of the less privileged in the
community. Instead, it should be used to bring together all the different kind of society
The dignity of the human person must never be violated. The Catholic teachings hold that
life begins at conception until natural death. It's, therefore, a responsibility to safeguard the life
of a human person. Practices that takes a human life such as abortion, euthanasia and physician-
assisted suicide violates the principle of the dignity of the human person (Kammer, 2012). The
dignity of the human person realization applies both to the patients whose health is on the hands
of the physicians and also on the medical attendants. The nurses, physicians, the pharmacist