"We are convinced that a consistent ethic of life should be the moral framework from which we address all issues in the political arena."

A "consistent ethic of life" mandated that Catholics oppose abortion, nuclear war, euthanasia and the death penalty, and press for social justice for the poor and the powerless.

The consistent life ethic, or the consistent ethic of life is an ideology that opposes abortion, capital punishment, assisted suicide, economic injustice, and euthanasia.

The consistent ethic's opposition to capital punishment is rooted in the conviction that an atmosphere of respect for life must pervade a society, and resorting to the death penalty does not support this attitude.

"We are using all of our networks to get across the same message: a consistent ethic of life requires universal coverage and the exclusion of abortion."

We believe that these issues are linked under a consistent ethic of life.

"Backlash" undoubtedly explains some of the fierce dedication to the abortion wars; so too do the concerns expressed in "the consistent ethic of life."

I have to add that I think the Holy Father's recent encyclical Evangelium Vitae - the Gospel of Life - was basically on the consistent ethic.

It sits in harmony with that perfectly Catholic construct, the "consistent ethic of life," which places hot-button life issues within a moral spectrum that also includes poverty, warfare, and other social-justice issues.

In order to prevent this from happening, Bernardin proposed that the bishops promote a "consistent ethic of life".