Vatican: Thou shalt not engage in road rage / LJWorld.com

Archive for Wednesday, June 20, 2007

Associated Press

June 20, 2007

Gregorio Borgia/AP Photo

Motorists drive past St. Peter's Square in Rome. The Vatican on Tuesday issued a set of commandments for drivers, including to practice charity to others on the highways and to refrain from drinking and driving.

Vatican City — The Vatican on Tuesday issued a "Ten Commandments" for motorists, warning drivers against the sins of road rage, abuse of alcohol or even simple rudeness.

The unusual document from the Vatican's office for migrants and itinerant people also warned that automobiles can be "an occasion of sin" - particularly when used to make a dangerous passing maneuver or when used by prostitutes and their clients.

And it suggested prayer might come in handy - performing the sign of the cross before starting off and saying the rosary along the way. The rosary was particularly well-suited to recitation by all in the car, it said, because its "rhythm and gentle repetition does not distract the driver's attention."

Cardinal Renato Martino, who heads the office, told a news conference the Vatican felt it necessary to address the pastoral needs of motorists because driving is such a big part of contemporary life.

He cited World Health Organization statistics that said an estimated 1.2 million people are killed in road crashes each year and as many as 50 million are injured.

The document, "Guidelines for the Pastoral Care of the Road," extols the benefits of driving - family outings, getting the sick to the hospital, allowing people to get to work and seeing other cultures.

But it laments a host of ills associated with automobiles: Drivers use their cars to show off; driving "provides an easy opportunity to dominate others" by speeding; and drivers can kill themselves and others if they drink, use drugs or fall asleep at the wheel.

It warned about the effects of road rage, saying driving can bring out "primitive" behavior in motorists, including "impoliteness, rude gestures, cursing, blasphemy, loss of sense of responsibility or deliberate infringement of the highway code."

It called for drivers to obey speed limits and to exercise a host of Christian virtues: charity to fellow drivers, prudence on the roads, hope of arriving safely, and justice in the event of crashes. People are also urged to "charitably convince" the elderly not to drive if they are not fit to do so.

There was no indication Pope Benedict XVI had approved of, or even read, the document. It was signed by Martino and his secretary - as is customary for lower-level documents that are routinely put out by the offices of the Vatican's vast bureaucracy.

I. You shall not kill.

II. The road shall be for you a means of communion between people and not of mortal harm.

III. Courtesy, uprightness and prudence will help you deal with unforeseen events.

IV. Be charitable and help your neighbor in need, especially victims of accidents.

V. Cars shall not be for you an expression of power and domination, and an occasion of sin.

VI. Charitably convince the young and not so young not to drive when they are not in a fitting condition to do so.

VII. Support the families of accident victims.

VIII. Bring guilty motorists and their victims together, at the appropriate time, so that they can undergo the liberating experience of forgiveness.

IX. On the road, protect the more vulnerable party.

X. Feel responsible toward others.