Submitted by Cedric Hughes on Tue, 07/03/2007 - 12:10
The news media has recently given attention to a code of driving behaviour published by the Roman Catholic Church. Much of the news response included sarcastic remarks and cartoons about absurd prohibitions such as a rule against “spinner wheels”.
On balance, however, most reports have acknowledged, implicitly or otherwise, that the Guidelines are good counsel for drivers and other road users. The citation of the statistics alone renders this no laughing matter: —35 million people killed in road accidents during the 20th century and one and a half billion injured, 1,260,000 fatalities in 2000, and 90% of accidents due to human error.
The carnage on the roadways worldwide certainly calls for somebody to say something about responsible driving. In and of themselves, these guidelines should not be objectionable to anyone:
- You shall not kill.
- The road shall be for you a means of communion between people and not of mortal harm.
- Courtesy, uprightness and prudence will help you deal with unforeseen events.
- Be charitable and help your neighbour in need, especially victims of accidents.
- Cars shall not be for you an expression of power and domination, and an occasion of sin.
- Charitably convince the young and not so young not to drive when they are not in a fitting condition to do so.
- Support the families of accident victims.
- Bring guilty motorists and their victims together, at the appropriate time, so that they can undergo the liberating experience of forgiveness.
- On the road, protect the more vulnerable party.
- Feel responsible towards others.
Additional text published with these guidelines, states: “It is quite common when accidents occur to blame the state of the road surface, a mechanical problem or environmental conditions. However, it should be underlined that the vast majority of car accidents are the result of serious and unwarranted carelessness – if not downright stupid and arrogant behaviour by drivers or pedestrians – and are therefore due to the human factor.”
The elaborations are out of step with today’s “me first” attitude. For example, being charitable means the “love of travelers whose lives should not be endangered by incorrect and careless maneuvers that may cause harm to both passengers and pedestrians. The word “love” is used here to mean the many forms taken by genuine charity, namely respect, courtesy, consideration, etc. Good drivers courteously give way to pedestrians, are not offended when overtaken, allow someone who wishes to drive faster to pass and do not seek revenge. ”
Presumably what irks a lot of people is the language of moral responsibility, for example, words such as: “communion, mortal, courtesy, uprightness, sin, families, charitably, carelessness, and arrogant.” We like to hear about freedom and rights. “Duties” and “sacrifice” are now words that seem to affect many people like the sound of someone scratching on a blackboard.
But while all of this is a worthy comment on bad behaviour, a much deeper question arises. Are traffic accidents to be an outstanding focus of religious concern?
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