By Robert P. George, The Catholic Thing - As the Pope makes clear in Evangelium Vitae, the pro-life imperative also entails political responsibilities. This is most evident in the case of public officials—legislators, judges, and others charged to shape and apply our laws. Public officials are bound to act in conformity with the great truth of our Declaration of Independence that all human beings are “created equal” and “endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights,” including, in the very first place, the “right to life.” “As far as the right to life is concerned,” Pope John Paul II writes, “every innocent human being is absolutely equal to all others”