Fr. Francesco Giordano: Cooperation with Evil: Why the Distinctions Matter

The Servant and the Ladder

Consider the old moral case condemned by Blessed Innocent XI (1676–1689). A servant helps his master climb through a window to commit a grave sexual crime, perhaps by holding the ladder, opening the door, or otherwise assisting him. Could the servant excuse himself by saying he feared being treated badly or losing his position? The answer was no.

The case is old, but the principle is not. One may not actively facilitate grave evil simply because resistance is costly. Pope Innocent XI condemned this “servant and the ladder” proposition in 1679 (DS 2151; cf. DS 2166) because it treated active assistance in grave evil as excusable on the basis of relatively minor pressure or inconvenience. The point is that one may not facilitate serious injustice simply because resistance is costly.  …

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