Catholic Social Catholic Social TeachingTeachingA Key to Catholic Identity

The ProblemThe ProblemFar too many Catholics are unfamiliar with the basic content of Catholic social teaching. More fundamentally, many Catholics do not adequately understand that the social mission of the Church is an essential part of Catholic faith.

This possess a serious challenge for all Catholics, since it weakens our capacity to be a Church that is true to the demands of the Gospel. We need to do more to share the social mission and message of our Church.

Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and Directions

U.S. Bishops, 1998

A Key to Catholic IdentityA Key to Catholic Identity

The central message is simple: our faith is profoundly social. We cannot be called truly “Catholic” unless we hear and heed the Church's call to serve those in need and work for justice and peace.

Communities of Salt and Light, U.S. Bishops, 1993

Vatican II’s EcclesiologyVatican II’s Ecclesiology The Church is a sign and a safeguard

of the dignity of the human person.

A religious organization whose purpose it is to help bring about the reign of God in history.

The social mission is “constitutive” not extra-curricular or optional.

The Church carries out its religious mission by engaging in concrete struggles of society. To work for social justice and human dignity, therefore, is a religious act.

Constitutive Elements of ChurchConstitutive Elements of Church

Scripture -- hearing the Good News

Sacraments -- worship, prayer life, etc.

Social Mission -- action for social justice

CST or Social DoctrineCST or Social Doctrine

Describes the role that the church takes in finding solutions to the problems created by the major changes in the modern world. It is a pronouncement about the implications of the christian faith to society. This doctrine is the religious and moral teachings of the church resulting from careful analysis of the complex realities of human existence.

CSTCST

Its purpose is the realization of justice understood as the advancement and complete liberation of the human person in his earthly and spiritual life.

Social Encyclicals. Popes wrote these in their desire to help solve the problem of the poor. They point out the social problem, determine the causes and present the way towards its solution.

1891 Rerum Novarum Leo XIII1931 Quadragesimo Anno Pius XI1961 Mother and Teacher John XXIII1963 Peace on Earth John XXIII1965 Church in the Modern World Vatican II1967 The Development of Peoples Paul VI1971 A Call to Action Paul VI1971 Justice in the World Synod of Bishops1979 Redeemer of Humanity John Paul II1981 On Human Work John Paul II1988 On Social Concern John Paul II1991 The One Hundredth Year John Paul II1995 The Gospel of Life John Paul II

Modern Catholic Social TeachingModern Catholic Social Teaching

Major Themes from Catholic Social TeachingMajor Themes from Catholic Social Teaching

1. Human dignity2. Community3. Rights and duties4. Option for the poor5. Participation 6. Economic Justice7. Stewardship of Creation8. Solidarity9. Role of Government10. Promotion of Peace

1. Human dignity1. Human dignity The person is sacred, made in the image of God.

"The Catholic Church proclaims that human life is sacred and that the dignity of the human person is the foundation of a moral vision for society. Our belief in the sanctity of human life and the inherent dignity of the human person is the foundation of all the principles of our social teaching

 There is no more basic principle in the Catholic social vision than the dignity of the human person. It is the bedrock theme, the place where the church stands when it addresses the question of justice in the world. In the words of the Second Vatican, the Church is "the sign and the safeguard of the transcendental dimension of the human person." (Vatican Council, Pastoral Constitution on the Church and the Modern World, 1965, #69.)

This principle is grounded in the idea that the person is sacred, made in the image of God. The human person is the clearest reflection of God among us. As the bishops said in their 1986 pastoral letter on the economy, every person "must be respected with a reverence that is religious. When we deal with each other, we should do so with the sense of awe that arises in the presence of something holy and sacred.

In other words, when we look into the eyes of the human person, we see there the greatest manifestation of the grandeur of God, the clearest reflection of the presence of God among us.

We are asked never to forget this most basic principle: people are more important than things. Every person, regardless of age, sex, race, gender, religion, or economic status, has the special dignity that comes from being a child of God. Every person is a reflection of the sacred and is worthy of respect.

2. 2. Community / Community / Common Good Common Good The social nature of the human personThe social nature of the human person

The fact that human beings are social by nature indicates that the betterment of the person and the improvement of society depend on each other.…humanity by its very nature stands completely in need of life in society.

Vatican II, The Church in the Modern World

In Catholic social thought, the person is not only sacred, but also social. The very nature of human beings is that they are communal creatures. They live and grow in community. They cannot survive without community. Therefore, the dignity of the person makes sense only in the context of the person's relationships to others in the community. Human dignity can only be realized and protected in the context of relationships with the wider society.

This principle has profound implications not only for individual attitudes and behavior, but also for the institutions and structures of society. How we organize society -- economically, politically, legally -- directly affects human dignity and the capacity of individuals to grow in community. The obligation to "love our neighbor," therefore, has an individual dimension, but it also requires a broader social commitment to the common good.

Everyone has an obligation to contribute to the good of the whole society, to the common good. For, if we are serious about our commitment to the dignity of the human person, we must be serious about humanizing the social systems in which the person lives.

This is a difficult truth to be taught ‑‑ particularly in our culture and our time, when individualism is a dominant and sometimes rampant cultural force. Contemporary society is characterized by a radical separation of private life and social life.In the face of this rampant individualism, Catholic social teaching insists that we are all radically social.

It promotes a vision in which community plays a central role. As the Apostle Paul wrote the Corinthians:The body is one and has many members, but all the members, many though they are, are one body; and so it is with Christ. It is in one Spirit that all of us, whether Jew or Greek, slave or free, were baptized into one body.... If one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members share its joy. You, then, are the body of Christ. Every one of you is a member of it. (I Cor 12:12-27)

3. Rights and duties3. Rights and duties

Civil/political

Economic/social

Every person has a right to the basic material necessities that are required to live a decent life.

In Catholic social teaching the basic demands of justice are made explicit by a specific set of human rights. These rights are bestowed on human beings by God and grounded in the nature and dignity of the person. They are not created by society, but rather, are inherent in the very nature of every person. These fundamental rights form a kind of baseline, a set of minimum conditions for social justice. They form a bottom line for judging how well society's institutions are protecting human dignity.

4. Option for the Poor4. Option for the Poor

Remember the “widows, orphans, and aliens.”

A necessary element of the common good

In contemporary times the Church has adopted the phrase "option for the poor" to describe this moral principle. John Paul II has spoken of this special obligation to the poor as "a preferential, but not exclusive, love of the poor. He has describe this preferential love as a "call to have a special openness with the small and the weak, those that suffer and weep, those that are humiliated and left on the margin of society, so as to help them win their dignity as human persons and children of God”

It is important to note that the word "option" here implies a special preference for the poor and the weak, but it is not intended to be a theme that is, in any way, divisive. It does not mean that one should opt for the poor and against those who are not poor.

5. Participation5. Participation

All people have a right to a minimum level of participation in the economic, political, and cultural life of society.

6. Economic Justice6. Economic Justice The economy must serve people, not the other way around.

People are more important than things; labor is more important than capital.

All workers have a right to productive work, to decent wages, to safe working conditions; and they have a right to organize and join unions.

People have a right to economic initiative and private property, but these rights have limits. No one is allowedto amass excessive wealth when others lack the basic necessities of life.

7. Stewardship of Creation7. Stewardship of Creation

The goods of the earth are gifts. We hold them in trust, as stewards.

“God destined the earth and all it contains for all people and nations so that all created things would be shared fairly by all humankind under the guidance of justice tempered by charity.”

On the Development of Peoples

8. The Virtue of Solidarity8. The Virtue of Solidarity

“It is a firm and persevering determination to commit oneself to the common good; that is to say, to the good of all ...because we are all really responsible for all.”

Pope John Paul II, On Social Concern, 1987

9.9. Role of GovernmentRole of Government

The state has a positive moral function.It is an instrument to promote human dignity, protect human rights, and build the common good

Subsidiarity As small as possible As big as necessary

10. Promotion of Peace10. Promotion of Peace

Peace is not just the absence of war

“If you want peace, work for justice.”Pope Paul VI, 1972, World Day of Peace Message

Major Themes from Catholic Social TeachingMajor Themes from Catholic Social Teaching

1. Human dignity2. Community3. Rights and duties4. Option for the poor 5. Participation6. Economic Justice7. Stewardship of Creation8. Solidarity9. Role of Government10. Promotion of Peace

Implications for Catholic EducationImplications for Catholic EducationCatholic schools, religious education and faith formation programs are vitally important for sharing the substance and values of the Catholic social justice heritage.

Just as the social teaching of the Church is integral to Catholic faith, the social justice dimensions of teaching are integral to Catholic education and catechesis. They are an essential part of Catholic identity and formation.

Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and DirectionsU.S. Bishops, 1998

““Seven Commandments” for Integrating Seven Commandments” for Integrating Catholic Social Teaching into Our FaithCatholic Social Teaching into Our Faith

1. Rooted in prayer and worship.2. Integrate, don’t isolate.3. Content counts – study the documents.4. Competency really counts.5. Charity (social service) is not enough.6. Thou shalt observe, judge, act.7. Thou shalt have fun!

Make sure the teaching Make sure the teaching is rooted in prayer and worship.is rooted in prayer and worship. Cultivate a spirituality that is not just private, but also public and social.

Catholicism does not call us to abandon the world, but to help shape it. This does not mean leaving worldly tasks and responsibilities, but transforming them.

Everyday Christianity: To Hunger and Thirst for JusticeU.S. Bishops, November, 1998

Integrate, don’t isolateIntegrate, don’t isolate

The commitment to human life and dignity, to human rights and solidarity is a calling every Catholic must share. It is not a vocation for a few, but a challenge for every Catholic.

The values of the Church's social teaching must not be treated as tangential or optional. They must be a core part of teaching and formation. Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and Directions, U.S. Bishops, 1998

Content countsContent counts Study the documents.Study the documents.

There is a universal need to be more explicit in teaching the principles of Catholic social thought and helping people apply and act on those principles.

Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and Directions

U.S. Bishops, 1998

Competency really countsCompetency really counts

We strongly urge Catholic to create additional resources and programs that will address the lack of familiarity with Catholic social teaching among many….

Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and DirectionsU.S. Bishops, 1998

Charity (social service) Charity (social service) is not enough.is not enough.

There is a need for Catholic educational and catechetical programs not only to continue offering direct service experiences, but also to offer opportunities to work for change in the policies and structures that cause injustice.

Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and DirectionsU.S. Bishops, 1998

Thou shalt observe, judge, actThou shalt observe, judge, act

Observe the facts; know the reality

Use social analysis and moral values to make judgments about the facts

Plan a realistic and effective strategy for action

Thou shalt have funThou shalt have fun

No one likes a grim do-gooder!

ConclusionConclusion

Salt and Light for the World

“You’re supposed to be the leaven in the loaf, not part of the lump.”

Internet Resources on Internet Resources on Catholic Social TeachingCatholic Social Teaching http://www.osjspm.org/cst http://www.osjspm.org/justed.htm http://www.mcgill.pvt.k12.al.us/jerryd/cm/cst.htm

This PowerPoint presentation can be downloaded at the following web address:

http://www.osjspm.org/cst.htm