Catholic Social Teachinghttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hGr8as7pPBE

Catholic Social Teaching

• What is Catholic Social teaching?

• Where can we find CST?

• What are the principles of CST?

Catholic Social Teaching• (CST) refers to the substantial body of

writings that the Catholic Church maintains

concerning important social, economic, and

political issues.

• It is the systematic face of human rights: the

right to life, food, health, decent housing,

education, work freedom and so on

Catholic Social Teaching• They are ours by birth and arise out of our creation by

the fact that we are created in the image and likeness of

God.

• They are inalienable which means they are not earned

and cannot be discarded or taken away.

• They come from various sources, popes, bishop

conferences on national and international levels

• Their purpose is to demonstrate how we are called to live

our Christian faith in the world.

Hebrew Scriptures

• The Hebrew

Scriptures uses

terms like mispat

and sedaqah, which

translated in Hebrew

means “justice” and

“righteousness.”

• The Hebrew Scriptures clearly

teach that God expects the people

to act justly in their dealings with

one another. For the Israelites and

us today practicing justice is

essential for anyone who claims

membership in the “people of

God.” 

• Jer. 22:3 : “Do no wrong or violence

to the alien, the orphan, and the

widow.”

Christian Scriptures• Jesus also offers numerous

teachings that deal directly

with how we are to live in

right relationship with

both God and one another

• He ministers to the poor,

the blind, the lame, the

sinners, and calls each of

us to do the same.

The Hebrew and Christian Scriptures offer two great values that are relevant for us today.

• Faith is not simply a private affair between oneself and

God. Jesus healed to demonstrate his solidarity with the

poor, powerless, and the outcasts of society. We are called

to exemplify this type of solidarity as well.

• A vision of what we might term a contrast society. It is a

society where people recognize that their individual

goods are intertwined with the good of the community

and the needs of the poor and powerless become the

touchtone of a right relationship with God.

Church Fathers

A number of important conclusions can be drawn from the Church Fathers:

• God gives all material goods to us for the benefit of all. Each

person has a duty to share his or her possessions in times of great

need.

• Although nothing is inherently wrong with the possessions of

material goods, problems arise in terms of their use.

• We are not to view wealth as the measure by which we judge

people. Wealth is not an end in itself, but a means to achieve a

greater good in society. 

• Christians are called to renounce wealth and power as the

ultimate value in their lives. CST teaches that true human

fulfillment is not found in what we have, but who we are. We are

called to seek happiness in the love of God and others.

 

Modern Times• Rerum Novarum; (On the Condition of Labor); Pope Leo XIII;

1891

• Quadragesimo Ano (After Forty Years); Pope Pius XI; 1931

• Pacem in Terris; (Peace on Earth); Pope John XXIII; 1963

• Gaudium et Spes; (Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the

Modern World; Vatican II; 1965

• Octogesima Adveniens; (A Call to Action); Pope Paul VI; 1971

• Justice in the World; the International Synod of Bishops;

1971

John Paul II• On Human Work; 1981

• On Social Concern; 1987

• On the 100th Anniversary of Rerum Novarum;

1991

USCCB• Statement on Capital Punishment; 1980

• Economic Justice for All; 1986

• The Challenge of Peace; 1983

• The Harvest of Justice is Sown in Peace; 1993

Principles of Catholic Social Teaching

Life and Dignity of the Human Person

Call to Family, Community and Participation

Rights and Responsibilities

Option for the Poor and Vulnerable

Dignity of Work and Rights of Workers

Solidarity

Care for God’s Creation

Human Dignity “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 beliefs 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. In our society, human life is under direct attack from abortion

and assisted suicide. The value of human life is being threatened by

increasing the use of the death penalty. We believe that every person is

precious, that people are more important than things, and that the

measure of every institution is whether it threatens or enhances the life

and dignity of the human person.”…USCCB

Human Dignity

•Human life is sacred at all moments.

Human DignityThis is the

foundational principle of all CST. If we don’t respect life, then the other teachings have nothing to stand on. This teaching encompasses both the intentional taking of human life and the cold disregard that devalues human life.

Human DignityBecause we are created

in the image and

likeness of God and

because God became a

human being in Jesus

Christ, each individual

maintains an inherent

dignity and an infinite

worth.

Human Dignity Human dignity upholds the

sacredness of human life at all

stages, from conception until the

moment of natural death. “Pro

Life” means the dignity of every

human person, the elderly, the

poor, the condemned, the

unborn, the young, the minority,

the discouraged, as well as the

rich, the powerful and the

strong.

Human Dignity• Catholics oppose acts considered as attacks

and affronts to human life, including:

abortion, euthanasia, genocide, cloning,

embryonic stem cell research, torture, the

direct and intentional targeting of

noncombatants in war, and every deliberate

taking of a life.

Call to Family, Community and Participation

• “The person is not only sacred but social. How we

organize our society in economics and politics, in law and

policy directly affects human dignity and the capacity of

individuals to grow in community. The family is the

central social institution that must be supported and

strengthened, not undermined. We believe people have a

right and duty to participate in society, seeking together

the common good and well-being of all, especially the

poor and vulnerable.”… USCCB

Family, Community, Participation

• Marriage and

Families are the first

and fundamental

unit of society. They

must be supported ,

strengthened and

not undermined.

Family, Community, Participation

• We are family and we need

one another. Physically we

are depended on one

another to meet our basic

needs. 

• We are not isolated

individualists. Participation

in family and community

gives meaning to our lives.

Family, Community, Participation

• Together families form communities,

communities a state, and together all across

the world each human is part of the human

family. How these communities organize

themselves politically, economically and

socially are of highest importance.

• It is not sufficient to just participate, however,

our participation must be grounded in the

common good.

Rights and Responsibilities“The Catholic tradition teaches that human dignity

can be protected and a healthy community can be

achieved only if human rights are protected and

responsibilities are met. Therefore, every person has

a fundamental right to life and a right to those things

required for human decency. Corresponding to these

rights are duties and responsibilities to one another,

to our families, and to the larger society.”…USCCB

Rights and Responsibilities• In our political arena,

liberals traditionally

focus on rights and

conservatives

traditionally focus on

responsibilities. The

church teaches that

we need both.

Preferential Option for the Poor• “A basic moral test is how our most

vulnerable members are faring. In a society

marred by deepening divisions between rich

and poor, our traditions recall the story of the

Last Judgment (Matt. 25: 31-46) and

instructs us to put the needs of the poor and

the vulnerable first.”…USCCB

Preferential Option for the Poor• The rationale for this

principle is that as

Jesus and the

prophets of the Old

Testament

championed the

cause for the poor,

so too are we called

to do the same.

Preferential Option for the Poor• Economic policy decisions must be

judged on what they do “for the

poor, to the poor, and what they

enable the poor to do for

themselves.”

• The wealthy and the strong are

able to care for and defend

themselves. But the poor and the

vulnerable lack the voice, the

strength, or the resources to

defend themselves.

Preferential Option for the Poor• These are: all who are

marginalized in our

nation and beyond, the

unborn, persons with

disabilities, the elderly

and terminally ill, and

victims of injustice and

oppression.

Preferential Option for the Poor

• The Day of Judgment…God will ask each of us

what we did to help the poor and needy. God

stands on their behalf and any attack against

them is an attack against God.

Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers

• “The economy must serve the people, not the other

way around. Work is more than a way to make a

living; it is a form of continuing participation in God’s

creation. If the dignity of work is to be protected, then

the basic rights of workers must be respected the

right to productive work, to decent and fair wages, to

organize and to join unions, to private property, and to

economic initiative.”…USCCB

Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers

• Work is a fundamental part of

the human condition. It is the

way most people receive income

to support themselves and their

families.  

• Work and income must be

balanced. Wages must be

sufficient for workers to support

their families at a decent level.

Solidarityhttp://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o9tJW9MDs2M&feature=related

• “We are our brother’s and sister’s keepers,

wherever they live. We are one human family,

whatever our national, racial, ethnic,

economic, and ideological differences.

Learning to practice the virtue of solidarity

means learning that “loving our neighbor”

has global dimensions in an interdependent

world.”…USCCB

Solidarity

Solidarity• Entails the recognition that we

are one human family. It calls

us to see beyond our borders. 

• We are responsible for the

well-being of all and cannot

turn our backs on one another

and become “isolationists” in

the face of global difficulties. 

Solidarity• Solidarity involves “compassion”:

meaning “feeling with”; a spontaneous

desire to let the other know that he or

she is not alone. A sense of mutuality.

• It involves a conscious decision to form

community with the ones who are

suffering.

• It takes place when one recognizes the

other’s need and then commits to

action with the intent of making a

positive change in the suffering

person’s life.

God’s Care for Creation (Stewardship)

• “We show our respect for the Creator by our

stewardship of creation. Care for the earth is not just

an Earth Day slogan, it is a requirement of our faith.

We are called to protect people and the planet, living

our faith in relationship with all of God’s creation. This

environmental challenge had fundamental moral and

ethical dimensions that cannot be ignored.”…USCCB 

Stewardship• Means accepting full

responsibility for that

which has been entrusted

to out care.

• As the earth and

everything contained in it

are gifts from God. We

have a moral obligation to

use these gifts responsibly.

Stewardship

•Includes Money

Stewardship

Property

Stewardship

Possessions

Stewardship

• Important environmental implications. God has

made us stewards of the created order and has

given us the privilege of using the world’s

resources to improve upon human life.

• We must use resources prudently by cutting

waste and over consumption, and not harm the

environment through pollution or other means.

Strengths of CST• CST is grounded in practical reality. These documents addressed specific

issues and to the author’s own audience. It was the author’s attempt to

articulate the Church’s response to important issues as they actually

existed.

• These principles apply to all people, not just Catholics. They apply to

everyone because they can be understood both through human reasoning

as well as theologically.

• CST does not tell people exactly how they should act in a particular

situation. This means that faithful Catholics and non-Catholics can

disagree as to how the principles should be applied in specific situations.