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.