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Christian Social Responsibility in a Post-Katrina City

Christian Social Responsibility in a Post-Katrina City. Edward B. Arroyo, S.J. Based largely on the thought of the late Richard McCormick, S.J. A City on the Banks of a River. At first all was well Then Physical ailments More and more sickness, among plants and animals too

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Christian Social Responsibility in a Post-Katrina City

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  1. Christian Social Responsibility in a Post-Katrina City Edward B. Arroyo, S.J. Based largely on the thought of the late Richard McCormick, S.J.

  2. A City on the Banks of a River • At first all was well • Then • Physical ailments • More and more sickness, among plants and animals too • Even the fish got sick • It got so serious, it seemed nothing could help

  3. A City on the Banks of a River The people met to discuss their options, and asked: • What steps would I personally think about taking? • How far would I be willing to go toward discovering the root(s) of the problem? • How far would I be willing to go toward changing these root(s) in order to alleviate the problem? • What are some societal problems in our country or world that are similar to the one portrayed in this story? • What does our Christian faith tell us about these problems? • Which of these societal problems could God be calling us to address?

  4. A City on the Banks of a River Tonight, my friends, we are those people in such a city! We ask ourselves: • What is our Christian Social Responsibility? • What can I do? • What can we do?

  5. 3000+ Years of Biblical Justice Teaching • Social Covenant • Prophetic Challenge • Poor, Widows, Orphans, Strangers

  6. 2000 Years of Christian Justice Teaching • Good news to the poor • Release of the captives • Freedom for the oppressed • What you do for the least…

  7. 2000 years of Christians committed to social discipleship • Saints in service of neighbor, such as • Vincent de Paul • Peter Claver • Others closer to home, such as • Katherine Drexel • Henriette de Lille

  8. 117 Years of more specific Catholic Social Teaching • 1891: Rerum Novarum • 2008?

  9. 110+ years of Catholic Social Thought • 1891 Rerum Novarum (Leo XIII)-Workers • 1931 Quadragesimo Anno (Pius XI)-Subsidiarity • 1961 Mater et Magistra (John XXIII)-Socialization • 1963 Pacem in Terris (John XXIII)-Rights • 1965 CHURCH/MODERN WORLD (Vat II) -Responsibility in this world • 1967 Populorum Progressio (Paul VI)-Development • 1971 Octogesima Adveniens (Paul VI)-Political Action

  10. 110+ years of Catholic Social Thought • 1971 JUSTICE IN THE WORLD (Synod II) -Justice and Love • 1975 Evangelii Nuntiandi (Paul VI)-Liberation • 1981 Laborem Exercens (John Paul II)-Work • 1983 CHALLENGE OF PEACE (US)-Arms • 1986 ECONOMIC JUSTICE (US)-Pref Option • 1987 Sollicitudo Rei Socialis (John Paul II) -Solidarity • 1991 Centesimus Annus (John Paul II)-Market

  11. What’s missing?What more is needed? • A Call to Action • Personal Responsibility • Effective Action

  12. Why so ineffective? • We have socially dormant consciences • A Big Gap between • Articulated Christianity -- What we say • Lived Christianity -- What we do

  13. Social Paralysis • We imagine this means challenging changes in our lives • We think: “I can’t do that.” • We don’t feel free enough

  14. The Dormant Social Conscience, based on: • Ignorance • Inadequacy • Apathy

  15. Ignorance, rooted in • Dualistic Mentality: • Discontinuities: • This world / Other world • Piety / Practice

  16. Ignorance, rooted in • Individualism • Solely one on one relationships • Charity, but not justice

  17. Dualism + Separatism + Individualism = Inadequacy & Hopelessness & Apathy

  18. Creating a Socially Sensitive Conscience: • Against Apathy  Feeling Right • Against Ignorance  Thinking Right • Against Inadequacy  Acting Right

  19. Feeling Right • Sensitivity to other’s hurt • We need passion, not just cerebral analysis • Passion > Compassion

  20. Feeling Right • Increasing challenge in modern, media-driven world • Mediated “news” chips away at our moral horror

  21. Feeling Right • The feeling is vanishing from our culture • Don’t want to get involved • Not in my back yard

  22. How to “Feel Right” • Experience injustice, see it • Beginning of Christian social wisdom, compassion  passion

  23. What are some of your feelings about your recent post-Katrina New Orleans experience?

  24. Here-and-Now Wheel Draw the circle as shown. Then write in the four main feelings you identify in yourself right here-and-now. Then, outside the circle, write down the source of those feelings. Why? Feeling Why? Feeling Feeling Feeling Why? Why? Once you have identified your feelings and their sources you can then bringthis to prayer or talk it over with someone.

  25. What are some of the feelings surfaced in your groups?

  26. What are some of the sources of these feelings surfaced in your groups?

  27. Creating a Socially Sensitive Conscience: • Against Apathy  Feeling Right • Against Ignorance  Thinking Right • Against Inadequacy  Acting Right

  28. Thinking Right • Correcting separatism and individualism • Liberation Theology can help • Liberation already but not yet complete

  29. Thinking Right1 about Christ • Jesus Christ: our Supreme Liberator (Paul VI) • Freedom from sin and death • Liberation into the fullness of humanity

  30. Thinking Right2about moral evil • Selfish bondage to personal sin • But also its effects • Institutions which oppress, alienate

  31. Thinking Right3 about freedom • Christian Freedom from selfish bondage to personal sin • But also freedom from the structures, institutional patterns which oppress, alienate • Freedom from AND freedom for.

  32. Thinking Right4 about the Church, a sign of Liberation today • Church’s role in liberating from enslavement, • Personal • Institutional

  33. Thinking Right5 theologically • About social sin • About Christ the liberator • About social liberation • About the church

  34. Thinking Right: correcting exaggerated Individualism • Beyond any individual’s “fault,’ social sources of enslavement: • Structural • Institutional

  35. Thinking right about two types of enslaving or liberating structures • Operational = Concrete patterns of behavior • Ideological = Value systems behind, underneath, guiding the operation

  36. Thinking Right about Operational Structures • Political • Economic • Social • Familial • Religious

  37. What institutions influenced the human disaster Katrina? How? • Neighborhoods? • Families? • Schools? • Health care? • Politics? • Government • The Economy? • Churches?

  38. Thinking Right about Ideological Structures • Inhuman value systems, “isms” for example: • Materialism: things > persons • Totalitarianism: power > participation • Authoritarianism: control > service

  39. Other values become subordinate • Human life, dignity, rights? • Family and Community? • Dignity of work, rights of workers? • Option for the poor? • Care for God’s creation • Solidarity and Common Good?

  40. Creating a Socially Sensitive Conscience: • Against Apathy  Feeling Right • Against Ignorance  Thinking Right • Against Inadequacy  Acting Right

  41. Acting Right • Social responsibility involves getting to the sources of injustice, influencing institutions such as : • Government • Community • Non Governmental Organizations • Business • Policy decision makers

  42. Power important for acting right • Personal Power • Collective Power • Political Power • Intermediate Organizational power

  43. No neat formulas • Christianity doesn’t tell us what to do in the face of structural injustice, experience does. • Need Corporate effort.

  44. Qualities • Participatory • Willingness to enter a process • Listening, experimental approach • Patience

  45. Changing structures: • Changing minds • Changing hearts • Changing beliefs and values • Takes time • Takes collaboration • Takes patience, endurance

  46. No surer way for enslaving structures to thrive than for good people to make only short term efforts

  47. People who hope against hope • Christ urging us to • Feel right • Think right • Act right • To be socially responsible.

  48. People who hope against hope • Patterned on the life / death of Jesus • It is Christ urging the coming of his kingdom,

  49. We can now ask ourselves? • Do I have a dormant social conscience, or am I becoming more socially awake? • What can I/we do to • Feel right? • Think right? • Act right?

  50. EXPERIENCE • What are my FEELINGS about the experience of the poor? (Anger? Apathy? Guilt? Compassion? Hope? Boredom? Resistance? etc.) Are there any specific social issues behind people’s troubles which may trigger these feelings?

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