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Social Teaching of the Catholic Church

Social Teaching of the Catholic Church. Roots and Principles

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Social Teaching of the Catholic Church

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  1. Social Teaching of the Catholic Church Roots and Principles Each person finds his good by adherence to God's plan for him, in order to realize it fully: in this plan, he finds his truth, and through adherence to this truth he becomes free (cf. Jn 8:32). To defend the truth, to articulate it with humility and conviction, and to bear witness to it in life are therefore exacting and indispensable forms of charity. Charity, in fact, “rejoices in the truth” (1 Cor 13:6). (Benedict XVI, Charity in Truth, 2009) Everything has its origin in God's love, everything is shaped by it, everything is directed towards it. (Benedict XVI, God is Love, 2006) Solidarity “is not a feeling of vague compassion or shallow distress at the misfortunes of so many people, both near and far. On the contrary, it is a firm and persevering determination to commit oneself to the common good; that is to say to the good of all and of each individual, because we are all really responsible for all. “ (John Paul II, The Social Concern of the Church, 38, 1987)

  2. The Parable of the “Good Samaritan” Through the moral and social lens: What precisely was “not good” about the actions of the first two men? What does Christ seem to approve in the actions of the Samaritan? What social influences come to bear on the decisions of each of the men who encounter the man who has been attacked? What responsibility does each of the travelers bear for his decision? What is Jesus saying about the nature of the call to be a neighbor in this passage?

  3. Battling a Hellish Anthropology:C.S. Lewis’s Screwtape to Wormwood • “The whole philosophy of Hell rests on recognition of the axiom that one thing is not another thing, and, especially, that one self is not another self. My good is my good and your good is yours. What one gains another loses. Even an inanimate object is what it is by excluding all other object from the space it occupies; if it expands, it does so by thrusting other objects aside or by absorbing them. A self does the same. With beasts the absorption takes the form of eating; for us, it means the sucking of will and freedom out of a weaker self into a stronger. ‘To be’ means ‘to be in competition.’” C.S. Lewis, The Screwtape Letters

  4. Scriptural and Theological Roots of CST • Creation/Genesis • Ex nihilo—creation out of nothing, all is from God, all is gift • Man is Imago Dei • The Fall—Sin gravely wounds the “Four Shaloms” (harmonies) • Man and God • Man and Woman (first society) • Man and Creation • Body and Spirit • People of Israel • Covenant (“marital”) bond through Abraham • Sense of “Corporate Personality” • Care of neighbor, widow, orphan, stranger, traveler

  5. Scriptural and Theological Roots of CST: New Testament • Christ universalizes the “family of God” • God is “Our Father” • Gentiles also included • Dignity of the individual human person • Letter and Spirit of the Law: Beatitudes

  6. Church’s Social Teaching? DEFINITION of CST: Caritas in veritate in re sociali: the proclamation of the truth of Christ's love in society. (Benedict XVI, Charity in Truth, no. 5)

  7. List of Principles of CST • Life and Dignity of the Human Person • Marriage, Family, Community and Participation • The Common Good; Rights and Duties • The Universal Destination of Goods • The Dignity of Work and Rights of Workers • Solidarity • Subsidiarity

  8. Principles of CST • Life and Dignity of the Human Person • Foundation of all CST • Basis of all “rights” and “duties” of personal and social nature • Necessitates protection of most vulnerable—especially at beginning and end of life • Persons over things

  9. Principles of CST • Marriage, Family, Community and Participation • Family is the “fundamental cell” of society • Marriage is the key to strong families • Marriage and family are at the service of their communities and… • Catholics have a duty to participate in society “in a manner corresponding to his vocation and according to the degree of influence he wields in the polis.” (B16, CV, 7)

  10. Principles of CST • The Common Good; Rights and Duties • We are to seek the good of all in society • Because of his intrinsic dignity, the human person has certain de facto rights, given from God and calling on a just response from others • Each person also has duties flowing from his freedom, toward God and others • Rights are not licenses to act unjustly

  11. Principles of CST • Universal Destination of Goods (CCC, 2402) • God’s creation is for all • Private Property is a proper right, derived from human dignity • Private property a means to greater good, not an end in itself • Fundamental Option for the Poor and Vulnerable • The Poor and Vulnerable have special priority • “unbridled capitalism” is rejected • Profit is a means, not an end • Duty to Protect God’s Creation

  12. Principles of CST • Dignity of Work and Rights of Workers • Work is for man, not man for work • Part of man’s participation in ongoing creation of God—a duty from Genesis • Rights must be respected: • Right to earn a decent wage • To organize (unions) • To own property • To productive work • To economic initiative

  13. Principles of CST • Solidarity • All human persons are made in image of God • Therefore, “All are responsible for all.” (JPII) • The Golden Rule, My Brother’s Keeper • In today’s world, not only familial and proximate requirements but global implications for justice and charity

  14. Principles of CST • Subsidiarity • Smaller “groups” (families, fraternal orgs, parishes, etc.) have a duty to responsibly govern themselves, therefore… • They are to be respected by larger authorities, and • Not “absorbed” into larger • Assisted to reach their potential by the larger group • “Forms of collectivism” such as communism and socialism are not optional for Catholics (CCC, 2425)

  15. Other Key Terminology • Justice—def. Giving God and others their due • Retributive Justice: penalty for crime • Restorative Justice: bringing back to wholeness • Commutative Justice: contracts, exchange of goods • Distributive Justice: proper allocation of things • Social Justice: assuring proper order in society • Charity (Love)—def. 1. “love received and given—it is “grace.” Its source is (the love of the Trinity). B16, CV, No. 5 2. The reasoned willing of the good for the other. (Aquinas) • Development—def. Persons and societies becoming all that they can be

  16. Other Key Terminology • Social sin—Def. Violations of God’s divine law in which we actively or passively participate through our societies • Structures of sin—Def. The “fruit of many sins” can be “structures of sin” which become somehow institutionalized and encourage more personal sin

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