Content: Introduction to Social Teachings of the Church

A Quick Look on the Social Teachings of the Church

Definition

Catholic Social Teaching is a branch of moral theology addressing contemporary issues within the social
structures of society: political, economic, and cultural. It proposes a set of principles on which to form one's
conscience on in order to evaluate the framework of society and as the criteria for prudential judgment in
decision making.

CST contains a set of principles on which to form our conscience in order to evaluate the framework of society
and provide criteria for prudential judgment and direction for current policy- making and action. (Source:
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5375653/)

The Social Teachings of the Church refers to the entirety of the ecclesiastical magisterium's teaching to help
realize the salvation promised by Christ by applying the truths of the Christian moral principles to the social
realm.

Essential Foundation

According to Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church,

The Church's social doctrine finds its essential foundation in biblical revelation and in the tradition of the
Church. From this source, which comes from above, it draws inspiration and light to understand, judge and
guide human experience and history. Before anything else and above everything else is God's plan for the
created world and, in particular, for the life and destiny of men and women, called to Trinitarian communion.
Faith, which receives the divine word and puts it into practice, effectively interacts with reason. The
understanding of faith, especially faith leading to practical action, is structured by reason and makes use of
every contribution that reason has to offer. Social doctrine too, insofar as it is knowledge applied to the
circumstantial and historical aspects of praxis, brings “fides et ratio” [105] together and is an eloquent
expression of that rich relationship.

https://www.vatican.va/roman_curia/pontifical_councils/justpeace/documents/
rc_pc_justpeace_doc_20060526_compendio-dott-soc_en.html
Principles of Reflection

Principles - The Social Teachings of the Church guides us in rendering the signs of the times
Criteria for Judgment – It help us evaluate, judge and discern our moral demands.
Norms for Action – It orients our moral response.
Two Basic Principles

Preferential Option of the Poor

Respect of Human Dignity
For whom is the Social Doctrine intended?

#83 The first recipient of the Church’s social doctrine is the Church community in its entire membership ….

WHY? It is because everyone has social responsibilities that must be fulfilled.

HOW? The conscience is called by this social teaching to recognize and fulfill the obligations of justice and
charity in society that inspires appropriate responses according to the vocation and ministry of each Christian.
The Church particularly underscores the special role of the laity in the implementation of the social teaching in
the social structures in which the laity participates most immediately.

Principles of the Social Teachings of the Church

The Principles of Catholic Social Teaching

Taken from Catholic Charities USA

As Catholic Charities agencies, we serve all who come to our doors for aid not because they’re Catholic, but
because we are. Our mission is rooted in the seven principles of Catholic social teaching listed below.

LIFE AND DIGNITY OF THE HUMAN PERSON

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. This belief is the foundation of all the principles of our social teaching.
In our society, human life is under direct attack from abortion and euthanasia. The value of human life is being
threatened by cloning, embryonic stem cell research, and the use of the death penalty.

Catholic teaching also calls on us to work to avoid war. Nations must protect the right to life by finding
increasingly effective ways to prevent conflicts and resolve them by peaceful means. 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.

CALL TO FAMILY, COMMUNITY, AND PARTICIPATION

The person is not only sacred but also 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. Marriage and
the family are the central social institutions that must be supported and strengthened, not undermined.

We believe people have a right and a duty to participate in society, seeking together the common good and
well-being of all, especially the poor and vulnerable.

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.
OPTION FOR THE POOR AND VULNERABLE
A basic moral test is how our most vulnerable members are faring. In a society marred by deepening divisions
between rich and poor, our tradition recalls the story of the Last Judgment (Mt 25:31-46) and instructs us to put
the needs of the poor and vulnerable first.

THE DIGNITY OF WORK AND THE RIGHTS OF WORKERS

The economy must serve 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 the organization and
joining of unions, to private property, and to economic initiative.

SOLIDARITY
We are one human family whatever our national, racial, ethnic, economic, and ideological differences. We are
our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers, wherever they may be. Loving our neighbor has global dimensions in a
shrinking world.

At the core of the virtue of solidarity is the pursuit of justice and peace. Pope Paul VI taught that “if you want
peace, work for justice.” The Gospel calls us to be peacemakers. Our love for all our sisters and brothers
demands that we promote peace in a world surrounded by violence and conflict.

CARE FOR GOD’S CREATION

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 has fundamental moral and ethical
dimensions that cannot be ignored.

Content: Option for the Poor and the Vulnerable

Matthew 25:35-40

35 For I was hungry and you gave me food, I was thirsty and you gave me drink, a stranger and you welcomed
me, 36 naked and you clothed me, ill and you cared for me, in prison and you visited me.’ 37 Then the
righteous[a Links to an external site.] will answer him and say, ‘Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed
you, or thirsty and give you drink? 38 When did we see you a stranger and welcome you, or naked and clothe
you? 39 When did we see you ill or in prison, and visit you?’ 40 And the king will say to them in reply, ‘Amen, I
say to you, whatever you did for one of these least brothers of mine, you did for me.’

(New American Bible Revised)

Love of preference for the poor. “Fortunate are you who are poor, the kingdom of God is yours” (Luke 6:20) is
one of the foundational biblical passages with regards to this teaching. At the time of Jesus, the poor were
those who were deprived of everything including the respect due to them as human beings with inherent
dignity. They were despised and looked down as sinful people. To them, Jesus announced the good news of
God’s kingdom and to the rich, he said: “But alas for you who have wealth, for you have been comforted now.
Alas for you who are full, for you will go hungry” (Luke 6:24-26). The rich are the unfortunate ones since their
attachment to their wealth makes it difficult for them to enter God’s kingdom where everything will be shared.
Money is important but it should not be made as an idol or god.

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At the heart of social justice is love of preference for the poor that calls human beings, especially those who
claim to be Christians, to reach out to the need and side with them. The Church is not short of exemplars in
terms of showing love for the poor and the needy. Charity is an indispensable part of the life of the saints like
St. Vincent de Paul, the very famous Mother Teresa of Calcutta, and our own St. Arnold Janssen and St.
Joseph Freinademetz. St. Arnold Janssen did not just live a life in solidarity with the poor but he did a lot of
charity work for them and one of those is the giving of meals to beggars who would come to their seminary. St.
Joseph Freindametz, as well, was known for reaching out to the victims of typhus outbreak during his time. His
frequent visits to communities afflicted with typhus made him catch the same sickness that eventually led to his
death on January 28, 1908.

Reaching out to the least of society is a requirement for salvation. It is true that salvation is God’s grace but it
requires the cooperation of human beings. This is made clear by Jesus himself in his teaching about the last
judgment. In the Gospel according to Matthew (25: 44ff), He emphasized the necessity to engage in corporal
works of mercy to be able to enter God’s kingdom. Eternal salvation can only be attained in reaching out to the
poor.

Social justice is the promotion of fairness. Though people are equal in dignity since they have the same origin
and destiny, that is God, they are different according to the circumstances where they find themselves. Due to
either nature or nurture, some have become “less fortunate”, so to speak. The economically deprived and the
differently abled are pushed to the sidelines of society. It is to these people who need special care that
preference is given. Christian social justice, after all, is favoring the poor. Jesus declared the poor as blessed
and defended them. As one of the materially poor during their times and having the poverty of spirit, Mary was
favored by God to bear His Son. To her, Angel Gabriel proclaimed: “Hail, thou that art highly favored.” Pushing
the matter further, it may be said that preferential option for the poor means to promote partiality in favor of the
poor. This is called “justifiable partiality” which “promotes inclusivism as it creates opportunities for the deprived
so that all parts will be able someday to participate fully in the whole.”

Favoring the poor is nothing but a clear indication of love. Pope Francis, in one of his homilies in his first visit to
the Philippines in 2015, describes the implications of love. On the one hand, love makes a person become like
a beggar. He or she needs to beg someone else’s love. On the other hand, it makes one’s pocket empty. The
former is the basic need of a person to be loved. The latter is a choice to take on the challenge of Jesus to the
rich young man who asked him the way to eternal life – sell everything you have and give the money to the
poor. If a situation calls a person to experience tribulations in life because his or her convenience and comfort
is at stake, one is not far-fetched from the challenge of Jesus – “take up your cross each day and follow me”
(Luke 9:23). Social responsibility demands a lot of discomforting moments. But Jesus assures a person’s
reward, “For if you choose to save your life, you will lose it, and if you lose your life for my sake, you will save
it” (Matthew 16:25). This teaching of Jesus is easier said than done. Without God’s grace, human effort
cannot apply it. This human limitation calls each Christian to call on the Holy Spirit for guidance and strength.

The Church as a sign of God’s kingdom is supposed to nurture the so-called Church of the Poor where people,
impelled by the poverty in their hearts, share with one another their spiritual and material resources. Bishop
Julio X. Labayen, OCD describes this Church as that which “is in solidarity with those who are materially poor,
and are victims of a social system that has injustice built into it” and as a church “that lives a heart-to-heart
relationship with the Father, in union with Jesus Christ, under the gracious influence and sway, of the
befriending Spirit of both the Father and the Son.” This description of the Church suggests that the love of the
Trinity among one another is the model of the love relationships that Christians should establish in their
communities.

(Source: Abellana, Mandawe, Dellera, et al. (2018). The Carolinian Missionary Education with a Mission
Worktext. Cebu City: USC Press.)

"The primary purpose of this special commitment to the poor is to enable them to become active participants in
the life of society. It is to enable all persons to share in and contribute to the common good. The "option for the
poor," therefore, is not an adversarial slogan that pits one group or class against another. Rather it states that
the deprivation and powerlessness of the poor wounds the whole community. The extent of their suffering is a
measure of how far we are from being a true community of persons. These wounds will be healed only by
greater solidarity with the poor and among the poor themselves." (United States Conference of Catholic
Bishops, Economic Justice for All, 88)
"Therefore everyone has the right to possess a sufficient amount of the earth's goods for themselves and their
family. This has been the opinion of the Fathers and Doctors of the church, who taught that people are bound
to come to the aid of the poor and to do so not merely out of their superfluous goods. Persons in extreme
necessity are entitled to take what they need from the riches of others." (https://www.usccb.org/beliefs-and-
teachings/what-we-believe/catholic-social-teaching/option-for-the-poor-and-vulnerable Links to an external
site.)

"The works of mercy are charitable actions by which we come to the aid of our neighbor in his spiritual and
bodily necessities. Instructing, advising, consoling, comforting are spiritual works of mercy, as are forgiving
and bearing wrongs patiently. the corporal works of mercy consist especially in feeding the hungry, sheltering
the homeless, clothing the naked, visiting the sick and imprisoned, and burying the dead. Among all these,
giving alms to the poor is one of the chief witnesses to fraternal charity: it is also a work of justice pleasing to
God" (Catechism of the Catholic Church # 2447).