Catholic Social Justice: An Overview

... never tire of working for a more just world, marked by greater solidarity! No one can remain insensitive to the inequalities that persist in the world! Everybody, according to his or her particular opportunities and responsibilities, should be able to make a personal contribution to putting an end to so many social injustices. The culture of selfishness and individualism that often prevails in our society is not what builds up and leads to a more habitable world: it is the culture of solidarity that does so, seeing others not as rivals or statistics, but brothers and sisters. Pope Francis – World Youth Day 2013

- The gospel proclaims that human beings are made in the image and likeness of God - Made in a divine image, we are endowed with a human soul with two great powers: 1.) Intellect 2.) Free Will

1.) Human Intellect Enables us to recognize and understand God’s command to do good and avoid evil

2.) Free will Enables us to choose good with the guidance of our conscience and to obey God’s law of love

What is Catholic Social Justice Teaching? - The church doctrine (teaching) attempts to understand how societies work - It makes moral judgments about economic and social matters in light of revealed truth

Catholic Social Justice Flows primarily from the life and words of Jesus Christ Rooted in teachings of the Hebrew prophets

- Aspects of Catholic Social Justice Teaching 1.) It gives us principles for reflection 2.) It provides criteria for judgment 3.) It gives guidelines for action

How We View the Human Person -Our view of how humans should act depends on how we see ourselves -If we see ourselves created in God’s image, then we know we are called to reflect all the qualities of the Creator

-Foundation of Catholic Social Teaching is that each of us is made in God’s image: Each human being has tremendous dignity Each human being is a child of God We are special in God’s eyes We have rights and responsibilities We have a spiritual nature We possess freedom; we must use it responsibly We are social beings We image God best when we love one another God made us co-creators with him

Our Rights as Humans a claim we can make on other people and on society so we can live a full, human life. Right