Catholic Social Teaching Introduction Part 1 – Reading the Signs of the Times

Continuous school improvement Continuous school improvement is the process which brings into line the mission, values and vision of the school. It is a process of gathering data, reflecting on that data and developing concrete actions for improvement. CESA has developed the Continuous Improvement Framework for Catholic Schools (published 2014) to assist schools with their continuous school improvement process. It sets a number of key domains and one such domain is Catholic identity. This domain addresses the effectiveness of our Catholic school in expressing and witnessing our Catholic identity by bringing faith, life and culture together into a coherent synthesis. We do this through strong partnerships with the wider church community, provision of high-quality religious education and ensuring that our Catholic vision and mission permeates the life of the school.1

Catholic identity The domain of Catholic identity covers five elements: Religious education Prayer and liturgy Faith formation Catholic social teaching Theological action It is beyond the scope of this resource to cover all five elements. Rather, it draws on Catholic identity, in particular the importance of Catholic social teaching and theological action.

Catholic social teaching The Church has always been concerned with the situation being faced by people in their daily lives. Consider the following: After Cain had murdered his brother Abel, God asked him where his brother was. Cain answered, “I do not know; am I my brother's keeper?”  Cain's words have come to symbolise people's unwillingness to accept responsibility for the welfare of others. Catholic social teaching asserts that we do have this responsibility. “Behold your brother, naked and crying. And there you stand, trying to decide which carpet to buy.” St Gregory of Nyssa (335 –395). “If we don’t take the time to sit down on a wooden bench and peer into the eyes of our neighbour and listen attentively to the cry of the poor, what can we offer our neighbour? How will we ever learn to love?”  St Catherine of Siena (1347-1380). “Never see a need without doing something about it” St Mary of the Cross MacKillop (1871).

Catholic social teaching The Church's concern for social issues has always existed however, Catholic social teaching today had it beginnings in 1891. In response to the industrial revolution and the negative effects on workers and the working class, Pope Leo XIII wrote what was to be the first of many social encyclicals (letters). This letter, like all papal letters, was written in Latin and was titled Rerum Novarum2 (Rights and Duties of Capital and Labour). Subsequent encyclicals have usually been issued on an anniversary of the first social encyclical and in response to new social situations facing society and the world. For example, Rerum Novarum did not address climate change as it was not seen to be an issue at the time however, more recent encyclicals have addressed this issue as part of reading the “signs of the times”. Catholic social teaching, like everything else Christian, begins with the person and message of Jesus. Jesus offered no specific economic message, instead he proclaimed the advent of the kingdom of God.3 However, “the promotion of justice through efforts to bring about openness of mind and will to the demands of the common good is something which concerns the Church deeply”. 4

Reading the Signs of the Times In the Gospel according to Luke we read about the Signs of the Times5 [Jesus] said to the crowds: “When you see [a] cloud rising in the west you say immediately that it is going to rain - and so it does; and when you notice that the wind is blowing from the south you say that it is going to be hot - and so it is. You hypocrites! You know how to interpret the appearance of the earth and the sky; why do you not know how to interpret the present time?” This gospel passage was taken up by the Church in Catholic social teaching as a challenge to us to look at what was happening around us and to discern what is happening to people within our communities and beyond; to understand and know how people are feeling and what they are saying; to ask why is this happening and how might we respond?

Catholic social teaching: Theological action In Mater et Magistra6 (Mother and Teacher) Pope John XXIII outlined the See, Judge, Act method as a way of reading and responding to the signs of the times: There are three stages which should normally be followed in the reduction of social principles into practice. First, one reviews the concrete situation; secondly, one forms a judgement on it in the light of these same principles; thirdly, one decides what the circumstances can and should be done to implement these principles. These are the three stages that are usually expressed in the three terms: See, Judge Act. Pope Francis endorsed this method using it in his first social encyclical. “Normally in the modern epoch, Popes have included in encyclicals doctrinal themes. But 'Laudato si' [On Care for Our Common Home] is not a doctrinal text -- it is rather a pastoral letter based on the classical Latin American method: See, Judge, Act.” 7 As a method, it challenges us to look at our lives, considering scripture and then take action. The challenge for the school is to take “action in response to what has been discerned.”8 In this way, it is a tool for doing theology. The Catholic identity of the board and the school is strengthened by consistently reflecting theologically and taking theology action together.9

The Signs of the Times in your community According to the school board manual: “Any role of leadership in the Church demands a capacity to discern the signs of the times as they present themselves in the life of the community.” (p6) We can use the Catholic social teaching method of See, Judge, Act to consider the ‘signs of the times’ in our community. You will see this method used in a variety of forms through out the remainder of these resources on Catholic social teaching. The following slide might serve as an introduction to theological action using the See, Judge, Act process.

Using the method – doing theology See (not just with our eyes, what are we hearing, feeling, experiencing?) What do consider the key personal and social issues confronting the families in our community? E.g. What are the financial constraints on them? What is the make up of the various family types within our community? How might they be or not be coping? Judge (This is not interpreted as being judgmental but rather discerning and analytical.) What research and data might inform the discernment of issues under discussion?8 What are the causes of these situations facing our community? What do we think about this? What does the Church/our faith/the gospel/our value system say about this? Reread the gospel on the Sign of the Times. Does this help in our reflection? Act As a School Board have we considered the issues confronting our families when we determine polices and procedures? Where might we make improvement or adjustments to how we operate to better serve the community?

References Australian Catholic Social Justice Council, Brief Introduction to Catholic Social Teaching, http://www.socialjustice.catholic.org.au/social-teaching O’Brien and Shannon (editors) Catholic Social Thought - The Documentary Heritage, Orbis Books NY 2010 Pope Benedict XVI Mulgrave [On Christian Love] 2005 CESA Manual for School Board Members, p.6 See “Doing Theology” chapter in Sharkey, Paul, An educators Guide to Catholic Identity (Vaughan Publishing, Mulgrave 2015) and CESA’s Religious Leadership and the Catholic Identity of Schools Statement (2015).