LINKING HUMAN RIGHTS to CATHOLIC SOCIAL TEACHING Donal Dorr

TWO APPROACHES to MORALITY: 1. The First Approach: Focused on what is GOOD Goes back to Aristotle Emphasis on the Common Good, Solidarity, Concern for the Poor Natural Law – prior to human laws This is the basis of the older tradition of Catholic Social Teaching

HOSTILE: ‘What about the Rights of God!’ Vatican II: Scriptural Basis Paul VI: To the U.N. (1965) Populorum Progressio (1967) John Paul II: Rights of Oppressed Workers; Cultural and Economic Rights of Indigenous Peoples RADICAL CHANGE: John XXIII 1963 Pacem in Terris (Peace encyclical) BRINGING HUMAN RIGHTS INTO CATHOLIC SOCIAL TEACHING

2. Declaration on Religious Freedom of Vatican II in 1965 Freedom of Conscience replaces ‘Error Has No Rights’ 3. Synod 1971: Rights in the Church freedom of expression; right to be heard; a legitimate diversity; judicial procedure – know the accusers, and proper defense Major Developments: 1. Emphasis in CST on Right to Participate in Decision-Making. This allows one to Demand that Other Rights be Respected

5. Synod 1971: Right of Poor Countries to a Fair Share of Limited Resources; Protest Against Environmental Exploitation 4. Synod 1971: Rights of Women in Society and in the Church

Closely linked to this is the Theology and Spirituality of Liberation – empowering people to stand up for their own rights, solidly based in O.T. and life of Jesus – see Pagola, Jesus, A Historical Approximation 6. Medellín Puebla 1979 Preferential Option for the Poor, taken up by the popes Not just about our Lifestyle but also about major political, economic, and cultural changes.

Pope Francis: May 2013: “ I reaffirm here that the ‘trade in people’ is a vile activity, a disgrace to our societies that claim to be civilized!” Pope Francis, Easter 2013: “human trafficking is the most extensive form of slavery in this twenty-first century!” 7. TRAFFICKING: POPE JOHN PAUL II, 2002 “Trade in human persons a shocking offence … & a grave violation of fundamental human rights … an affront to fundamental values”

2. Second Approach to Morality Focused on HUMAN RIGHTS: Enlightenment, French and USA Revolutions National Laws & International Conventions to Specify and Defend/Enforce these Rights Universal Declaration of Human Rights (1948) Civil and Political Rights: e.g. right to life, to security, to freedom of conscience Economic, Social & Cultural Rights e.g. Work, Equal Pay, Disability …

Convention Against Torture Convention on the Rights of the Child Convention against Transnational Organized Crime e.g. Trafficking Two Covenants to put Universal Declaration into law

Focus on MY Rights: Individualism versus the Common Good What Basis? Which are Genuine? How Reconcile Rights which Clash? WEAKNESS OF HUMAN RIGHTS APPROACH

Part of a Family, Local Community, Human Community, Community of Nature - Animals, Forests, Cosmos Link Rights to Common Good and Care for Natural Environment Liberation theology Raised Our Awareness of Structural Injustice Catholic Corrective: SOLIDARITY and emphasis on empowerment of the poor – struggle for their own rights, not just doing things for them

Not Organs in Isolation The People Who Have the Organs, the Human Community, the Community of Nature Not ‘Book of Rules’ of Particular Objects but Holistic - See the System as a Whole ‘NATURAL LAW’ NEEDS CORRECTION ‘Grammar of Nature’: Evolution

Human Rights Approach: Outrage about Torture, Abuses, Discrimination Natural law / Common Good Approach: Negotiate Clash of Claimed Rights Respect for Animals and Nature Rather than ‘Animal Rights’ When Corrected, Both Approaches Converge

The Ecological Dimension is Vital: Defend Rights of Inhabitants of Islands and Forests – sacrificed to Greed of a Few, Insensitivity of Us Nourish Ourselves by Awe before the Mystery of Creation and Evolution and by Insight into ‘The New Story’ CONCLUSION: Key Words: Respect for Human Dignity, Solidarity, Concern for Common Good, Participate in Decision-Making, Empowerment We will be Inspired by the Holy Spirit to Cry Out with Jesus in Wonder and Gratitude to the Creator