Catholic social teaching is all about bringing the love of Jesus Christ to a fractured world. In the March 14, 2010 issue of Our Sunday Visitor, (pp. 10-11), Fr. William J. Byron, S.J., lists social principles that are an essential part of Catholic and other Christian denominations as well.
1."The principle of human dignity" (O.S.V., p. 10)
This is the foundational principle of Catholic social teaching. All of the various catechisms from the current Catechism of the Catholic Church, (l994 edition, p. 425) to the Baltimore Catechism (19th century edition), from which I was taught as a child attribute human dignity to the fact that the human person was created in the image and likeness of God, has a spiritual and immortal soul, is the only creature on earth that God has willed for his own sake, redeemed by Jesus Christ, and destined for heaven.
2."The principle of respect for human life" (O.S.V., p. 11)
This principle derives from principle number one and adds the clarification that every person, every human life, from conception to natural death is precious and therefore worthy of protection and respect.
Our current culture is deeply divided over the first two principles in terms of their content, and whether human life is worth more, equal, or even less than other forms of life. Pro life vs. Pro choice, Stewardship of Creation, i.e. protection of our environment, how we use our talents, care for personal health, use of personal property vs. radical environmentalism which gives equal rights to life to bears, crocodiles, poisonous snakes and humans, even when some of these creatures are radically affecting the quality of life and safety of groups of human persons.
3."The principle of solidarity" (O.S.V., p. 10)
This teaching can be summed up in "Love your neighbor (interpreted as every person) in a world made interdependent by our global trading and communications networks. The common good now relates to the well being of every human person in the world. It's an ideal we are far from attaining but are being forced to address in a highly mobile and constantly changing technological and moral principled world.
4."The principle of preferential protection for the poor and vulnerable" (O.S.V., p. 10)
The common good of each country's society as well as the global society as a whole requires that we must address the issue of the rich and powerful by their wealth and power actually having and holding onto preferential treatment at the expense of the poor and powerless. This is a direct affront to the principle of the dignity and respect we must have for every human life.
Many hot and divisive political and social issues like private vs. governmental sponsored health care for all, our tax system based on level of income, opportunity for equal educational access for all are among these issues. There are no easy or universally agreed upon practices which would make this principle a reality at least in the U.S.A. of 2011. So, dissatisfaction leading to a deeply divided society, people by various groups openly hostile to each other prevail.
A conversion of heart that recognizes the value of the dignity of every human person, and the willingness to compromise are essential if our conversion journey is to really include the common good.
Bibliography
1. Catechism of the Catholic Church, English Translation for U.S.A., Liguori Publications, Mo. 1994, Article 3, p. 425.
2. "The Ten Commandments of Catholic Social Teaching", Our Sunday Visitor Huntington, Indiana, March 14, 2010, pp. 10-11.
Dr. Bernard J.Fleury's lifelong interest in History from the perspective of the people who lived it is evident in A Bee in His Bonnet, Print, Kindle E-Book, Audio Book, on website: http://www.greatgeneration.net. His firm belief in the synthesis of faith and reason (theology and science) as two aspects of a single reality-The Light - God, is clearly evident in his book Called into Life by the Light, Print, Kindle E-Book, Audio Book, on website: http://www.intolifebylight.com.
Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/?expert=Bernard_Fleury
