Key principles of Catholic social teaching!

Human Dignity

Belief in the inherent dignity of the human person is the foundation of all Catholic social teaching. Human life is sacred, and the dignity of the human person is the starting point for a moral vision for society.

The principle of human dignity is grounded in the idea that the person is made in the image of God. The person is the clearest reflection of God among us. We are required to honour the human person, to give priority to the person.

Community and the Common Good

In a culture driven by excessive individualism, our tradition proclaims that the person is not only scared but also social. Human dignity can only be realized and protected in the context of relationships with the wide society.

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. The obligation to “love you neighbour” has an individual dimension, but is also requires a broader social commitment. Everyone has a responsibility to contribute to the good of the whole society, to the common good.

Rights and Responsibilities

Human dignity can be protected and a healthy community can be achieved only if human rights are protected and responsibilities are met. Every person has a fundamental right to life and a right to those things required for human decency- starting with food, shelter and clothing, employment, heath care, and education.

Dignity of Work/Rights of Workers

The economy must serve people, not the other way around. All workers have a right to productive work, to decent and fair wages, and to safe working conditions. They also have a fundamental right to organize and join unions.

People have a right to economic initiative and private property, but these rights have limits. No one is allowed to amass excessive wealth when others lack the basic necessities of life.

Stewardship of Creations

Catholic tradition insists that we show our respect for the creator by our stewardship of creation. The goods of the earth are gifts from god, intended for the benefit of all.

We humans are not the ultimate owners of these goods, but rather, the temporary stewards. We are entrusted with the responsibility of caring for these gifts and preserving them for future generations.

Global Solidarity

Catholic social teaching proclaims that we are our brothers’ and sisters’ keepers, wherever they live. We are one human family, whatever our national, racial, ethnic, economic, and ideological differences. Solidarity means that “loving our neighbour” has global dimensions in an interdependent world.

John Paul 2 has called solidarity a virtue. It is virtue, he says, by which we demonstrate “a firm and persevering determination to commit oneself to the common good... because we are all really responsible for all.  

Constructive Role for Government

Because we are social beings, the state is natural to the person. Therefore, the state has a positive moral function. It is an instrument to promote human dignity, protect human rights, and build the common good.

One of the key functions of government is to assist citizens in fulfilling their responsibilities to others in society. Since, in a large and complex society these responsibilities cannot adequately be carried out on a one-to-one basis, citizens need to help of government in fulfilling this responsibility and promoting the common good.   

Promotion of Peace

Pope John Paul 2 “peace is no just the absence of war. It involves mutual respect and confidence between peoples and nations. It involves collaboration and binding agreements. “

Options for the Poor and the Vulnerable

A basic moral test of society is how it treats its most vulnerable members. The poor have the most urgent moral claim on the conscience of the nation. The obligation to evaluate social and economic activity from the view point of the poor and the powerless arises from the radical command to love one’s neighbour as one’s self.

The option for the poor is an essential part of society’s effort to achieve the common good. A healthy community can be achieved only if its members give special attention to those with special needs, to those who are poor and on the margins of society.

Participation

All people have a right to participate in the economic, political, and cultural life of society. It is a fundamental demand of justice and a requirement for human dignity that all people be assured a minimum level of participation in the community.

It is wrong for a person or a group to be excluded unfairly or to be unable to participate in society. In the words of the U.S. bishops, “The ultimate in justice is for a person or group to be treated actively or abandoned passively as if they were non-members of the human race. To treat people this way is effectively to say they simply do not count as human beings”
       List the 5 issues social justice aims to cover?

Questions

1.

·         Poverty

·         Child Labour

·         Refugees

·         Homelessness

·         Hunger

2.       In your own words explain what is meant by human dignity?

Human dignity is the things that people are proud of that everyone including your self are valuable.  Things that show human dignity is self respect and of Corse dignity

3.       What is meant by a moral vision for society?

A moral vision is a way of making a society behaves in a appropriate why. So that life is not threatened

4.       Which of the 5 social justice issues relates to human dignity?

All of them relate to human dignity

 

5.       Give an example of a community that you are part of?

I am a part of the stellamaris community.

6.       How is this community both sacred and social

We are scared because we are in the catholic faith.  We up hold the faith, and live a moral life.

What is the major test of a moral society?

A moral test of the society is how they treat their most vulnerable members of society such as homeless people.

7.       In what ways does our community look after the poor?

We help with Op-shops, world vision, Red Cross Medicare, soup kitchens, meals on wheels and donation

8.  What are every human’s fundamental rights?Every person has a fundamental right to life and a right to those things required for human decency- starting with food, shelter and clothing, employment, heath care, and education.

9.       What is the role of the Government in maintaining Human rights

It is an instrument to promote human dignity, protect human rights, and build on common good.

10.       Who is responsible for assisting the government to achieve its goals

Everyone is responsible most of us can vote for the goals we want to achieve

Social Injustice Definition

Social Injustice is a concept of the claimed unfairness or injustice of a society in its divisions of  burdens and other incidental inequalities.

Social Injustice

.

1. The Name of Issue

-Education

2. A Summary Background of the Issue

      -All people, in Jomtien, Thailand, pledged to achieve universal primary education by 2000. But in 2000, 104 million school-age children were still not in school, 57 percent of them were girls and 94 percent were in developing countries - mostly in South Asia and Sub-Saharan Africa.

3. Details about the Issue

-Primary education should be free and available to everyone all over the world. It is important that everyone gets the rights to education so they can have options as individual for work. Some children do not get the education they need.

4.  Why the Situations Occur

-The issue is generally caused by a corrupt government, war or sometimes the area is isolated and has UN fertile dirt for crops and animals and overtime they become poor with no food and dirty water.

Lady Justice

Lady justice is often seen wearing a blindfold.
The Blindfold signifies everyone is equal before the law.
The Scales are weighing both sides, which means look at the evidence on both sides before you make your final choice.
 The Sword represents the power of the law.   

Issues on social Justice

Poverty   -the state of having little or no money and few or no material possessions. Poverty is a large problem for some parts of the world.        
Human rights  -The conditions and expectations to which every person, by virtue of his or her existence as a human being, is entitled

Racism - discriminatory or abusive behavior towards members of another race.

Education - Education is unfairly spread througout the world. Some people are not properly educated.
Child Welfare -Child protection is used to describe a set of usually government-run services designed to protect children and young people who are underage and encourage family stability
Healthcare Reform - Healthcare reform is a general rubric used for discussing major health policy creation or changes

Social Justice

A fair and proper administration of laws conforming to the natural law, that all persons irrespective of race, religion, ethnic origin, gender and possession are treated equally and without prejudice.