THE SOCIAL

TEACHINGS OF THE

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COURSE TITLE: SOCIAL TEACHING OF THE CHURCH
COURSE INSTRUCTOR: FR. BARTHOLOMEW ANYANWU

1. THE MAIN CONCERN OF THE CATHOLIC SOCIAL

TEACHING/DOCTRINE

2. THE CHURCH’S MISSION AND SOCIAL DOCTRINE

I. Definition of some Important Terms in Church Language:

a) Doctrine
b) Dogmas
c) The Magisterium
d) “Encyclical"
II. The Meaning and Significance of the Church’s Social Teaching
III. Origin of the Church’s Social Teaching
• Pope Pius XI
• Pope John XXIII
• Pope Paul VI
• Pope John Paul II
• Pope Benedict XVI
• Non-Encyclical Statements & Stories of Pope Benedict XVI
• Pope Francis
IV. The foundation of the Church’s Social Teaching
V. The Sources of the Church’s Social Teaching
VI. The audience of the Church’s Social Teaching
VII. The Core Principles of Catholic Social Teaching

3. THE STATE
I. Concept of the State
II. State Authority
III. Duties of Citizens
IV. The Right of Resistance against State Authority

4. THE CHURCH
I. The Church’s Authority
• Mediator between God and Man
• Teacher of Divine Truth and Moral Law
• The Church, Servant in her Ministry
II. Duties of Believers
• Love and Reverence for the Church and her Ministers
• Obedience to the Church
• Material Sustenance for Priests and their Work
• Apostolic Cooperation
III. The CHURCH and the STATE

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 • Guidelines for the relation between Church and State
• Religious Tolerance

5. THE WORLD ECONOMIC SYSTEMS/PHILOSOPHIES AND THE

IMAGE OF THE HUMAN PERSON

5.1. CAPITALISM—HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF CAPITALISM

I. Feudal System and “Bartering”
II. The Trader Comes Forward
III. Money begins to Count
IV. The Industrial Revolution
V. Philosophy Behind “LIBERAL CAPITALISM”
VI. Key Words in Capitalism
VII. Who is a CAPITALIST?
VIII. Many Faces of Capitalism
• Collective Capitalism
• Colonialism/Imperialism
• Controlled Capitalism
IX Important Questions to Capitalism

5.2. MARXISM–HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF COMMUNISM

I. Marx and the Suffering Labourers
II. Marx asked questions
III. The condition for a successful revolution
IV. Marx foresaw his revolution in two stages.
V. SOCIALISM: The First Stage of the Revolution
VI. COMMUNISM: The Second Stage of the Revolution
• The final Communistic society
• God has no place in Marx’s final and perfect communist society.
• “Religion is the opium of the People”
VII. WHO IS A TRUE MARXIST?
VIII. MANY FACES OF MARXISM

5.3. CAPITALISM MIXED WITH SOCIALISM

I. What CAPITALISM Stands for
II. What SOCIALISM Stands for

5.4. THE CHURCH’S VIEW ON CAPITALISM AND MAXISM:

(TWO EXTREME THEORIES OPPOSED TO SOCIAL JUSTICE)
I. Capitalism
II. Marxism (Communism)

6. GLOBALIZATION
I. What is Globalization
II. The Church’s Stance on Globalization

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7. MODERNISM
I. What is Modernism?
II. Value Differences in the Modern World
III. Historical, Social & Cultural Highlights of the Modern Era

8. POSTMODERNISM
I. What is Postmodernism?
II. Characteristics of Postmodernism
III. Postmodern Culture and Human Dignity
• An Attack on Truth
• The Loss of Identity
• The Loss of Centrality
• The Rise of Meta-fiction
IV. Conclusion

9. SECULARISM
I. What is Secularism?
II. Types of Secularism
III. Secularism and Politics
IV. Secularism in the American (Cameroonian) Society
V. Secularism and Catholic Teaching

10. SOCIAL MEDIA

1. Introduction
2. What is Media Education?
3. What is Social Media?
3.1. Various Social Media
3.2. Brief Presentation of Some Prominent Examples of Social Media:
a) Facebook b) Twitter c) Wikipedia d) LinkedIn e) Reddit f) Pinterest
4. What Your Facebook Profile Photo Says About You (Gawker, 2013)
5. The Effects of Social Media on How We Speak and Write (Chopra, 2013)
6. What is netiquette?
7. The Stance of the Church on Social Media
a. The meaning of Social Communication
b. The Pontifical Council for Social Communications
c. Inter Mirifica – "The Means of Social Communication"
d. Effects and Aftermath of Inter Mirifica
e. Pope John Paul II and “The Rapid Development”
f. Pope Francis and the 50th Anniversary of Inter Mirifica
g. The Prophetic and providential nature of Inter Mirifica

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 CATHOLIC SOCIAL DOCTRINE/TEACHING

I. THE MAIN CONCERN OF THE CATHOLIC SOCIAL

TEACHING/DOCTRINE

Catholic social teaching is about at least two things–personal morality and social
morality or ethics.

Personal morality concerns how an individual acts with respect to moral norms, including
how he/she acts toward others. Some personal moral acts may have little or no social
impact. In other cases, they can have tremendous impact. For example, a teacher’s
decision not to come to class for a lesson has far reaching implications on the students
than a single student’s decision not to come for the same lesson.

Social ethics or social morality, on the other hand, is not primarily concerned with an
individual’s personal morality or ethical choices–although it is concerned with that
indirectly. Rather, it concerns the ordering of society as such, not merely one’s individual
moral actions, however great a social impact they may have. Social ethics tackles the
question, “How should society be structured to protect the dignity and rights of the
human person, to foster justice and to limit or eliminate injustice, to encourage and
promote the common good?” The answer involves not only individual moral choices; it
also involves the individual and everyone else in society.

Catholic Social Teaching/doctrine is concerned with both personal morality and social
ethics. It focuses primarily on social ethics–on what kind of society ought to exist. It goes
further to ask about the role of each individual in fostering a good and just society. It calls
people to consider how their own personal, moral choices either help or hinder the
realization of such a society. Catholic Social Teaching/doctrine helps individuals and
social groups to discern their responsibilities in fostering and realizing social harmony.

II. SOME IMPORTANT TERMS IN CHURCH LANGUAGE

• Doctrine is official church teaching. The word is often used to designate the entire
body of church teachings as in “Catholic doctrine.” Doctrines are derived from
scripture, from the faith life of the church communities, from traditional beliefs and
moral practices. Doctrine centers on truths revealed to and cherished by the followers
of Jesus Christ.
• Dogmas express truths revealed directly by God and, as infallible teachings, are more
authoritative than individual doctrinal statements. In the entire body of church
teachings, all dogmas are doctrines of faith declared by the church but not all
doctrines carry the authority of dogmas.
• The Magisterium: It is the Living, Teaching Office of the Church. The task of giving
an authentic interpretation on the Word of God, whether in its written form or in the
form of Tradition, has been entrusted to the Magisterium alone. The Magisterium is
not superior to the Word of God, but is its servant. It teaches only what has been
handed on to it.

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 • The word "Encyclical" refers to a letter that is sent by the Pope with the intent of
being circulated among the clergy, the Catholic faithful or other "men of good will"
outside the Catholic Church. The title of the encyclical is always taken from the first
words of the opening sentence. If the first words speak of “marriage”, then the
encyclical is about the Sacrament of marriage. If the first few words speak of love,
then the content of the encyclical would be about “love”. As a general rule, the
official version of the encyclical is always written in Latin.

Encyclicals are used primarily for teaching, sometimes to caution, and in a few cases
for condemnations. The Social Teaching of the Catholic Church is mainly
communicated through encyclicals.
• The first encyclical was released by Pope Benedict XIV on December 3, 1740. Since
then, the Popes have written nearly 300 encyclicals.

• An “Apostolic Exhortation” is a papal document that, as the name suggests,

exhorts people to implement a particular aspect of the Church’s life and teaching. Its
purpose is not to teach new doctrine, but to suggest how Church teachings and
practices can be profitably applied today. Some apostolic exhortations are devoted to
the pastoral challenges faced in particular parts of the world (Europe, Africa, Asia,
the Americas). Others are devoted to particular themes. Previous apostolic
exhortations include:

❖ Paul VI’s Evangelii Nuntiandi (on evangelization today)

❖ John Paul II’s Christifideles Laici (on the role of the laity)
❖ John Paul II’s Redemptoris Custos (on St. Joseph)
❖ Benedict XVI’s Sacramentum Caritatis (on the Eucharist)
❖ Benedict XVI’s Verbum Domini (on the Word of God)
❖ Pope Francis (2013) Evangelium Gaudium (The Joy of the Gospel)

III. MEANING AND SIGNIFICANCE OF THE CHURCH’S SOCIAL

DOCTRINE

The Catholic Church has always seen herself as having a teaching role in social issues,
because she strongly believes that the hopes and forces which are moving the world in its
very foundations are not foreign to the dynamism of the Gospel. In fact, the Church has
the right, indeed the duty, to proclaim justice on the social, national and international
levels, and to denounce instances of injustice, when the fundamental rights of people and
their very salvation demand it. What this means is that the work of justice is essential to
the Church and belongs to her innermost nature and mission. (As we shall soon see),
Popes Leo XII and Pius XI taught that the Church has the right and duty to deal
authoritatively with social and economic problems.

The Church cannot be indifferent or passive when confronted with the various
vicissitudes which plague modern man. Since the Church has her vision of the human
being and of history—a vision which is really Christ—she cannot remain indifferent

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towards conceptions of the human person, the family, work, the economy, society and
assistance which are at variance with the truth of the Gospel. Therefore, while faithfully
scrutinizing the signs of the times, she must stand visibly by the side of people and so
become: “the voice of the voiceless” Thus, in a sense, the challenge of totalitarian
ideologies and regimes all over the world propelled the Church to elaborate important
doctrines on the relationship between the individual and society.

The social doctrine of the Church is a constantly updated doctrinal corpus which the
Church draws from Sacred Scripture, Tradition and natural Law, adapting and applying
them to the social problem of our times. It is constantly updated because, as late Pope
John Paul II says, the Church “reads the events as they unfold in the course of history”.
The Pope further says that through the social doctrine the Church “seeks to lead people to
respond, with the aid also of rational reflection and of the human sciences, to their
vocation as responsible builders of society”. Thus, far from being a closed system, the
social Doctrine of the Church remains constantly open to the new questions which
continually arise.

In summary we can say that:

a) The social doctrine of the Church represents the efforts that the Catholic Church
has made (and continues to make) to resolve the grave social and economic problems
posed to humanity from the advent of the phenomenon of Industrial Revolution in the
19th Century. It is a milieu marked chiefly by capitalism as the predominant economic
system and by liberal democracy as the predominant economic system. To these
predominant systems the Church tries to provide guiding principles from the moral
viewpoint for the moral viewpoint through her social doctrine.

b) Following the path carefully mapped out by Pope Leo XIII, through her pastors
the Church has elaborated a corpus of general principles that inspire human cohabitation
according to God’s design. These principles are elaborated so that human cohabitation
can be realized in justice so as to overcome situations of injustice and oppression which
lead to tension and violence. Together with these general principles, the social doctrine
has suggested and continues to suggest norms for action and practical directives.

IV. ORIGIN OF THE CHURCH’S SOCIAL TEACHING

To look for the origin of the Church’s social doctrine one would have to go back to the
very beginning of Christianity itself. In some ways Christianity has always had a social
doctrine. St Paul reflected upon the relationship between Christians and the State in his
letter to the Romans. The Fathers of the Church were deeply concerned about the
morality of warfare and the ownership of property. Medieval scholars dwelt on the
propriety of charging interest on loans. In the sixteenth century Spanish Dominicans
wrote vigorously about the problems of colonization and about the treatment of the
indigenous population in territories newly conquered by Spain. The problems presented
to the Church by the world have constantly been addressed both by saints and by

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scholars, confronted by missionaries, and debated by academics. But as a systematic
teaching on social matters (especially in modern times), scholars generally concur that
the social doctrine of the Church takes effect from Pope Leo XIII’s encyclical, “On the
Condition of the Working Classes” Rerum Novarum (15 May 1891), which laid the
foundation for a just solution to the serious problems of human life which go under the
name of the “SOCIAL QUESTION.” This is why this encyclical is considered the
Magna Charta of Christian social activity. In fact, it continues to inspire action for social
justice. If, as we have explained, the social doctrine has always existed from apostolic
times, it logically follows that what Pope Leo XIII and his successor did was to give it an
organic synthetic character.

For over one hundred years popes have used the encyclical letter to address the
economic challenges and changes confronting humankind. Let us look at the major papal
encyclicals dealing with economic justice.

a) Pope Leo XIII

• Rerum Novarum: On the Condition of Workers

It was issued on the 15th of May 1891, at the peak of the Industrial Revolution. It can
be literally translated as: "Of New Things". Rerum Novarum was the first of the modern
wave of social encyclicals. Leo was acutely aware of the poverty of many workers and of
the growth in power of socialist movements. The document talks about capital and labor
and the condition of the working class. It examines the conditions of salaried workers,
which was particularly distressing for industrial labourers who languished in inhumane
misery.

Pope Leo XIII highlights the principles necessary to bring about a just society
introducing the ‘just wage theory’, these principles include protecting the rights of
workers, free association being defended by the state and private property defended but
limited. This was the most significant of all the encyclicals before or since. Rerum
Novarum broke down the barriers that separated the church from the worker. Never
before had the church spoken on social matters in such an official and comprehensive
fashion.

b) Pope Pius XI

• Quadragesimo Anno: “On the Fortieth Year”

It commemorates the 40th anniversary of Rerum Novarum. It was issued May 15, 1931:
On the Reconstruction of the Social Order. This encyclical repeated many of the
themes of Rerum Novarum: the dignity of labor, the rights of workers to organize, etc.

In it, dictatorship is condemned as the dangers of fascism and communism are exposed –
such as increasing child and female labour. This mid depression provoked new thinking
as opposed to the previous preoccupation with World War I. The growth of systematic
atheism had increased, the modernist crisis arose and there were huge developments in

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thought. Germany was economically devastated and Russia allowed many of its own
people to die – justified as necessary for the good of the state.

Quadragesimo anno also emphasized the immorality of keeping economic control in the
hands of a few. It recognized the principle of subsidiarity, which held that higher levels
of authority should act only when lower levels cannot deal with a problem.

c) Pope John XXIII

• Mater et Magistra: Mother and Teacher

This was issued May 15, 1961. Literally: "Mother and Teacher," on Christianity and
Social progress. This encyclical gave an updated interpretation of the classic theme of
private property and introduced the notion of private initiative as an extension of private
property. While Rerum Novarum and Quadragesimo Anno left responsibility for social
justice with the individual, Mater et Magistra placed some in the hands of the state. (This
encyclical needs to be read in conjunction with Pacem in Terris, literally "Peace on
Earth," Pope John XXIII's other great encyclical.)

• Pacem in Terris: Peace on Earth

The terrifying threat of nuclear war had become heightened with the Berlin Wall and the
Cuban Missile Crisis. In addition, the civil rights movement in the US had also exposed
divisions of race. The document was first addressed to ‘all people of goodwill’ and it
underlines the rights and responsibilities of individuals. It also condemns the arms race
and racism and advocates resources to be shared in the common endeavour for
development.

d. Pope Paul VI

• Octogesima Adveniens: A Call to Action

(May 14, 1971) Issued for the 80th Anniversary of Rerum Novarum. The South
American bishops had met at Medellin three years earlier and their themes of structural
injustice, the option for the poor, conscientisation and liberation permeate the thinking in
this document.

• Populorum Progressio: On the Development of People

Issued March 26, 1967. Literally: "On the Progress of Peoples." It contains a vigorous
endorsement of Mater et Magistra. Populorum Progressio presents Catholicism as no
longer tied to a social system based on natural law, but rather as a proponent of a
pluralistic, decentralized approach to economic problems.

This was the concern for the signs of the times (in practical terms) as the Second Vatican
had not fleshed out its ideas for development. Paul VI had also travelled widely and now
international communications were bringing issues such as global poverty into closer
proximity due to newer technologies such as television.

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e) Pope John Paul II

• Laborem Exercens: On Human Work

Issued on September 14, 1981. Literally: "On Human Work". Laborem Exercens
focused on the themes that work is central to the social question and that work has
potential not only to dehumanize but also to be the means whereby the human person
cooperates in God's ongoing creation.

Both capitalism and Marxism are criticized. John Paul had lived through the worst
excesses of two regimes (Russian Communism and Nazism) which saw the worker as an
expendable resource in the interests of the state. He was highly aware that the
exploitation of workers continued, especially in poor areas of the world.

• Sollicitudo Rei Socialis: On the 20th Anniversary of Populorum Progressio.

Issued on December 30, 1987. Literally: "On Social Concerns," commemorating the
20th anniversary of Populorum Progressio. Solicitudo Rei Socialis presents an overview
of modern social problems with some guidelines for action. It deals with authentic human
development and adopted a critical attitude toward both Capitalism and Communism.
Sollicitudo Rei Socialis warned that economic development alone may not set people
free but only enslave them more.

The increase in refugees is a major concern and a result of confrontation. This was
written amongst the continuation of the Cold War with the Berlin Wall collapsing later in
1989. This time also saw the severe recession of the mid 1980’s and gaps between the
rich and poor widening with ‘turbo capitalism’.

• Centesimus Annus: The Hundredth Anniversary of Rerum Novarum

Issued on May 1, 1991. Literally, "The 100th Year," It commemorates the one
hundredth anniversary of Rerum Novarum. Centesimus Annus brought Rerum
Novarum up to date and tied it to "the preferential option for the poor." Written in the
context of the collapse of communism in Eastern Europe and the Soviet Union,
Centesimus Annus still criticized both capitalism and communism. The Berlin Wall had
just collapsed; arms expenditure globally hovered at around $1,000 billion (one trillion)
and there was also the emergence of the super-rich individual.

f) Pope Benedict XVI

• Caritas in veritate - Love in Truth

This is Pope Benedict’s third encyclical. It marked forty years since Populorum
Progressio – “The Progress of Peoples” (1967). The global economic and banking crisis
of 2008 had a major disproportionate effect on the poor of the world, and the issue of the
environment had moved up the agenda as better evidence of degradation was
consolidated. The encyclical is call to see the relationship between human and
environmental ecologies and to link charity and truth in the pursuit of justice, the
common good, and authentic human development. In doing so, the pope points out the
responsibilities and limitations of government and the private market, challenges

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traditional ideologies of right and left, and calls all men and women to think and act
anew.

NON-ENCYCLICAL STATEMENTS & STORIES OF BENEDICT XVI

• Address of His Holiness Benedict XVI To the Sixteenth Plenary Session of the
Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences, April 30, 2010

• Address of His Holiness Benedict XVI to the Administrative Board of the

Italian Confederation of Workers' Unions (CISL) Saturday, 31 January 2009

• Par. 74, The Meaning of Rest and of Work - Apostolic Exhortation

Sacramentum Charitatis (March 13, 2007)

• Justice and Charity: The Inseperable Aspects of Single Social Commitment -

Address to the Christian Union of Business Executives (March 27, 2006)

• Man is Subject and Protagonist of Work - Homily on the Feast of St. Joseph
(March 19, 2006).

• Address of Benedict XVI to the Italian Christian Workers' Association (January

27, 2006)

• May 1, 2005 Angelus Message; News Story of May 1st, 2005: Angelus Message
to Workers on the Feast of St. Joseph.

g) Pope Francis:

• Evangelii Gaudium- The Joy of the Gospel - 26 November 2013

Evangelii Gaudium deals with "the church’s primary mission of evangelization in the
modern world." It has been described as a "remarkable and radical document, one that
ranges widely and challenges complacency at every level," as well as "the manifesto of
Francis" and a "Magna Carta for church reform." Evangelii Gaudium touches on many
of the themes of Francis' papacy, including obligations Christians have to the poor, and
the duty to establish and maintain just economic, political, and legal orders.

Francis says that the world "can no longer trust in the unseen forces and the invisible
hand of the market" and calls for action "beyond a simple welfare mentality" that
"attack[s] the structural causes of inequality." Refocusing society's priorities, he asks
how "it is not a news item when an elderly homeless person dies of exposure, but it is
news when the stock market loses two points?"

In an interview published Dec. 14, 2013, in the Italian newspaper La Stampa, Pope
Francis responded to several questions touching from those who took issue with certain
passages of the Pope’s recent apostolic exhortation, Evangelii Gaudium. In blasting

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economic practices driven by greed and leading to inequality, the Pope drew fire from the
likes of radio host Rush Limbaugh, who contended that his comments were “pure
Marxism” and “dramatically, embarrassingly, puzzlingly wrong.” In response, the Pontiff
denounced such ideology. “The Marxist ideology is wrong,” he declares flatly.

Laudato Si – On Care for Our Common Home – (24 May 2015)

Laudato Si is Pope Francis’ Encyclical on the environment or more formally – On Care

for Our Common Home. Laudato Si means “Praise be to you” which is the first line of a
canticle by St. Francis that praises God with all of his creation.

From the outset, Pope Francis states the goal of the document: “In this Encyclical, I
would like to enter into dialogue with all people about our common home”

Normally, papal documents are addressed to the bishops of the Church or the lay faithful.
But, similar to Pope Saint John XXIII’s Pacem in Terris, Pope Francis address his
message to all people.

The goal of the dialogue: “I urgently appeal, then, for a new dialogue about how we are
shaping the future of our planet. We need a conversation that includes everyone, since the
environment challenge we are undergoing, and its human roots, concern and affect us all”

The above is at the heart of the document, but Pope Francis also has a very striking call
to conversion for those in the Church as well. – “ecological conversion.”

V. FOUNDATION OF THE CHURCH’S SOCIAL TEACHING

The foundation and primary object of the church’s social doctrine is human dignity with
its ensuing inalienable human rights which constitute the nucleus of the truth about man.
It is in relation to this truth that the Church’s social doctrine entails announcement of the
truth about human dignity and rights, denouncement of unjust situations (which offend
human dignity), and contributes to positive changes in society. What the church’s social
doctrine does is to provide guidelines on the moral values that economic, social and
political should respect if this foundation (i.e. human dignity) is not offended.

VI. SOURCES OF THE CHURCH’S SOCIAL TEACHING

The sources of the social doctrine of the church are revelations (i.e. Sacred Scripture and
Tradition) and the natural law. To these, we must also add the contribution of the natural
sciences.

On the one hand, the Church draws from the Gospel norms of behavior which she applies
to the social, political and economic life (e.g. the Biblical teaching on charity, the
common fatherhood of God and the consequent brotherhood of all men, universal
solidarity, the freedom of God’s children, personal dignity, etc) On the other hand, she

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appropriates and explains fundamental moral principles (or objective moral norms).
Through these, the church shows the harmony between revealed truth and right reason
which should govern human acts also in the political and socio-economical life. The
Christian Gospel illuminates and rescues principles of from those deformation to which
they are often subjected in the course of human history.

VII. AUDIENCE TO WHOM IT IS ADDRESSED

The church’s social doctrine is addressed in the first place to Christians, i.e. all those who
share the vision of man and society and the fundamental values of life incarnated in the
Gospel. It is addressed to all men and women of an upright conscience to whom the
church speaks with the hope that she will be understood because she is aware that the
spirit of God moves in the heart of every man bears witness, as the episode of the
centurion Cornelius ( Acts 10:1-48), among others.

VIII. THE CORE PRINCIPLES OF CATHOLIC SOCIAL TEACHING

According to William J. Byron, there are 10 principles of Catholic Social Teaching thus:
1. The Principle of Human Dignity. "Every human being is created in the image of God
and redeemed by Jesus Christ, and therefore is invaluable and worthy of respect as a
member of the human family"

2. The Principle of Respect for Human Life. "Every person, from the moment of
conception to natural death, has inherent dignity and a right to life consistent with that
dignity”.

3. The Principle of Association. "Our tradition proclaims that the person is not only
sacred but also social. 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".

4. The Principle of Participation. "We believe people have a right and a duty to
participate in society, seeking together the common good and well-being of all, especially
the poor and vulnerable”.

5. The Principle of Preferential Protection for the Poor and Vulnerable.

"In a society marred by deepening divisions between rich and poor, our tradition recalls
the story of the last judgment (Mt. 25:31-46) and instructs us to put the needs of the poor
and vulnerable first".

6. The Principle of Solidarity. "Catholic social teaching proclaims that we are our
brothers' and sisters' keepers, wherever they live. We are one human family.... Learning
to practice the virtue of solidarity means learning that 'loving our neighbor' has global
dimensions in an interdependent world".

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7. The Principle of Stewardship. "The Catholic tradition insists that we show our
respect for the Creator by our stewardship of creation".

8. The Principle of Subsidiarity. This principle deals chiefly with "the responsibilities
and limits of government, and the essential roles of voluntary associations".

9. The Principle of Human Equality. "Equality of all persons comes from their essential
dignity.... While differences in talents are a part of God's plan, social and cultural
discrimination in fundamental rights... are not compatible with God's design".

10. The Principle of the Common Good. "The common good is understood as the social
conditions that allow people to reach their full human potential and to realize their human
dignity".

THE STATE

The state is the society vested with the highest sovereignty among earthly communities. It
enjoys pre-eminence over all the other natural societies for the reason that it has to take
care of the universal common good of the civic community. This means that it is not
subject to any other earthly power, whereas all the natural groups are in some way
subordinate to the state.

1. CONCEPT OF THE STATE

The state can be described as the independent (or sovereign) political community. As an
independent community it is distinguished from the many smaller communities which
depend on it for protection and assistance.

In a more complete way the state is defined as a geographically delimited society

endowed with supreme authority for the establishment of the universal common good.
The following characteristics are commonly singled out as the constitutive elements of
the state:

a) A plurality of people, usually belonging together by common culture or at least

common interest;

b) A distinct territory permanently settled by this people;

c) A public authority with power of ultimate decision, which has the primacy over all
the other smaller societies within the territory;

d) A positive legal and constitutional order for the attainment of the common good,
which also determines and legalizes the political authority.

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2. STATE AUTHORITY

Every nation/country has its leaders. Such officials, no matter their rank and titles are
obliged to be faithful servants of the state. They must exercise their authority with
discretion and with full knowledge of the law. They have to administer and distribute
public goods impartially.

The governing authority has the duty to defend the rights of the state against foreign
encroachment, if necessary even by war. State authority has to safeguard the state’s
interest in international politics with moderation and respect for foreign rights. It has to
cooperate in the community of nations. In relation to its own nation, the tasks of state
authority can be divided into three major groups:

a) Legislation and administration of justice: This includes the enactment of laws and
the application of sanctions when necessary in order to uphold and defend the rights of
citizens, maintain public order and tranquility, and promote the common welfare.

b) Promotion of socio-economic welfare and public health: This includes the care for
economic growth, social progress and hygienic conditions of the nation.

c) Care for cultural and moral concerns. This includes general instruction and
schooling, the cultivation of the sciences and the arts, and the fostering of good morals.

A good and efficient administration can only be achieved if only worthy and able
candidates are appointed for public office and if the unqualified are barred/removed from
it. Distribution of offices according to patronage or membership in favoured groups (of a
religion, tribe, political etc.) is unjust and inadmissible.

Likewise, acceptance of an office is forbidden to anyone incapable of fulfilling it. On the

other hand, the person who possesses the abilities may even be obliged to accept a public
office if no other capable person is available and if there is no valid excuse.

Governing authorities and officials are bound to just, impartial and reliable administration
of their office. Those who accept bribes must be sanctioned most especially if they
violate their duties by accepting them. The same holds for those who abuse office for
private advantages or who reveal official secrets, particularly state secrets, but also
official secrets concerning individual citizens.

3. DUTIES OF CITIZENS

The basic duty of the citizens is love for their country. This duty rests in the law of
nature, because fatherland is the community of people to which the citizens are bound by
common mores and cultures; and because they are indebted to their country for protection
and promotion of the common weal. The love of one’s country should manifest itself in
interest and concern for the country’s welfare. The test for genuine patriotism is the

15
readiness to defend the just cause of one’s country in a war and to pay heavy taxes in
critical times. Summarily, a good citizen obeys the laws of his country.

But true nationalism is at the same time characterized by the spirit of love and justice
towards other nations, even towards the enemy nations of yesterday. Here are some
important duties of citizens of a state:

a) Civil Obedience and Respect

The fact that civil authority is instituted and willed by God and that it renders a most
important and often difficult service to the community obliges citizens to show due
respect to their bearers. For without the obedience and cooperation of citizens the state
can hardly exist, or it would end up in anarchy and chaos. This duty of citizens binds
them in conscience, and they owe it not merely to an authority that satisfies all reasonable
requests, but also to uncomfortable and hard rulers.

b) Obligation to pay taxes

The duty to pay taxes derives from the citizen’s obligation to contribute their share to the
necessities of the state whose help they need, by which they profit, and which also
assumes certain obligations in the citizen’s place and stead. For the purpose of taxes is
the maintenance of the machinery of the government and its institutions, e.g. police and
army, provision for the common needs of the community, e.g. roads, ports, schooling,
social justice, etc. Tax-paying is a sign of communal spirit and good citizenship.

c) Civic Responsibility and Participation

Every citizen is called to contribute to the furtherance of the common good. This
obligation includes, besides the duty to pay just taxes, also the duty to respect the norms
of social life e.g. those designated for the protection of health and traffic laws. A
particularly important right and duty of citizens in the modern democratic state is the
right to vote. Nobody may say that his/her vote is of no importance and that it does
therefore not matter whether he uses this right or not.

4. THE RIGHT OF RESISTANCE AGAINST UNJUST STATE AUTHORITY

As mentioned above, political authority must be exercised within the limits of morality
and on behalf of the dynamically conceived common good. In such a case, citizens are
bound in conscience to obey such an authority. However, when public authority oversteps
its competence and oppresses the people, these people should nevertheless obey to the
extent that the objective common good demands.

Beyond that it is lawful for them to defend their rights and those of their fellow citizens
against any abuse of this authority, provided that in so doing they observe the limits
imposed by natural law (and the law of the state). State authority can be UNJUST on two
different grounds: a) The state authority has been usurped in a violent and illegitimate

16
way; or b) a lawfully acquired state authority turns to be abusive and tyrannical. The two
instances have to be treated separately.

a) Resistance against illegitimate rulers

An illegitimate ruler or usurper is one who gets hold of the government without a just
title. Usurpers may come to power as rebels against their own, lawful government, or in
the sway of an invasion by enemies who have gained actual control of the state or a part
of it and who install their own government.

In principle citizens do not owe any obedience to usurpers. Rather they are obliged to
assist their lawful government in the resistance against the illegitimate ruler. For the
legitimacy of state authority is not based on the forcible seizure of power in a territory,
but on legal titles approved by the consent of the people, i.e. in modern states usually the
constitutional transfer of power.

b) Resistance against legitimate rulers

Obedience to legitimate authority is not an unconditional duty. It has its limits in natural
and divine law. Where state authority becomes unjust and contradicts the law of God, the
citizens are no longer bound to obey. However, not every dissatisfaction with the social
and economic conditions of a country, and not every inability of its leaders to cope with
them, sufficiently justifies the violent overthrow of the government. The word
“revolution” is often used today, especially in nations which are in the process of
industrial and social development and which frequently suffer from many problems.
There are people who, in the unsatisfactory and disappointing conditions of their nation,
would like to resort to something like a revolution as a means to bring about greater
justice and faster progress. They are cautioned to remember that violence has always
achieved only destruction, not construction; the kindling of passion, not their
pacification; the accumulation of hate and ruin, not reconciliation of the contending
parties. Such violent actions finally reduce men and fighting parties to the difficult task of
rebuilding, after sad experience, on the ruins of the discord.

THE CHURCH

As the state is the society instituted for the universal establishment of the secular
common weal, thus the Church is instituted by Christ himself for the universal promotion
of the spiritual and religious weal of mankind. This spiritual weal essentially consists in
the achievement of an intimate union with God and of the unity of all mankind.

I. THE CHURCH AUTHORITHY

Church authority is represented by the Pope, the bishops and the priests. They govern the
Church as the mediators between God and men and are the teachers of the divine truths.

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1. MEDIATORS BETWEEN GOD AND MEN
The Church’s function is to serve human beings in their religious and spiritual need and
to promote the values of faith and religion. She is called to imbue the everyday activity of
people with a deeper meaning and to serve as a leaven and as a kind of soul for human
society, with the goal to renew it in Christ and to transform it into God’s family.

The Church performs her tasks and functions through her priests and ministers.
One of the foremost duties of priests is the preaching of the word of God. Another basic
task of the mediating function of priests is the celebration of the liturgy and worthy
administration of the sacraments, among which the Eucharist excels as the source and
apex of them all. The universal spiritual welfare of the believers must be at their heart.
The office of the pastor is also to be extended to the formation of a genuine Christian
community; and with missionary zeal priests ought to embrace the concerns of the
universal Church.

2. TEACHER OF THE DIVINE TRUTH AND THE MORAL LAW

Christ is “the way, and the truth, and the life” (Jn 14:6). He communicates his life and
his truth to the believers through the Church. Even Holy Scriptures are not a source of
doctrine divorced from the Church. Rather scriptures are given to the believers by God
through and in the Church.

It is the Church which teaches the law of Christ, giving to men his Gospel and helping
them to understand its significance. The meaning of the written mystery can only belong
to that community which carries within itself the revelation of that mystery. The
individual, left on its own, would not be able to give an adequate interpretation of Holy
Scriptures. Thus when the believers are instructed to consult tradition and to listen to the
magisterium, it is not that they should prefer the Church to Scriptures, but rather the
explanation of the Scriptures given by the whole church to their personal explanation.
The unavoidable difference arising from diversity of opinion on certain positions in
theological teaching are possible only within the bounds of the doctrinal magisterium.

Priests and pastors themselves are required “not to teach their own wisdom but God’s
word.” The Word must be preached impartially, without regard for person or human
factions; not influenced by the wish to win men’s favour, but only led by the will to
transmit faithfully Christ’s message and command. In order to be prepared for their
teaching office, priests must constantly perfect their knowledge. They must be well
acquainted with the documents of the Church and keep abreast of developments in the
theological and other sciences.

3. THE CHURCH AS SERVANT IN HER MINISTRY

The Church is meant to be a sign of the redemptive obedience of Christ to the Father,
which has as its aim the salvation of all men. Thus the Church is not called to exercise
dominion over men in a spirit of self–aggrandizement or to seek glory before the world.
Most characteristic of her is her mission to serve men in their spiritual needs and to
carry out the work of redemption in humility and self- sacrifice. All aspiration for
power and earthly prestige and all arbitrary exercise of ecclesiastical authority by Church

18
officials obscure the role of the Church as servant of the spiritual, religious kingdom of
God.

All members of the Church must be conscious of their duty to protect the honour of their
Church as far as possible, even when criticism appears necessary and wholesome.

Since the Church is a social organism, it cannot be governed without certain rules and
laws. The Church is entitled to issues such directives. Yet everyone who participates in
the pastoral office of the Church must endeavour to look upon her laws and directives in
the light of the rule governing the kingdom of God, which is Christ’s love for the Church
and the Church’s love for Christ.

II. DUTIES OF BELIEVERS

1. Love and reverence for the Church and her ministers: Love for the Church is
Love for Christ who lives in her as in his mystical body. It is a love of gratitude for the
immeasurable gift of supernatural life which she bestows on her members. It is also
gratitude for her care by which she gives growth to her believers’ religious life, helps the
indigent, sick and poor and defends right and justice in public life. The love becomes
active in inward thinking and feeling with the Church and in outward cooperation in her
apostolate.

2. Obedience to the Church: The duty of obedience arises from the fact that the
Church has her authority from Christ and is the appointed and competent guide in matters
of faith and morals. “He who hears you hears me, and he who rejects you rejects me.”
(Lk 10:16) “Whatever you bind on earth shall be bound in heaven, and whatever you
loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.” (Mt18:18) This imposes duties of
responsibility for the faithful upon the ministers of the Church. And the Christian faithful,
for their part, should realize their obligations towards toward their priests and with filial
love they should they should follow them as their shepherds and fathers. Knowing that
the Church wants to provide them with supernatural life, Christians will indeed be glad to
share in her sacramental life and to follow her indications which aim at fostering this.

3. Material sustenance for priests and their work. Dedicated to the religious and
spiritual welfare of the believers, priests are worthy of receiving a just recompense. For
“the labourer deserves his wages” (Lk 10:7) and “the lord commanded that those who
proclaim the Gospel should get their living by the Gospel.” (1Cor 9:14) Hence, where a
fitting recompense of priests is not otherwise provided for, the faithful themselves are
bound by a genuine obligation to see that the needed means can be procured for them to
lead a respectable and worthy life. For it is in behalf of the welfare of the faithful that
priests labour. Moreover, this recompense should be such as to allow priests a requisite
and sufficient vacation each year.

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4. Apostolic cooperation: Not only ordained priests but all members of the Church
have the task of taking part in the redemptive work of the Church. They are bound to do
so through love of God and of fellow men. Indeed the law of love, which is the Lord’s
greatest commandment, impels all the faithful to promote God’s glory through the spread
of his kingdom and to obtain for all men that eternal life which consists in knowing the
only true God and Him whom He sent, Jesus Christ. All Christians have been equipped
for this task by baptism and particularly by confirmation, which is intended to strengthen
them for the apostolate in the world. Hence lay people should assist their priests by
prayer and work to the extent possible and assume their duty of carrying on the
apostolate, each according to his state in life and his ability.

III. THE CHURCH AND STATE

1. GUIDELINES FOR THE RELATION BETWEEN CHURCH AND STATE

God has given over the charge of the human communities to two powers, the Church
and the civil, the one being set over religious and divine things, the other over temporal
needs. Each in its kind is supreme; each has fixed limits within which it is contained,
limits which are defined by the nature and special objects of each community.

Following are some basic guidelines which indicate the way to a harmonious and
equitable relation between Church and State.

a) The Church has the right to work and to govern herself in full freedom from the
State intervention. According to the Declaration on Religious Freedom, No 13, “the
freedom of the Church is the fundamental principle in what concerns the relations
between the Church and governments and the whole civil order”

Provided the just requirements of public order are observed, the Church and religious
bodies in general rightfully claim freedom in order that they may govern themselves
according to their own norms. They “have the right not to be hindered, either by legal
measures or by administrative action on the part of the government, in the selection,
training, appointment, and transferral of their own ministers, in communicating with
religious authorities and communities abroad, in erecting buildings for religious
purposes, and in the acquisition and use of suitable funds or properties. Religious
bodies also have the right not to be hindered in their public teaching and witness to
their faith.” (Declaration on Religious Freedom, No 4)Likewise they are not to be
prohibited from freely undertaking to show the special value of their doctrine in what
concerns the organization of society and inspiration of the whole of human activity.
Finally they are entitled to establish educational, cultural, charitable, and social
organizations.

b) The Church does not possess any political power over the temporal order. This
means that she has no jurisdiction over the political realm, even though she possesses
the plenitude of teaching authority. Outside the sphere of religion and morals the Church
possesses no competence. Refraining from direct involvement in politics, the Church

20
will be able to proclaim the royal dominion of God over the entire world all the more
efficiently and unerringly.

c) The State does not possess any authority over the spiritual, religious order. The
State is never entitled to subject the work of the Church to a control founded on state
interest (Gallicanism). If the state should assume any position of power in the church,
attempt to dominate her or even to enlist her service in her political programs, it would
infringe the divinely ordained separation of powers and violate the rights of the Church.

It is true, the government ought “to take account of the religious life of the people and
show it favour, since the function of government is to make provisions for the
common welfare. However, it will clearly transgress the limits set to its power were it
to presume to direct or inhibit acts that are religious” Declaration on Religious
Freedom, No 3, Vice versa of course the Church may never place herself at the
unqualified service of a particular political system or state, which would mean a betrayal
of her mission.

d) The Church possesses a plenary teaching office, which also extends over the
moral laws governing the political life. Though Christian regents and political leaders
may rightly protest when individual Church leaders go beyond their proper bounds, they
should at the same time be aware that God is the Lord of the political domain and civic
life as well. The Church has the right to pass moral judgments, even on matters touching
the political order, whenever basic personal rights or the salvation of souls make such
judgments necessary. She has the right and duty to manifest her grave concern over evils
in the social order, and she may not be accused of meddling in politics if she denounces
any attempt to expel God from public life or censures patent violations of the moral law
on the political scene. Recognition of this function of the Church by the state is in no
way subjection to the Church, but recognition of the subordination of both, Church and
state, to God.

e) The state has the right to protect religious freedom and promote conditions
favourable to religious life. For the state itself has a religious existence and must be
subordinate to God’s eternal goals. It has to contribute to God’s glory and to the
unfolding of his creative design. Furthermore society highly profits from the values of
love of God and neighbor, of justice and peace, promoted by the Church.

Since the Church and the state serve the same human being, it is unavoidable that their
interests intersect in certain areas. Examples of such so-called mixed areas are:
education and school, marriage, establishment of Church institutions such as
hospitals, orphanages or asylums, holy days, the filling of ecclesiastical positions
endowed by the state (e.g. army chaplain). Conflicting interests in these areas are most
expediently settled by agreement. They form the main object of treaties between the
Church and the state, known as concordats. The more that both societies foster
cooperation between themselves in such instances, the more effectively will their service
be exercised for the good of all.

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 Modern states frequently profess a separation of Church and state. In fact in nations with
mixed religion the state cannot give preference to the religion of one group without
causing conflicts with the other groups. In such instances the best solutions for the state
seem to be the avoidance of any official identification with one of the religious groups.
A separation of the Church and state in this sense is to be accepted. Catholics or
Protestants cannot expect that the state gives preference treatment to their religion before
that of the other religious groups. But since on the other hand the state too has a
religious existence, a complete separation of state and religion in general is unnatural
and not acceptable. The state has to grant religion a place in education and society, not
only practically but also officially, and has to protect and to promote its cause.

2. RELIGIOUS TOLERANCE
Since within the same state there are frequently various religious groups represented, the
question arises which attitude the state should adopt towards them, and especially in
which way rulers and government officials, who have their own religious convictions,
ought to practice tolerance towards the other religious groups. The teaching of the
Catholic Church on this question found an explicit reformulation in the “Declaration on
Religious Freedom”(DH 1) by VATICAN II. “All men are to be immune from coercion
on the part of individuals or of social groups and of any human power, in such wise
that in matters religious no one is to be forced to act in a manner contrary to his own
beliefs. Nor is anyone to be restrained from acting in accordance with his own beliefs,
whether privately or publicly … This right of the human person to religious freedom
is to be recognized in the constitutional law whereby society is governed. Thus it is to
become a civic right” (Declaration on Religious Freedom, No 4).

Religious freedom does not only include the right for all religious bodies to worship God
privately or publicly, but also the right to public teaching and witness to respective faith.
According to the Declaration on religious freedom, the same freedom which the
Catholic Church claims for herself is to be granted to religious bodies of every kind.

THE WORLD ECONOMIC SYSTEMS/PHILOSOPHIES

AND THE IMAGE OF THE HUMAN PERSON

Behind every economic/philosophical system we find in our world is a specific image of the
Human Person. These systems are meant to serve human beings. Therefore, each one of them has
a particular image of who the human person is.

1. CAPITALISM
It is economic liberalism which accepts as its formula the unlimited and uncontrolled freedom in
economic competition. It permits a rush for accumulation of riches. Capitalism acclaims absolute
right to private property without subordination to the good of the society. The moral and spiritual
values of the worker and the dignity of man are often not very much taken into consideration. In a
sense, it gives room for the exploitation of the lower and working class of society to the favour of
the ruling and rich class. (Almost a survival of the fittest).

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HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF CAPITALISM

1. FEUDAL SYSTEM AND “BATERING”

Capitalism developed long before industry arrived on the scene. Nearly a thousand years ago
Europe was ruled by landlords and kings. They owned all the land, their property was inherited
by their children. People living under their rule had to work the fields of the landlords in return
for security and protection. People accepted the authority of landlords as God-given. This is
called the FEUDAL SYSTEM. In this feudal system, the exchange was largely based on direct
bartering. For instance, if someone wanted to obtain a cow from his neighbor, he did not pay
money for it. He/she offered instead other goods like grain or oil in exchange. This is
BARTERING.

In the feudal system, people were not “employed” as we know it today. People worked together
in a system of mutual services.

The driving force of the feudal economy was not to GAIN the highest profit possible (PROFIT
MAXIMISATION). Work was regarded as a means of salvation and not a way to get rich. In this
system, peasants suffered acute exploitation, but they could also enjoy greater security than a
worker of today who must face losing his job during an economic crisis.

2. THE TRADER COMES FORWARD

It was the TRADER who gradually changed the entire feudal system. People with courage began
to make goods available for others. They began to trade. Bartering became impractical over long
distances and money began to play an increasing role. The trader sold for PROFIT.

The traders became independent of the landlords and formed a special group that lived in
settlements that resembles the fort or the “BERG” (hill) of the landlord. It was for this reason that
the inhabitants of such a trading town called themselves “BERGERS” or “BOURGEOIS” –
could also refer to those who live on the hill, on the heights – ice-berg, Johanesberg, Petersberg,
etc. Traders came from all classes of society – nobles and peasants. The Church rejected the
traders because of their money-making through profit, loans and interest. This was judged
‘unchristian’.

3. MONEY BEGINS TO COUNT

The traders began a struggle which would last 700 or 800 years. They started as outcasts with no
position at all in society and rose to becoming the ruling class. The trader-bourgeois wielded
influence in the educational front, politically they influenced kings and princes with their money,
legally they replace the feudal customary laws with the Roman Laws of ancient time. The power
of money influenced the mentality of the people and their approach to life.

Private property was defended as a personal right. Fences appeared around the privately owned
lands; labourers were employed and received wages for their services; prices were fixed in open
competition. The trader-bourgeois developed FREEDOM as their great ideal: freedom in
economic activities, freedom to own property, freedom to believe what each thought best for
himself. This freedom for individual was threatened constantly by either king, landlord or clergy.
The bourgeois mentality developed INDIVIDUALISM. They could prove that
an individual could achieve a better quality of life through his own effort than through a
communal promotion.

At last, in the 18th century, CAPITALISM established itself as an economic system. (It was the
bourgeois-movement with its cry for freedom for the individual which eventually led to the

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French Revolution in 1779 and forced kings to accept a constitution which considerably limited
their absolute political power.)

4. THE INDUSTRIAL REVOLUTION

The discovery of the steam-engine more than 200 years ago signaled the Industrial Revolution.
Steam engines allowed machines to be built which took the place of individual workers. The
person who has money or “CAPITAL” to buy machines was called the factory-owner or
“CAPITALIST”. He could hire workers to labour for him and to produce goods which he, the
Capitalist, could sell for his own profit. The capitalist usually paid low wages and grabbed as
much profit as possible. The capitalist took risks. He was not always sure of selling his good and
could go bankrupt.

Capitalism in the 19th century developed as “Laissez Faire Capitalism”. Laissez faire means “let
them do it alone”. Governments at the time let the factory owners “do it alone”. Owners decided
how much to pay workers; they dismissed workers as they pleased; they made profit as they
could. No one interfered. This type of capitalism turned out a lot of consumer goods for all who
had money to buy them. It turned out that money and profit-making became more important than
the people who produce the goods. This is what we call Liberal Capitalism.

5. PHILOSOPHY BEHIND “LIBERAL CAPITALISM”

a) Each human being is absolutely free and should not be bossed around by the government.
b) Each man should be allowed to exercise his/her free initiative by building factories and
making money.
c) Each one can develop him/herself when he/she gathers private property around him/her
which is also safeguarding his/her personal freedom
d) Private ownership of factories and other means of production will make the individual
free and independent.
e) Each man is free to shape his own future by engaging himself in free initiative. Each one
has the same opportunities.
f) The whole of society will be “free” if each individual can exercise his personal freedom
of initiative and accumulate property.
g) Personal property also guarantees political freedom.

6. KEY WORDS IN CAPITALISM

a) Profit-making: It is the driving force behind capitalism. It is the soul of it. For instance,
a butcher does not sell us his meat because he wants to help us but because he wants to
make profit for himself. Profit-making talks of the “virtue of selfishness”. Profit-making
is indirectly serving the public in the best way. The problem, of course, is whether that is
really how things work. If everybody chases after his own profit—how many people can
be satisfied?
b) Free Enterprise: It means that anybody may start a business, employ people and produce
goods which he thinks will sell well. History tells stories of poor persons starting a
business out of nothing, and becoming very successful people. People who engage in free
enterprise only need personal courage and initiative. They must plan, take risks and work
hard. The government should not interfere!
c) Free Market: In the free market system of Capitalism everybody is free to produce what
he wants, to sell where he wants and to buy what he wants. On a free market the producer
wants to sell his goods at the highest possible price and the buyer wants to buy at the
lowest possible price. This principle is “regulating” the market by itself. The prices in the
Free Market system are fixed by supply and demand. If there are plenty of goods the
prices fall; if goods are scarce prices rise. Competition is the guiding principle. If one

24
 factory produces better and cheaper goods than others, people will buy them. Others with
the same goods but higher prices are forced to lower their prices. Finally, a factory or big
business should be owned by private persons and not by the state. That is the rule.

In modern times especially, the Free Market system conceals dangerous traps for the consumer.
There is the danger of being exploited and manipulated by the managers of big businesses.

7. WHO IS A CAPITALIST?
A capitalist is not just anybody who is very rich. Such a person might have worked harder than
others or had to shoulder greater responsibility than others. A Capitalist is one who:
a) Believes in Free Enterprise and Free Market
b) Believes in profit-making as the overpowering motive which should be applied in
business
c) Stands for private ownership of factories and other means of production
d) Believes in a Global Shopping Centre as the “Better world for All”
e) Believes that neither God nor Government should interfere with business
f) Believes that ‘progress’ is identical with economic progress.
Certainly, there are many Capitalists who personally aim at higher ideals than just making profit
for themselves. They are, however, part of a system which makes it hard for them to escape the
rat-race.

8. MANY FACES OF CAPITALISM

8.1. Collective Capitalism: In this system, several owners of factories pool their money and
form a group or collective. They buy bigger machines and control the prices of their product
because they help together to combat competition. They form so-called “LIMITED
COMPANIES” (Ltd). Collective Capitalism works in different ways:
• Many businesses or companies function under one general control. These are called
TRUSTS.
• Others have secret agreements not to charge less for a certain product in order to keep the
prices up. This type of “co-operation” gives rise to CARTELS.
The top-managers of such Trusts and Multi-nationals are regarded by many people as the
real masters of the “Free Market”. Pope Pius XI said of them: “No one can breathe
against their will.” They suffocate the world.

8.2. Colonialism/Imperialism: A consequence of Collective Capitalism was “colonialism”

and “imperialism”. The factory-owners and people with big money were the ones who put
pressure on their governments to acquire colonies to supply cheap raw materials such as iron,
copper etc. This was the main reason why the infamous “SCRAMBLE FOR AFRICA” came
about. The industrialists also wanted markets where they could sell their finished products.

8.3. Controlled Capitalism: What we see in the Western world is no longer a “Laissez Faire
Capitalism” but Controlled Capitalism. Granted, the multi-national corporations have an undue
power over national Governments, but the governments also can exercise considerable power
over capitalistic business. Capitalism can be controlled by two major powers: Government and
Trade Unions. This is a kind of self-control within the capitalistic system itself.

9. IMPORTANT QUESTIONS TO CAPITALISM

No doubt, capitalism of any kind has turned out a greater amount of goods than ever before in
history. However, there are many questions still to be asked.
• How many people in the world actually benefit from the present capitalist success?

25
 • Will the abundance of goods also solve deeper human problems like greed, pride, and
hunger for power?
• Will people ever be satisfied materially or will they always want more?
• Will capitalism achieve lasting social harmony and justice for all people on earth?
• Is it right to encourage people to consume more and more goods and in this way, destroy
and exploit the natural resources without thinking of future generations?
• Does man find highest fulfillment in consuming goods or are there higher aims to be
achieved in human life?
• Is it right to judge people according to what they possess and not according to what they
ARE

MARXISM

Marxism advocates complete abolition of private property. The state has exclusive control over
all the means of production and distribution. It professes a materialistic interpretation of life. No
one in the Marxist party is allowed to discuss or attack its ideology. Consequently, all freedom of
speech or freedom of the press is out of question. No other party can exist, no independent union,
no right to strike, no right to change jobs. Nothing outside or above Marxist socialism; nothing
against Marxist socialism, everything within Marxist Socialism, everything for Marxist socialism!
This is socialism in its most radical form. It can be described as a totalitarian system. Whatever is
advantageous to the working of this system is permitted.

Marxism radically excludes the presence and action of God. Fundamentally this is because it does
not accept God’s existence, being a system that is essentially and systematically atheistic. Matter
is the one and only form of being. It follows accordingly that religion can be understood only as a
kind of “idealistic illusion” to be fought with the most suitable means and methods according to
circumstance of time and place in order to eliminate it from society and man’s very heart.

HISTORY AND DEVELOPMENT OF COMMUNISM

1. Marx and the Suffering Labourers.

Karl Marx, a German Jew, was born in 1818 and died in London in 1883. His ideas were too
“dangerous” in the time of the Industrial Revolution in which he lived. It was in England that
Marx experienced the suffering and misery of the labourers. In the first chapters of his famous
book “Capital” Marx writes compassionately about the lot of the suffering working class.

There were low wages, long hours (up to 16 hours per day), inhuman working conditions, no
security and worst of all, Child labour. In 1848 a British report spoke about children of 4-5 years
of age being used underground in the mines as “trappers”, opening and closing doors for the
passage carts.

2. Marx asked questions

a) What is wrong in society? Why are the labourers suffering? What are the deeper reasons
for it? Why is there injustice in society?

By asking these questions Marx undertook the task of “Social Analysis”.

b) What can be done to change the miserable situation of the labourers?

In answering this question Marx offered a practical programme for radical change
(REVOLUTION).

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 c) How do ideas and values develop in man? What do the perfect man and the perfect world
look like?

The answers to these questions form Marx’ philosophy which excludes God completely.
Marx, together with his life-long friend, F. Engels, wrote 40 books and the famous
“communist Manifesto” of 1848. In these books and writings Marx and Engels gave their
answers to the burning questions about the suffering workers and a “new society” as they
saw it.

3. The condition for a successful revolution

Marx offered a concrete plan of action. He did not believe in other socialists of his time whom he
called “utopian socialists”. They had no definite plan and wanted to introduce “some sort of
socialism”. This was not radical enough for Marx. He had a clear idea of the kind of revolution he
had in mind. In opposition to the “utopian socialism”, he called his teaching “Scientific
Socialism”.
Leaders of the revolution had to wait until the time was ripe for action. They also had to work
hard to create the right conditions for the revolution. For Marx the revolution was ripe if…
…the tension between factory-owners and workers reached bursting-point:
…the majority of the workers were aware of their responsibility in the struggle:
...the workers of the whole world joined in the revolution.

4. Marx foresaw his revolution in two stages.

The first stage should be SOCIALISM. During this stage all means of production should become
“socialized”, this means, they had to become the property of the workers. The workers
themselves should own and manage “their” factories.

The second stage, as Marx says, should be COMMUNISM. Once the “mode of production” had
changed, a new society would make its appearance, the Communist Society, the class-less and
community-minded society.

Marx was relatively unknown during his lifetime. But his influence, assumed world-wide
proportions as Lenin staged the Russian revolution in 1917. It was Lenin who strongly
emphasized a prolonged stage of SOCIALISM until the final stage of the revolution would
gradually be reached in COMMUNISM.

5. SOCIALISM: THE FIRST STAGE OF THE REVOLUTION

Marx was thinking in global terms. He proclaimed the Communist World Revolution. In
February 1884, K. Marx ad F. Engels composed the Manifesto of the Communist Party on the
occasion of the first International “League of Communists”. It read:

“The communists scorn to conceal their views and their intentions. They openly proclaim that
their aims can only be attained by the over-throwing by force of all existing order of society.
Let the ruling class tremble before the communist revolution! The proletariats have nothing to
lose but their chains. They have the world to gain. Workers of the world, Unite!”

The communist revolution, as Marx understood it, was not just a violent overthrow of
Government. It was more!

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The communist revolution was aimed at a radical change of mind and of society. The selfish
capitalistic attitude of making profit for oneself should be replaced by an unselfish, community-
minded attitude.

The way of achieving this radical change of mind was for Marx the PUBLIC ownership of all
“means of production”. The masses of the workers had to be made aware of their lot and be
mobilized for the struggle.

The revolution of the proletariat should lead to the “Dictatorship of the Proletariat”.

Marx did not accept the Western democracy as a true democracy. Even though everyone has the
right to vote, the proletariat is confused, he says, and follows blindly the propaganda of the
bourgeoisie. A few people control the mass media, radio, newspapers etc. and manipulate the
masses. Therefore, Marx claims, that what we now have is the “dictatorship of the bourgeoisie”
which is always the minority. So, in fact, Western democracy is a minority rule.

This minority rule must be changed first. The workers must gain power and establish the
“Dictatorship of the Proletariat” which in the eyes of Marx will be true democracy or rule by
the majority of the people.
In this proletarian revolution the means of production would become common property. Class-
differences would disappear.

The period after the proletarian revolution Marx called “Socialism”.

6. COMMUNISM: THE SECOND STAGE OF THE REVOLUTION

6.1. The final Communistic society

There is no Marxist-ruled country in the world which claims to have already reached the second
stage of the Marxist revolution which is COMMUNISM.
The transition from the “Socialist Society to COMUNISM is regarded as a slow and gradual
process. The spirit of greed and the capitalistic attitude of “chasing profit” will die a slow death.
The first stage of the revolution changed the “mode of production, the second stage will change
the attitude of the people themselves. A new Man and a new society will gradually evolve.

There will be no tension any longer between interest groups, so we are told. Police and armies of
the state will no longer be necessary.

There will be no wars because mankind will form one huge brotherhood. The reason for this
brotherly spirit lies in the elimination of competition and national greed.

Each person will be paid “according to his needs”. An artist, for example, whose work is so
special, need not worry about this material requirements, since these will be provided for.

The communist society will be a classless society. There will be no difference between industrial
and agricultural work, manual and intellectual work. Every person will be given the same and
equal opportunity to develop all his abilities.

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6.2. God has no place in Marx’s final and perfect communist society.
In his philosophy, Marx searches for the deeper meaning of man, society and nature. His whole
approach is a-theistic, that means he ignores all spiritual powers, and he ignores God who could
guide and influence the world from “outside”.

6.3. “Religion is the opium of the People”

The kind of religion which Marx experienced was the Christian religion of his time. His faith in
this religion was shattered when he saw Christian factory-owners and the way they treated the
workers.
Many of the preachers told the workers to accept their lot and to humble themselves and be
obedient to “God’s law”. Marx regarded such religion as a “sleeping pill” or “opium” which
made people unconscious of their misery.

Here are his words:

Religion “is the sigh of the oppressed creature, the sentiment of a heartless world, the soul of
the soul-less conditions, the opium of the people”.

Analyzing the religion of this time, Marx made a valid observation. It is still today a wrong and
distorted religion if religious people ignore the problems of society and merely “wait for heaven”.

Marx’s opinion is that belief in God made people content with their lot, they accepted their
masters as God-given authorities. Religion and God were created by the Capitalists FOR the
people in order to make them docile and content.

7. WHO IS A TRUE MARXIST?

It is one who:
a) Believes that all progress can be achieved by conflict between Man and Man
b) Believes that Man can be redeemed from selfishness by abolishing private ownership of
factories and other means of production.
c) Believes that society and nature develop themselves, following an interior mechanism
called “Dialectic Force”.
d) Believes that we do not need God for achieving a perfect and a new society.

8. MANY FACES OF MARXISM

When someone claims to be a Marxist, we should immediately ask the question: “What kind of
Marxist?” Just as Christianity is divided into different denominations, so is Marxism. Marx has
been re-interpreted by Marxists themselves. The Neo-Marxists, e.g. try to discover the more
human face of Marx in his early writings which were ignored by the early Marxists. Critical
Marxists of today try to eliminate certain teachings of Marx, which make sense only within the
historical situation in which Marx live at his time. They want to discover the underlying intention
of Marx which should be implemented in different countries and at different times. There might
be as many ‘Marxisms’ as there are different communist parties in the world.

3. CAPITALISM MIXED WITH SOCIALISM

CAPITALISM STANDS FOR: SOCIALISM STANDS FOR:

1. Free Anyone may start a Community People run a business
Enterprise business and own it Enterprise together and own it
privately together. There can be
“Association of Free

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 Producers” or the State can
nationalize factories and
other means of production
2. Competition A business person tries to NO There is no competition
produce cheaper goods in Competition
order to outdo his/her rival
3. Free Market Anyone can produce those Planned The state dictates which
good which he/she thinks market goods have to be produced,
will sell best. The regulates prices and wages
government does not by law
interfere much

Pure LAISSEZ FAIRE CAPITALISM and PURE SOCIALISM can scarcely be found in any
country today. What we find is a mixture of both. Some countries have adopted a “mixed
economy”, including capitalism and socialist elements.

Powerful political parties in some Western countries propagate a mixture between Free Market if
the capitalists and the Planned Market of the Socialists. They call it the “SOCIAL MARKET”. In
the USA, for instance, the Democratic Party and parts of the Labour Movement are leaning
towards the Social Market or “Welfare Capitalism” as they call it.

1. In this system the government competes with the private enterprise. The will be some factories
owned by private persons and others will be owned by the state.

2. This system emphasizes the just distribution of profit among citizens of the country. It
introduces social services for all, for instance, education, pensions, unemployment compensation,
recreation, transport, etc.

However, there still remains a problem of how to distribute wealth in the most just way.
Furthermore, even if equal distribution of goods is achieved in one country, the unequal
distribution of wealth between the rich and the poor nations still remains. The problem has
assumed global proportions!

TWO EXTREME THEORIES OPPOSED TO SOCIAL JUSTICE

(The Church’s View on Capitalism and Marxism) - 5

1. CAPITALISM
Capitalism is economic liberalism which accepts as its formula the unlimited and
uncontrolled freedom in economic competition which leads to the wild rush for the
accumulation of riches. Capitalism claims absolute right to private property
without any subordination to the common good of the society. It disregards the
moral and spiritual values of the worker and dignity of man. It entails the
exploitation of the working class. The Church therefore condemns capitalism.
Pope Pius XI wrote: “Just as the unity of the Human society cannot be built
upon class warfare, so the proper ordering of economic affairs cannot be left to
free competition alone. From this source have proceeded in the past all the
errors of the individualistic School. This school, ignorant or forgetful of the
social and moral aspects of economic matters teaches that the state should

30
refrain in theory and practice from interfering therein, because these possesses
in free competition and open markets a principle of self-direction better able to
control them than any created intellect” Again, the Pope said: “Unbridled
ambition for domination has succeeded the desire for gain. The whole economic
life has become hard, cruel and relentless in a ghastly measure.”
The Church always recalls to our mind the principle of the priority of labour over
capital. This principle directly concerns the process of production: In this process
labour is always a primary efficient cause, while capital, a whole collection of the
means of production, remains a mere instrument or instrumental cause. This
principle is an evident truth that emerges from the whole of man’s historical
experience.
Obviously, it remains clear that every human being sharing in the production
process, even if he or she is only doing the kind of work for which no special
training or qualifications are required, is the real efficient subject in this
production process, while the whole collection of instruments, no matter how
perfect they may be in themselves are only a mere instrument subordinate to
human labour. This truth which is part of the abiding heritage of Church’s
teaching must always be emphasized and give prominence to the primacy of
man in the production process, the primacy of man over things. Everything
contained in the concept of capital in the strict sense is only a collection of things.
Man as a subject and independently of the work that he does—Man alone is a
person. (The principle behind starting a business or trade should be for the service
of man.)

Pope John Paul II in his Encyclical, “Centesimus Annus” 1 May 1991, wrote “can
it be perhaps be said that after the failure of communism, capitalism is the
victorious system, and that capitalism should be the goal of the countries now
making efforts to rebuild their economy and society? Is this the model which
ought to be proposed to the countries of the third world? Which are searching
for the path for the true economic and civil progress?” (Tear down this wall,
Mr. Gorberchev - Reagan)

“The answer is obviously complex if by “Capitalism” is meant an economic

system which recognizes the fundamental and positive role of businesses, the
market, private property and the resulting responsibility for the means of
production as well as free human creativity in the economic sector, then the
answer is certainly in the affirmative even though it would perhaps be more
appropriate to speak of ‘a business economy’. But if capitalism is meant a system
in which freedom in the economic sector is not circumscribed within a strong
judicial framework, which places it at the service of human freedom in its totality
and which sees in it a particular aspect of that freedom, the core of which is ethical
and religious, then the reply is certainly negative.

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2. MARXISM (COMMUNISM)
Marxism is Capitalism in a colossal form. Capitalism in an individualistic form
profits a few private individuals. Capitalism in a colossal form (Marxism) profits
the state.
Marxism advocates complete abolition of the private property. The state has
exclusive control over all means of production and distribution. Marxism
professes a complete materialistic interpretation of life. It robs human personality
of all its dignity in the name of collectivism. None in the Marxist party is allowed
to discuss or attack its ideology. Consequently, all freedom of speech or freedom
of the press is out of question. No other party can exist, no independent union, no
right to strike, no right to change jobs. Nothing outside or above Marxian
socialism; nothing against Marxian socialism; everything within Marxian
socialism! This is radical socialism! Here is a totalitarian system whatever is
advantageous to the working of this system is permitted.
Marxism has at its core materialism. In principle and I n fact, materialism
radically excludes the presence and action of God. Fundamentally this is because
it does not accept God’s existence, being a system that is essentially and
systematically atheistic. Matter is the one and only form of being. It follows
according to this interpretation, that religion can be understood only as a kind
“idealistic illusion “to be fought with the most suitable means and methods
according to circumstances of time and place in order to eliminate it from society
and from man’s very heart. Materialism as a system of thought in all its forms
means acceptance of death as the definitive end of human existence. Everything
that is material is corruptible.
Pope John Paul II says: “Religion for Marxism is incompatible with what man is.
Marxism is a radical inversion of the truth of creation. God is considered as the
“Usurper” and “enemy” of man. Here is the lie of Marxism.
In seeking the source of this “lie” which is found at the beginning of history, as
the root of the sin in the world of created beings endowed with freedom in the
image of the creator…there come to the mind the words of the great Augustine:
Love of self to the point of despising God, this is Marxism.”
Religion then, for Marxism is a factor of alienation for man. According to
materialistic Anthropology, religion is considered as a factor which deprives man
of the fullness of his humanity. Allegedly it is man himself with his religion who
deprives himself of the fullness of his humanity renouncing what is imminently
and integrally human in favour of a God who, according to the hypotheses and
premises of materialistic system, is merely a product of man.
Again, Pope John Paul II said to the Bishops of the Berlin Episcopal Conference
on 27 November 1987 “An ideological atheism oppresses you. It encompasses all
sectors of society and sees religion more and as faulty reasoning. You are
oppressed even more by a practical, everyday materialism, spread in other places
as well which numbs the heart and blinds the eyes. More and more however,
perceptive people are realizing that an ideology which excludes the reality of

32
God in human life and society is incapable of meeting people’s real earthly
needs and the great problems of the present and the future.”
Again, Pope John Paul II in his Encyclical, “Centesimus Annus” 1 May 1991,
wrote: “The Marxist solution has failed, but the realities of marginalization and
exploitation remain in the world, especially the Developing World, as does the
reality of human alienation, especially in the most advanced countries. Against
these phenomena the Church strongly raises her voice. Vast multitudes are still
living in conditions of great material and moral poverty. The collapse of the
communist system in so many countries certainly removes an obstacle to facing
these problems in an appropriate and realistic way, and it is not enough to bring
about their solution. Indeed there is a risk that a radical capitalistic ideology
could spread which refuses even to consider these problems, in the “a priori”
belief that any attempt to solve them is doomed to failure and which blindly
entrusts their solution to the free development of market forces.”

GLOBALIZATION

1. WHAT IS GLOBALIZATION?

Globalization can mean many things/in general. Globalization can be said to be a process
whereby inter connectedness and unity among people is increased throughout the world.
The world is considered like a village. In particular, we can speak of globalization of
human rights. The human person must be an end and not a means; a subject, not an
object, nor a commodity of trade. We can speak of globalization of consciences. It means
that we must conform our personal, familiar and social choices to what is right and just.
The same is true for the policies of national and international development.
We can also speak of globalization of solidarity. The principle of solidarity
affirms that the more individuals are defenseless within a given society the more they
require the care and concern of others and in particular the intervention of government
authority.
Then we can speak of globalization of economy. Globalization of economy is the
process through which capital goods, services and at times labour easily cross national
boundaries and then acquires a transnational character. It is a process of opening up and
interlinking the production and marketing of all countries in the world. Beginning with
the procurement of raw materials, processing them into finished products and marketing
them, it will have no barriers in terms of territorial boundaries, policies of particular
nations with regards to production and import export trade. Every country therefore will
have to liberalize the past and present policies to be open to the whole globe. Capital
becomes international.
This phenomenon has great possibilities of growth and production of wealth.
There are other benefits such as employment, trade collaboration, new technical skills,
electric advances which uplift many spheres of society, cheaper air travel, etc. if
globalization were to assign the highest priority as to providing unrestricted market
access for all exports from the poorest countries so that these countries can begin to

33
benefit more fully from integration into the global trading system, it should be welcomed.
Again, if globalization were to support policies that encourage the inflow of private
capital, especially foreign direct investment with its own benefits of new financing and
technology transfers, it is blessing.

2. DEFINITION OF GLOBALIZATION

Many definitions of this phenomenon often tend to leave the general reader with a
shallow understanding of globalization as primarily an economic phenomenon.
Manfred B. Steger, professor of Global Studies and director of the Globalism Research
Centre at RMIT University (the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, Australia), in
his excellent little treatise on “Globalization: A Very Short Introduction” (Oxford
University Press, 2004) is helpful in understanding true meaning of ‘globalization’.
Steger is concerned that “narrow accounts often leave the general reader with a shallow
understanding of globalization as primarily an economic phenomenon.” He further
identities four distinct qualities or characteristics of globalization:

2.1. Characteristics of Globalization

1. Globalization involves the creation of new and the multiplication of existing social
networks and activities that increasingly overcome traditional political, economic,
cultural, and geographical boundaries.
2. Globalization involves the expansion and stretching of social relations, activities, and
interdependencies.
3. Globalization involves the intensification and acceleration of social exchanges and
activities.
4. Globalization involves the subjective plane of human consciousness. Thus,
globalization refers to people becoming increasingly conscious of growing
manifestations of social interdependence and the enormous acceleration of social
interactions. In the last case, Steger states, “Their awareness of the receding importance
of geographical boundaries and distances fosters a keen sense of becoming part of a
global whole. Reinforced on a daily basis, these persistent experiences of global
interdependence gradually change people’s individual and collective identities, and
thus dramatically impact the way they act in the world.”

As people open up to each other, they form a bridge into unfamiliar traditions, banishing
the fear that often accompanies change and dislocation. In other words, when they
broaden their lens on the world, they can better understand themselves, their own lives
and culture. They share more in common with the far reaches of their small planet than
they realize.

Globalization is the process of world shrinkage, of distances getting shorter, things

moving closer. It pertains to the increasing ease with which somebody on one side of the
world can interact, to mutual benefit, with somebody on the other side of the world. In its
simplistic sense globalization refers to the widening, deepening and speeding up of global
interconnection. It is the intensification of worldwide social relations which link distant

34
localities in such a way that local happenings are shaped by events occurring many miles
away and vice versa.

2.2. Globalization Is Uneven

Manfred B. Steger observes, however, that Globalization is an uneven process, meaning
that people living in various parts of the world are affected very differently by this
gigantic transformation of social structures and cultural zones. Large segments of the
world’s population—particularly in the Global South—do not enjoy equal access to
thickening global networks and infrastructure.

3. DIMENSIONS OF GLOBALIZATION
Globalization is mainly composed of five dimensions: economic, political, cultural,
ecological, and ideological.

3.1. Economic Dimension

Economic globalization refers to the intensification and stretching of economic
interrelations around the globe. It encompasses such things as the emergence of a new
global economic order, the internationalization of trade and finance, the changing power
of transnational corporations, and the enhanced role of international economic
institutions.

3.2. Political Dimension

Political globalization refers to the intensification and expansion of political interrelations
around the globe. Aspects of political globalization include the modern-nation state
system and its changing place in today’s world, the role of global governance, and the
direction of our global political systems.

3.3. Cultural Dimension

Cultural globalization refers to the intensification and expansion of cultural flows across
the globe. Culture is a very broad concept and has many facets, but in the discussion on
globalization, Steger means it to refer to “the symbolic construction, articulation, and
dissemination of meaning.” Topics under this heading include discussion about the
development of a global culture, or lack thereof, the role of the media in shaping our
identities and desires, and the globalization of languages.

3.4. Ecological Dimension

Ecological globalization refers to the global environmental issues. Topics of ecological
globalization include population growth, access to food, worldwide reduction in
biodiversity, the gap between rich and poor as well as between the global North and
global South, human-induced climate change, and global environmental degradation.

3.5. Ideological Dimension

Globalization operates on “an ideological dimension filled with a range of norms, claims,
beliefs, and narratives about the phenomenon itself.” According to Steger, there are three
main types of globalism (ideologies that endow the concept of globalization with

35
particular values and meanings): market globalism, justice globalism, and jihadist
globalism. Steger defines them as follows:

❖ Market globalism seeks to endow ‘globalization’ with free-market norms and

neoliberal meanings.
❖ Justice globalism constructs an alternative vision of globalization based on egalitarian
ideals of global solidarity and distributive justice.
❖ Jihadist globalism struggles against market- and justice globalism as it seeks to
mobilize the global Muslim community of believers (umma) in defense of Islamic
values and beliefs that are thought to be under severe attack by the forces of that
favour secularism and consumerism.

4. GLOBALIZATION AS A MAINLY ECONOMIC PHENOMENON

Globalization of economy is the contemporary vision of capitalism. Wealth produced is
often concentrated in the hands of a small group of persons, which brings about a further
weakening of sovereignty of national states. Weakened nation-states that are synonymous
with the less developed countries, are further undermined by their loss of access to a
world system that is now governed by a few centres run by a small privately owned
businesses. The free market is, of course, a distinctive feature of our time. However, there
are indispensable human needs that cannot be left to the mercy of the free market at risk
of their being brushed aside.
The phenomenon of globalization thus benefits only the rich countries and rich
populations. It tends to aggravate the existing imbalances both within and between
countries, rather than reduce or eliminate them. Globalization is dominated by economic,
financial market principles. Social, political and ethical conditions remain secondary,
resulting in a deficit in the democratic principles of governing and an increase in poverty.
Globalization brings intolerance, discriminations and fragmentation of people. It gives
right to unprecedented communal hatred and impoverishment of cultural diversity.
The American Religious educator, Michael Warren, (1987) notes that
globalization changes a person’s thinking in three ways: as “culture in the formation of
perception, language in the formation of thought and hegemony in the formation of
consciousness.” He further coins two terms that come into play when we think of the
effects of globalization in our world today: “McDonaldisation” and “Disneyisation”.
First, while McDonaldisation is influencing the business world through globalization, a
global popular culture has been influencing the world through the media. Like
McDonald, the Disney Company also receives the dubious honour as symbol of this
global popular culture. Disneyisation is the term used for the worldwide control of the
arts, entertainment, media so that a particular worldview, values and filtered knowledge
are disseminated. This is the cultural component of globalization. It exports escapism,
American culture, products, and a delusion that happiness can be bought. Disneyisation
has united the world into one culture that regards human beings as consumers. From birth
children are exposed to advertisements that life will be better if one uses the right sort of
mouthwash or hair cream, buys a certain brand of car, achieves a certain body shape, or
drinks a certain brand of beer. Children grow up with the delusion that money can buy
whatever they need. This is a worldwide phenomenon and marketing has become the
creator of these new “realities.”

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 Furthermore, globalization has given birth to consumerism and materialism –the
driving force of this global culture. The media has been spreading this influence through
prints like books and magazines, television, movies and recently the Internet. Television
has created people who are passive recipient of the media, while assimilating this global
culture uncritically. The consumer worldview promises a delusion. Instant gratification is
the new reality. Instant results are expected. They believe that these instant results are
achievable either by new programs, more advanced technology or new spiritual
techniques. Things and people are to be used. Unproductive things and people are to be
discarded. With a consumer mentality, there is no basis to enter into a life of submission
and humility. According to the consumer mentality, activity is in orbit around the
individual. The mania for success trains people to think in terms of programs and give
them a short term view of personal development. They begin to believe that if they can
get a handle on this character flaw of uncontrolled anger in the next two months, it will
be taken care of. If it doesn’t work, then they need to find a better teacher, church,
curriculum, husband, wife, or workplace. The delusion of the consumer worldview is
being continually transmitted through the media, arts, movies, and music. The foundation
of the consumer worldview is the worship and glorification of money as god.
The most serious danger for education in the world lies in the fact that it is
subjugated to the powers of the global market. Those powers have secured cultural
hegemony over all the peoples in the world and thereby over the whole of cosmic life.
The cultural life of all people – their minds, hearts and senses – is for all practical
purposes dominated by the modernist school systems and hi-tech mass media, and
colonized by the market forces. Total consciousness as well as conscience is being
dictated by the cultural actions of the principalities and powers in the global market.

5. THE CHURCH’S STAND ON GLOBALIZATION

The Church’s social doctrine is not a third way between liberal capitalism and
Marxist collectivism, nor even a possible alternative to other solutions less radically
opposed to one another. Rather the Church’s Social Teaching constitutes a category of its
own. Nor is it an ideology, but rather the accurate formulation of the results of a careful
reflection on the context realities of human existence, in society and in the international
order, in the light of faith and in the church’s tradition. Its main aim is to interpret these
realities, determining their conformity with, or divergence from, the lines of the Gospel
teaching on the human being and his/her vocation.
The Church’s social doctrine is meant to be a vehicle through which the Gospel of
Jesus Christ is brought to bear on different cultural, economic and political situation
facing modern men and women. Since it is a doctrine aimed at guiding people’s
behaviour, it consequently gives rise to a commitment to justice, according to each
individual’s role, vocation and circumstances.
Looking at the two economic systems of capitalism and Marxist, it is legitimate to
argue that liberal capitalism is the lesser of the two evils in that the political institutions
which accompany it allow for an internal criticism which does not carry with it the
danger of indefinite imprisonment or death. Pope John Paul II in his encyclical Sollicido
Rei Socialis speaks of the right to economic initiative in his catalogue of human rights
and he exhorts the developing countries to reform unjust structures-replacing dictatorial
and authoritarian forms of government with democratic and participatory ones.

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 Pope John Paul II in his encyclical Centesimus Annus of 1May1999, teaches the
following:
“The church has no models to present; models that are real and truly effective
can only arise within the framework of different historical situations, through the
efforts of all those who responsibly confront concrete problems in all their social,
economic, political and cultural aspects, as these interact with one another. For such a
task, the church offers her social teaching as an indispensable and ideal orientation, a
teaching which as already mentioned, recognizes the positive values of the market and
of the enterprise but which at the same time points out that these need to be oriented
towards the common good. This teaching also recognizes the legitimacy of workers
effort to obtain full respect for their dignity and to gain broader areas of participation
in the life of industrial enterprises so that, while cooperating with others, and under
the direction of others, they can in a certain sense ‘work for themselves’ through the
exercise of their intelligence and freedom.
The integral development of the human person through work does not impede
but rather promotes the greater productivity and efficiency of work itself, even though
it may weaken on solidated power structures. A business cannot be considered only as
‘society of capital goods’; it is also a ‘society of persons’ in which people participate in
different ways and with specific responsibilities, whether they supply the necessary
capital for the company’s activities or take part in such activities through their labour.
To achieve these goals, there is still need for a broad associated workers’ movement,
directed toward the liberation and promotion of the whole person.”
In Gaudium et Spes, no. 39, of the Second Vatican Council says: “The Church’s
social teaching does not concern the concrete organizational expression of society but
the inspirational principles which must give it direction in order that it should be
worthy of man. Therefore the role that the Church claims as her own, with all respect
for the state and the society in which she lives, is not a role of power, nor less so of
privilege, but of witness, directed most of all towards the aim of forming people in the
supreme values of existence. What moves her (the Church) most is the proclamation of
the kingdom of God which certainly has an eschatological, transcendence dimension,
but which also involves building the world according to God plan”
The Church therefore holds that if the term global is to be understood logically, it
must include every person. Thus it forces the nations to eliminate poverty pockets that
result from groups that are socially, economical and politically marginalized. Only if
people are the leading actors and not the slaves of the processes of production, can a
business become a real community of individuals.
We must humanize globalization, keeping the focus on the human being rather
than production.
In conclusion, we say, it is important to note that political authority must always
be exercised within the limit of morality and on behalf of dynamically conceived
common goods. It should appreciate the cultural, social and religious aspect of the
various members of the country, with respect for fairness, justice and truth. Its good
functioning depends particularly on the extent to which the dignity of the person
and the sacredness of human life are respected.

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 MODERNISM

1. WHAT IS MODERNISM?

Modernism, in its broadest definition, is modern thought, character, or practice. More

specifically, the term describes the modernist movement, its set of cultural tendencies and
array of associated cultural movements, originally arising from wide-scale and far-
reaching changes to Western society in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Some
commentators define Modernism as a socially progressive trend of thought that affirms
the power of human beings to create, improve and reshape their environment with the aid
of practical experimentation, scientific knowledge, or technology. From this perspective,
Modernism encouraged the re-examination of every aspect of existence, from commerce
to philosophy, with the goal of finding that which was 'holding back' progress, and
replacing it with new ways of reaching the same end. Others focus on Modernism as an
aesthetic introspection. This facilitates consideration of specific reactions to the use of
technology in the First World War, and anti-technological and nihilistic aspects of the
works of diverse thinkers and artists spanning the period from Friedrich Nietzsche (1844–
1900) to Samuel Beckett (1906–1989).

Modernism can, further, be seen as a way of ordering the social world and making
decisions based on a rationale, calculability and an adherence to the rules of expert
knowledge. It is an attempt to establish the scope and the limit of the faculties of wisdom,
knowledge and judgment.

1.1. Modernism as a Revolt against Conservative Values

Modernism was a revolt against the conservative values of realism. The motive of
modernism is the rejection of tradition and its reprise, incorporation, rewriting,
recapitulation, revision and parody in new forms. Modernism rejected the existence of a
compassionate, all-powerful Creator God. In general, the term modernism encompasses
the activities and output of those who felt that the "traditional" forms of art, architecture,
literature, religious faith, social organization and daily life were becoming outdated in the
new economic, social, and political conditions of an emerging fully industrialized world.

1.2. Modernism as a Rebellion against Victorian Culture

As a cultural movement, Modernism is a rebellion against Victorian customs. Victorian
culture emphasized nationalism and cultural absolutism. Victorians placed humans over
and outside of nature. They believed in a single way of looking at the world, and in
absolute and clear-cut dichotomies between right and wrong, good and bad, and hero and
villain. Further, they saw the world as being governed by God's will, and that each person
and thing in this world had a specific use. Finally, they saw the world as neatly divided
between "civilized" and "savage" peoples. According to Victorians, the "civilized" were
those from industrialized nations, cash-based economies, Protestant Christian traditions,
and patriarchal societies; the "savage" were those from agrarian or hunter-gatherer tribes,
barter-based economies, "pagan" or "totemistic" traditions, and matriarchal (or at least
"unmanly" societies).

39
Modernists blamed Victorianism for such evils as slavery, racism, and imperialism--and
later for World War I. Modernists emphasized humanism over nationalism, and argued
for cultural relativism. Modernists emphasized the ways in which humans were part of
and responsible to nature. Further, they challenged the idea that God played an active role
in the world, which led them to challenge the Victorian assumption that there was
meaning and purpose behind world events. Instead, Modernists argued that NO thing or
NO person was born for a specific use; instead, they found or made their own meaning in
the world. Challenging the Victorian dichotomy between "civilized" and "savage,"
Modernists reversed the values associated with each kind of culture. Modernists
presented the Victorian "civilized" as greedy and warmongering (instead of being
industrialized nations and cash-based economies), as hypocrites (rather than Christians),
and as enemies of freedom and self-realization (instead of good patriarchs). Those that
the Victorians had dismissed (and subjugated) as "savages" the Modernists saw as being
the truly civilized--responsible users of their environments, unselfish and family-oriented,
generous, creative, mystical and full of wonder, and egalitarian. These "savages," post-
World War I Modernists pointed out, did not kill millions with mustard gas, machine-
guns, barbed wire, and genocidal starvation.

2. MODERNISM AND LITERATURE

Literary Modernism has its origins in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, mainly in
Europe and North America. Modernism is characterized by a self-conscious break with
traditional styles of poetry and verse. Modernists experimented with literary form and
expression, adhering to the modernist maxim to "Make it new." The modernist literary
movement was driven by a desire to overturn traditional modes of representation and
express the new sensibilities of their time.

In the 1880s a strand of thinking began to assert that it was necessary to push aside
previous norms entirely, instead of merely revising past knowledge in light of
contemporary techniques. Influential in the early days of Modernism were the theories of
Sigmund Freud (1856–1939), and Ernst Mach (1838–1916).

Modernist literature attempts to take into account changing ideas about reality developed
by Darwin, Mach, Freud, Einstein, Nietzsche, Bergson and others. From this developed
innovative literary techniques such as stream-of-consciousness, interior monologue, as
well as the use of multiple points-of-view. This can reflect doubts about the
philosophical basis of realism, or alternatively an expansion of our understanding of what
is meant by realism. So that, for example the use of stream-of-consciousness, or interior
monologue reflects the need for greater psychological realism. World War I, and the
disillusionment that followed, further shaped modernist views of human nature.

3. VALUE DIFFERENCES IN THE MODERN WORLD

PRE-MODERN PERIOD MODERN PERIOD (Early 20th Century)
ORDERED CHAOS
OPTIMISM PESSIMISTIC

40
MEANINGFUL FUTILE
STABLE FLUCTUATING
FAITH LOSS OF FAITH
MORALITY/VALUES COLLAPSE OF MORALITY/VALUES
CLEAR SENSE OF IDENTITY CONFUSDED SENSE OF IDENTITY AND
PLACE IN THE WORLD
4. HISTORICAL, SOCIAL, & CULTURAL HIGHLIGHTS OF THE MODERN
ERA

1. Two devastating almost-global wars: World War I (1914-1918) and World War II
(1941-1945)
2. Huge changes in industry and technology as compared to the 19th century
3. The rise in power and influence of international corporations
4. Interconnectedness across the globe (globalization): cultural exchanges,
transportation, communication, mass (or popular) culture from the West (with
"West" being considered Europe and North America)
5. The "Westernization" of many formerly traditional societies and nations and a
resulting change in their values (often to the detriment of the formerly traditional
society and nation). These "modern" values include:

5. MODERN VALUES
i. a belief in the desirability of industrialization,
ii. individual political rights,
iii. democracy,
iv. mass literacy and education,
v. private ownership of the means of production,
vi. the scientific method,
vii. public institutions like those in the West,
viii. middle class Western value systems,
ix. a disbelief in—or at least a questioning of—the existence of God,
x. and (sometimes) the emancipation of women

POSTMODERNISM
1. WHAT IS POSTMODERNISM?
Firstly, postmodernism was a movement in architecture that rejected the modernist,
avant-garde, passion for the new. Modernism is here understood in art and architecture as
the project of rejecting tradition in favour of going "where no man has gone before" or
better: to create forms for no other purpose than novelty. Modernism was an exploration
of possibilities and a perpetual search for uniqueness and its cognate--individuality.
Modernism's valorization of the new was rejected by architectural postmodernism in the
50's and 60's for conservative reasons. They wanted to maintain elements of modern
utility while returning to the reassuring classical forms of the past. The result of this was
an ironic brick-a-brack or collage approach to construction that combines several
traditional styles into one structure. As collage, meaning is found in combinations of
already created patterns.

41
In sum, we could simplistically outline this movement in historical terms:
A. Premodernism (Up to 1850’s): Original meaning is possessed by authority (for
example, the state, the Church). The individual is dominated by tradition.

B. Modernism (1850-1950’s): The enlightenment-humanist rejection of tradition

and authority in favour of reason and natural science. This is founded upon the
assumption of the autonomous individual as the sole source of meaning and truth--the
Cartesian cogito. Progress and novelty are valorized within a linear conception of history-
-a history of a "real" world that becomes increasingly real or objectified. One could view
this as a Protestant mode of consciousness.
C. Postmodernism (Beginning in the 1950’s): A rejection of the sovereign
autonomous individual with an emphasis upon anarchic collective, anonymous
experience. Collage, diversity, the mystically unpresentable, Dionysian passion are the
foci of attention. Most importantly we see the dissolution of distinctions, the merging of
subject and object, self and other.

2. CHARACTERISTICS OF POSTMODERNISM
When listing the characteristics of postmodernism, it is important to remember that
postmodernists do not place their philosophy in a defined box or category. Their beliefs
and practices are personal rather than being identifiable with a particular establishment or
special interest group. The following principles appear elemental to postmodernists:
1. There is no absolute truth - Postmodernists believe that the notion of truth is a
contrived illusion, misused by people and special interest groups to gain power over
others.
2. Truth and error are synonymous - Facts, postmodernists claim, are too limiting to
determine anything. Changing erratically, what is fact today can be false tomorrow.
3. Self-conceptualization and rationalization - Traditional logic and objectivity are
spurned by postmodernists. Preferring to rely on opinions rather than embrace facts,
postmodernist spurn the scientific method.
4. Traditional authority is false and corrupt - Postmodernists speak out against the
constraints of religious morals and secular authority. They wage intellectual
revolution to voice their concerns about traditional establishment.
5. Ownership - They claim that collective ownership would most fairly administrate
goods and services.
6. Disillusionment with modernism - Postmodernists lament the unfulfilled promises of
science, technology, government, and religion.
7. Morality is personal - Believing ethics to be relative, postmodernists subject morality
to personal opinion. They define morality as each person’s private code of ethics
without the need to follow traditional values and rules.
8. Globalization – Many postmodernists claim that national boundaries are a hindrance
to human communication. Nationalism, they believe, causes wars. Therefore,
postmodernists often propose internationalism and uniting separate countries.

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9. All religions are valid - Valuing inclusive faiths, postmodernists gravitate towards
New Age religion. They denounce the exclusive claims of Jesus Christ as being the
only way to God.
10. Liberal ethics - Postmodernists defend the cause of feminists and homosexuals.
11. Pro-environmentalism - Defending “Mother Earth,” postmodernists blame Western
society for its destruction.

3. POSTMEDERN CULTURE AND HUMAN DIGNITY

The postmodern mentality attacks some basic and cultural concepts of human dignity. Let
us examine some, here below.

i) An Attack on Truth
Perhaps the most identifying mark of postmodernism is its flat denial of the possibility of
truth. Postmodernism maintains that truth is created by a social group for its own
purposes and then forced on others in order to manipulate and suppress them.
Postmodernism’s main objective, therefore, is to “deconstruct” this buildup of language
and society (i.e. “culture”) and liberate the oppressed from the oppressors. Tim Keller
writes, “In this view, all ‘truths’ and ‘facts’ are now in quotation marks. Claims of
objective truth are really just a cover-up for a power play. Those who claim to have a
story true for all are really just trying to get power for their group over other groups.”1

ii) The Loss of Identity

If modernism proclaimed the death of God, postmodernism proclaims the death of
self, the death of human dignity. The postmodern person tears away at every foundation
that would give him identity. He would even object to our using “him” in the previous
sentence as a preconceived way of oppressing and manipulating women. The genders are
therefore removed and another layer of identity is gone from their world.

iii) The Loss of Centrality

The loss of identity leads to, and goes hand in hand with, the loss of man’s place
in the universe which is central to human dignity. Modernism took God from His place as
the center of the universe and replaced Him with man himself. But postmodernism will
not allow man to be in that place either. Man is rather seen as existing for no designed
reason, floating on “the third rock from the sun,” himself a collection of atoms that has no
more right to exist than the rock itself. As a matter of fact, the rock has more right to
exist. Animal rights activists continue to insist that animals have as much right, if not
more (because they are void of oppressive agendas), to space on this rock as humans.
Political activists work to destroy western capitalism which has been responsible for
social manipulation and class warfare.

iv) The Rise of Meta-fiction

Postmodernists and postmodern critics use the prefix “meta” to describe
postmodernism’s use of cultural tools. “Metanarratives” are narratives about narratives,

1
Tim Keller, “Preaching Morality in an Amoral Age,” in Christianity Today, Inc./Leadership Journal
(1996), Downloaded from AOL, 14/05/2011.

43
or modern men’s ability to write history by building their own ideas on their own
previous ideas. Meta-fiction is the postmodern cultural phenomenon of “image being
everything.”
Fiction is built upon fiction, image upon image, until no one can tell the real from
the unreal, which is precisely what postmodern writers and producers want. Television
and theater are the supreme postmodern art forms using meta-fiction. Beer commercials
begin with a dying man on an island but end with a lively party of dancing girls and cold
beer. A movie begins in an Iowa corn field but eventually has the viewer believing that
football or whatever sports player from long ago can walk from unreality into reality and
play ball. Your television screen begins with a serious drama but is interrupted by a pink
bunny crossing the screen while the narrator says, “still going.” Michael Jordan actually
plays basketball with the Loony Tunes characters while they teach him the advantages of
stretch moves impossible in the “people world.” These are sometimes called “magical
realism” or “super realism.” In either case, they blur the distinction between real and
unreal.

4. POSTMODERNISM AND THE CHURCH

Postmodernism gives a new hierarchy of values. It places pleasure over love, health and
well-being above the sacredness of life, the participation of special interests groups in
governance above democratic representation, women’s rights above motherhood, the
empowerment of the selfish individual above any form of legitimate authority, ethics
above morality, the right to choose above the eternal law written in the human heart,
democracy and humanism above divine revelation – in a nutshell, immanence above
transcendence, man above God, the world above heaven.

Human dignity originates from God and is of God because we are made in God’s own
image and likeness (Gn. 1:26-27). Human life is sacred because the human person is the
most central and clearest reflection of God among us. Human beings have transcendent
worth and value that comes from God; this dignity is not based on any human quality,
legal mandate, or individual merit or accomplishment. Human dignity is inalienable –
that means it is an essential part of every human being and is an intrinsic quality that can
never be separated from other essential aspects of the human person.

Human beings are qualitatively different from any other living being in the world because
they are capable of knowing and loving God, unlike any other creature. Belief in the
dignity of the human person is the foundation of morality. The principle of human dignity
is the foundation of all the Catholic social teaching principles. It is for this reason that the
postmodern mentality which tries to put man at the service of technological advancement
is intrinsically going contrary to human dignity.

5. DIFFERENCES BETWEEN MODERNISM AND POSTMODERNISM

Modernism Post modernism
Modernism began in the 1890s and lasted Postmodernism began after the Second World War,
till about 1945. especially after 1968.

44
Modernism was based on using rational, Postmodernism denied the application of logical
logical means to gain knowledge. thinking. Thinking during the postmodern era was
based on unscientific, irrational thought process, as a
reaction to modernism.
Modernist approach was objective, Postmodernism approach was based on subjectivity. It
theoretical and analytical. lacked the analytical nature and thoughts were
rhetorical and completely based on belief.
Modernist thinking is about the search of Postmodernist thinkers believe that there is no
an abstract truth of life. universal truth, abstract or otherwise.
Modernist thinking asserts that mankind Postmodernist thinking believes that progress is the
progresses by using science and reason. only way to justify the European domination on
Modernists have a high regard for man's culture.
ability to reason things out without the aid
of divine revelation.
Modernist thinking believes in learning Postmodernist thinking defies any truth in the text
from past experiences and trusts the texts narrating the past and renders it of no use in the present
that narrate the past. times.
Modernism considers the original works as Postmodernist thinkers base their views on hyper-
authentic reality; they get highly influenced by things propagated
through media.

45
During the modernist era, art and literaryPostmodernist era came with the onset of computers,
works were considered as unique creations media and advancements in technology. Television and
of the artists. People were serious about the
computers became dominant in society. Art and literary
purpose of producing art and literary works began to be copied and preserved by the means
works. These works were believed to bear aof digital media. People no longer believed in art and
deep meaning, novels and books pre- literary works bearing one unique meaning; they rather
dominated society. believed in deriving their own meanings from pieces of
art and literature. Interactive media and Internet led to
distribution of knowledge. Music like Mozart,
Beethoven, which was appreciated during modernism
became less popular in the postmodern era. World
music, DJs and remixes characterized postmodernism.
The architectural forms that were popular during
modernism were replaced by a mix of different
architectural styles in the postmodern times.
Modernists believe they can discover Postmodernists stress that language, culture, and
unified and coherent foundations of truth society are arbitrary and conventionally agreed upon
that are universally true and applicable. and should not be considered natural. They accept the
limitations of multiple news, fragmentation, and
indeterminacy.
Modernists search for universals. Postmodernists do not merely follow modernists
chronologically. They critique. They identify
differences.
Modernism places faith in the ideas, Postmodernism rejects Western values and beliefs as
values, beliefs, culture, and norms of the only a small part of the human experience and often
West. rejects such ideas, beliefs, culture, and norms.
Modernism attempts to reveal profound Postmodernism is suspicious of being "profound"
truths of experience and life,. because such ideas are based on one particular
Western value systems.

Modernism attempts to find depth and Postmodernism prefers to dwell on the exterior image
interior meaning beneath the surface of and avoids drawing conclusions or suggesting
objects and events. underlying meanings associated with the interior of
objects and events.
Modernism focused on central themes and Postmodernism sees human experience as unstable,
a united vision in a particular piece of internally contradictory, ambiguous, inconclusive,
literature. indeterminate, unfinished, fragmented, discontinuous,
"jagged," with no one specific reality possible.
Therefore, it focuses on a vision of a
contradictory, fragmented, ambiguous,
indeterminate, unfinished, "jagged" world.

46
Modern authors guide and control the The Postmodern writer creates an "open" work in
reader’s response to their work, which the reader must supply his own connections,
work out alternative meanings, and provide his
own (unguided) interpretation.

6. EFFECTS OF MODERNISM AND POSTMODERNISM ON OUR WORLD

Modernism and postmodernism have influenced the way people think over the last two
centuries. The effects are evident in everyday life. These include amongst others moral
relativity and a consequent disastrous breakdown in family values the breakdown of
marriage and fragmentation of family life.

6.1. Technological advances and its ensuing effects: We have mostly all the latest
technologies available. Hundreds of TV channels, broad band internet connections and
mobile phones reaching every town and village. Roads are becoming wider and new high
buildings are emerging from nowhere. Job opportunities are much large as compared to
earlier years. Some people are able to change more than five jobs in just five years. We
have moved from a state of nothing to everything. Human reason did not bring the
"salvation" many expected. Modern science, despite its many accomplishments, failed to
meet man's basic needs. By the end of the Second World War, faith in the inevitable
progress of humanity had largely vanished. As a result, today's society faces a host of
problems, partly as a result of the very technology that was supposed to solve them.
Pollution, climate changes, poverty, communicative diseases, social injustice, racism,
terrorism, etc. are on the increase. Purposelessness and meaninglessness have replaced
optimism and hope.

6.2. No value attached to the real meaning of life: However few questions have
started haunting us about the life which we have chosen. Is it not a life which is missing
the love of togetherness, a world which is without time for others, a life which is more
demanding, a life which is making us robots, and a life which is making us ill and a life
which is making us nothing at the end? However the thirst for more money and comfort
is making our life more difficult. Today, thanks to mobile phone and internet services that
permit us to make calls or mail friends instantly, giving us no opportunity of paying
personal visits to them. Life looks more near to us, but in actual it has gone more far
away from many of us.

6.3. Increased Diseases and Health Problems: Psychological disorders are rising at
alarming pace; nearly everyone is associated with some or other health problems. Today,
children are dying from cancer, diabetics, hepatitis and heart disorders which were not
seen years before. Osteoporosis has become a common story for all the middle-aged
people. Suicide is also on the increase.

6.4. Pollution and environmental degradation: We are generating pollution and

endangering our environment to make money. We are cutting beautiful trees from hills to
make hotels and homes; we are destroying beautiful beaches to construct five star hotels.

47
Nature is also rewarding us back with increase in normal temperature level which has
caused the hardest climatic conditions experienced ever around the world. We are
creating things to get comfort but more severe problems are emerging in front of us
because it is not possible to steal anything from nature. Global warming and the current
environmental degradation and pollution challenges faced the world over are proves of
this.

6.5. Image and Information Culture: Today we live in an image and information
age. TVs, VCRs, DVDs, and computers with Internet have become our living room, and
even bedroom companions. We, and especially our children, see and experience the
world around us mostly via the media. Producers of television programs are presenting
image and fiction as reality in contemporary music, sitcoms, TV movies and even
documentaries. They understand the power of visual images to create fictional or virtual
realities that young people find difficult to distinguish from "real" reality. Postmodernists
justify this dissolving of distinctions between fiction and truth by their claim that truth is
basically fiction. Reality is what we perceive it to be.

6.6. The Music Scene: The most striking example of postmodern media deception is
MTV (Music Television). From its fast, fragmented production editing to its underlying
visions (sexual moral relativism, for example), MTV represents "the cutting edge" of
postmodernism applied to consumer media. MTV's editors "collage" the shows together
into a jumpy, stream-of-consciousness presentation that leaves older viewers baffled by
its pace and apparent incoherence. MTV's twenty-four-hour parade of blatantly sexual
images, pseudo-documentaries, hedonistic dating scenario, game shows, music videos,
and cutting-edge advertisements relentlessly assault one's visual and auditory senses,
leaving viewers feeling fragmented and transient within a decentered pluralistic reality:
the postmodern world. Chuck Smith is right when he observes: "Postmodernism has
become the essence of popular culture - which means our children are exposed to it every
time they turn on a television, read a school book, or skim through a magazine" Perhaps
your teenagers have no access to MTV in your home but they can--and many do--listen to
the same immoral, hedonistic anti-Christian poison on their CD players and Ipads.

6.7. Vision Based Education in Schools and Churches: Postmodern ideas and
methods are also infiltrating our educational system. The emphasis in many schools is on
the visual rather than the audible and written word. Students are being conditioned to
process only study material that is presented to them through audio-visual means. This is
also becoming a problem for ministers and elders who teach catechism and youth
workers and Bible study leaders in church. It is to be expected that what goes on in the
larger educational world will also impact the church. Consequently, many churches are
adopting methods of teaching and even preaching that relies on visual aids. The argument
in favour of this approach is that our mass media, especially television, have conditioned
viewers to expect packaged, organized, varied, and pictorial communication and that the
church should capitalize on these new opportunities to communicate the Gospel.

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 SECULARISM

1. WHAT IS SECULARISM?
Secularism is a word adopted by a British man, George Jacob Holyoake,
in the early 1850s to describe a system of morals and social action shaped
exclusively by ‘this-worldly’ considerations, irrespective of religious beliefs. The
word was derived from the secular education movement for the complete
separation of religious teaching from other forms of education. Secularism,
therefore, advocates the transformation of a society from close identification with
religious values and institutions toward nonreligious (or irreligious) values and
secular institutions. In one sense, secularism may assert the right to be free from
religious rule and teachings, and the right to freedom from governmental
imposition of religion upon the people within a state that is neutral on matters of
belief. In another sense, it refers to the view that human activities and decisions,
especially political ones, should be unbiased by religious influence.

Holyoake who invented the term "secularism" to describe his views of promoting
a social order separate from religion, without actively dismissing or criticizing
religious belief. Holyoake argued that "Secularism is not an argument against
Christianity, it is one independent of it. It does not question the pretensions of
Christianity; it advances others. Secularism does not say there is no light or
guidance elsewhere, but maintains that there is light and guidance in secular
truth, whose conditions and sanctions exist independently, and act forever.
Secular knowledge is manifestly that kind of knowledge which is founded in this
life, which relates to the conduct of this life, conduces to the welfare of this life,
and is capable of being tested by the experience of this life."

2. TYPES OF SECULARISM
Barry Kosmin of the British Institute for the Study of Secularism in
Society and Culture breaks modern secularism into two types: HARD and SOFT
SECULARISM.

HARD SECULARISM: According to Kosmin, "the hard secularist considers

religious propositions to be epistemologically illegitimate, warranted by neither
reason nor experience."

SOFT SECULARISM: On the other hand, soft secularism stands for "the
attainment of absolute truth was impossible and therefore skepticism and
tolerance should be the principle and overriding values in the discussion of
science and religion."

49
3. SECULARISM AND POLITICS
In political terms, secularism is a movement towards the separation of
religion and government (often termed the separation of church and state). This
can refer to reducing ties between a government and a state religion, replacing
laws based on scripture (such as the Torah and Sharia law) with civil laws, and
eliminating discrimination on the basis of religion. This is said to add to
democracy by protecting the rights of religious minorities.

Secularism is often associated with the Age of Enlightenment in Europe and plays
a major role in Western society. The principles, but not necessarily practices, of
separation of church and state in the United States and Laïcité in France draw
heavily on secularism. Secular states also exist in the Islamic world.

The purposes and arguments in support of secularism vary widely. In European

laicism, it has been argued that secularism is a movement toward modernization,
and away from traditional religious values (also known as secularization). This
type of secularism, on a social or philosophical level, has often occurred while
maintaining an official state church or other state support of religion. In the United
States, some argue that state secularism has served to a greater extent to protect
religion and the religious from governmental interference, while secularism on a
social level is less prevalent. Within countries as well, differing political
movements support secularism for varying reasons.

4. SECULARISMIN THE AMERICAN SOCIETY

The President of the United States of America (Barack Obama) talking of
Secularism said: "In a secular society the religiously motivated must translate
their concerns into universal, rather than religion-specific values. Their
proposals must be subject to argument and reason, and should not be accorded
any undue automatic respect". In the American sense, secularism is a principle
that involves two basic propositions. The first is the strict separation of the state
from religious institutions. The second is that people of different religions and
beliefs are equal before the law.

Separation of religion from state: The separation of religion and state is the
foundation of secularism. It ensures that religious groups do not interfere in affairs
of state, and makes sure the state does not interfere in religious affairs.

Secularism protects both believers and non-believers: Secularism seeks to

ensure and protect freedom of religious belief and practice for all citizens.
Secularism is not about curtailing religious freedoms; it is about ensuring that the
freedoms of thought and conscience apply equally to all believers and non-
believers alike.

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Religious Freedom: Secularism seeks to defend the absolute freedom of religious
and other belief, and protect the right to manifest religious belief insofar as it does
not impinge disproportionately on the rights and freedoms of others. Secularism
ensures that the right of individuals to freedom of religion is always balanced by
the right to be free FROM religion.

5. SECULARISM AND CATHOLIC TEACHING

The fundamental principle of Secularism is that, in his whole conduct, man
should be guided exclusively by considerations derived from the present life itself.
Anything that is above or beyond the present life should be entirely overlooked.
Whether God exists or not, whether the soul is immortal or not, are questions
which at best cannot be answered, and on which consequently no motives of
action can be based. By the strength of this argument, all motives derived from the
Christian religion are worthless. "Things Secular are as separate from the Church
as land from the ocean" (English Secularism). This principle is in strict opposition
to essential Catholic doctrines.
The Church is as intent as Secularism on the improvement of this life, as
respectful of scientific achievements, as eager for the fulfilment of all duties
pertaining to the present life. But the present life cannot be looked upon as an end
in itself, and independent of the future life. The knowledge of the material world
leads to the knowledge of the spiritual world, and among the duties of the present
life must be reckoned those which arise from the existence and nature of God, the
fact of a Divine Revelation, and the necessity of preparing, for the future life. If
God exists, how can Secularism inculcate the practical sufficiency of natural
morality?" If "Secularism does not say there is no light or guidance elsewhere"
how can it command us to follow exclusively the light and guidance of secular
truth? Only the Atheist can be a consistent Secularist.

According as man makes present happiness the only criterion of the value of life,
or on the contrary admits the existence of God and the fact of a Divine Revelation
and of a future life, the whole aspect of the present life changes. These questions
cannot be ignored, for on them depends the right conduct of life and "the
development of the moral and intellectual nature of man to the highest possible
point". If anything can be known about God and a future life, duties to be fulfilled
in the present life are thereby imposed on "all who would regulate life by reason
and ennoble it by service". "Considerations purely human" become inadequate,
and the "light and guidance" found in secular truth must be referred to and
judged from a higher point of view. Hence the present life in itself cannot be
looked upon as the only standard of man's worth. The Church would fail in her
Divine mission if she did not insist on the insufficiency of a life conducted
exclusively along secular lines, and therefore on the falsity of the main assumption
of Secularism.

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Again, the Catholic Church does not admit that religion is simply a private affair.
God is the author and ruler not only of individuals, but also of societies, creators
of tribes, races, and languages. Hence the State should not be indifferent to
religious matters. How far in practice Church and State should go together
depends on a number of circumstances and cannot be determined by any general
rule, but the principle remains true that religion is a social as well as an individual
duty.

In practice again, owing to special circumstances, a secular education in the public

schools may be the only possible one. At the same time, this is a serious defect
which must be supplied otherwise. It is not enough for the child to be taught the
various human sciences, he must also be given the knowledge of the necessary
means of salvation. The Church cannot renounce her mission to teach the truths
she has received from her Divine Founder. Not only as individuals, but also as
citizens, all men have the right to perform the religious duties which their
conscience dictates. The complete secularization of all public institutions in a
Christian nation is therefore inadmissible. Man must not only be learned in human
science; his whole life must be directed to the higher and nobler pursuits of
morality and religion, to God Himself. While fully recognizing the value of the
present life, the Church cannot look upon it as an end in itself, but only as a
movement toward a future life for which preparation must be made by compliance
with the laws of nature and the laws of God. Hence there is no possible
compromise between the Church and Secularism, since Secularism would stifle in
man that which, for the Church, constitutes the highest and truest motives of
action, and the noblest human aspirations.

Social Communication
1. Introduction
In a degree, which can hardly be overestimated, modern culture and civilization is bound
up with the development of the press, the cinema, radio, television and internet. The
proliferation these media, especially that of digital media, may easily be one of the
biggest offshoots of modernism that shaped world thoughts in the late 19th and early 20th
century. The social media, like other media outlets, are an important innovation and a
novelty for society, as well as the global community. The crucial concern will be to
ensure its proper use and to avoid abuses as the Fathers of Vatican II state inter alia:

"The Church recognises that these media, if properly utilised, can be of great
service to mankind, since they greatly contribute to men's entertainment and
instruction as well as to the spread and support of the Kingdom of God. The
Church recognises, too, that men can employ these media contrary to the plan of
the Creator and to their own loss." (Vat II, Inter Mirifica n. 2).

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The absence of Media Education to wide sector of humanity exposes many people to the
dangers of ignorance in the use of media in general and the social media in particular.

2. What is Media Education?

Media education is concerned with teaching and learning about the media; developing
people’s critical and creative abilities. This should not be confused with teaching
through or with the media. Media literacy is the outcome – the knowledge and skills
learners acquire. (Buckingham, 2011, p. 4). Media “literacy” necessarily involves
“reading” and “writing” media. Media education therefore aims to develop both critical
understanding and active participation. It enables people to interpret and make informed
judgements as consumers of media; but it also enables them to become producers of
media in their own right.

3. What is Social Media?

Social media is the collective of communication channels such as the press, the cinema,
radio, television and the many internet channels dedicated to community-based input,
interaction, content-sharing and collaboration. Websites and applications dedicated
to forums, microblogging, social networking, social bookmarking, social curation,
and wikis are among the different types of social media that are popular today. The term
"social media" is likely to lose meaning as the ‘social’ aspect of communication and that
of the Web becomes increasingly taken for granted.

3.1. Various Social Media

The existing social networks include Facebook, WhatsApp, Twitter, Wikipedia,

LinkedIn, Reddit, and Pinterest. Others include ORKUT, MySpace, Netlog, Hi5,
Google Plus. Other forms of digital communication are emailing, instant messaging
(IM) and the short message system (SMS) using mobile phones.

3.2. Brief Presentation of Some Prominent Examples of Social Media:

a) Facebook is a popular free social networking website that allows registered users to
create profiles, upload photos and video, send messages and keep in touch with friends,
family and colleagues. According to statistics from the Nielsen Group, Internet users
within the United States spend more time on Facebook than any other website. Facebook
was founded by Mark Zucherberg and launched on February 4, 2004. By 2011, it had
over 500 million active users worldwide. Statistics indicating how many active users
there are in Cameroon are not readily available, but the number is not negligible.

b) WhatsApp is a free to download messenger app for smartphones. WhatsApp uses the
internet to send messages, images, audio or video. The service is very similar to text
messaging services however, because WhatsApp uses the internet to send messages, the
cost of using WhatsApp is significantly less than texting. It is popular with teenagers
because of features like group chatting, voice messages and location sharing. (see
separate document)

53
c) Twitter is a free microblogging service that allows registered members to broadcast
short posts called tweets. Twitter members can broadcast tweets and follow other users'
tweets by using multiple platforms and devices.

d) Wikipedia is a free, open content online encyclopaedia created through the

collaborative effort of a community of users known as Wikipedians. Anyone registered
on the site can create an article for publication; registration is not required to edit articles.
Wikipedia was founded in January of 2001. It is because of the freedom of publication
that wiki references are not encouraged for academic work as they lack authenticity.

e) LinkedIn is a social networking site designed specifically for the business community.
The goal of the site is to allow registered members to establish and document networks of
people they know and trust professionally.

f) Reddit is a social news website and forum where stories are socially curated and
promoted by site members. The site is composed of hundreds of sub-communities, known
as "subreddits." Each subreddit has a specific topic such as technology, politics or music.
Reddit site members, also known as, "redditors," submit content which is then voted upon
by other members. The goal is to send well-regarded stories to the top of the site's main
thread page.

g) Pinterest is a social curation website for sharing and categorizing images found
online. Pinterest requires brief descriptions but the main focus of the site is visual.
Clicking on an image will take you to the original source, so, for example, if you click on
a picture of a pair of shoes, you might be taken to a site where you can purchase them.
An image of blueberry pancakes might take you to the recipe; a picture of a whimsical
birdhouse might take you to the instructions.

4. What Your Facebook Profile Photo Says About You (Gawker, 2013)

Choosing a Facebook profile photo is very serious business. The image you project is
entirely determined by your photo choice. While people think that the photo they choose
is some sort of individual statement, they are usually wrong. What we are talking about is
YOUR PROFILE and not family tree or an almanac. This means that the photo has to be
YOU and not someone/something else or you with some others. When people write
applications, they are usually required to submit a Curriculum Vitae (CV) or a resume;
this is of you, and no one ever presents a family history, but one’s own CV. So it is with a
profile photo on Facebook. Each profile photo that you pick sends out various signals
about you.

5. The Effects of Social Media on How We Speak and Write (Chopra, 2013)

With 80 percent of teen Internet users frequenting social media sites, it is no

wonder our real world social lives are seeing some changes. Marc Prensky (2006) refers

54
to children born and brought up in the digital age (say 30 years and below) as “Digital
Natives” and refers to the more senior generation, as “Digital Immigrants”. Though
some parents worry about a future of poor grammar and verbal textspeak, most signs
point to a more promising reality. Social media use requires some unique adaptations, but
it also provides us with a whole new way to communicate. The human mind is so
dexterous that it should be able to draw a line between casual informal
chat/communication and formal communication like writing job applications or official
mail. All that is required is the ability of the person to get out of the casual self into the
formal self; simply change your chip. This happens in all spheres of society and
communication should not be an exception. At the same time, digression, as a literary
style, is always a departure from the mainline of thinking to an aside story, then back to
the main line. Casual communication tools could also be taken as digression. The
following effects of social media can be highlighted:

a) We are Learning a New Language

Social media sites like Twitter that impose a character limit force users to condense
their thoughts. For many, this results in excessive use of textspeak. This type of shorthand
involves a whole new language of abbreviations

Some popular terms like LOL (for “laugh out loud”) have evolved into unique words
that have a meaning greater than their original abbreviation. LOL is now used to add a
joking or light-hearted inflection to messages almost like a type of punctuation. It does
not always indicate literal laughter. This is just one example of how Internet and text
shorthand is becoming a language all its own.

b) We Write for a Larger Audience – ‘Mass Communication’

Where writing was once a solitary activity, it has now become a very social way to
communicate. Before the Internet, most people wrote to communicate with one other
person. Now we reach hundreds or thousands of people with a single post. We search for
laptop deals with an eye to wireless connectivity in order to stay connected and
communicate with a global audience at a moment’s notice. Rather than eroding our
writing skills, this has sharpened them. Blogging, in particular, is a powerful way for
people to improve their writing.

c) We Have to Discern Between Textspeak and Proper Grammar – be flexible!

There are many different types of communications in the world of social
media. Textspeak and overuse of abbreviations or slang is not appropriate for every
setting. Social media users have to learn the proper time and place for different types of
writing. While Twitter is forgiving of textspeak, Facebook’s longer text limits encourage
proper grammar. While shorthand does slip into Facebook, emails, blogs, and even some
written papers, most writers are still aware of how to write properly, and do so often.

d) We Often Overshare
Social media quickly breaks down personal barriers. People will post things to
their Facebook accounts that they probably never would have called dozens of people

55
over the phone to share. These little titbits open up a whole new world of conversational
opportunities when we see our friends in person. Social media breaks
social/communication barriers and demystifies certain concepts.

e) We are More Concise

Another side effect of Twitter’s text limit is the ability to get to the point faster.
Gone is small talk. Kiss goodbye to lengthy intros. The sweeping prose of earlier
generations is giving way to a new way of writing that’s more concise, jumping right to
the point. Blogging has contributed to this as well, since most successful bloggers know
they only have a few seconds to draw a reader in before he clicks away. Short punchy
sentences and the active voice are taking over as the most popular way to communicate in
writing.

f) We See Fewer Eyes when Speaking in Public

Public speakers are noticing a real change in the way they have to communicate with
their audiences. Where speakers once saw the eyes of their listeners, they are now seeing
the backs of laptops and tops of heads. This is because many attendees are typing notes or
tweeting updates throughout the presentation. Speaking to this type of audience is an
unsettling experience for some, but it’s just one more change that we will have to adapt
to.

g) We are Easily Distracted in Social Situations

With the prevalence of smartphones and popularity of texting, chances are you’ve
been with someone who was there, but not quite there. It’s not uncommon to see people
glued to their technology even in social settings. If you can’t recall a time this has
happened, you might be the offender yourself. Though we’re no less social, we are more
distracted. Putting down our social media connections to focus on the ones right in front
of us is something that takes a real effort.
Social media is definitely changing the way we communicate, but in many ways it’s for
the better as we expand our social circles and explore new horizons through our online
connections.

6. What is netiquette?
Certain rules and care need be to observed when using social media. Netiquette is simply
a set of rules to observe when using social media, particularly cyber space. Other names
of netiquette are: Internet Ethics or Email Etiquette. As 'modern' as people of this century
may claim to be, not many are aware of Netiquette.
The world of Internet can be compared to a society or a culture of which humanity is a
part. Just like the society or every culture has some rules that must be abided to in order
that peace may reign, the Internet also has some etiquette rules that Internet users have to
follow. Here are netiquettes that every internet savvy or a newbie to the virtual world
must know:

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 a) Humane and Respectful Treatment
The first and the most important rule of the virtual world is similar to that the real world.
We have been taught by our parents and teachers that it is important to be good to others
and treat them well. However, many people forget this, when it comes to interacting on
the Internet. Just because one cannot see the other person, it does not mean that one can
say anything to him/her. One should always remember that there is a person who is
sitting on the other side of the computer and reading what one is writing. Hence, it is
important to think very well before publishing anything on the Internet. Even though one
may disagree with another person's opinion, one should never hurt the other person
through words just because one is not sitting face to face with him/her. The rule is: Treat
every person you meet on the web the way you want to be treated yourself!

b) Plagiarism and Copyright Issues

The Internet is a web of knowledge that can be accessed by every individual. However,
this has also increased cases of plagiarism. Many people do not understand the concept
that just like copying someone's work, printed on newspaper or book, is illegal, even
naming someone's work as one’s own is considered to be plagiarism. Hence, one must
understand that one cannot directly copy other's work and publish it in his/her name. It is
important to ask the permission of that person, before doing any such thing and even if
one does so, one should give appropriate credit to that individual. Plagiarizing some other
person's work can lead legal problems.

c) Flaming
Flaming or verbal abuse should be avoided completely while interacting on the Internet.
As said earlier, you may like what a person has said about a particular topic or issue.
Though you may not agree to it, it is not correct to verbally abuse and disrespect the other
person because of it. If you want to give your opinion about it, it should be done in a
polite manner and not by insulting or harassing the other verbally. Indulging in flaming
can only lead you to gain online enemies.

d) Writing Style
When it comes to emails, the writing style of the person has to be taken into
consideration. There are many people who have the habit of writing in all caps while
writing an email or maybe even a blog. One must understand this is not a correct
etiquette. It is considered that people who write in all caps are actually shouting at the
people who are reading it. This can be taken as an offense, even though you do not mean
any such thing. In the same way, one should also never write everything in lower case.
This is because writing the entire email in lower case is considered to be a sign of
laziness. So, whenever you write an email or a blog, make sure that you write it just like
you are writing with your own hand.

e) Check Grammar and Spelling

Though writing short forms are considered to be ‘cool’ in Internet chatting, it is not
actually the proper etiquette. People who do not use the correct spelling or follow the
grammar rules correctly are considered to be unintelligent. So, it is extremely crucial to
check your spelling, typos and grammatical mistakes thoroughly before you send an

57
email, instant message or publish an article. However, one thing you have to remember is
that you should never be rude to a person because you find a spelling or grammatical
error in something that you have published.

f) Honesty
Another problem that many Internet users have come across is fake personalities. There
are many people who create their emails, networking profiles, etc. using a fake name and
identity. There have been many cases where people have been cheated by such fake
identities through Internet dating websites. So, one must remember faking and cheating is
illegal and once found, can lead to problems.
g) Abide to the Rules
Each website on the Internet has different rules and policies and if one wants to be a part
of it, one has to abide by them. Before joining a website, one must first take a look at the
interactions that go within for some time. It is also advisable to read carefully the policies
that are given there before clicking the accept button. Moreover, once one has joined the
website and become a part of it, one must strictly follow the rules that have accepted.

h) Respect Privacy
Parents teach their kid never to read other people's letter or mail. This etiquette has to be
followed by each and every person who uses the Internet. An individual's password is
his/her own private property and no one has the right to hack another person’s ID and get
into the inbox and chat rooms. It is an offense. Besides, the other person can sue for
invasion of his/her privacy.
i) Research Well
The Internet is loaded with information. In as much as this information is true, falsehood
has been (and is still being) perpetuated through the internet. Improper research and
uncritical mindedness can lead one to serious error. Therefore, before publishing
something or comment on a particular topic, one must research well about the subject. By
publishing false information or forwarding a hoax mail, one may be actually misguiding
innocent readers.
j) Avoid Publishing Adult Content
The Internet is flooded with websites that are filled with adult content, totally
inappropriate for kids. However, one must realize is that the Internet is not restricted to
adults only. Today children are equally tech savvy as adults. Hence, one must try to
refrain from publishing content that is not appropriate for child-viewing. There are legal
consequences for publishing any material that may be harmful to children. “One must
understand that the Internet is an opportunity that one gets to interact with the world and
hence, one must use it in a positive way to enjoy this virtual world to the fullest.” (Deepa
Kartha, 2011)
7. The Stance of the Church on Social Media
a. The meaning of Social Communication
The term social communications, apart from its more general use, has become the
preferred term in documents of the Catholic Church for reference to media or mass
media. It has the advantage, as a term, of wider connotation - all communication is social

58
but not all communication is "mass". In effect, though, the two terms are used
synonymously.
b. The Pontifical Council for Social Communications
The Catholic Church has a setup that is charged with matters concerning Social
Communication. It is call the Pontifical Council for Social Communications (Pontificium
Consilium de Communicationibus Socialibus), established by Pope Pius XII in 1948
and later given wider jurisdiction and new names by successive popes. It is responsible
for using the various forms of the media in spreading the Gospel. According to Article
169 of the Apostolic Constitution on the Roman Curia, Pastor Bonus, promulgated by
Pope John Paul II on June 28, 1988, "The Pontifical Council for Social
Communications is involved in questions regarding the means of social
communication, so that, also by these means, human progress and the message of
salvation may benefit secular culture and mores." Article 170 of the same document
further states that
"The chief task of this Council is to encourage and support in a timely and
suitable way the action of the Church and her members in the many forms
of social communication. It takes care to see that newspapers and
periodicals, as well as films and radio or television broadcasts, are more
and more imbued with a human and Christian.”

c. Inter Mirifica – "The Means of Social Communication"

The Church’s stance on “Social Communication” is embodied in the Second Vatican
Council document, called INTER MIRIFICA. In it, the Council states that, with God’s
help, man has created many means of social communications. These means of social
communication can be used to reach all types of people around the world, and can be
used to educate and inform. The Catholic Church recognizes that if these tools of social
communication are used properly, they can greatly benefit mankind. Reversely, if used
improperly, they are incredibly detrimental. The principles and warnings outlined in Inter
Mirifica apply most aptly to the so-called new social media that could not have even been
remotely imagined back in the early 1960’s when this document was first published.

Inter Mirifica – "The Means of Social Communication"— was promulgated on

December 4, 1963 by Pope Paul VI. It is composed of 24 points, with the aim of
addressing the concerns and problems of social communication. Inter Mirifica identifies
social communication as the press, cinema, television, and other similar types of
communication interfaces.
Inter Mirifica states that it is within the Church’s birth-right to use the means of social
communication to the pursuit of preaching the gospel and of salvation. There are three
questions of morality within social communications that the authors of the decree look at:
i. The media has an obligation to provide correct, honest, and accurate news, as
the Council believes that access to information, in relation to their
circumstances, is a human right.
ii. There is a question of morality in the news. The Council insists that news may
only be effectively delivered if the information provided is of a true moral
order.

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 iii. While the Council states that at times information can be harmful as long as it
is more profitable than harmful, it is necessary for said news to be heard.
The Church also firmly teaches that different groups of people have the responsibility to
ensure that what they are allowing themselves to listen to, watch, etc. is of good and
sound morality. There is the obligation of the listener to avoid social communications that
would cause “spiritual harm”. There is also the problem of youth, and ensuring that they
receive information from social communications in moderation and under the supervision
of teachers, parents, etc. Youth should be going to these educators with questions, but the
educators should also be diligent in ensuring that what the youth are listening to are also
of high morality.
Inter Mirifica concludes that the Church looks forward to a relationship between Catholic
authorities and all media personnel, a relationship that will result in the use of social
media and communication to reflect the Council's principles and rules (as stated above).
d. Effects and Aftermath of Inter Mirifica
Inter Mirifica did provide the beginning stages for further Church instructions on social
communications. In its follow up and expansion, the document Communio et Progressio
was later written in 1971 as an update to Inter Mirifica. A further document, Aetatis
Novae, was published in 1992. In 2005, John Paul II wrote his final apostolic letter, The
Rapid Development, on the topic of social communications. Furthermore, from the
document emerged World Social Communication Day, which was created by the
Second Vatican Council to provide an annual message for the Church to its people and
the rest of the world. Pope John Paul II vigorously promoted responsibility and positive
goals in Social Communication not only in person but through messages given on this
religious festival and through supporting the Pontifical Council for Social
Communications.
In his message to priests for the 44th World Communications Day (16 May 2010), titled
"The Priest and Pastoral Ministry in a Digital World: New Media at the Service of the
Word", Pope Benedict XVI called on them to become digital citizens and engage with
the information society. The Pope said: "Priests stand at the threshold of a new era: as
new technologies create deeper forms of relationship across greater distances, they are
called to respond pastorally by putting the media ever more effectively at the service of
the Word.... Who better than a priest, as a man of God, can develop and put into practice,
by his competence in current digital technology, a pastoral outreach capable of making
God concretely present in today’s world and presenting the religious wisdom of the past
as a treasure which can inspire our efforts to live in the present with dignity while
building a better future?"

e. Pope John Paul II and “The Rapid Development”

In 2005, 40 years after Inter Mirifica, Pope John Paul II wrote an apostolic letter on
January 24, the feast day of Saint Francis de Sales, Patron Saint of Journalists. It is titled:
“The Rapid Development” (in Italian, Il Rapido Sviluppo). The Pope wrote about how
the message found in Inter Mirifica is strengthened by the development of technical
inventions. The Jesuit magazine America referred to the document as "the most

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authoritative papal statement on the church and communications in nearly 50 years",
and aims to make the Church pay "attention to the culture created by communications
media". The document suggests that the internet provides an opportunity for the Church,
not just a danger. New communications have helped create a "global village", and the
faithful need to take advantage of its possibilities but use them "ethically and
responsibly". Proper communication is a moral act, and Christ is an example of a
communicator who used all the means available to him to spread the gospel.

f. Pope Francis and the 50th Anniversary of Inter Mirifica

On December 4, 2013, the Golden Jubilee of Inter Mirifica was celebrated. During the
celebration, Pope Francis addressed his audience with the following words:

“When the Council Fathers gathered during the early 1960’s, I guarantee they had no idea
how social communications and media would develop and advance from the day this
document was promulgated by Pope Paul VI. In the 1960’s, computers were housed in
entire rooms, now we have computers in our hands. Technological advances have
evolved drastically over the past 50 years, but especially in the past 20 years with the
advances in laptops, smartphones, tablets, and other devices.

These instruments have not only advanced the world we live in, but the Church is using
these same tools, along with the Internet, Facebook, Twitter, other social media outlets
and Catholic apps to announce the same Gospel proclaimed by the Apostles 2000 year
ago. Proposition 18 from the Synod on the New Evangelization states: “Education in the
wise and constructive use of social media is an important means to be utilized in the
New Evangelization.”

Many seminarians, deacons, priests, bishops, religious sisters, religious orders, dioceses,
archdioceses, and even the Pope (@Pontifex) have Twitter accounts, Facebook pages, or
both. The Catholic Blogosphere has exploded in recent years with many lay people
developing blogs alongside the clergy and religious to promote the beauty and Truth of
Jesus Christ and His Church.
Although Inter Mirifica has taken hold in the life of the Church, there is still a lot more
work to be done. It really takes about 50 years for documents to make their presence felt
in the life of the Church after an ecumenical council. With that being said, the documents
of the Second Vatican Council are at the beginning stages of bearing their fruit. It’s an
exciting time to be a Catholic!
I would encourage you to read the Decree on the Media of Social Communications, Inter
Mirifica, as soon as you can. It’s a short document and one that you will understand. If
you have any questions about the document, feel free to contact me.” – (@Pontifex)

g. The Prophetic and providential nature of Inter Mirifica

Divine Providence would have it that 50 years later Inter Mirifica would find a climate
that made this decree even more relevant and applicable than when it was first
promulgated. The principles and warnings outlined in Inter Mirifica apply most aptly to
the so-called new social media that could not have even been remotely imagined back in
the early 1960’s.

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In this respect, Inter Mirifica is aptly described as being both prophetic and providential.
Acknowledging that means or instruments of social communication have the potential of
promoting either good or evil, this is all too apparent with the new vehicles of
communication that have become commonplace in our present culture like the internet,
iPad, iPhone, Youtube, and Facebook. None of these means of communication would
have had any meaning whatsoever when Inter Mirifica was first written. Yet, even for the
most casual observer, it is obvious that this Vatican II decree, Inter Mirifica, speaks
directly to those who use these devices.

On the negative side, these instruments of the “new media” have become contaminated
by darkness and sin. The most obvious example is the selling of sex that includes, but is
not limited to, pornography that continues to invade the hearts and minds of the youth
and children who have the best grasp of this technology. In fact, the misuse of these new
instruments of social communication has created the so-called multi-billion dollar porn
industry that uses multiple ways to dissuade, yet another generation of unsuspecting
individuals, from choosing lessons of purity and virtuous living over the filth of
pornography. No wonder this 50-year-old document is so relevant today as, for example,
paragraph 10, that appeals to the youth to “learn moderation and discipline in their use
of the media … to understand fully what they see, hear and read (and to) discuss them
with their teachers and experts.” Paragraph 10 also reminds parents of their “duty to see
that entertainment and publications which might endanger faith and morals do not
enter their houses and that their children are not exposed to them.”

The Fathers of Vatican Council II could have never imagined how insidiously this moral
contamination would in fact “enter the houses” so many years later through a vehicle
called the World Wide Web. Nevertheless, their advice is most fitting, minus their
blanket ascent to “teachers and experts” who, in present times, do not necessarily enjoy
moral competency and integrity, as in the past, simply by virtue of their chosen
occupations.

In the midst of the chaotic moral decay that exists through the Internet and other social
media today, the Church desires to shine the light of Christ into this dark abode. The
Vatican itself is well connected to the social media and, like the first generation of mass
media and social communication such as radio and television, the official arm of the
Church uses the new instruments of social communication while encouraging all
members of the Church to become digital disciples, especially in the context of
embarking upon the New Evangelization. In the words of Inter Mirifica: “All the
members of the Church should make a concerted effort to ensure that the means of
social communication are put at the service of the multiple forms of the apostolate …
[They] should endeavour to bear witness to Christ … in an apostolic spirit … (and) in
the pastoral activity of the Church, making a technical, economic, cultural or artistic
contribution.” (paragraph 13)

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While the Church promotes the social media throughout this council decree, the Council
Fathers simultaneously alert children, youth, parents, teachers, pastors and bishops to be
vigilant in the use of mass media and social communication. They likewise challenge
“public authorities” to offer authentic moral leadership while stating that “a special
responsibility for the proper use of the media of social communication rests on
journalists, writers, actors, designers, producers, exhibitors, distributors, operators,
sellers, and critics.” (paragraph 11) Appealing to the good will of professional media
outlets, the Council Fathers also requested “respect for the moral law,” reminding these
professionals that a great many of “their readership and audience are young people.”
(paragraph 11)

Acknowledging its obligation of “instructing and directing,” the Church appeals to those
involved with the media of social communication to embrace its proper use “in
accordance with God’s design” (cf. paragraph 3). This appeal has been repeated again
and again over the past five decades but, for the most part, proponents of the media of
social communication have declined the Church’s direction. In fact, the Church’s voice
has become more like “a voice calling in the wilderness” (cf. Luke 3:4). And even when
heard, it seems that the new “normal” is for the proponents of mass media and social
communication to openly contradict and undermine the voice of Christ and His Church.
Why? The courteous response is because the current mind-set in our modern and post-
modern culture is to reject the Church as irrelevant, outdated and out of step with reality.
Worse is that certain media outlets and special interest groups have hijacked the language
of the Church and, claiming it as its own, have redefined the meaning of morality and
ethics. Their agenda is to attack the Church and to accuse the Church of promoting hatred
and hate speech which, from their perspective, is intolerable in the present enlightened
culture of the 21st century.

h) COMMUNIO ET PROGRESSIO

On 23 May, 1971, the PASTORAL INSTRUCTION, "COMMUNIO ET

PROGRESSIO" – on the means of social communication was published. On May 24,
1971 the president of the Pontifical Commission for Social Communication, Msgr.
Martin J O’Connor sent a letter to all bishops of the world to introduce the new
document and ask them to distribute it in their dioceses. He called it “another proof for
the interest of the Church in a renewed pastoral initiative” in the field of Press, Radio,
TV and Cinema “and other means of Social Communication.” Unlike “Inter Mirifica,”
which still stresses the right of the Church to use the modern means of
communication but also the need to secure their proper use in perspective of
morality, “Communio et Progressio,” starts with the unity and advancement of
humans as the main purpose for any communication.

Communication in Human Society

The second main part of the document treats the contribution of communication to
human progress (nos. 19‐100). Here, not only the contribution of the “classical” media

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are discussed like the role of Press, Radio, TV or Film but rather a more general view is
taken in the spirit of the new expression of social communication, which the Second
Vatican Council had proposed. Beyond the media, it refers to all ways and means of
communication in human society. Thus, “Communio et Progressio” starts to treat the
contribution of communication with their role in human society which includes public
opinion, as well as especially the right to be informed and to inform which is expressed
in the freedom of communication (nos. 19‐47) where the document says:

“If public opinion is to be formed in a proper manner, it is necessary that,

right from the start, the public be given free access both to the sources and
channels of information and be allowed freely to express its own views.
Freedom of opinion and the right to be informed go hand in hand. Pope
John 4 XXIII, Pope Paul VI and the Second Vatican Council have all
stressed this right to information which today is essential for the individual
and for society in general.” (no. 33)

This right to information is inseparable from freedom of communication. Social life

depends on a continual interchange, both individual and collective, between people. This
is necessary for mutual understanding and for cooperative creativity. When social
intercourse makes use of mass media, a new dimension is added. Then, vast numbers of
people get the chance to share in the life and progress of the community. (no. 44)

This freedom of communication also implies that individuals and groups must be free to
seek out and spread information. It also means that they should have free access to the
media. On the other hand, freedom of communication would be more to the benefit of
those who communicate news rather than for the good of those who receive it, if this
freedom existed without proper limits and without thought of those real and public needs
upon which the right to information is based. (no. 47)

Proper education in the use of media is requested but also their role in deepening and
enriching contemporary culture has to be recognized, because “everyone has a right to
this enrichment.” (no. 50) The importance and role of “traditional folk arts” with their
stories, plays, songs and dance “express an ancient and national inheritance.”

The document underlines the role and potential of communication for entertainment
which “need not lack cultural validity” and even the modern media can serve this need
in offering “true recreation in the fullest sense of that word – to more and more people”
because also “simple entertainment has value of its own” (no. 52) and communicators
should readily care “about the well‐being of culture.” (no. 53) 5

Here, also the importance of artistic expressions is mentioned which should be “highly
appreciated” because “beauty ennobles the mind that contemplates it” and can “make
spiritual reality immediate by expressing it in a way that the senses can comprehend”
which is “not only a cultural benefit but a moral and religious one as well.” (no. 55) The
whole field of advertising is given a special section in its positive role offering “real

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social benefits” (no. 59) without overlooking the negative effects and harm which can be
done (nos. 59 ff.)

The importance of Media Education as understanding “the basic principles

governing the working of the media in human society” is declared as “clearly
necessary for all: if their character and function is understood, the means of
communication genuinely enrich man’s minds.” (no. 64) This is also an important
educational concern for the family because “it is never too early to start encouraging in
children artistic taste, a keen critical faculty and a sense of personal responsibility based
on sound morality. Generosity and idealism are admirable qualities in young people, so
are their frankness and sincerity,” which have to be “fostered from an early age.” (no.
67)

Opportunities and obligations of communications in human society are treated

extensively in this part of the document (nos. 73‐83) as well as their position within
social and public societies. Public authorities “have the essential duty of maintaining
freedom of speech and of seeing that the right conditions exist for it” (no. 84). The chief
task of civil authorities, Communio et Progressio says, is “not to create difficulties or to
suppress…” (no. 86) and for this also proper laws have to be provided. (no. 87 ff.) In all
this, there is a special call “to a concerted effort on the part of all who believe in the
living God” (no. 96) and a special challenge for proper collaboration which could result
also in “joint programs of action.” (no. 100)

Christian/Catholic Communication

The role of Christians in communication is extensively treated only in the third main
part of “Communio et Progressio” (nos. 100‐180) including their commitment to the
individual media (nos. 135 ff.) which cover not only the so‐called mass media of press,
cinema, radio and TV but also theater (nos. 158‐161) as “one of the most ancient and
lively forms of human expression and communication” (no. 158).

The special contribution of Catholics in their service to communication is seen in “the

spiritual sphere” from where the role of the communicator as well as the recipient is
better understood. (no. 102) “Communicators have the right to expect the kind of
spiritual help that meets the “special needs of their important but different role.” (no.
104) In fact, the Church should be “willing to undertake a dialogue with all
communicators of every religious persuasion.” (no. 105)

The role of proper formation and education of the members of the Church especially
bishops, priests and religious as well as laity is a special concern, which is developed
over five sections of the document (nos. 106‐112), and also the role of Catholic
universities and educational institutions in the promotion of scientific studies and
research on social communications in especially underlined. (no. 113)

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There is a special role for public opinion also within the Church (no. 14f.) and
“Catholics should be fully aware of the real freedom to speak their minds” which stems
“from a feeling for the faith and from love.” Here, also those in “authority in the Church
will take care to ensure that there is a responsible exchange of freely held and expressed
opinion among the People of God…” (no. 116) and a “free dialogue within the Church
does no injury to her unity and solidarity. It nurtures concord and the meeting of minds
by permitting the free play of the variations of public opinion.” (no. 17) 7

The potential of modern communication for evangelization is listed (no. 126) but also
the importance of a communication dimension of any pastoral ministry (no. 134) which
is later further developed in “Aetatis Novae” building on the considerations of
“Communio et Progressio” on planning and organization (nos. 162‐180). Here again, the
need for National Offices for Social Communication of Bishops’ conferences, but also
for dioceses (no. 174) is repeated, which was already demanded by “Inter Mirifica” (no.
21). Originally, a similar call was already made for film in the Encyclical, Vigilanti Cura
(1936), of Pope Pius XI. The position of a spokesperson for Bishops’ conferences as
well as dioceses for proper Public Relations is introduced. “Communio et Progressio”
also lists the roles and obligations of Catholic professional organizations (no. 178f.)

The authors of “Communio et Progressio” are also aware of the document’s limits. It
shows their wisdom and foresight when they state that theirs is not the final word, but
changes in the ways of communication are to be expected and that “those who are
responsible for pastoral planning must stay flexible and be always willing to try to keep
pace with new discoveries in this field.” (no. 183) For this it is also especially needed to
concentrate on “a rigorous program for scientific research.”

The document assures that “for her part, the Church wishes to let researchers know how
eager she is to learn from their work in all these areas and to follow up its practical
conclusions” which probably has not happened much yet since 1971. In fact, the
document underlines also the need “to discover through scientific research the true
effectiveness of the Church in the field of social communication” (no. 187) which still
has to be seen.

Theology

“Communio et Progressio” is the first Church document with some theological

reflections in ten sections after the general introduction (nos. 6‐16). Here, the
considerations start with 8 positioning social communication as “indispensable to the
smooth functioning of modern society and a Christian vision of humans as being called
to “possess and master the world.” (Gen. 1:26‐28; Gen. 9:2‐3; Gaudium et Spes no. 34)
The ability of humans to communicate is based on the fact that God has given them a
“share in His creative power,” called to build with his fellow humans the “earthly city”
because thus, he multiplies contacts within human society and deepen social
consciousness.” (no. 7) In Christian understanding, “the unity and brotherhood of people
are the chief aims of all communication” which find their source and model in the
mystery of Trinitarian communication between Father, Son and the Holy Spirit.” (no. 8)

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The unity and ability to communicate between people was destroyed by sin but was re‐
established in Jesus Christ, the “Incarnate Son, the Word and Image of the Invisible
God” : as the “only mediator between the Father and humankind; He made peace
between God and humans and laid the foundations of unity among humans themselves.”
(Ad Gentes no. 3) The role of Jesus Christ as a communicator is then described in the
following words:

“While He was on earth Christ revealed Himself as the Perfect

Communicator. Through His ‘incarnation,’ He utterly identified Himself
with those who were to receive His communication and He gave His
message not only in words but in the whole manner of His life. He spoke
from within, that is to say, from out of the press of His people. He
preached the Divine message without fear or compromise. He adjusted to
His people's way of talking and to their patterns of thought. And He spoke
out of the predicament of their time.” (no. 11)

From here, it becomes clear that communication is more than the expression of ideas
and the indication of emotions and “Communio et Progressio” continues to give a very
deep and not any more paralleled definition of social communication as “giving of self
in love.” From here, the text refers to the Eucharist as the expression of this “giving of
self in love.” “Christ gave us the most perfect, most intimate form of communion
between God and humans possible in this 9 life and out of this the deepest possible unity
between people and God.” (no. 11) Thus, in Christian Theology, social communication
is integrated in the Trinity and is exemplified in the Eucharist and in the “life giving
Spirit who brings all together in unity.” (no. 11)

From these roots the purpose of communication is to develop and maintain social
relations between people “during their pilgrimage on earth,” which should lead to justice
and peace and finally, communion. A true interpretation of the dignity of man is based
on these principles based in Incarnation and Redemption as governing any
communication. (no. 15)

In Christian understanding, any communication should be judged by the contribution it

makes to the common good (no. 16) and therefore has essential requirements like
“security, honesty and truthfulness” : “The moral worth and validity of any
communication does not lie solely in its theme or intellectual content. The way in which
it is presented, the way in which it is spoken and treated and even the audience for which
it is designed ‐ all these factors must be taken into account.” (no. 17)

Mass Madia Etiquette – Use of the Cell Phone

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1. On group chat, never hijack your group chat, no matter how much you have to
contribute. If you see that you are the only contributor, know that you are not
contributing, you are dictating your opinion. What to do: Reduce your posting or form an
online bloc and paste your write ups there.

2. On facebook, don’t trust the comments or affirmations of your peers; you can post a
naked picture of yourself and all you get is, “Cute”, “Great”, “wonderful”. They laugh at
you behind your back. It’s horrible, and only a true friend will tell you the truth you don’t
like to hear. Be courageous.

3. Your profile picture should be your best picture, and not the best picture of your dog,
spouse, dead parent, wise text, not even Jesus should be on your profile. You alone, and
the best of you. Every other thing, should go into your status. You can mourn your dead
there and show your love for Christ there. People checking your profile expect to see
your Profile, meaning, your face. I cannot see your face through someone’s else’s face, it
does not matter how dear that person is to you.

4. For those with children, there are child’s ipad, child’s phone, child’s laptop, etc. Your
phone is not a toy or pacifier for your dear son or daughter. I would like to communicate
by phone, tablet or computer that is also a child’s toy. Sometimes you get some
hieroglipics coming into your phone or whatsapp group and then follows an apology,
“Sorry ooo, na my piking take my phone begin write’m.” One day he will take your gun.

5. Do not answer calls in a public transport, please. We are not interested in your private
business. Text back and indicate you are in a public transport. Even if it is God, he is a
gentleman also, and will understand. Use more of texting than calls. It’s even healthier
for your ear. If you must hear my voice, then come and see me and we talk.

6. Charge your phone often; low battery produces radiation that makes you think low
also.

7. You look really stupid and goofy when your phone rings in the wrong place, like in
class (when you know the rules), in church, or at a meeting. Switch them off before
engaging.

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