Act Justly, Love Tenderly,

and Walk Humbly with God

(Micah 6:8)

Module 2: An Introduction to the Social

Teachings of the Church
What is the Social Teachings of the
Church?

 It is the Church’s response to the problems

and issues, challenges and dilemmas that we
encounter in the political, economic, cultural,
social and ecological spheres of our human
community and society.
As a body of teachings,
it consists of

 A set of PRINCIPLES that help us see reality,

read its signs, understand and interpret them
in the light of the Word of God.

 It proposes the METHOD of SEE-ing, by

analyzing the various dimensions of the
problem or issue using the tools of other
disciplines and their valuable findings and
insights.
 A set of CRITERIA that enable us to make a
moral evaluation and judgment about the
situation, and help us determine the moral
demands that summons our obedience;

 It proposes a METHOD of JUDGE-ing

through which we know what needs to be
appreciated or what ought to be condemned
and, more importantly, what must be done
and why.
 A set of NORMS that guide us the proper
course of action to take in view of our moral
judgment and of what is demanded of the
situation.

 It offers a METHOD of ACT-ing that inspires

our imagination to develop and implement
concrete, effective and ethical plans of action
for the resolution of the problem at hand.
What is the importance of the
Church’s SOCIAL teachings?

The society which we have created and where

we all live has become a far more complex
network of relationships than what meets the
eye.
The challenges to “act on behalf of justice and
participate to transform the world” are also
thus complex and of many dimensions.
 The social teachings of the Church, says
John Paul II, is a valid instrument for the
evangelization of today’s multi-dimensional
and increasingly complex world.

 It helps us in proclaiming and witnessing the

vision of our Savior Jesus Christ in
contemporary society as well as in
challenging and transforming this society
according to that vision.
The social teachings help us develop the
habit of an ANALYTIC MIND.

 PCP II has decreed that a “thorough social

analysis, structural and cultural, is to be
promoted” by taking “into account hard social
realities”
 as necessary for the discernment and action
of Christian communities (Decree No. 22, Art. 1).

 Beware of naïve thinking!

 Naïve Thinking
Spiritualizes the causes of
suffering (e.g., poverty as
God’s punishment)
Tends to simplify or moralize
(e.g., “If only the rich will be
generous, things will be
better.”)
 Analytic Thinking
Empirical – it diagnoses the
situation and examines root
personal and structural
causes
Comprehensive – it seeks a
more complete picture of the
situation by including other
aspects or factors
 Naïve Thinking
Tends to look for immediate
solutions without a thorough
diagnosis
Operates on social or cultural
bias rather than tested data
(e.g., poor people are poor
because they are lazy)
 Analytic Thinking
Long-term solutions are
sought rather than
instant or immediate
results
Avoids social and cultural
biases and prejudices
The social teachings help us in the
formation of social conscience.

 Carrying out the Church’s social mission

demands a properly formed social
conscience,
 the lack of which would result to the
commission of injustices or the perpetuation
of immoral social, economic, political, cultural
and ecological practices
 that destroy or harm the common good
(see PCP II, 283-289).
 A well-formed social conscience is necessary
because…
 the type of evil and sin that we confront are
deeply rooted in the fields of politics,
economy, society, and culture
 and the type of choices that we must make
will have an impact on the lives of other
people both now and in the future.
What are the characteristics of a well-
formed social conscience?

 SENSITIVITY to what is happening in the

social, political, economic, cultural and
ecological spheres of human living.

In a well-formed social conscience, there is no

room for choices and actions that are blind or
ignorant to facts as well as causes and
factors.
 KNOWLEDGE and APPRECIATION and a
GROWING INTERIORIZATION of the values
of the Kingdom proclaimed by Jesus and the
other deeply human values as well that we
cannot live without.

Such as the values of justice, truth, love, peace,

freedom, solidarity, etc.
 Ability to ANALYZE, EVALUATE and JUDGE
these realities in the light of the Gospel and
human values of the God’s kingdom.

 Ability to DISCERN the basic moral VALUES

that summons the person to obedience and
the right course of ACTION to which he/she
must commit to pursue.
 Willingness to CRITICIZE and GIVE UP one’s
own VIEWS and/or one’s personal or group
INTERESTS in view of the priority of the
common good.
 Capacity to COLLABORATE with others (e.g.,
fellow Christians and people of other faiths
and of good will) who may share similar
VISION and/or sincere DESIRE for the
promotion of the COMMON GOOD or
protection of human dignity.
The social teachings of the Church help
develop in us a spirituality of social
transformation.

 Sa kahimtang sa atong nasod ug sa kalibutan

DILI NA PAIGO ang kinaugalingon nga
paningkamot ug espirituhanon nga kinabuhi
aron lamang mahilangit ang atong kalag.

 Kinahanglan na gayod ang “Spirituality of

Social Transformation” (PCP II, 262-282; 435-
438)
The spirituality of social
transformation consists of ---

 The ability of see and confront the

hand of human sinfulness as the root
of our problems in the social,
economic, political, cultural and
ecological spheres.
 The ability to see human sinfulness in
the actions committed by individual
persons, and the sinfulness that is
embedded in our collective behavior, in
the structures and systems, institutions
and laws that we have created and built.

These “structures of sin” pushes or

induces us to cause further harm and
thus perpetuate the evil.
 The deep desire for the conversion of
individual person’s way of life
accompanied by the commitment to
renew relationships and transform the
dimensions of society that have caused
or promoted sin and evil.
 A spirituality that finds nourishment in
personal prayer life and participation in
communal celebrations of the mysteries
of our salvation, especially the
Eucharist, and expresses itself in
concrete actions of justice and works of
charity.
 A spirituality that listens and obeys
God’s word, discerns and follows the
Spirit in Scriptures, in the Church, in
history, in the voices of the voiceless
and the powerless, and in the call to
care for the integrity of creation as
God’s gift.
 A spirituality that finds joy in proclaiming
the Good News, in being an instrument
of the unfolding of God’s reign in the
world, in sharing Christ’s pattern of life,
in the perseverance to follow Jesus-in-
mission, and in the conviction of the
enduring presence of God-with-us and
of the ultimate victory of goodness over
evil.
The social teachings’ principles,
criteria and norms

 The social teachings of the Church offer us

a set of principles, criteria and norms to
guide us in our analysis of the situation
(see), in our moral judgment and
evaluation (judge) and in our plans of
action (act).

 In the Philippine context, there are at least

eight (8) most important (PCP II, 291-329):
1. Integral Human Development
 To fully develop one’s God-given potentials
as a human being is a right of each one, not a
privilege, and not a right of the few.
 A person’s need for health and well-being,
education and profession, food and housing
are as important as one’s need for prayer and
worship.
 Jesus said “fullness of life” (Jn 10:10)
2. The goods of the earth are for all
God is the sole source for everything we need and the
ultimate provider for each one. Every human being
therefore has the right to use what is necessary for
his/her sustenance and development.
 No one person, group or nation has an exclusive
claim or right to possess these goods over others.
The right to use these goods is prior to the right to
own them (MM 43; PP 22; LE 14; SRS 45; CA 30).
3. Social Justice and Love
Social justice demands that with the growth of the
economy, there should occur a corresponding social
development so that all citizens will benefit equitably
from the increase of national wealth (MM 73-74; PP 34-
35).
The economy of a nation should be measured
not so much from the amount of goods
produced as from its distribution according to
the norms of justice.
4. The Priority of Labor
Human Labor is a person while Capital is a
thing. The good of human persons is the
GOAL of all human activity while things are
MEANS to achieve that goal.
Through human labor persons organize and
manage the human family and fulfill their
vocation as God’s partners (co-creators) in
His unfolding creation (LE 12-15).
5. Option for the Poor
Any solution to poverty that does not make the poor as
criteria and will not include them in the deliberation
and execution of solutions is bound to fail.
 The “fulfillment of the basic needs of the poor” and
their “active participation in economic life” is a high
social priority. They have “the single most urgent
economic claim on the conscience of the nation” (EJA
86, 90-91; PLPE, 45-46).
 Such criteria “must pervade all plans and legislation
for development” (PCP II, 314).
6. Empowerment of People
 Persons are active, responsible and free subjects
of social life. The human aspirations to equality and
participation are expressions of human dignity and
human freedom (LC 82; OA 22).

 A greater sharing in responsibility and a wider

participation in working out decisions, making
choices and putting them into practice are moral
imperatives for the achievement of the common
good (OA 46-47).
7. Peace and Active Non-Violence
 The armed violence to change the unjust status quo
is no different from the violence of institutions and
laws that preserve it. Both are not pathways that build
up the reign of God.
 Peaceful but persuasive rallies, assemblies,
marches, demonstrations, strikes and other non-
violent actions in order to secure justice are morally
justified strategies for change that brings peace (PCP
II, 307-311)
8. Integrity of Creation
 God appointed us stewards of Creation and called us
to be co-creators with God and caretakers for God.
As “co-creators,” we are to work with creation in ways
that respect all creatures and meet all people’s
needs, not only now but for generations to come
(Moral Duty).
As “caretakers,” we are to care for creation in ways
faithful to the will of the Owner and always
accountable to Him (Religious Duty).
Final Remarks
 “So that conscience may confront effectively the
socio-economic and political problems of our country,
the knowledge and interiorization of the social
teachings of the Church are necessary” (PCP II,
289).

 Next Modules: The social teachings of the church in

the economic, political, social, cultural, and ecological
spheres of society.
 Documents and Sources
PCP II Second Plenary Council of the Philippines, 1991
Catholic Social Thought: The Documentary Heritage, 1992
CSDC Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church, 2004

Fr. Aoysius Lopez Cartagenas

Seminario Mayor de San Carlos
Mabolo Cebu City 21 February 2007