FOSTERING

HUMAN RIGTHS
 Identification and proclamation
of human rights is one of the most
significant attempts to respond
effectively to the inescapable
demands of human dignity.
 The church sees in these rights the
extraordinary opportunity that our
modern times offer. Through the
affirmation of these rights, for more
effectively recognizing human dignity
and universally promoting it as
characteristics inscribed by God the
creator in his creature.
 The roots of human rights
are to be found in the human
dignity that belongs to each
human being.
 The ultimate source of human rights
is not found in the mere will of human
beings, in the reality of the state, in
public powers, but in man himself and
in God as his creator.
 When God became man, to save every single
man, the joyous announcement of the angels rang
out peace on earth to men of goodwill! And the
church, in the course of the centuries had the task
and carried out the mission of ensuring that the
rights of man should be recognized, respected and
promoted, and or diffusing the new
commandment of love: Love among individuals,
Love among groups, Love among peoples.
 The Catholic Church is the chief
figure in every effort to promote
and protect human rights.
 Christianity has worked for the
recognition of the values or the
human personality in international
law, with gradual pressure in three
directions:
1. By making a powerful contribution to the
affirmation of the rights of human person.
2. By basing this affirmation on the
irrepressible claim of natural law; and by
coupling also the nucleus of international
law with this law.
3. And a posteriori counter-proof of the
goodness of the church’s message is
offered by its translation into works made in
the course of centuries.
 UNIVERSAL: They are present in all
human beings without exception of
time, place and subject.
 INVIOLABLE: It would be vain to
proclaim these rights, if at the same
time everything is not done to ensure
the duty of respecting them by all
people.
 INALIENABLE: No one can deprive
another person whoever they maybe
at this rights.
 ―Human rights are to be defended not
only individually but also as a
whole, protecting them only partially
would imply a kind of failure to
recognize them.‖
 They correspond to the demands of
human dignity and entail, in the first
place, the fulfillment of the
essential needs of the person in the
material and spiritual needs.
End of Path 7
 Objectives
• Doctrine: Discuss the concept of justice
as taught by the Church.
• Moral: Perform acts of justice and acts of
charity towards the community through
FAITH CARES Program.
• Worship: Join in dancing the animation
dance “One in Mission” to show unity
among differences and to show faith in
God’s works.
 Your Catholic Faith & Social Justice

- The gospel proclaims that human beings

are made in the image and likeness of
God
- Made in a divine image, we are endowed
with a human soul with two great
powers
1.) Intellect
2.) Free will
 Your Catholic Faith & Social Justice

1.) Human Intellect

Enables us to
recognize and
understand God’s
command to do good
and avoid evil
 Your Catholic Faith & Social Justice

2.) Free will

Enables us to choose
good with the guidance
of our conscience and to
obey God’s law of love
 Your Catholic Faith & Social Justice

- Original sin has weakened us, inclining us to commit

evil by making bad judgments and choosing lesser
goods
________________________________________
• Malnutrition is responsible for the death of over five
million children per year

• Nearly three billion people, live on

less than $2.00 per day
• Over 46 million babies have been
aborted in the U.S. since Roe vs. Wade
 Your Catholic Faith & Social Justice

Catholic Social Justice Teaching

- The church doctrine (teaching) attempts to
understand how societies work
- It makes moral judgements about economic and
social matters in light of revealed truth
 Your Catholic Faith & Social Justice

Flows primarily from the life

and words of Jesus Christ

Catholic Social Justice

Rooted in teachings of the

Hebrew prophets
 Society

e
iv

Co
ut

nt
rib

ri
st

bu
Di

t iv
e
Individual Individual
Commutative (Contractual)
 Your Catholic Faith & Social Justice

- Aspects of Catholic Social Justice Teaching

1.) It gives us principles for reflection

2.) It provides criteria for judgment

3.) It gives guidelines for action

Sharing Catholic Social Teaching
- Purpose is to alert Catholics that the Church’s
teaching on social justice is an essential part of our
faith
- The wheel of justice presents the principles of
Catholic social justice.
• Our ultimate destination is God’s kingdom
• Along the way there are obstacles
• The principles on the wheel need to
be applied to smooth out the road that
leads us to God
 Wheel of Justice

Solidarity Stewardship

8 9 Respect
Work &
Workers 7 1 2 for Life
Human
Dignity
Option for 6 3 Family
the Poor Community
5 4 Participation
Common Rights
Good &
Duties
 Principles of Catholic Social Teaching

1.) Principle of Dignity of the Human Person

- Every person deserves respect

- Our dignity does not come from

what we do or what we have, it
comes from being God’s
special creation
 Principles of Catholic Social Teaching

2.) Principle of Respect for Human Life

- Every stage of a human’s life is precious and worthy
of our respect and protection

3.) Principle of the Call to Family, Community,

& Participation
- People have a right and duty to
participate in society seeking
together the common good and
well-being of all
 Principles of Catholic Social Teaching

4.) Principle of Rights and Responsibilities

- The essential, fundamental right is the right to life
- Every person has the right to the necessities that
make for human decency
• Faith
• Food and Shelter
• Education
• Health care
 Principles of Catholic Social Teaching

5.) Principle of the Common Good

- Social conditions that permit people to reach their
full human potential and to realize their human dignity
- Essential elements
1.) Respect for the person
2.) Social well-being and
establishment of the group
3.) Peace and security
 Principles of Catholic Social Teaching

6.) Principle of the Preferential Option; Love for

the Poor and Vulnerable
- Poor and Vulnerable are our brothers and sisters
- They deserve respect, the protection of their rights,
and justice
7.) Principle of Dignity of Work;
Rights of Workers
- Economy must serve the people, not the
other way around
- Workers’ rights
 Principles of Catholic Social Teaching

8.) Principle of Solidarity

- We need to commit ourselves to the common good
- We must work for peace and justice in the world
marked by violence and war

9.) Principle of Stewardship

- We respect our loving Creator by
being good stewards of the earth
-Our view of how humans should act
depends on how we see ourselves

-If we see ourselves created

in God’s image, then we
know we are called to
reflect all the qualities of
the Creator
- Jesus has much to reveal to us about who
we are and how we should treat each
other
- We are saved through Jesus’ passion,
death and resurrection
-We are to be compassionate
like Jesus
 a claim we can make
on other people and on
society so we can live
Right a full, human life.
 “There is no democracy with
hunger, nor development with
poverty, nor justice in equality.”
Pope Francis says there can be no justice
without ‘social rights’
Source: cruxnow.com
 Wheel of Justice

Solidarity Stewardship

8 9 Respect
Work &
Workers 7 1 2 for Life
Human
Dignity
Option for 6 3 Family
the Poor Community
5 4 Participation
Common Rights
Good &
Duties
 Our Rights as Humans

Universal rights – the rights are for

every human being
Inviolable rights – these rights are
untouchable because they come from God
Inalienable rights – these
rights are inherent and
beyond challenge
 Our Rights as Humans

Peace on Earth
- Named the fundamental human rights:
Right to Life
Moral and Cultural Rights
Right to Worship God
Right to Choose Freely One’s State of Life
Economic Rights
The Right of Meeting and Association
The Right to Emigrate and Immigrate
Political Rights
 Integrate, don’t isolate

The commitment to human life and dignity, to

human rights and solidarity is a calling every
Catholic must share. It is not a vocation for a
few, but a challenge for every Catholic educator.

The values of the Church's social teaching must

not be treated as tangential or optional. They
must be a core part of teaching and formation.
Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and Directions, U.S. Bishops, 1998
 Salt and Light for the
World
“You’re supposed to be the leaven in the
loaf, not part of the lump.”

“Just” used 668 times in bible

“Justice” used 299 times in bible
 End of Path 8
Note: It also gives us an overview on
path 9 to path 11.
 Objectives
• Present the Church’s teaching about social
justice
• Develop solidarity with our fellow human
beings by offering friendship to everyone
and being united with rest of humanity
• Discuss the different principles of the social
teaching of the Catholic Church
• Contribute positively in the creation of
a just community by helping those
who are in need
• Present the basic content of the social
teaching of the Catholic Church
• Help educate other people about the
social teachings of the Church
 Catholic Social
Teaching
A Challenge
A Challenge to
to Live
Live the
the Gospel
Gospel
Justice shall
Justice shall flower
flower in
in His
His days
days
Proverbs 72:70
Proverbs 72:70
 The Problem
Far too many Catholics are
unfamiliar with the basic content of
Catholic social teaching.

Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and

Directions
U.S. Bishops, 1998
 A Key to Catholic Identity

The central message is simple: our faith

is profoundly social. We cannot be called
truly “Catholic” unless we hear and heed
the Church's call to serve those in need
and work for justice
and peace.

Communities of Salt and Light, U.S. Bishops, 1993

 Vatican II’s Ecclesiology
 The Church is a sign and a safeguard
of the dignity of the human person.

 A religious organization whose purpose it is

to help bring about the reign of God in
history.

 The social mission is “constitutive”

not extra-curricular or optional.
 Justice in the World, 1971 Synod

Action on behalf of justice and

participation in the transformation of
the world fully appear to us as a
constitutive dimension of the preaching
of the Gospel, or, in other words, of the
Church's mission for the redemption of
the human race and its liberation from
every oppressive situation.
 Constitutive Elements of
Church

 Scripture -- hearing the Good

News

 Sacraments -- worship, prayer life,

etc.

 Social Mission -- action for social justice

(constitutive = integral, essential or
fundamental)
 Catholic Social Teaching
Rooted in the Bible

Continually developed in Catholic Social

Teaching

-- See (observe), judge, act

“Justice shall be the band around His waist”
Issiah 11:5
 Biblical themes of justice
God is active in human history
Creation
Covenant relationship
Community
Anawim -- "the widows, orphans and aliens”
The example of Jesus – reign of God, healing
In biblical faith, the doing of justice
is the primary expectation of Yahweh.
Walter Brueggeman
 Cycle of Baal
Community,
State of Blessing
Become
Restoration
Owners

Cry out for Forget the

Deliverance Poor

Forget
Kill the
Yahweh
Prophets

Create
Prophets: Other Gods
The Poor
Self
Destruction
 Vatican II
This split between the faith which many
profess and their daily lives deserves to be
counted among the more serious errors of our
age.
Long since, the Prophets of the Old Testament
fought vehemently against this scandal and
even more so did Jesus Christ Himself in the
New Testament threaten it with grave
punishments.
 Major Themes from Catholic Social
Teaching

 Human dignity  Economic Justice

 Community  Stewardship of
 Rights and duties Creation
 Solidarity
 Option for the  Role of Government
poor  Promotion of Peace
 Participation
 1. Human dignity

The person is sacred, made in the image of

God.

“Let Justice descent, O heavens, like dew”

Isaiah 45:8
 2. Community / Common Good

The social nature of the human person

The fact that human beings are social by nature
indicates that the betterment of the person and
the improvement of society depend on each other.
…humanity by its very nature stands completely in
need of life in society.
Vatican II, The Church in the Modern World

“Every man for himself,” said the elephant

as he danced among the chickens.
Charles Dickens
 3. Rights and duties

 Civil/political

 Economic/social

Every person has a right to the basic material

necessities that are required to live a decent
life.
 4. Option for the Poor

Remember the “widows, orphans,

and aliens.”

A necessary element of the common

good
 5. Participation

All people have a right to

a minimum level of participation
in the economic, political, and
cultural life of society.
 6. Economic Justice
The economy must serve people, not the
other way around. People are more
important than things; labor is more
important than capital.

All workers have a right to productive

work, to decent wages, to safe working
conditions; and they have a right to
organize and join unions.
 7. Stewardship of Creation

The goods of the earth are gifts.

We hold them in trust, as stewards.

“God destined the earth and all it contains for

all people and nations so that all created things
would be shared fairly by all humankind under
the guidance of justice tempered by charity.”
On the Development of Peoples
 8. The Virtue of Solidarity

“It is a firm and persevering

determination to commit oneself to the
common good; that is to say, to the good
of all ...because we are all really
responsible for all.”

Pope John Paul II, On Social Concern, 1987

 9. Role of Government
 The state has a positive moral function.
It is an instrument to promote human dignity,
protect human rights, and build
the common good

 Subsidiarity
As small as possible
As big as necessary
 10. Promotion of Peace

• Peace is not just the absence of war

• “If you want peace, work for

justice.”
Pope Paul VI, 1972, World Day of Peace Message
 Charity (direct social service)
is not enough.

There is a need for Catholic educational and

catechetical programs not only to continue
offering direct service experiences, but also to
offer opportunities to work for change in the
policies and structures that cause injustice.
Sharing Catholic Social Teaching: Challenges and Directions
U.S. Bishops, 1998
 Charity & Justice in
Christian Discipleship

* Charity = Direct service to meet immediate needs of suffering

* Justice = Ongoing work to

change root causes
of suffering/injustice
 “Seven Commandments” for Integrating
Catholic Social Teaching into Our Faith

 Rooted in prayer and worship.

 Integrate, don’t isolate.
 Content counts – study the documents.
 Competency really counts.
 Charity (social service) is not enough.
 Thou shalt observe, judge, act.
 Thou shalt have fun!
 Make sure social justice work
is rooted in prayer and worship.
Cultivate a spirituality that is not just private,
but also public and social.

Catholicism does not call us to abandon

the world, but to help shape it.
This does not mean leaving worldly tasks and
responsibilities, but transforming them.

Everyday Christianity: To Hunger and Thirst for Justice

U.S. Bishops, November, 1998
 Thou shalt observe, judge, act

• SEE the facts; know the reality

• Use social analysis and moral values to make

JUDGEMENTS about the facts

• Plan a realistic and effective strategy

for ACTION
Salt and Light for the World

“You’re supposed to be the leaven in

the loaf, not part of the lump.”

“Just” used 668 times in bible

“Justice” used 299 times in bible
End of Path 9 to
Path 11