St. Joseph Church
Bristol, Connecticut

Deacon Robert M. Pallotti, D. Min.
Pastoral Minister

Modern Catholic social teaching is characterized by fourteen major lessons. For deacons and other baptized Roman Catholics these fourteen lessons are important for effective social action that finds expression in education, direct services, advocacy, and empowerment of others for justice-seeking and peacemaking in society.

1. Link of religious and social dimensions of life. The Catholic understanding of reality is that it is "sacramental." That is, all reality mediates the immediate presence of God. Therefore, there are no areas of life that God is not interested and involved in. The Reign of God is about transformation of all creation and links justice and peace with faith as a constitutive element of the proclaiming of the Gospel (The Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World; Centessimus Annus).
   
2. Dignity of the human person. Made in the image of God, men and women have a preeminent place in the world. Human dignity is to be protected by each individual and the social structures (Peace on Earth; On Human Work).
   
3. Political and economic rights. People have the divine right to vote and participate in the political processes of any society. People have the right to the basic necessities of life such as, health care, housing, food, clothing, and employment. All of these are important for supporting the human dignity of every person (Peace on Earth).
   
4. Option for the poor. A preferential option and love for the poor is an essential element of the mission of the Church. The poor are to be understood as the economically poor, the powerless and the victims of any social order or relationship (Call to Action).
   
5. Link of love and justice. Christian love includes justice, that is, addressing the causes of human suffering and working to eliminate those causes. This is essential to the preaching of the Gospel. This is a fulsome expression of Christian love (Justice in the World).
   
6. Promotion of the common good. The common good is the total of all conditions of social living. Individual rights are balanced with the needs of the community in a way that promotes and maintains the dignity of every person (Pacem in Terris).
   
7. Subsidiarity. Responsibilities and decisions should be made at the lowest level of the social order as possible. Larger structures such as the Federal government can be of service and must promote the common good (Quad. Anno).
   
8. Political participation. All human beings have a duty and a right to participate in shaping their own lives and public policy to promote the individual and common good. This requires promoting the common good on the international level of politics as well (A Call to Action).
   
9. Economic justice. The economy is for people. Each person should have the right to gainful employment that allows for a life befitting human dignity. People take priority over profits (On Human Work).
   
10. Stewardship. All property is given to human beings by God with the responsibility to use it wisely for the good of oneself and others. The natural resources are to be used responsibly and replaced. "What we do to the earth we do to ourselves (On Human Work).
    
11. Solidarity. We belong to one human family under one God. What happens to any person around the world is of concern to the Christian community (On Social Concerns).
    
12. Promotion of Peace. If you want peace work for justice. Arms races and the small arms sales of the major powers ought to stop. Need for an international authority to help coordinate efforts for international peace like the United Nations (Pacem in Terris).
    
13. Work. Work is essential for the human person. Every person has a right to gainful and humane employment that pays a just wage. Workers have the right to forms unions (On Human Work).
    
14. Liberation. Liberation from every oppressive social, political and economic situation is a constitutive dimension of the preaching of the gospel. This applies to changing the social structures that harm individuals and communities (Justice in the World).

Reference:  Catholic Social Teaching: Our Best Kept Secret, Orbis Press, 1999, Peter Henriot, Edward P. DeBeri and Michael J. Schulteis.

Compiled by Deacon Robert M. Pallotti, D. Min.
Created 12/06/1999