Over the next week, we are going to take a break from “posting” here on the website. We will be back next weekend.
In the meantime…
Heaven knows that there are many challenges we face as we continue to live in a time of pandemic. As Catholics, how do we understand and address these challenges — the threats to peace in our community and in our families, the economic hardships, all the troubling social conditions and injustices we find right now, many of which are made worse by Covid-19?
Pope Francis has offered this wise counsel: that we find sure guidelines “in the Church’s social doctrine.” And he is right! Catholic Social Teaching may be the Church’s best kept secret. How many of us even know that the Church has her own teaching about what makes for a good and just society?
The Church’s Social Teaching includes a moral analysis of what governments and economies are for, a vision of “who the human person is” and “what makes for human happiness,” and includes the demand that all believers work, not just for the salvation of our neighbors’ souls, but for a world that protects their rights and dignity, here and now.
The Catechism of the Catholic Church’s sections on “the human community” (nos. 1877–1948), and on “social living” (nos. 2419–2449) make for challenging and inspiring reading. A wide range of teachings is found there — on social justice and solidarity, the dignity of work, the morality of economic activity, love for the poor, and much more. These teachings are not treated as something “extra,” added on to Catholic beliefs about the Trinity, the Incarnation, the Resurrection, and our redemption in Christ. Starting next weekend, we will present some of the riches of the Church’s Social Teaching. If you would like, pick up your Catechism and “read ahead!”
For now, let us pray. “Grant us, Lord our God, a vision of your world as your love would have it: a world where the weak are protected, and none go hungry or poor; a world where the riches of creation are shared, and everyone can enjoy them; a world where different races and cultures live in harmony and mutual respect; a world where peace is built with justice, and justice is guided by love. Give us the inspiration and courage to build such a world, through Jesus Christ your Son, who lives and reigns with you forever and ever. Amen.”
