Social Justice in Catholic Teaching - Essay Example

SOCIAL JUSTICE IN CATHOLIC TEACHING Introduction The Catholic Church is an that has spanned more than 2,000 years. She traces her beginnings to the pronouncements of Jesus Christ when He called Simon “The Rock” (Peter) and said He was entrusting the keys of the Kingdom to him. Throughout the two millennia, the basic teachings of the Church (dogma) had remained steadfast, although periodically the Pope, successor of Peter and bishop of Rome, issues pronouncements through encyclicals that aim to instruct and clarify the application of the basic principles of Catholic teaching to current prevailing situations. In effect it identifies and expounds on the Catholic stance that concerns social, political, economic, cultural and technological developments. There have been a number of Papal encyclicals over the years which have left such a lasting mark upon not only Catholics’, but every man’s understanding of the spiritual nature of labor, property, capital, economics, worker solidarity, human rights, human dignity, war and peace, and many other aspects of daily life. In 1891, the first of these writings, authored by Pope Leo XIII, was entitle Rerum Novarum (On the Condition of Labour), which explored the spiritual context of the role of the working man. It was followed by a string of other encyclicals, as follows: 1891 Pope Leo XIII, Rerum Novarum (On the Condition of Labour) 1931 Pope Pius XI, Quadragesimo Anno (Reconstruction of the Social Order) 1961 John XXIII, Mater et Magistra (Mother & Teacher) Christianity and Social Progress) 1963 John XXIII, Pacem in Terris (Peace on Earth) 1965 Vatican II, Gaudium et Spes (Church in the Modern World) 1967 Paul VI, Populorum Progressio (The Development of Peoples) 1971 Paul VI, Octogesima Adveniens (A Call to Action) 1971 Synod of Bishops, Justicia in Mundo (Justice in the World) 1981 John Paul II, Laborum Exercens (On Human Work) 1987 John Paul II, Sollicitudo Rei Socialis (On Social Concert) 1991 John Paul II, Centisimus Annus (One Hundredth Year) 1995 John Paul II, Evangelium Vitae (The Gospel of Life) 1998 John Paul II, Fides et Ratio (Faith and Reason) It is important to get a perspective of these teachings is anchored on the fact that the Catholic Church grows and instills a renewed outlook among its faithful, instructing them in the proper understanding of the confusing issues of the times in the light of Catholic teaching. In a way, it is a validation of what were proclaimed timeless principles more than two millennia ago, and rekindling an appreciation for what would have been otherwise dismissed as ancient philosophy for lack of understanding. Before proceeding to examine two of the above encyclicals, it is important to note that certain prevailing themes permeate these letters in common. These teachings comprise basic Catholic teaching and have been commonly held by the encyclicals. These are 1. Human dignity, for the reason that human beings are created in the image and likeness of God and, therefore, are endowed with dignity. Because of this, all humans are entitled to certain basic rights and responsibilities. 2. The common good, because even as the dignity of the human person is affirmed, people are social beings who live in collaboration with each other; thus the rights of individuals must be balanced with the wider common good of all. In order that one’s rights and needs would be respected, each one must also respect the rights and needs of others. 3. The principle of solidarity, which proceeds from the social nature of human beings and the fact that they do not exist merely as individuals. In considering the human community, one must be always mindful that it consists of individuals and social elements, the rights and welfare of whom should be both equitably addressed. 4. The principle of subsidiarity recognizes that society is based on collectives or communities of people ranging from small groups or families. This principle affirms that a higher level community (such as the state) should not interfere in the life of a community at a lower level of social organization, unless it be for some impelling need. 5. The purpose of the social order, which must in all instances uphold the dignity of the human person, and due and just regard for his rights and needs. 6. The purpose of government which is the promotion of the common good. Governments are required to actively participate in society to promote and ensure social justice and equity. 7. The universal purpose of goods, that all the world’s goods are products of human labour and are meant for all. Although the Church upholds the right to private property this is subordinate to the right to common use and the overall common good.  8. The special concern for the poor, of communion with the poor by seeing the world through their eyes and standing with them in solidarity. This should lead to action for justice on behalf of those who are poor and marginalised. With the understanding that the foregoing principles are commonly present and continue to be emphasized in all encyclicals, this essay shall proceed to examine two important encylicals in the history of the Catholic Church: Rerum Novarum (1891) by Leo XIII, and Centesimus Annus (1991) by John Paul II. Rerum Novarum (On the Condition of Labour) In this highly significant work, Leo XIII sought to address the erstwhile challenges that were then confronting the faithful, events that had their roots in the new Industrial age and socio-politico-economic ideologies that threatened to marginalize the importance of the working individual. Rerum Novarum emphasized the primary role of the State to pass laws protecting and preserving the rights of workers, which included the right to work and unionize, to receive a just wage (also defining what constitutes just wage) and to own private property. The work explored thoroughly the meaning of work, the relation of labour and capital as rooted in natural law and Christian principles, and the rights and responsibilities of workers and capitalists by virtue of this relationship. The work also emphasizes the basic teachings of the Church and translates this to a contemporary setting. The letter addresses society at a time (relatively) shortly after the abolition of workingmen’s guilds, without any protective organizations to substitute for them. The working class suddenly find themselves at the mercy of the wealthy capitalists, to “the hardheartedness of employers and the greed of unchecked competition,” especially since there were relatively few employers and a teeming mass of poor workers (Rerum Novarum, sec. 3). Because of the turbulent political changes and new economic theories seeing light at that time, the question of socialism was likewise emerging, militantly pushing for the abolition of private property altogether and contending that individual property should become the property of everyone in common, under the stewardship of the State. Rerum Novarum laid down the tenet that when a man engages in labour for which he is compensated, the compelling reason for his labour is to acquire the means to obtain property for himself and his family. Since from the income he receives for his labours he sets aside modest savings to acquire property, then that property should be justly regarded as his by the fruits of his labours, and his purchase of them should be considered as within the sphere of his right to dispose of his wages as he sees fit. The desire to own property is a natural consequence of the instinct of self-preservation and the desire to secure the future of the worker’s family. In answer to the socialists the letter states that “The fact that God has given the earth for the use and enjoyment of the whole human race can in no way be a bar to the owning of private property.” (Rerum Novarum, sec. 8) God had meant for the earth to be shared by mankind in general, not in the sense that all should commonly share in it without distinction, but that the earth is not reserved for anyone in particular over all others. The limits of private possession were meant to be “fixed by one’s own industry”. Another important teaching articulated by Rerum Novarum concerns a thorough treatise of the duties and responsibilities of labour and capital to each other. The workers are bound to “fully and faithfully” perform the work which was freely and equitably agreed upon, to never injure the property nor to “outrage the person” of the employer, to never resort to violence, nor engage in riot nor disorder, in defending their own cause. Workers also should “have nothing to do with men of evil principles, who work upon the people with artful promises of great results, and excite foolish hopes which usually end in useless regrets and grievous loss.” The dated writing style notwithstanding, the latter admonition appears to fall foursquare within the modern labor organizations or associations that promise the workers things that they could not or have no intention of delivering, solely for material gain. As early as the end of the nineteenth century, before even labor unions were prevalent or accepted, papal teachings were keen on the possibility that workers would be taken advantage of to their detriment. The encyclical also describes the duties of employers to their workers. The wealthy employer is forbidden to look upon their work people bonded to them, but to respect their dignity as persons. They must not misuse persons for the pursuit of profit, or to value them solely for their physical powers, that is, their labor. The worker should be accorded time for his religious duties and time to attend to his family and home; and he should not be given work unsuited to his sex and age, exposed to occasions for corruption and danger, or unduly worked beyond his strength. ("It is neither just nor human so to grind men down with excessive labor as to stupefy their minds and wear out their bodies." – Rerum Novarum) Most of all, the employer must pay his workers just wages which would be sufficient to support himself and his family, and not to evade this most important obligation by use of fraud, force or usury. An employer is obligated to protect his workers because of their subordinate status and meager resources. Throughout the official text of the encyclical, the reader cannot escape the impression that the letter is addressed to the threats of extreme capitalism, communism and socialism. Considering that this letter is dated many years before the advent of the communist states and the unbridles capitalism that led to the Great Depression, this casts the encyclical as such a forward-looking and insightful piece of writing that until now finds relevance and validity. There is little doubt that the papal declarations at their core was meant to elucidate on universal principles, not just the conventional thinking of the day, so as to find applicable use whatever the context of time and place, even if it be a hundred years from then. Thus was observed the same principles as written down by Pope John Paul II in 1991, in his encyclical Centesimus Annus, which was intended as a celebration of the hundredth year anniversary of the Rerum Novarum. Centesimus Annus (The Hundredth Year) In honor of the hundredth anniversary of the first encyclical of Pope Leo XIII and those others that have been issued since then, Pope John Paul II early in the text invites the reader to “look back” and discover “the richness of the fundamental principles which it formulated” on the condition of workers. (Centesimus Annus, sec. 3) But together with this invitation was the exhortation to also “look around” at the “new things” surrounding us which are admittedly very different from such “new things” before the turn of the past century, at the time of the writing of Rerum Novarum. Finally, there is the compulsion to “look to the future” with the confidence that the truths valid one hundred years before and valid one hundred years since then, would still be valid a hundred years hence. This is not the first document of John Paul II that underscores the timelessness of the magisterium of Rerum Novarum. In Laborem Exercens (On Human Work) and Sollicitudo Rei Socialis (On Social Concert), he echoed the earlier teachings and cast them effortlessly in the light of the prevailing social, political and economic conditions of the day, with special implications on science and technology, consistently reflecting the very wisdom of the earlier encyclical but providing the necessary emphasis on aspects which found greatest relevance at the time of the writing. “Pastoral solicitude also prompts me to propose an analysis of some events of recent history. It goes without saying that part of the responsibility of pastors is to give careful consideration to current events in order to discern the new requirements of evangelization.” (Centesimus Annus, sec. 3 last par.) Among the situations John Paul II saw prevalent today as seemingly foreshadowed by Rerum Novarum, are the instances where contracts are struck between employers and employees that lack the most basic elements of social justice concerning the employment of women or children, humane working hours, hygienic workplace conditions, and fair pay, conditions which prevail worldwide despite international declarations and conventions and the internal laws of states. No doubt, in alluding to international business transactions, the Pope had the infernal sweatshops and exploitation of labour in countries where multinationals subcontract cheap labour for mass production of manufactured goods. John Paul II also observed that the early encyclical reacted in the main against two social and economic systems, that is, socialism and liberalism. In answer to both evils, Leo XIII placed it squarely upon the State to ensure that the prosperous are not unduly favoured over the rest of society, and that special consideration be given the weaker and disadvantaged segments of the citizenry, among whom the wage earners are mostly situated. These passages, according to the Pope, are relevant today in the face of new forms of poverty worldwide, because the words pertain not to one ideology or political advocacy, but are affirmations on the fundamental dignity of man which is absolute no matter the political regime. This principle, which Pope Leo XIII termed “friendship” or “social charity”, is now better known as the principle of solidarity, a fundamental teaching of the Church. In this light, the “condition of workers” as described in Rerum Novarum is easily discernible even today in the terrible and inhumane conditions to which the recent and “often violent process of industrialization”, of economic, social and political transformation, have reduced great multitudes of people. (Ibid sec 11 first par.) However, the most important developments referred to by Pope John Paul II have to do with the developments of 1989 to 1990, which marked the beginning of the fall of socialism (and communism) of which Rerum Novarum has treated so extensively. Centesimus Annus echoes the words of Rerum Novarum, that in a socialist system, a person deprived of the right to own property comes to be dependent upon the social machinery controlled by a privileged few, thereby depriving him also of his dignity as a person (a basic teaching of the Church), and hindering progress towards an authentic human community. In contrast, the Christian vision is that the social nature of man is not completely fulfilled in the State, but is realized in various intermediary groups – his family; and other autonomous social, political, economic, and cultural groups within which he functions, all with the view towards the common good. The evils of the communist/socialist agenda, in denying the person’s innate dignity, is necessarily a repugnance of the concept of God and human spirituality. The denial of God robs a person of his foundation, and thus leads to an aberration of the social order. Conclusion Rerum Novarum was written at a time of social, economic and political upheaval, at the crux of history marking the collapse of the prevailing social order and establishment of the new. Capitalism, socialism and communism, clashing ideologies that each seemed to promise the best alternative to the disintegrating power structures, also portended evils that posed threats to the well-being of entire nations. In the midst of these were the masses of faithful, the common people, whose only aspirations lay in living according to what is ordained by divine will and natural law. A hundred years later, we see the breakdown of communism, and the rejection of hardcore socialism and unregulated capitalism. While international and municipal law, treaties and declarations recognize the basic tenets of Rerum Novarum – the protection of the poor, and the recognition of the basic rights of the workers, among others - there is still, however, much to be desired in the application of these intentions. Centesimus Annus places into clear perspective the truths enunciated in the first encyclical. And long into the future, when regimes and systems would have risen and fallen these same truths shall still prevail, and will continue to provide direction towards the course of action that is right, just, and in pursuit of God’s will. REFERENCES Rerum Novarum as written by Pope Leo XIII (1891), Libreria Editrice Vaticana, as seen in http://www.vatican.ca. Accessed on March 18, 2009. Centesimus Annus as written by Pope John Paul II (1991), Libreria Editrice Vaticana, as seen in http://www.vatican.ca. Accessed on March 18, 2009. Catechism of the Catholic Church, Part Three, Section One, Chapter Two, Article 3 “Social Justice” Riley, T.J. (1901) Review: [untitled] “Le developpement du catholicisme social (depuis lencyclique "Rerum Novarum"). by Max Turman”. The American Journal of Sociology, Vol. 7, No. 3 (Nov., 1901), pp. 423-424 as seen in http://www.jstor.org/stable/2762082 Accessed: 19/03/2009 21:26 Read More