Catholic Social Teaching

Catholic Social Teaching Summary The purpose of this doctrine is to help Christians understand what a just society is and how to live their lives in holiness while dealing with everyday challenges. In today’s economy, everyone, including men and women, are all going through different dilemmas daily. Everyone influences one another and that is why it is important to maintain values and principles for which we all live by. Christian understanding and human understanding are not too different. Everyone has the ability to reason and understand, but overall, catholic or not, it is common for everybody to share similar values. It is specifically said we all must strive to show respect and reverence owed to the dignity of others. We all have duties as an individual in a community towards one another. Those duties are love of neighbor, the basic requirements of justice, and the special obligation to those who are poor or vulnerable. We are obliged to protect the dignity of all people. Christians have a responsibility to love one another as Jesus did to us. Justice demands respect for the equal human dignity when there are business transactions done, contracts written, or promises made by individuals/businesses. Justice also indicates that we, as individuals, have a duty to be active in the community and participate. People should go to work feeling productive and wanting to make a difference which leads to their “self-realization”. We all must observe our way of living and compare it to the needs of the poor. We are all easily distracted by money, especially in the United States, and it is important reach out to others who are not as fortunate as us. Catholic Social Teaching teaches the fundamental rights that we need to follow in order to live a dignified life. One of the most important key principles is the option for the poor and vulnerable. It says that we should do everything we can in order to help the poor and the vulnerable become active in the community.