Brief Historical Outline of Key Issues in CATHOLIC SOCIAL TEACHING Donal Dorr

Brief Historical Outline of Key

Issues in CATHOLIC SOCIAL

TEACHING

Donal Dorr

1891 Pope Leo XIII: Rerum Novarum(The first Major Social Encyclical): SRONG DEFENCE OF (European) WORKERS against Exploitation of poor (industrial) workers by Uncontrolled Capitalism. Right to StrikeBut because his fear of Communism, Anarchy and Revolution he gave priority to value of STABILITY over the value of Justice. So “Submit – your reward will be in Heaven”

1931 Pope Pius XI, Quadragesimo Anno: Radical Alternative to Capitalism and Socialism – partly similar to Fascism – Mussolini, Franco, Salazar. Leaning far more to the Right than to the Left

1945-1958: Pope Pius XII: Fear of Communism so settle in practice for “democratic” capitalism; warn against giving undue power to the State. Therefore, hostile to “Welfare State”

1958-1963: John XXIII, the peasant pope. He realized that in practice CST was being used as an ideology of right-wing politics.

So 1961: Mater et Magistra: Radical Change. Welfare State necessary. A Shift to the Left?A move away from the Right

Church gets new enemies, new allies;“Mater Si, Magistra no!”“Christians for Socialism”

1965: Vatican II: “Church in Modern World” (GS): Church Willing to Relinquish Privileges so as to be Free to offer Prophetic Challenge.

State should take over Latifundia = unused huge tracts of land

1967: Paul VI: Populorum Progressio: Integral Development

Global development1971: Octogesima adveniens:

Economic problems require political solutions

Inductive (bottom up) approachSubsidiarity: Different areas, need

different solutions.

1971: Synod of Bishops: “Justice in the World” – see previous talk

1971: Pope John Paul II: “Redeemer of Humankind”

A Christian Humanism: “The Way to God is through humankind”

1981 “On Human Work”:Dialogue with Marxism e.g. about alienation and about struggle

1987 “Concern” (SRS): Solidarity

1990: “Message for World Day of Peace”: A Major Document on Ecology

• Integrity of Creation

• But perhaps too much focused on welfare of Human

• What about Intrinsic Value of Animals, Forests etc?

1991: Centesimus Annus: What was he really saying? Weigel and right-wing USA Catholics interpret the pope as condemning Welfare State and defending capitalism

I see him as asking us to go beyond hand-out welfare to empowering the poor

2005: Pope Benedict XVI: Deus Caritas Est: “God is Love” Church’s focus should be mainly on Charity rather than JusticeLeave justice to action of lay people in personal capacity.

Call for Caritas agencies to focus more on welfare than justice.

More power to Vatican Cor Unum than to Caritas Internationalis

2007: Caritas in Veritate, “The Truth in Love” : “Economy of Communion” alongside purely commercial business, as model and challenge. Very important.

But continuing serious reservations about Liberation and struggle of the marginalized for justice. Fear of revolution

ROLE OF WOMEN:1890-1965 “Woman’s Place is in

the Home”

Vatican II 1965: Outside but ….John Paul II: 1981-2005:

Equal – reinterpret Scripture But: Nature of Woman,

no OrdinationRatzinger-Benedict: InfalliblePope Francis: New approach , but …??

PEACE

Traditional: Just WarJohn XXIII: 1963: Human Rights

linked to PeaceVatican II: Condemned use

of nuclear WMD; omitted liberation struggles

Paul VI: Development the new Name for Peace

J P II: Condemned Iraq war2013: Ecology and Peace: Resource war2013: Peace and Lampedusa

2013: Pope Francis:A Radical New Approach – we Hope and Pray.

ConsultationCollegialityRole of WomenEcology