Catholic Social Teaching

What is Catholic Social Teaching (CST)?

Catholic Social Teaching refers to a formal doctrine of thought on social issues as laid out is a series of Papal documents called encyclicals beginning with Leo XIII's Rerum Novarum (1891). It also may refer to Catholic moral teaching on social, economic, and political issues as promulgated by Councils of Bishops. It has its roots in the Bible, in particular the Gospels and especially Jesus's Sermon on the Mount. CST is an application of Jesus's teachings to the social, economic, and political issues of our time.

"The Church’s social teaching is a rich treasure of wisdom about building a just society and living lives of holiness amidst the challenges of modern society. Modern Catholic social teaching has been articulated through a tradition of papal, conciliar, and episcopal documents." -- USCCB

"Modern Catholic social teaching is the body of social principles and moral teaching that is articulated in the papal, conciliar, and other official documents issued since the late nineteenth century and dealing with the economic, political, and social order. This teaching is rooted in the Hebrew and Christian Scriptures as well as in traditional philosophical and theological teachings of the Church." -- Office for Social Justice

"Catholic social teaching is a body of doctrine developed by the Catholic Church on matters of poverty and wealth, economics, social organization and the role of the state. Its foundations are widely considered to have been laid by Pope Leo XIII's 1891 encyclical letter Rerum Novarum." -- Wikipedia


Major CST Encyclicals

1891 -- Rerum Novarum -- Pope Leo XIII
This seminal work on modern Catholic social thought addresses the plight of the industrial workers in the wake of the Industrial Revolution. It calls for the protection of the weak and the poor through the persuit of justice while excluding socialism and class struggle as legitimate principles of change. It affirms the dignity of work, the right to private property, and the right to form and join professional associations.

Key Topics:
Conditions of working class
Private Property
Socialism
Capitalism
Rights of Workers
Preferential Option for the Poor
Just wages
Unions
Role of the State

1931 -- Quadragesimo Anno -- Pope Pius XI
Writing in response to the alarming concentration of wealth and power in the socio-economic realm, Pius XI calls for the reestablishment of a social order based on the principle of subsidiarity. In commemorating the 40th anniversary of Rerum Novarum, this encyclical reaffirms the need for a social order animated by justice.

Key Topics:
Socialism
Liberalism/Capitalism
Worker's Associations
Private Property
Just Wages
Subsidiarity

1961 -- Mater et Magistra -- Pope John XXIII
Applying the teachings of his predecessors to modern problems, and affirming the role of the Church as a teacher, and as a nurturing guardian of the poor and oppressed, John XXIII calls for a greater awareness of the need for all peoples to live as one community with a common good. Special attention is focused on the plight of the farmers and farm workers in depressed rural, agricultural economies.

Key Topics:
Role of the State
Inequality

1963 -- Pacem in Terris -- Pope John XXIII

Covering the entire spectrum of relations between individuals, between the individual and the community, and between nations, John XXIII affirms the inviolability of human rights. Peace, based on mutual trust, can be well-founded only if undergirded by a unity of right order in human affairs arising from a genuine respect for and adherence to the law of God.

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1965 -- Gaudium et Spes -- Pope Paul VI

Calling for a new sense of service by the Church in a rapidly changing world, the Council presents the ethical framework of the Church's commitment to pastoral work in the world. This servant Church addresses itself to the real concerns and problems faced by Christians living in the modern age and calls for a development based on an unqualified accceptance of the inherent dignity of the human person.

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1967 -- Populorum Progressio -- Pope Paul VI

Calling attention to the worsening marginalization of the poor, Paul VI presents the various dimensions of an integral human development and the necessary conditions for growth in the solidarity of peoples. Only with an accompanying theological reflection on liberation from injustice and genuine human values can there be true development towards a more human condition.

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1981 -- Laborem Exercens -- Pope John Paul II

Exhorting Christians everywhere to be involved in the transformation of existing socio-economic systems, John Paul II presents work as a fundamental dimension of human existence through which the "social question" must be viewed. The meaning of work can only be properly understood when the dignity of labor is taken as an underlying premise.

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1987 -- Sollicitudo Rei Socialis -- Pope John Paul II

Expanding on the notion of development in Populorum Progressio, John Paul II reviews the state of world development in the past two decades. The moral nature of development leading humanity to the "fullness of being" is emphasized.

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1991 -- Centesimus Annus -- Pope John Paul II



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2005 -- Deus Caritas Est -- Pope Benedict XVI



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2009 -- Caritas in Veritate -- Pope Benedict XVI



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Other Important CST Documents
Faithful Citizenship