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Call to Family, Community, Participation -- for St. Vincent's Parish Bulletin by: Dennis Wells In our article on Human Dignity , we looked at Catholic Social Teaching's position that human dignity is a relational dignity. If we accept this, if we truly BELIEVE this, then this belief places some demands upon us – demands that we cannot ignore. If human dignity reaches its fullness only in community, then we are compelled to structure our community in justice. Catholic social documents, especially those since the 1960’s, have recognized that the family is the basic social community, as well as the most fundamental form of Church: the "Domestic Church". These families, these local communities, are made up of those persons who are our everyday support and who each strive to look out for the common good of each member. In the same way, these local communities collectively share a responsibility to look out for the Common Good of the whole of society AND of each individual member of society. This notion of the Common Good: is different from a notion of a "public good" [that which benefits the most people]. The former presents some significant mathematical challenges for anyone trying to construct public policy while the latter presents some Utilitarian/ Moral consequences that might well result in Draconian policies! In Mater et Magistra Pope John XXIII noted that modern society is growing increasingly more complex and that public authorities are increasingly involved (for the sake of the Common Good) in personal affairs (health care, education, employment, etc.). In 1986 the U.S. Bishops issued "Economic Justice For All" declaring that the collective institutions of State and Society (these are both ways of saying " We, the People ") have an obligation to see that the Common Good is provided for and protected by the economic system itself. Another principle that falls into this category is a complicated one called "subsidiarity". Simply put, this means "decision-making at the lowest possible level". For instance, the United Nations has no business deciding a sewer tax issue for your local municipality – you/ we, as a local governing body should decide that. This seems like a very easy thing to support, a local body should make its own rules. Easy enough! However, what about when a local community decides to persecute a racial minority group; when "States' Rights" becomes a rally cry to perpetuate the institution of slavery? In the context of Catholic Social Teaching, Subsidiarity requires the participation of each member in decision making while at the same time placing demands on increasingly higher structures to insure that the Common Good is upheld. — A difficult formula to set into stone! In 1999 the U.S. Bishops issued a document called Faithful Citizenship. In it, they tell us that if we REALLY believe that human dignity flows from our relationship with God and with each other then we have an obligation to participate actively (and to allow all others to participate actively) in the decisions that affect not just ourselves but those that affect the Common Good. ____________________________________________________________________________________ Index, Catholic Social Teaching: Overview; 1)Human life & dignity, 2)Call to family, community/ participation, 3)Rights/Responsibilities, 4)Option for the poor/vulnerable, 5)Dignity of human labor, 6)Solidarity, 7)Stewardship of Creation; Summary: Catholic Social Teaching Look here for more links on Catholic Social Teaching |
Parish Mission Statement We, the people of St. Vincent's Parish in the Archdiocese of St. Louis, Missouri, are committed to following Christ, evangelizer of the poor. We do this through: |