3 CATHOLIC
SOCIAL
TEACHINGS
PRESENTATION
BY ISAAC & EMMANUEL
WHAT IS CATHOLIC SOCIAL
TEACHING
• Catholic social teaching is a body of doctrine developed by the Catholic Church on matters of
poverty and wealth, economic justice, human rights, global justice, and other issues that have a
bearing on society.
• Catholic social teaching is the ethic which guides the Catholic Church in its sociopolitical action. It is
derived from both natural law and divine law, by which Catholic teachings state that all people are
created with certain inalienable rights. According to Pope Pius XI.
• More than just a set of ideas or principles, Catholic social teaching is "a system of thought", seven
fundamental points that center on four broad areas Human dignity, Common Good, Solidarity,
Subsidiarity, Participation, Care for our Common Home and Preferential option for the Poor
HUMAN
DIGNITY
• Human dignity is the most important principle in Catholic social
teaching. The principle refers to the inherent worth and value of each
person, irrespective of their original endowment or merit. It
emphasizes that human dignity must be respected for it to be
protected.
• Catholic social teaching is a set of principles that provide a moral
framework for building just societies based on values, such as human
dignity, solidarity, subsidiarity and the common good.
• According to Catholic Social Teaching, human dignity is the most
fundamental of all human rights.
• Human Dignity is not just an abstract idea, but a concrete reality that
shapes how they think about themselves and others. It’s not just
about how people are treated but also the way they are made in the
image of God.
• In many ways, human dignity is one of our most basic values. It is a
concept that can be difficult to define, but we know it when we see it.
Human dignity has always been at the heart of Catholic social teaching
and that is still true today.
HOW IS HUMAN
DIGNITY SHOWN IN
MODERN SOCIETY
• Dignity is shown when people have guaranteed access to
basic human rights in the way of equal opportunities
without discriminatory treatment based on sex, age, social
status, place of residence and physical conditions of an
individual (Disabled people). Because no human being
should have their dignity or freedom compromised.
• For example, people in Brazil live in slums with no home or
land this means the government can tell them to leave the
slums at anytime which isn’t fair. But now Caritas is helping
the people in the slums to talk to the government. Together
they are convincing the government to provide toilets,
water and electricity. Because everyone deserves to have a
safe home to live in.
SOLIDARITY
• Solidarity is a principle of the Catholic social teaching
that emphasizes on human interconnectedness and
the need to help those in need.
• Everyone belongs to one human family, regardless of
their national, religious, ethnic, economic, political
and ideological differences. Caritas Australia
expresses solidarity by reaching out to those who are
most marginalized.
• One of the most well known examples of solidarity is
what Mother Teresa did for the poor and homeless in
Calcutta. She provided them with food, clothing,
shelter, and healthcare services.
HOW IS SOLIDARITY
SHOWN IN MODERN
SOCIETY
• An example of how solidarity is shown in
modern society is Caritas helping to train
young people in Brazil to be good leaders.
Caritas stand beside the poorest people in
slums, work together and help to make things
better. Caritas makes you think about
imagining if everyone one was a leader
because we are all one big family in this world
that God has created for us.
CARE FOR OUR
COMMON HOME
• The church’s teaching on the environment care for our
common home has been developed over many years,
principally in the context of concern for the poor.
• Pope Francis has reflected on this teaching, noting that
"the misuse and destruction of the environment are also
accompanied by a relentless process of exclusion". He
sees a link between environmental degradation and
economic injustice, observing that "a selfish and
boundless thirst for power and material prosperity leads
both to the misuse of available natural resources and to
the exclusion of the weak and disadvantaged."
• He also states that "the earth is God's common
inheritance," calling upon us to respect it with
responsibility. God urges us to be stewards rather than
masters of nature
HOW IS CARE FOR
OUR COMMON
HOME SHOWN IN
MODERN SOCIETY
• Our changing environment prompts us to stop and think
about how we live on our planet. We are called to
respond and to adopt new ways of living as Pope Francis
highlights in his encyclical.
• The earth and all life on it are part of God’s creation. We
are called to respect this gift. We are responsible for
taking care of the world we live in and for sharing all the
wonders and resources the earth and God has given us.
• The poorest parts of the world are the ones that get
affected the most when there are changes to the planet,
so Caritas has development programs to environmental
concerns and seek to promote care for the earth and the
resources it offers us.
REFRENCES
• Search. (n.d.). Caritas Australia. https://www.caritas.org.au/search/?keyword=solidarity
• Dignity of the human person. (n.d.). Caritas
Australia. https://www.caritas.org.au/learn/cst-toolkit/dignity-of-the-human-person/
• Catholic social teaching. (2017, April 24). Catholic Community Services and Catholic
Housing Services of Western Washington. https://ccsww.org/about-us/catholic-social-
teaching/
• Catholic social teaching - Catholic charities. (2020, February 11). Catholic Charities of
St. Paul and Minneapolis. https://www.cctwincities.org/education-advocacy/catholic-
social-teaching/
• 7 Catholic social teaching principles. (n.d.). Catholic international development charity |
CAFOD. https://cafod.org.uk/Pray/Catholic-social-teaching
