Catholic Social Analysis

He mentions that multiple challenges that the Catholic Church is struggling with and in addition urgent challenges they are facing. The lack of priest in countries, also the decline of priest in others is a topic covered in this chapter. He also explains how in the present time it is a great deal harder to have a family go to church every Sunday for example, then it was years ago. The last line is a message from John Paul II, the pope mentioned at the beginning of this book on Catholicism. It reads, “Open wide the doors to Christ, and you will find true life.”; . Gerald O’Collins believes that this is the central message that sums up the Catholic religion. The creative use of this line as the ending of the book, shows how much research and effort Gerald O’Collins put into his book. It was a smart way to tie up lose ends and relate back to the introduction.

As a result, the work for social justice is an integral mission of the Church. Catholics are inspired and sustained through work for a just society.

From the article entitled Catholic Social Teaching – Convictions and Connections by Russell Connors (Catherine Core Reader, 2011)

A central idea to Jesuit education is learning how to be men and women for others. Being men and women for others means caring for those in need and standing with the poor and marginalized. Social justice and mercy are key aspects of being men and women for others. Social justice goes beyond charity and making sacrifices. It involves finding the root of problems and fixing them. Mercy starts as a feeling, then internalization of anguish within someone should lead him or her to take action against the problem. Jesus and other key figures of the past can stand as examples of how to be men and women for others.

The principle of human dignity based on catholic social teaching is that every human being is the live image of a god himself (Australian Catholic Social Justice Council, 2016). therefore, every individual in our society is worth of respect as a member of the

Social Justice is a very well needed in the world, however it is very difficult to achieve because every individual has their own views. Nevertheless, several key figures have contributed to this ideology and that of Catholic social thought in order to take action in recent centuries. For example, Dorothy Day, whom is known as a key activist, organized the Catholic Worker movement of 1933 which sought to promote social justice, peace, and simplicity.

The position of the Pope is highly revered and has been passed down through many centuries and there have been a total of 266 popes, with Pope Francis being the current pope. The sociological form of religious expression is demonstrated here by showing the social organization of the Catholic religion and by showing the leadership role of the Catholic community. Additionally, the relationship between Catholicism and the rest of society is beneficial because the Catholic Church teaches morals and helps citizens find their human dignity, which in turn helps promote ethical and lawful characteristics among

Despite the age of these systems, the Catholic Church continues to operate close to them, similar to when they were adopted. The misunderstanding and prejudice towards these systems cause many people to adopt anti-Catholic beliefs for contemporary issues in America. The democratic political system in America clashes with the hierarchical lineage that the Catholic Church possesses. The problem arises when anti-Catholics claim that Catholics are un-American because they follow a hierarchy, rather than the “American” system of democracy. The democratic system allows the people to vote for their leader to govern them, however, the Catholic leader, the Pope, is not chosen by the people of the Catholic Church. Un-American criticism continues with the debates and movements on Sexism and Feminism. As women’s roles are changed, the Catholic Church is keeping true to its origins by keeping the governing body, the priesthood, bishops, Cardinals, and the Pope, a completely male role. The Church is criticized by many as being sexist and by that, un-American, for not allowing ordination for women. “Many Americans / view the church’s ban on women’s ordination largely in terms of democratic principles, or ‘rights’ and representation’” (Martin). Anti-Catholics throw up these accusations of sexism without contemplating the true role of women in the Catholic Church. Pope Francis said in an interview “’Look, in the Church women are more important than men, because the church is a woman / The Church is the bride of Jesus Christ. And the Madonna is more important that popes and bishops and priests’” (Ruiz). This governing structure, as well as other beliefs of the Catholic Church, seem confusing or silly to post-enlightenment ideas. As human philosophy has developed after the Enlightenment, the Church has kept the doctrine the same. This has not caused the anti-Catholic community to criticize

One thing that they strongly believed in was that “Church services and the Bible should be in Latin, as it had been for 1000 years” (Alchin 2). Also, in the Catholic religion a relationship with God was only attainable through the priest, or pope. Catholics believed there prayers could only reach God through telling the priest so he could pray them to God. Alchin said “Catholics believed that Priests and the Pope were able to forgive sins at a price”

One of those voices was the Catholic Church. The bishops of the US and Colombia issued documents and letters to ask for the protection of human rights, the dignity of the population, the income of small producers, poverty, inequality, and the environment. The USCCB and the Colombian Conference of Bishops united their voices to claim for a just agreement that benefited both parties. They based their arguments on the social doctrine of the Catholic Church. This doctrine is very important because it highlights the relevance of the dignity of the human person, the protection of the common good, the principle of subsidiarity, and the call for solidarity. These elements are key for all communities around the world because they are “the criteria for judgment and the directives for action which are the starting point for the promotion of an integral and solidary humanism”. Therefore, these principles are a common ground that come from the very core of God and help us understand the true meaning of the economy and free

With the guidance of Mary, the Marianist work together to find faith to help serve others for their dignity, liberation, and justice. The Marianist look at Mary as a model of faith and guidance to help carry out God’s plan to serve others. Mary is their model of faith, just as Jesus is the Jesuits model of faith. Marianist put the presence of Jesus among not only themselves but for others. Both Jesuits and Marianists value living, praying, and supporting the community which strengthens the world, mainly those in poverty.

In any case, all things considered, some positive social changes have occurred from the acquaintance of Catholicism with Latin America. In its actual structure, the congregation has been a wellspring of fundamental human rights for the general population. The congregation would regularly restrict the administration's uncalled for treatment of the general population, who generally had no other representation. The congregation likewise shaped a general public to empower participation with each other to build up a superior development. The congregation would likewise give an establishment to training, social insurance, abilities for building and cultivating. The Catholic Church has assumed such a noteworthy part in the molding of Latin American

Societies need people and Pope Francis is the people’s pope. It’s clear he recognizes religion’s presence in multiple aspects of everyday life. This resonates with Roberts and Yamane's concept of religion: a “social phenomenon that involves the grouping of people around a faith perspective.”(20) Believing is something that may seem more important than the belief system itself. Pope Francis presence inspires followers to trust in his wisdom and guidance. He should open discussions among church officials to discuss dealing with controversial social issues introduced by the larger society. According to Roberts and Yamane, the open systems model focuses on how “organizations and the larger social society influence each other” (23) By focusing

The teachings of the church to create a more sustainable and just society with people living in holiness in this modern world are exemplified through the wheel of social justice. Modern Catholic of the social justice wheel is the principle of subsidiarity. This tenet holds that nothing should be done by a larger of a more complex organization that could be done by a smaller decentralized organization. This principle is the bulwark of limited government and personal freedom. The principle of subsidiarity stresses keeping responsibility as close to the root as possible. Why would Catholicism teach to use a decentralized organization to accomplish common goals? Could it be that the larger organizations may take advantage of their vastness and power? The

The Catholic Church took on a more significant role as a” provider of social services from the mid-nineteenth century”(Considine and Dukelow ,2009,p.15. The Church strongly endorsed the principle of Subsidiarity, supporting the belief that areas concerned with provision should be managed at local level, by various community based groups.