When
the Italian Jesuit Father Luigi Taparelli D’Azeglio (1793-1862) coined the term
“social justice” in the middle of the 19th century, he probably could not have
foreseen its mention in an 1894 curial document and a 1904 encyclical, nor the
importance attached to it by Pope Pius XI (1922-39) and subsequent pontiffs,
culminating in the authoritative teaching on social justice in the Catechism of the Catholic Church (1992).
After
the Catechism’s promulgation, Blessed John Paul II (1978-2005) continued to speak
about social justice. In a 1993 audience devoted to priests and politics, he said that
“Jesus formulated the precept of mutual love, which implies respect for every
person and his rights.
It implies rules of social justice aiming at recognizing
what is each person’s due and at harmoniously sharing earthly goods among
individuals, families and groups.”
John
Paul taught that as priests follow the “precept of mutual love” which “implies
rules of social justice,” they must do so in different ways from the laity.
Strongly affirming the teaching of the 1971 Synod of Bishops, which was devoted
in part to justice in the world, John Paul said that
in circumstances in which there legitimately exist different
political, social and economic options, priests like all citizens have a right
to make their own personal choices. But since political options are by nature
contingent and never in an entirely adequate and perennial way interpret the
Gospel, the priest, who is the witness of things to come, must keep a certain
distance from any political office or involvement.
Quoting
the Catechism, Blessed John Paul
added that “it is not the role of the pastors of the Church to intervene
directly in the political structuring and organization of social life. This
task is part of the vocation of the lay faithful, acting on their own
initiative with their fellow citizens.”
In
his 1994 apostolic letter Tertio Millennio Adveniente, John Paul taught that social
justice has its deepest roots in creation and in the institution of the jubilee
year, described in Leviticus 25.
“The
riches of Creation were to be considered as a common good of the whole of
humanity,” he wrote. “Those who possessed these goods as personal
property were really only stewards, ministers charged with working in the name
of God, who remains the sole owner in the full sense, since it is God’s will
that created goods should serve everyone in a just way. The jubilee year was meant to restore this
social justice. The social doctrine of the Church, which has always
been a part of Church teaching and which has developed greatly in the last
century, particularly after the Encyclical Rerum Novarum, is
rooted in the tradition of the jubilee year” (no. 13).
In
his 1995 post-synodal apostolic exhortation Ecclesia in Africa, John Paul called for “a serious
commitment to foster on the continent conditions of greater social justice and
good government”—or, as the Latin text literally states, “conditions of greater
social justice and the more just exercise of power”—“in order
thereby to prepare the ground for peace” (no. 117). “If you want peace, work for justice,” he
added, quoting Paul VI’s well-known statement.
Two
years later, in an address to Philippine bishops, John Paul further developed
Catholic teaching on social justice by explicitly linking social justice to the
defense of the family.
“Two
crucial and intimately related areas of pastoral life [are] the family and the
promotion of social justice,” he said. “Indeed, the defense and promotion of
the family, the heart of every society, is a preeminent task facing all those
committed to the pursuit of social well-being and justice.”
The pope added:
It falls in the first place to you, the bishops, to form the
consciences of the faithful in accordance with the Church’s teachings, so that
the laity in particular may work effectively for the introduction of public
policies which strengthen family life. Your Conference has spoken out
frequently on this theme, recalling that a family policy must be the basis and driving force of all social
policies. In this sense the State, which by its nature is ordered to the
common good, is bound to defend the family, respecting its natural structure
and inalienable rights.
Recalling
Laborem Exercens, his 1981 encyclical
on work, John Paul reflected on the link between a family-centered economy and
social justice:
The economy likewise has a vital part to play in ensuring the
strength of the family. One of the main criticisms which the Church’s pastors
have to make regarding the prevailing socioeconomic system, understood as the
subordination of almost all other values to market forces, is that the family
dimension of the work contract is
generally ignored. Such a system makes little or no provision for the family wage. How far are most
societies from what the Church urges: “Just remuneration for the work of an
adult who is responsible for a family means remuneration which will suffice for
establishing and properly maintaining a family and for providing security for
its future” (Laborem Exercens, no.
19)! Legislators, leaders of business, industry and labor, educators and those
working in the mass media, and families themselves, must all be encouraged
to re-create a family-centered
economy, based on principles of subsidiarity and solidarity. True social
justice passes by way of the family!
In
his 1998 motu proprio on the
theological and juridical nature of episcopal conferences (Apostolos Suos), Blessed John Paul listed “the promotion
of social justice” as one of the issues that “call for the joint action of
bishops” (no. 15).
Between
1999 and 2003, the pope mentioned social justice in four post-synodal apostolic
exhortations devoted to the life of the Church in various regions. In Ecclesia in America (1999), he taught that
by her social doctrine the Church makes an effective contribution
to the issues presented by the current globalized economy. Her moral vision in
this area rests on the threefold cornerstone of human dignity, solidarity, and
subsidiarity. The globalized economy must be analyzed in the light of the
principles of social justice, respecting the preferential option for the poor
who must be allowed to take their place in such an economy, and the
requirements of the international common good (no. 55).
“For
democracy to develop, there is a need for civic education and the promotion of
public order and peace,” he added. “In effect, there is no authentic and stable
democracy without social justice. Thus the Church needs to pay greater
attention to the formation of consciences” (no. 56).
In Ecclesia in Asia (1999), John Paul observed “a growing
awareness throughout Asia of people’s capacity to change unjust structures” in
the face of corruption. “There are new demands for greater social justice, for
more participation in government and economic life, for equal opportunities in
education and for a just share in the resources of the nation” (no. 8).
In Ecclesia in Oceania (2001), the pope mentioned social
justice six times. He said, for example, that “the parish as a community cannot
insulate itself from the realities of the world around it. The Christian
community must be attentive to issues of social justice and spiritual hunger in
society” (no. 13).
“Cooperation
in areas of charity and social justice is a clear sign of Christian fraternity”
(no. 23), he continued, as he reflected on efforts to promote Christian unity.
Commitment to social justice, he added, forms an important part of the Church’s
evangelizing mission:
The Church regards the social apostolate as an integral part of
her evangelizing mission to speak a word of hope to the world; and her
commitment in this regard is seen in her contribution to human development, her
promotion of human rights, the defense of human life and dignity, social
justice, and protection of the environment … It is certain that commitment to
social justice and peace is an integral part of the Church’s mission in the
world. Yet her mission does not depend upon political power. The Church is
concerned with the temporal aspects of the common good because they are ordered
to the sovereign Good, our ultimate end (no. 26).
Towards
the end of his pontificate, Blessed John Paul returned to a theme he emphasized
in his very first encyclical: the link between social justice and human
dignity. In Ecclesia in Europa (2003), he wrote that because the
Church’s social teaching “is aimed at defending and promoting the dignity of
the human person, which is the basis not only of economic and political life,
but also of social justice and peace, this doctrine proves capable of upholding
the supporting structures of Europe’s future” (no. 98).
In
a similar vein, John Paul wrote in his final apostolic exhortation, Pastores Gregis (2003), that “the Ten
Commandments have a firm foundation in human nature itself, and thus the values
which they defend have universal validity. This is particularly true of values
such as human life, which must be defended from conception until its end in
natural death; the freedom of individuals and of nations, social justice and
the structures needed to achieve it” (no. 29). He repeated his earlier teaching
that “the globalized economy must be analyzed in the light of the principles of
social justice, respecting the preferential option for the poor who must be
allowed to take their place in such an economy, and the requirements of the
international common good” (no. 69).
Toward
the end of John Paul’s pontificate, the Congregation for the Doctrine of the
Faith, under the leadership of Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger, also returned briefly
to the theme of social justice.
In its 2002 doctrinal note on the participation of Catholics in
political life, the Congregation taught that Catholics must promote the “right
to religious freedom and the development of an economy that is at the service
of the human person and of the common good, with respect for social justice,
the principles of human solidarity and subsidiarity, according to which the
rights of all individuals, families, and organizations and their practical
implementation must be acknowledged” (no. 4).
A
year to the day before Blessed John Paul died, the Pontifical Council for
Justice and Peace released, at the pontiff’s request, the Compendium on the Social Doctrine of the Church “in order
to give a concise but complete overview of the Church’s social teaching.”
Although social justice is not one of the topical headings, the phrase does
appear in 11 of the document’s paragraphs, three times in reference to earlier
texts of the Magisterium.
“A
large part of the Church’s social teaching is solicited and determined by
important social questions, to which social justice is the proper answer,” the Compendium noted (no. 81).
Social
justice “represents a real development in general justice, the justice that
regulates social relationships according to the criterion of observance of the
law. Social justice, a requirement related to the social question which today
is worldwide in scope, concerns the social, political, and economic aspects
and, above all, the structural dimension of problems and their respective solutions”
(no. 201).
In
subsequent paragraphs, the Compendium
taught that
·
“human work is a right upon which the promotion of social justice
and civil peace directly depend” (no. 292)
·
“an equitable distribution of income is to be sought on the basis
of criteria not merely of commutative justice but also of social justice, that
is, considering, beyond the objective value of the work rendered, the human
dignity of the subjects who perform it” (no. 303)
·
“properly speaking, unions are promoters of the struggle for
social justice, for the rights of workers in their particular professions:
‘this struggle should be seen as a normal endeavor ‘for’ the just good ... not
a struggle ‘against’ others’” (no. 306, citing Laborem Exercens)
·
“it is possible for the financial accounts to be in order, and yet
for the people -- who make up the firm’s most valuable asset -- to be
humiliated and their dignity offended. This is what happens when businesses are
part of social and cultural systems marked by the exploitation of people,
tending to avoid the obligations of social justice and to violate the rights of
workers” (no. 340)
·
“among the deformities of the democratic system, political
corruption is one of the most serious because it betrays at one and the same
time both moral principles and the norms of social justice” (no. 411)
·
“the legitimate requirements of economic efficiency need to be
better harmonized with those of political participation and social justice.
Concretely, this means that solidarity must be made an integral part of the
networks of economic, political and social interdependence that the current
process of globalization tends to consolidate” (no. 564)
Pope
Benedict XVI (2005-2013)
Social
justice was an important concern of Pope Benedict XVI: he spoke about it in at
least 48 of his addresses and other writings.
In
2005, he promulgated the Compendium of the Catechism of the Catholic Church (2005),
which summarized the teaching of the Catechism
of the Catholic Church on social justice.
“Society ensures social justice
when it respects the dignity and the rights of the person as the proper end of
society itself,” the Compendium
teaches. “Furthermore, society pursues social justice, which is linked to the
common good and to the exercise of authority, when it provides the conditions
that allow associations and individuals to obtain what is their due” (no. 411).
Subsequent
questions that appear under the heading of social justice discussed human
equality (no. 412), social inequalities (no. 413), and human solidarity (no.
414).
In a later paragraph, the Compendium
taught that social and economic life “should be pursued according to its
own proper methods within the sphere of the moral order, at the service of the
whole human being and of the entire human community in keeping with social
justice” (no. 511).
“The
journey of lay Christians, from the mid-19th century to today, has brought them
to the awareness that charitable acts must not replace the commitment to social
justice,” Pope Benedict said in a 2006 address to Italian business leaders.
Two months later,
he again recalled the important role of the laity in striving
for social justice:
Equally urgent is a tenacious, on-going and shared effort to
promote social justice. Democracy will attain its full actualization only when
every person and each people have access to the primary goods (life, food,
water, health care, education, work, and the certainty of their rights) through
an ordering of internal and international relations that assures each person of
the possibility of participating in them.
True social justice, furthermore, can only be possible in a
perspective of genuine solidarity that commits people to live and work always
for one another and never against or to the detriment of others. Thus, to
achieve this in practice in the context of the contemporary world is the great
challenge of Christian lay people.
Recalling
a frequently-mentioned theme of Catholic social teaching, Pope Benedict said in
a 2008 address that a “commitment to promoting effective
social justice in international relations demands of each one an awareness that
the goods of creation are destined for all, and that in the world community
economies must be oriented toward the sharing of these goods, their lasting
use, and the fair division of the benefits that derive from them.”
Although
Pope Benedict mentioned social justice frequently, he referred to it only twice
in his 2009 social encyclical Caritas in Veritate.
“From the social point of view, systems of protection and welfare, already
present in many countries in Paul VI’s day, are finding it hard and could find
it even harder in the future to pursue their goals of true social justice in
today’s profoundly changed environment,” he wrote (no. 25), adding:
The market is subject to the principles of so-called commutative
justice, which regulates the relations of giving and receiving between parties
to a transaction. But the social doctrine of the Church has unceasingly
highlighted the importance of distributive justice and social justice for the
market economy, not only because it belongs within a broader social and
political context, but also because of the wider network of relations within
which it operates. In fact, if the market is governed solely by the principle
of the equivalence in value of exchanged goods, it cannot produce the social
cohesion that it requires in order to function well (no. 35).
In
a significant reference to social justice in 2010, Pope Benedict incisively
linked “real social justice” to civil liberties, respect for life, and respect
for the nature of marriage.
Addressing the ambassador from Ecuador, he said that “the pillars of
every human community worthy of this name” include “the defense of life from
its conception to its natural end, religious freedom, the free expression of
thought, and also the other civil freedoms. The latter constitute the authentic
condition for real social justice.
This, in turn, can only be affirmed on the
basis of the support and protection, in both juridical and economic terms, of
the primary cell of society: which is nothing other than the family based on
the matrimonial union of a man and a woman.”
Five
months before his resignation, Pope Benedict again linked “authentically human
social justice” to the defense of the unborn and of marriage.
“Your political
and institutional commitment must not, then, be limited to responding to the
requirements of market logic,” he said to a group of Italian political leaders, adding:
Rather, its central and indispensable goal must remain the search
for the common good, correctly understood, and the promotion and protection of
the inalienable dignity of the human person … The areas in which this decisive
discernment is to be exercised are … not separate from one another but
profoundly interconnected; they possess a manifest continuum which is
constituted by respect for the transcendent dignity of human beings, in the
fact that they were made in the image of the Creator and are the ultimate goal
of any authentically human social justice. The commitment to respecting life in
all its phases from conception to natural death -- and the consequent rejection
of procured abortion, euthanasia and any form of eugenics -- is, in fact,
interwoven with respecting marriage as an indissoluble union between a man and
a woman and, in its turn, as the foundation for the community of family life.
Pope
Pius XI wrote in 1937 that “it is [the essence] of social justice to demand
from individuals everything that is necessary for the common good.”
Just as
Pius XI emphasized that social justice makes demands upon employers, and Paul
VI emphasized that social justice makes demands upon wealthy nations, so John
Paul II and Benedict XVI taught that “real social justice” and “authentically
human social justice” demand that governments defend and promote the family.