Catholic Social Teaching, Social Justice and Racism

Catholic Social Teaching, Social Justice and Racism

"Racism is a sin; a sin that divides the human family, blots out the image of God among specific members of that family, and violates the fundamental human dignity of those called to be children of the same Father." ('Catholic Social Teaching and Racism', Christopher M, 2006)

To analyse the contribution made by Catholic Social Teaching (CST) to our understanding and practise of Social Justice, it is firstly important to define what Catholic Social teaching is and how we view it in today's society and it is also important to define what is meant by Social Justices through today's modern teachings. I will endeavour to do this by using the issue of racism as an example of how Catholic Social Teachings and Social Justice interact in today's society. Racism is a huge issue in the world today, and with many countries becoming very multicultural it is an issue which must be stopped in order for the people of the world to live together peacefully. Catholic Social Teaching has a huge impact on our understanding and practises of Social Justice. In fact, catholic social teaching influences how social justice works in today's world and how we should be respectful of others no matter what race, gender, background or wealth.

When people hear the words' Catholic Social Teaching', many people think of it as being the way in which Catholics are taught to live in society. Although this is part of the teachings this is not the whole story. "Catholic Social Teaching is a collection of principles or values related to life in society."('Catholic Social Teaching', 2006, Dr Michael Costigan.) This means that Catholic Social Teaching is the teachings of how Catholics are to live their lives in society by respecting the rights, values and beliefs of others and not treating them differently because of them. Over the years these teachings have evolved and have been changed to keep up with the changing world. Social, economic, political, scientific and technological changes have all influenced the way in which Catholic Social Teaching has changed over the years and these changes are constantly changing the way we view and act upon Catholic Social Teachings.

There are four main Principles of Catholic Social Teaching and each principle has an effect on how Catholic Social Teaching is understood in relation to Social Justice. These four key principles are; Human Dignity, which is the teaching of how every human, was made by God and that each human must be treated equally and with respect. The second key principle is The Common Good, which teaches us that we are all family and that we must all work together in order to for everyone to be treated equally. The third principle is Subsidiarity. This principle is the teaching of decision making and teaches us how everyone has the right to their opinion in the decisions made. The final key principle of Catholic Social Teaching is Solidarity. This principle teaches us that we need others in order to be people of God and that we need to help those who are in need of our help.

In today's modern society, racism is a major issue being raised in both the Catholic society and other religions and groups all over the world. Racism

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