You Did It For Me

by McKenna, Kevin E.

• ISBN13: 9781594710391
• ISBN10: 1594710392
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-04-01
• Publisher: Ave Maria Pr

Summary

Most books dealing with the social teachings of the Catholic Church simply relate those teachings and comment on them.

Table of Contents

Introduction	13	(8)
Abbreviations	21	(2)
Chapter One: Care for God's Creation	23	(22)
Our efforts to serve the poor and vulnerable must be accompanied by concrete efforts to address the causes of human suffering and injustice.	27	(12)
We are called to transform our hearts and our social structures, to renew the face of the earth.	39	(1)
We cannot celebrate a faith we do not practice.	40	(2)
We cannot proclaim a gospel we do not live.	42	(2)
Reflection Questions	44	(1)
Chapter Two: Life and the Dignity of the Human Person	45	(22)
In the Catholic social vision, the human person is central.	49	(1)
All people are a reflection of the image of God and thus all human life, at all its stages from conception through death, is sacred.	50	(3)
The human person is the clearest reflection of God among us.	53	(4)
Each person possesses a basic human dignity that comes from God.	57	(1)
The test of every institution or policy is whether it enhances or threatens human life and human dignity.	58	(5)
People take precedence over things and structures.	63	(2)
Reflection Questions	65	(2)
Chapter Three: Call to Family, Community, and Participation	67	(20)
The mystery of the Trinity involves the relationship of complete love among the three divine Persons-Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.	71	(3)
As people made in God's image, we must model divine love.	74	(3)
The human person is not only sacred, but also social.	77	(2)
We realize our dignity and rights in relationship with others, in community.	79	(1)
The family has major contributions to make in addressing questions of social justice.	80	(2)
The family is where we learn and act on our values.	82	(2)
We have the right and the responsibility to participate in and contribute to the broader communities in society.	84	(1)
A central test of political, legal, and economic institutions is what they do to people, what they do for people, and how people participate in them.	84	(2)
Reflection Questions	86	(1)
Chapter Four: Rights and Responsibilities of the Human Person	87	(20)
Flowing from our God-given dignity, each person has basic rights and responsibilities.	91	(6)
People have a fundamental right to life and to those things that make life truly human: food, clothing, housing, health care, education, security, social services, and employment.	97	(2)
Corresponding to these rights are duties and responsibilities-to one another, to our families, and to the larger society, to respect the rights of others, and to work for the common good.	99	(7)
Reflection Questions	106	(1)
Chapter Five: Option for and With the Poor and Vulnerable	107	(20)
The poor and vulnerable have a special place in Catholic social teaching.	109	(2)
The gospel calls Christians to put the needs of the poor first.	111	(1)
A basic moral test for society is how its most vulnerable members are faring.	112	(3)
The lesson of the parable of the Last Judgment (Mt 25).	115	(1)
Our tradition calls us to put the needs of the poor and the vulnerable first.	116	(1)
As Christians, we are called to respond to the needs of all our sisters and brothers, but those with the greatest needs require the greatest response.	117	(2)
Whenever there is structural injustice, Christians are called to oppose it.	119	(7)
Reflection Questions	126	(1)
Chapter Six: Dignity of Work and the Rights of Workers	127	(20)
Work is an expression of our dignity and our involvement in God's creation.	134	(2)
Work is more than a way to make a living; it is an expression of our dignity and a form of continuing participation in God's creation.	136	(3)
People have the right to decent and productive work, to decent and fair wages, to private property and economic initiative.	139	(2)
Workers have the strong support of the church in forming and joining union and worker associations of their choosing in the exercise of their dignity and rights.	141	(1)
These values are at the heart of Rerum Novarum, and other encyclicals on economic justice.	142	(1)
In Catholic teaching, the economy exists to serve people, not the other way around.	143	(2)
Reflection Questions	145	(2)
Chapter Seven: Solidarity	147	(20)
We are one human family, whatever our national, racial, ethnic, economic and ideological differences.	150	(2)
We are our brothers' and sisters' keepers (Gn 4:9).	152	(1)
In a linked and limited world, our responsibilities to one another cross national and other boundaries.	152	(3)
Violent conflict and the denial of dignity and rights to people anywhere in the globe diminish each of us.	155	(3)
This emerging theme of solidarity, so strongly articulated by Pope John Paul II, expresses the core of the church's concern for world peace, global development, environment and international human rights.	158	(3)
It is the contemporary expression of the traditional Catholic image of the Mystical Body.	161	(1)
Because we realize our dignity, rights, and responsibilities, in relationship with others, we need to continue to build a community that empowers people to attain their full human potential.	162	(3)
Reflection Questions	165	(2)
Conclusion	167	(4)
Notes	171	(14)
Sources and Suggested Readings	185