Catholic Social Teaching and the Interpretation of it by the Essay

Catholic Social Teaching and the Interpretation of it by the Liberation Theologians - Essay Example The social discrimination and inequality were harshly criticized by the church through its doctrines and Catholic Social teaching is considered as one of the major doctrines of the church on social concerns. Catholic Social Teaching is a term to denote the Catholic’s relationships between the state and the religion. Precisely speaking it is the teaching of the Church on many social justice issues which are there in the society. The teachings of the church have been taken by many organizations and so the church gives a vivid picture of its social teaching based on the true faith in the son of God. The present article tries to bring out the salient features of Catholic Social Teaching (CST) and makes out the differences between the Catholic theology and Liberation theology in the CST. Catholic Social Teaching Catholic Social teaching is considered as the greatest gift of the Roman Catholic Church to the world. The concern of Church over the social justice is visible in the teach ing. The United States Conference of Catholic Bishops states that, â€Å"Catholic social teaching is based on and inseparable from our understanding of human life and human dignity. Every human being is created in the image of God and redeemed by Jesus Christ, and therefore is invaluable and worthy of respect as a member of the human family† (United States conference of Catholic Bishops, 2011). ... Pope in the letter stresses the concepts of equality and dignity in the social realm. He in a way stood for the common people who were working in many factories and land owners. He said in the letter as given in the article by Patrick Harrington as, â€Å"To defraud a man of the wage which is his due is to commit a grievously sinful act which cries out to heaven for vengeance† (Cooney, 2002, p.9). So by the term the Church wanted to involve state for upholding justice in the society thereby giving justice to workers in terms of wage and equality. The present Pope Benedict XVI through his Encyclical letter, ‘Caritas in Veritate’ (Charity in Truth) speaks a new dimension to the social teaching of the Catholicism. In the Encyclical Pope recalls â€Å"charity is the heart of Church’s social doctrine.† He added, â€Å"a Christianity of charity without truth would be more or less interchangeable with a pool of good sentiments, helpful for social cohesion, but of little relevance† (Catholic Social Teaching, n.d.). So the present Pope gives utmost importance to the truth in life and in social circles. He adds the gospel’s teachings to the social teaching which makes out more clarification to the doctrine. Principles of Catholic Social Teaching The Church has well established the principles of the social teaching through its different letters and books. The key principles, based on the teachings of Christ and the Apostles, proclaim the Christian beliefs intact. The Church in no way supports the ideologies of communism and capitalism with its social teaching. The atheistic aspect of communism is strongly objected by the church and on the other hand it does not support the individualistic aspects of capitalism. The church stands as