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Catechism of the Catholic Church - Participation in social life
PART THREE
LIFE IN CHRIST
SECTION ONE
MAN'S VOCATION LIFE IN THE SPIRIT
CHAPTER TWO
THE HUMAN COMMUNION
ARTICLE 2
PARTICIPATION IN SOCIAL LIFE
I. AUTHORITY
1897 "Human
society can be neither well-ordered nor prosperous unless it has some people
invested with legitimate authority to preserve its institutions and to devote
themselves as far as is necessary to work and care for the good of all."15
By "authority" one means the quality by virtue of which persons or
institutions make laws and give orders to men and expect obedience from them.
1898 Every human community needs an authority to govern it.16
The foundation of such authority lies in human nature. It is necessary for the
unity of the state. Its role is to ensure as far as possible the common good of
the society.
1899 The
authority required by the moral order derives from God: "Let every person
be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from
God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore he who resists
the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur
judgment."17
1900 The
duty of obedience requires all to give due honor to authority and to treat those
who are charged to exercise it with respect, and, insofar as it is deserved,
with gratitude and good-will.
- Pope St. Clement of Rome provides the Church's most ancient
prayer for political authorities:18 "Grant to them, Lord,
health, peace, concord, and stability, so that they may exercise without
offense the sovereignty that you have given them. Master, heavenly King of
the ages, you give glory, honor, and power over the things of earth to the
sons of men. Direct, Lord, their counsel, following what is pleasing and
acceptable in your sight, so that by exercising with devotion and in peace
and gentleness the power that you have given to them, they may find favor
with you."19
1901 If
authority belongs to the order established by God, "the choice of the
political regime and the appointment of rulers are left to the free decision of
the citizens."20
The diversity of political regimes is morally acceptable, provided they serve
the legitimate good of the communities that adopt them. Regimes whose nature is
contrary to the natural law, to the public order, and to the fundamental rights
of persons cannot achieve the common good of the nations on which they have been
imposed.
1902 Authority
does not derive its moral legitimacy from itself. It must not behave in a
despotic manner, but must act for the common good as a "moral force based
on freedom and a sense of responsibility":21
- A human law has the character of law to the extent that it
accords with right reason, and thus derives from the eternal law. Insofar as
it falls short of right reason it is said to be an unjust law, and thus has
not so much the nature of law as of a kind of violence.22
1903 Authority
is exercised legitimately only when it seeks the common good of the group
concerned and if it employs morally licit means to attain it. If rulers were to
enact unjust laws or take measures contrary to the moral order, such
arrangements would not be binding in conscience. In such a case, "authority
breaks down completely and results in shameful abuse."23
1904 "It is preferable that each power be balanced by
other powers and by other spheres of responsibility which keep it within proper
bounds. This is the principle of the 'rule of law,' in which the law is
sovereign and not the arbitrary will of men."24
II. THE COMMON GOOD
1905 In keeping with the social nature of man, the good
of each individual is necessarily related to the common good, which in turn can
be defined only in reference to the human person:
- Do not live entirely isolated, having retreated into
yourselves, as if you were already justified, but gather instead to seek the
common good together.25
1906 By common good is to be understood "the sum total
of social conditions which allow people, either as groups or as individuals, to
reach their fulfillment more fully and more easily."26 The
common good concerns the life of all. It calls for prudence from each, and even
more from those who exercise the office of authority. It consists of three
essential elements:
1907 First, the common good presupposes respect for the
person as such. In the name of the common good, public authorities are
bound to respect the fundamental and inalienable rights of the human person.
Society should permit each of its members to fulfill his vocation. In
particular, the common good resides in the conditions for the exercise of the
natural freedoms indispensable for the development of the human vocation, such
as "the right to act according to a sound norm of conscience and to
safeguard . . . privacy, and rightful freedom also in matters of religion."27
1908 Second, the common good requires the social
well-being and development of the group itself. Development is the
epitome of all social duties. Certainly, it is the proper function of authority
to arbitrate, in the name of the common good, between various particular
interests; but it should make accessible to each what is needed to lead a truly
human life: food, clothing, health, work, education and culture, suitable
information, the right to establish a family, and so on.28
1909 Finally, the common good requires peace, that
is, the stability and security of a just order. It presupposes that authority
should ensure by morally acceptable means the security of society and
its members. It is the basis of the right to legitimate personal and collective
defense.
1910 Each human community possesses a common good which
permits it to be recognized as such; it is in the political community
that its most complete realization is found. It is the role of the state to
defend and promote the common good of civil society, its citizens, and
intermediate bodies.
1911 Human interdependence is increasing and gradually
spreading throughout the world. The unity of the human family, embracing people
who enjoy equal natural dignity, implies a universal common good. This
good calls for an organization of the community of nations able to "provide
for the different needs of men; this will involve the sphere of social life to
which belong questions of food, hygiene, education, . . . and certain situations
arising here and there, as for example . . . alleviating the miseries of
refugees dispersed throughout the world, and assisting migrants and their
families."29
1912 The common good is always oriented towards the progress
of persons: "The order of things must be subordinate to the order of
persons, and not the other way around."30 This order is founded
on truth, built up in justice, and animated by love.
III. RESPONSIBILITY AND PARTICIPATION
1913 "Participation" is the voluntary and generous
engagement of a person in social interchange. It is necessary that all
participate, each according to his position and role, in promoting the common
good. This obligation is inherent in the dignity of the human person.
1914 Participation
is achieved first of all by taking charge of the areas for which one assumes personal
responsibility: by the care taken for the education of his family, by
conscientious work, and so forth, man participates in the good of others and of
society.31
1915 As
far as possible citizens should take an active part in public life. The
manner of this participation may vary from one country or culture to another.
"One must pay tribute to those nations whose systems permit the largest
possible number of the citizens to take part in public life in a climate of
genuine freedom."32
1916 As
with any ethical obligation, the participation of all in realizing the common
good calls for a continually renewed conversion of the social partners.
Fraud and other subterfuges, by which some people evade the constraints of the
law and the prescriptions of societal obligation, must be firmly condemned
because they are incompatible with the requirements of justice. Much care should
be taken to promote institutions that improve the conditions of human life.33
1917 It
is incumbent on those who exercise authority to strengthen the values that
inspire the confidence of the members of the group and encourage them to put
themselves at the service of others. Participation begins with education and
culture. "One is entitled to think that the future of humanity is in the
hands of those who are capable of providing the generations to come with reasons
for life and optimism."34
IN BRIEF
1918 "There is no authority except from God, and those
authorities that exist have been instituted by God" (Rom 13:1).
1919 Every human community needs an authority in order to
endure and develop.
1920 "The political community and public authority are
based on human nature and therefore . . . belong to an order established by
God" (GS 74 § 3).
1921 Authority is exercised legitimately if it is committed
to the common good of society. To attain this it must employ morally acceptable
means.
1922 The diversity of political regimes is legitimate,
provided they contribute to the good of the community.
1923 Political authority must be exercised within the limits
of the moral order and must guarantee the conditions for the exercise of
freedom.
1924 The common good comprises "the sum total of social
conditions which allow people, either as groups or as individuals, to reach
their fulfillment more fully and more easily" (GS 26 1).
1925 The common good consists of three essential elements:
respect for and promotion of the fundamental rights of the person; prosperity,
or the development of the spiritual and temporal goods of society; the peace and
security of the group and of its members.
1926 The dignity of the human person requires the pursuit of
the common good. Everyone should be concerned to create and support institutions
that improve the conditions of human life.
1927 It is the role of the state to defend and promote the
common good of civil society. The common good of the whole human family calls
for an organization of society on the international level.
15 John XXIII, PT 46.
16 Cf. Leo XIII, Immortale Dei; Diuturnum illud.
17 Rom 13:1-2; cf. 1 Pet 2:13-17.
18 Cf. as early as 1 Tim 2:1-2.
19 St. Clement of Rome, Ad Cor. 61: SCh 167,198-200.
20 GS 74 § 3.
21 GS 74 § 2.
22 St. Thomas Aquinas, STh I-II, 93, 3, ad 2.
23 John XXIII PT 51.
24 CA 44.
25 Ep. Barnabae, 4,10: PG 2, 734.
26 GS 26 § 1; cf. GS 74 § 1.
27 GS 26 § 2.
28 Cf. GS 26 § 2.
29 GS 84 § 2.
30 GS 26 § 3.
31 Cf. CA 43.
32 GS 31 § 3.
33 Cf. GS 30 § 1.
34 GS 31 § 3.
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