9 key themes of cst

SSDDFO-CP
Solidarity, Common Good, and Participation
Subsidiarity and the Proper Role of Government
The Dignity of Every Person and Human Rights
The Dignity of Work, Rights of Workers, and

Support for Labor Unions

Family Life

Option for the Poor and Vulnerable

Property Ownership in Modern Society: Rights and Responsibilities
Colonialism and Economic Development
Peace and Disarment

CAPITAL PUNISHMENT
Capital Punishment- The execution of a person convicted of a crime. Current
methods of execution include the use of firing squads, hanging, lethal injection,
etc. Crimes to which death penalty vary from country to country.
Justifications commonly used by civil authorities for the use of capital punishment
are :
-Retribution- is the concept of punishment inflicted towards an individual
who has committed a certain wrong to society. It is meant to be reparative in
nature and is supposed to return a wronged society back in to order. Its role in
the discussion on death penalty is that it questions whether such punishment
commensurate and fair over the gravity of the crime one has committed.
-Deterrence- Deterrent effect- is the belief that the threat of death as
punishment for the commission of certain crimes is enough to prevent an
individual from committing the said crime due to his fear of being put to death.
-Reform

Catholic Church has been one with the anti-death penalty movements in the intl
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community in campaigning for the abolition of the death penalty. However, this
stand is a fairly recent development in the churchs moral doctrine.
The church, for much of its history, had not opposed the application of death
penalty on criminals by secular authorities The Church had even endorsed it
expressly and facilitated the execution by civil authorities of people convicted of
heresy and witchcraft.
4th-12th century
During the time of the earlier church, ecclesiastical authorities and teachers had
differing stands regarding the use of capital punishment against heretics;
Majority held that death penalty for heresy was irreconcilable with Christianity
when not civilly criminal.
St. Agustine in his early writings disavowed the use of force to bring heretics back
to church. However, he changed his views after witnessing the successful
achieved by the use of force. However, he also wrote appeals to authorities
seeking the commutation of the death sentence.
Church never directly sentenced the heretics to death. Such punishment on them
is not carried out directly by ecclesiastical law or actions but rather by civil
authorities.
12th-14th century
Biblical texts were used to support death penalty. It is usually done by the
scholastic method of avoiding contradictions by making distinctions. E.g. thou
shall not kill only prohibits killing of innocent people. Death penalty is allowed
just as long as certain conditions were met.
repelling force with force- a principle that shifts the way killing is understood.
Rather than seeing it as something problematic, to agonize over and do penance
for, killing is now seen as a positive aspect of the natural order or part of the way
things are as intended by the will of God.
Aquinas- says that one is forbidden to kill the evil if this means harming the good;
but if killing affords protection or serves the good, then it is legitimate. The
phyisicians may rightfully amputate a diseased organ if it threatens the corruption

of the body
12th-19th century
Pope Gregory IX in Excommunicamus explicitly prescribed death penalty through
punishment of burning against heretics. Boith church and state recognized that it
is a sure and simple way of destroying not only enemies of faith but also political
enemies and rivals.
15th-19th century
the rise of secularization
Secularization challenged the concept of after life and proposes that death of a
human body is the ultimate end of life.
In this era, the stand on death penalty became the measure of ones religious life.
Advocating for death penalty became a way of recognizing the belief in after life.
Advocating its abolition became an indication of abandonment of faith.
At this era, even to entertain the possibility in ones mind that the Church had
been wrong in its support of the death penalty and had been committing a grave
injustice for centuries would have been unthinkable for many leaders of the
Church.
Shift in the secular word.
An Italian economist published Crimes and Punishment which was the first
systematic attempt to present principles governing capital punishment; initiated
serious discussion.
Shift in the Churchs teaching
1st argument: Long tradition of state use of capital punishmentWhen some had
states abandoned the use of death penalty, the possibility of living in a society
w/o death penalty became a reality. The church could no longer say that death
penalty is part of the unchanging divine order willed by God for society.
2nd argument: Aquinas metaphor of amputation now can mean just imprisonment
and not death penalty entirely. With the use of prisons where criminals were
separated from society, the diseased limb may now be isolated from the body
without killing it. We may even heal it and make it part of the body once again.
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3rd argument, force against force replaced by a more sophisticated analysis

which allow individualized punishment that is appropriate for the offender and
beneficial to the society.
Pacem in Terris is a significant development on the Church teachings because
the church started talking about defense of life in the context of human rights and
common good.
Vatican II 1st, it recognized that the Church continues to recognize the states right
and duty to inflict death penalty if proportionate to the crime committed. However,
the church said that death penalty can no longer be justified as a retributive
punishment.
but
The change made in #2267 of the Revised Catechism signals the shift in
tradition. Church no longer considers death penalty as proportionate punishment
for crime. The church showed its preference for alternative punishments. And
they also reiterated that death penalty should not be handed down in a careless
manner since persons life is at stake.

GAMBLING: or gaming, is the staking of money or other things of value on the

issue of a game of chance.
Gambling are not immoral in itself; it is not an intrinsic evil.
Theologians require four conditions so that gambling may not be illicit/
BAFE
>What is at stake must BELONG to the gambler and must be at his free
disposal.
>The gambler must ACT freely, without unjust compulsion
>The transaction must not be FRAUDULENT, although usual ruses if the
game may be allowed.
>There must be some sort of EQUALITY between the parties to make the
contract equitable.

Three things that make up the morality of an action: Object, Intention, and
circumstance
Bishops who hold the presumption that all forms of gambling are intrinsically evil
will not agree to any attemot to legalize jueteng or other illegal gambling activities.
Bishops who are consistent with the churchs teaching on gambling will evaluate
diff forms of gambling in a case to case basis.
Bishops in addressing the issue must be
Accurate-Consistent-Nuanced-Focused-Humble-Realistic-Compassionate
CBCPs collective policy
-to denounce illegal gambling and prevent its legalization
-to combat expansion of organized and systematic Legal gambling
-to refrain from soliciting/ receiving funds from illegal or even legal gambling so as
to not promote a culture of gambling
-to encourage church personnel and institutions from doing the same even the
objective may be that of helping the poor.

CHURCH, STATE, AND POLITICS

Separation of Church and State

Church and state both manifest organizational structures but they have different
configuration and ends they pursue.
Church is organized in ways to meet spiritual needs of the faithful
States are organized to give rise to relationship and institutions at the service of
the temporal common good.
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Role of the church in political life-State may not impose religion, yet it must
guarantee religious freedom and harmony between the followers of diff religions.
It is not the Churchs responsibility to make its teachings prevail in political life.
Rather, Church wishes to help form conscience in political life and simulate
greater insight into authentic requirements of justice as well as greater readiness
to act accordingly.
The church cannot and must not take upon herself the political battle to bring
about justice. She cannot replace the state. Yet at the same time, she cannot and
must not remain on the sidelines in the fight for justice.
A just society is not the churchs primary aim. Its the states. Yet the promotion of
justice through efforts to bring about openness of mind and will to the demands of
common good is something which concerns the church deeply.
The church can contribute to the purification of reason and the reawakening of
the moral forces without which just structures are neither established nor prove
effective in the long run.
Magisterium does not wish to exercise political power or eliminate the freedom of
opinion of the catholics regarding contingent issues. Instead it intendsas its
proper functionto instruct and illuminate the conscience of the faithful,
particularly those who are in political life, so their actions may always serve the
integral promotion of the human person and the common good.

GAUDIUM et SPES
This is different from other encyclicals. It did not focus on a specific
problem but rather it sought to cover a wide range of topics that dealt

with the relationship of the Church with the world and all aspects of
human life in society.
Shift from classicist to historically conscious approach.
GS seems to move away from a discernment of moral wisdom from
human nature and creation alone.
Relied on tools of human sciences
Church makes a strong affirmation yhat it can and should learn from
the world
There is a positive view of human capacity to build a just society.
Document acknowledges that there is a split in human person. Human
life struggle between good and evil.
Human dignity depends on freedom to obey ones own conscience. It
demands that a man act according to a knowing and free choice
toward goodness.
Atheism
A serious concern impending the liberation of the complete person and
antagonistic toward religion
A living faith, activating people to love and justice, is needed to
overcome suspicion of religion.
Human community
Common good is the sum total of al conditions which allow people to
reach their fulfillment more fully and more easily. All must work for the
common good.
Duty to neighbor: must consider neighbors as another self. Distinguish
sin from sinners.
Human Activity
Church does not have all the answer to every question but still seeks to
shed light of revelation on human experience to guide humanity.
Church recognizes the autonomy of earthly affairs( in terms of
scientific truth) but affirms dependence of all creation on God.
Role of the church in a modern world.
Christ did not give a mission in political, economic, or social order. The
mission of the church is primarily a religious one. But this religious
mission can be the source of commitment to help humanity.
Church is not committed to any particular social, political and
economic system.
Secular duties and activities belong to the laity. The clergy do not have
all the answers to every problem.
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Church admits its own sinfulness and unfaithfulness to the Gospel. It

also needs to purify itself constantly.
Problems of special urgency
Marriage and family
Marriage and conjugal love are by nature ordered toward the
procreation and education of children
Reproduction and Birth Control: Parents should make their own
judgment but they must make decisions governed by a formed
conscience guided by divine law and church teaching. They
should not use methods of birth control that is against human
dignity.
Previously , conjugal love subordinated to procreation and
education of children. Now, the children are seen as the
fulfillment rather than the purpose of conjugal love.
More positive treatment of sexual intercourse. for those
actions signify and promote mutual self-giving by which spouses
enrich each other with a joyful and thankful will.
Economic life
Human labor is superior to other elements of economic life. Economic
activity detrimental to the worker is wrong and inhuman.
Wages must provide the worker the means to provide for ones own
material, social, and spiritual life and that of ones dependents.
Workers have the right to freely found unions to be able to participate
in economic decisions affecting them.
At times strike can be necessary means for the defense of the workers
own right and fulfillment of just demands.
Private property
Private property should benefit all. If a person is in extreme necessity,
he has the right to take from the riches of others what he himself
needs.
Political community
When public authority oversteps and oppresses the people, these
people should obey to the extent that common good demands. Still, it
is lawful for them to defend their own rights and of their fellow citizens
against abuse of authority, provided they observe the limits of natural
law and the gospel.

The church has a right to pass moral judgment, even on matter

touching political order, whenever basic personal rights or the
salvation of souls make it necessary.

Populorum Progressio
Hiuman aspirations include:
-

freedom from misery

assurance of finding sustenance
responsibility without oppression
better education

Development is not limited to economic growth. In order for it to be

authentic, it must be complete and promote the good of every man
and of the whole man.
Authentic development is a development for each and all.
Private property is not an absolute right. It must be exercised for the
common good. No one is justified for his exclusive use what he does
not need, when others lack necessities.
Industry is necessary foe economic growth.
Individual initiative and free competition is not enough. Public
programs are necessary.

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