Gaudium et spes

The Church in the Modern World

Second Vatican Council's 1965 Constitution

History of the encyclical

December 7, 1965 - it was proclaimed by the Second Vatican Council during the time of Pope Paul VI Deals primarily with social reality rather than personal morality or spirituality:

1.) The joy and hopes, the griefs and the anxieties of the men of this age, especially those who are poor or in any way afflicted, united in Christ, they are led by the Holy Spirit in their journey to the Kingdom of their Father and they have welcomed the news of salvation which is meant for every man.

2) Second Vatican Council, having probed more profoundly into the mystery of the Church, now addresses itself without hesitation, not only to the sons of the Church and to all who invoke the name of Christ, but to the whole of humanity.

3) Often raises anxious questions about the current trend of the world, about the place and role of man in the universe, about the meaning of its individual and collective strivings, and about the ultimate destiny of reality and of humanity.

The council brings to mankind light kindled from the Gospel, and puts at its disposal those saving resources

Major areas of concern

profound changes in modern society reveal the true character of this institution in one way or another.

Fostering the Nobility of Marriage and the Family to offer guidance and support to those Christians and other men who are trying to preserve
holiness to foster the natural dignity of the married state and its superlative nature

Marriage: profaned by excessive self-love, the worship of pleasure and illicit practices against human generation. - this love remains steadfastly true in body and in mind, in bright days or dark and it will never be profaned by adultery or divorce - certain modern conditions often keep couples from arranging their married lives harmoniously -from the moment of its conception life must be guarded with the greatest care while abortion and infanticide are unspeakable crimes

Families: serious disturbances are caused in families by modern economic conditions, by influences at once social and psychological, and by the demands of civil society - active presence of the father is highly beneficial to their formation - the children, especially the younger among them, need the care of their mother at home - the family is the foundation of society

- sons of the Church may not undertake methods of birth control which are found blameworthy by the teaching authority of the

Proper Development of Culture

man comes to a true and full humanity only through culture, that is through the cultivation of the goods and values of nature for the methods of investigation which these sciences use can be wrongly considered as the supreme rule of seeking the whole truth danger is present that man confiding too much in the discoveries of today may think that he is sufficient unto himself and no longer seek the higher things it is sometimes difficult to harmonize culture with Christian teaching

Economic and Social Life

while a few enjoy great power of choice, the majority are deprived of almost all possibility of acting on their own initiative and responsibility, and often subsist in living and working conditions unworthy of the human person those in power deprive their community of the material or spiritual aid that it needs discrimination, employment opportunities, private properties it happens too often, even in our days that workers are reduced to the level of being slaves to their own work

The Life of the Political Community

increasing concern that the rights of minorities be recognized, without any neglect for their duties toward the political community hamper civic or religious freedom, victimize large numbers through avarice and political crimes, and divert the exercise of authority from the service of the common good to the interests of one or another faction or of the rulers themselves citizens not to attribute excessive power to public authority, not to make exaggerated and untimely demands upon it in their own interests, lessening in this way the responsible role of persons, families and social groups it is never allowable to give their interests priority over the common good

Fostering of Peace and the Promotion of a Community of Nations

the complexity of the modern world and the intricacy of international relations allow guerrilla warfare to be drawn out by new methods of deceit and subversion (use of terrorism) recall the permanent binding force of universal natural law and its all-embracing principles Christians should cooperate willingly and wholeheartedly in establishing an international order that includes a genuine respect for all freedoms and amicable brotherhood between all

Guiding principles
(1) the dignity of the human person, (2) the common good, and (3) the unity of mankind. The world has its own inner laws and orientations by which it is governed. Our salvation is bound up with our commitment to the transformation of the material and earthly realities and to the creation of a new society. This commitment, then is our salvation. Let there then be no such pernicious opposition between professional and social activity on the one hand and religious life on the other. The Christian who shirks his temporal duties shirks his towards his neighbor, neglects God himself, and endangers his eternal salvation. Our faith to be genuine and effective, needs to go along with the reading of the signs of the times. It is a call to take seriously the God who comes inot our life ever afresh and respond to his call every time creatively and innovatively. "Action on behalf of justice and participation in the transformation of the world fully appear to us as a constitutive dimension of the preaching of the Gospel, or, in other words, of the Churchs mission for the redemption of the human race and its liberation from every oppressive situation."

Relevance

Society - Poor

The Pastoral Constitution on Gaudium et Spes begins with a statement of the Churchs solidarity with the whole human family, but especially with the poor It repeats the Churchs traditional teaching that "every man has the right to possess a sufficient amount of the earths goods for himself and his family Council points out that people are bound to help the poor not only from their superfluous goods, but also from what the rich need themselves as befitting their state in life.

Third World Countries - Philippines

Gaudium et Spes recognizes the needs of the Third World countries and the necessity of helping them It questions the terms of trade and calls for a new economic order. It justifies the expropriation and redistribution of large landed estates under certain circumstances

Human Person
Human dignity deserves to be protected by the Philippine government and promoted by the Filipino community. All social institutions, governments, states, laws, human rights and respect for persons originate in the dignity of man or his personhood. The dignity of the human person serves to be the foundation, cause and end of all social institutions.

Marriage, Procreation and Premarital Sex

Marriage is ordained not only toward the begetting of children, but also toward their education. Marriage is a sacred, unbreakable bond, through which love between two persons is more greatly enriched, strengthened, and perfected, leading the spouses closer to God. Procreation is neither the sole nor the primary purpose of matrimony Church believes that regular intercourse is necessary and desirable for a married couple.

Religion and Science

Let them blend new sciences and theories and the understanding of the most recent discoveries with Christian morality and the teaching of Christian doctrine, so that their religious culture and morality may keep pace with scientific knowledge and with the constantly progressing technology. Catholics are exhorted not to shy away from the world and mindlessly cleave to tradition, but to take an active part in the shaping of history in cooperation with others.

Insights
More than just what the Church stands for Fits itself into each kind of culture there is Though it may sound cliche and conservative, it is actually hard to put into exercise An invitation

http://www.vatican.va/archive/hist_councils/ii_vatican_council/documents/vat-ii_c http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gaudium_et_Spes

references

http://www.stthomas.edu/cathstudies/cst/conferences/gaudium/papers/Polanco http://uffl.org/vol10/gotcher10.pdf http://www.newadvent.org/library/docs_ec21gs.htm

http://eapi.admu.edu.ph/content/church-poor-church-philippines-reception-vati

http://www.slb.ph/catholic-social-teachings/principles-of-catholic-social-teachin

http://ph.politicalarena.com/noynoy-aquino/blogs/rh-bill-a-matter-of-conscience http://www.shc.edu/theolibrary/resources/summary_gaudium.htm

http://www.stthomas.edu/cathstudies/cst/conferences/gaudium/papers/Riccard http://www.mostsacredheartruislip.co.uk/Gaudium%20Et%20Spes.htm