Question of the Day Last class What three

Question of the Day • Last class: What three historical movements or developments led to the development of Catholic Social Teaching? In a socialist society, who owns the businesses? During the Industrial Revolution, where were people going to find jobs? • Today What is the pope’s job?

• The Pope’s main job is to preserve Catholic teaching. One of the ways the Pope does this is by issuing encyclicals, letters to the Bishops of the world. • One of those encyclicals, Rerum Novarum, is the first Papal document dedicated to Catholic social teaching.

Answer these questions: Who wrote Rerum Novarum? Pope Leo XIII What did the teaching of Rerum Novarum have in common with the socialists? Rerum Novarum criticized capitialism, especially its abuses against workers. How was it different? Unlike the socialists did not believing in abolishing private property. Remember, in socialist countries the government owns everything. What two sources formed the basis of Rerum Novarum? The two sources are the Gospel and Natural Law.

• The natural law means that men and women, by reason alone, can know many things that are morally right or wrong. This natural law was put in our hearts by God. This, along with Jesus’ teachings in the Gospel, form the basis for Rerum Novarum’s teachings.

• The seven themes of Rerum Novarum are: Cooperation between classes The dignity of work The just wage and worker’s associations The role of the state Private Ownership of Property Defense of the poor

• Do you think our society is based more on cooperation or competition? Why? • What is the purpose of work? • What wage do you think is fair for someone working as a cashier at Target? • Do you know anyone who belongs to a union? • Should the government have the right to tell you how many children you can have? • Can the state ever take away your property? • What do you think the government should do for the poor?

Do you think our society is based more on cooperation or competition? Why? • Cooperation between classes is an important theme of Rerum Novarum. The word cooperation literally means “to work together”. This goes for people of all economic classes: the upper class, the middle class and the poor. • Unlike Catholic Social Teaching, Socialism believed that conflict between social groups was inevitable.

What is the purpose of work? • Work is mainly to help people support their loved ones and give them a decent lifestyle. Working conditions should be reasonable and safe. This is referred to as the dignity of work, and reflects people’s human dignity.

What wage do you think is fair for someone working as a cashier at Target? Do you know anyone who belongs to a union? • Rerum Novarum advocated a just wage, enough for a worker to support his family. The document also recognized the rights of workers to group together in workers’ associations, or unions. • Unions help workers to protect their rights and to negotiate wages.

Should the government have the right to tell you how many children you can have? The answer, according to Rerum Novarum, would be no. According to the document, the state (another way to say the government) should not interfere in private matters unless absolutely necessary to protect society.

Can the state ever take away your property? • According to Rerum Novarum, people have the right to own their own property. That right is not absolute, property must be fairly distributed and used responsibly. For example, dumping toxic chemicals in a lake or forest would be an irresponsible use of property.

What do you think the government should do for the poor? • According to Rerum Novarum, the government has a role in helping the poor. The documents suggests that this is a top priority for the state.

Definitions of social movements/historical developments • Enlightenment – a political and philosophical movement that asserted that reason and science are the basis for knowing truth. • Industrial revolution – the shift from a farming and craft made economy to an economy based on factory production. • Capitalism –system in which a few own the means of production for their own profit and workers sold their labor to the owners for whatever wage they could get.

• Socialism – an economic system advocating distributing wealth according to need, not ownership of capital or profits. • Communism – an ideal equitable society in which laws would be unnecessary.

Groupwork • In groups of 3, read page 51 and list five results of the publication of Rerum Novarum.