Religion Case

The Church continues the activity of Jesus by preaching the kingdom of God. The kingdom or ruling power of God affects all spheres of Life. The Church by its preaching, by its acts of mercy, and by prophetic speech seeks to make known a kingdom of love, peace, and shared existence. Poverty and war are two big issues.

The encyclical, Populorum Progressio (Pope Paul VI in 1967), stated that the right to private property is not unlimited. This might come as a shock to some conservative Catholics. Limits on the legitimate ownership of goods exist because of the needs of others. Those who lack the necessities of life have a moral claim on the resources of those who have an excess of goods beyond their needs.

Many people would think, as a Catholic, they are entitled to buy and own whatever they have earned the money to purchase. This is not what the Pope is saying. He is saying that a prosperous person should give up non-essential items that he or she may own in favor of a person who lacks the minimum needed to survive. This minimum would include at least basic medical care, according to Catholic teaching.

Note that the Populorum Progressio even spoke of people hiding income and avoiding taxes by putting money in foreign bank accounts. The point would be that this is morally wrong, because they are neglecting to contribute to the common good of everyone by paying taxes. The money goes to relief of the poor, medical care for the indigent, and so on.

The Pope notes that in cases of “long standing tyranny,” it may be permissible for the population to revolt against the government if there is a possibility that a better society may emerge. Today, we are seeing democracy movements in Egypt, Yemen, Bahrain, Libya, and other places. These movements are not based on Islam as such, but are calls for jobs and a more democratic society.

Protesters have been killed in some of these demonstrations and some have been tortured. Radical Islam is not the only force in play. Pro-democracy forces are important in the Middle East, as they are changing regimes. They are creating pressure on monarchies like Saudi Arabia.

Stepping back from this, we realize that these papal teachings are based on faith. We trust in God to provide for us, so we are willing to share what we have with hope for the future and avoid falling into avarice.

The Church tries to address issues of war and peace via the just war theory. Often just war criteria do not work well in contemporary situations, such as the so called “war on terror” with “asymmetric warfare,” use of preemptive strikes, use of drones, and so on.

The Church is not an instrument of the state but stands apart from it and tries to influence it.