The Church and Social Issues

It is easy for us in this country to think that our government is the best.  This may be true, and there is great virtue in showing patriotism for one's country.  However, what follows from this thought is that the Church is wrong when its bishops address moral issues and draw conclusions that go against our government system or rulings.  We need to remember that the Church is a higher authority than any government, even our democratic republic of the United States.  If the Church teaches us that a law is unjust, we are obligated to follow her instructions, even if they require us to break an unjust, but legal mandate or law.  These are hard words for us, but encouraging.  We know that God is so near to us that we have the privilege to make public sacrifices for Him.  For instance, some priests have said they are willing to go to jail if it is necessary to protect the lives of the innocent.  That will probably not be necessary for us in our lifetime, but it is important to be prepared to stand up for the Church and stay up to date with all her comments on social issues.

Take a look at this essay:

"The Church has addressed the countless social justice issues that have been debated over the course of history. Social justice issues are those that concern the relationships of men in society with one another. The Church has often been called upon to comment on social justice issues as in concern for the welfare of the people. Issues such as employment, government control, and war policies are addressed by the Church as the determining head of moral standards. However, there are two opposite heresies that attack the Church's role in addressing social issues.


"There are two opposite heresies that regard the Church's involvement in social justice issues to be, first, totally misplaced or second, lacking in intensity. The first heresy concerning the Church and social issues is that the Catholic Church should have no involvement in social justice issues. This heresy claims that the Church should concern itself only with the spiritual state of man, which excludes all social relationships. The second heresy claims the opposite - that in order to save the souls of men, the Church must first free the society of all error. This heresy contends that the Church must be foremost in the bustle of social activity, even so far that members of the Church clergy and religious should become political leaders. These opposing heresies are equal in error as the Church should neither be absent from social issues nor engrossed in political society.


"The legacy of the Catholic Church proves that the two heresies are in error. Addressing the first, the Church's primary mission is to aid the spirituality of the individual. However, the individual's spirituality and his social concerns cannot be separated. The individual acts in society according to his conscience, which must be formed and instructed by the Church. Therefore, it is necessary that the Church be involved in social justice issues so that the individual can act according to what the Church teaches on the debated subject. The second heresy is in error as it is focused primarily on the social aspect of this world and not the eternal. The Church's primary mission is to direct all souls to God and the eternal life. Since God is the end for all, everyone should focus on the everlasting goal - social issues are only a part of the temporal path to reaching that goal. As members of the clergy and religious of the Catholic Church are concerned with the souls of the faithful, they risk confusing the temporal and material with the eternal by participating as members of the government. Therefore, as the Church is needed in debating issues of social justice, as its primary purpose is to save souls, there must be a clear distinction between the temporal world, of which social issues are a part, and the everlasting life where all souls will live in communion with God as King."