Catholic Social Teaching Essay Example for Free

Catholic Social Teaching Essay * is a body of doctrine developed by the Catholic Church on matters of poverty and wealth, economics, social organization and the role of the state. Its foundations are widely considered to have been laid by Pope Leo XIIIs 1891 encyclical letter Rerum Novarum, which advocated economic Distributism and condemned both Capitalism and Socialism, although its roots can be traced to the writings of Catholic thinkers such as St. Thomas Aquinas and St. Augustine of Hippo, and is also derived from concepts present in the Bible. * The Catholic Social Teaching has two basic characteristics, namely, being permanent and developing. * Permanent -Since the teachings are based on the Gospel, they offer a permanent complex idea to be pursued in the ever changing historical conditions and ways. These teachings can never go out of date in their fundamentals. Examples of these permanent teachings are exemplified in the following principles: 1. Human dignity and Solidarity 2. Social justice and Christian love 3. Active non-violence and peace 4. Preferential option for the poor 5. Value of human work 6. Universal destinations of all goods of the earth 7. Stewardship and the integrity of creation 8. People empowerment 9. Authentic and holistic (integral) human development * Developing -The fundamentals of Church Social Teaching make up the steadily growing collection of the Church’s social principles that must be creatively applied to and renewed in ever changing concrete situations of various events, cultures, and human needs in the historical process. Deeper insights into permanent values develop as the Church reads the signs of the times. * Methods and Sources 1. Scripture. The authoritative books which record the Jewish and Christian   experiences of God’s self-disclosure. Scripture reveals who God is and who we are called to be in response to God. Interpretation of Scripture requires attention to historical context and is best done in community. 2. Tradition: the ways of thinking and living that are â€Å"handed over† (traditio) from one generation to the next; an ongoing conversation across the ages about our most important questions. Also the body of theological reflection and the ways of putting this reflection into practice that are â€Å"handed over† (traditio) from one generation to the next. Magisterium: official teaching office of church and authoritative voice of tradition. While theologians, activists, and ordinary Catholics make contribute to this body of theological reflection in important ways, a privileged source of Catholic tradition is the magisterium or the official, authoritative teaching office of the church. This official teaching office is exercised by Catholic Bishops, and in particular the Bishop of Rome (the Pope), as well as groups appointed by the Pope. This teaching is expressed in the form of a) papal encyclicals; b) encyclicals of Church Councils (such as Vatican II) or Synods of Bishops, c) statements by Vatican offices, congregations, and commissions; d) Episcopal conferences (regional meetings of Bishops, such as the National Conference of Catholic Bishops in the United States). 3. Reason. The natural human capacity to know truth. The way we interpret and understand Scripture, Tradition, and experience. * Reason as Natural Law The preeminent form of reasoning for much of Catholic tradition has been natural law reasoning. To understand Catholic natural law reasoning, one must get inside a whole worldview, culture, and language within Catholic tradition. Natural law holds that God’s intentions are expressed in the order that God â€Å"built into creation.† This order takes the form of â€Å"natures† or intelligible patterns of being. Humans are capable of knowing this order by reflecting upon creation. As humans we must first recognize our nature and act according to it so as to fulfill our created nature. For example, humans by nature (or by creation) have a â€Å"built in† instinct for self-preservation. Aquinas argues that to use appropriately limited violence in self-defense is good because it is to act according to our God-given nature. (God’s creation is good). * Four Levels of Law St. Thomas Aquinas defines law is â€Å"an ordering of reason† (ordinatio rationis) or the most important way that reason rules or measures actions. He describes four levels of law: a. Eternal Law: the mind (ratio) of God which orders and governs creation b. Divine Law: the explicit revelation of the mind of God in Scripture c. Natural Law: the expression of the mind of God in the order that God has built into creation. This order takes the form of natures or patterns of being that humans can know by using their reason to reflect on creation. For example, because humans by nature (or creation) have a built in instinct for self-preservation, limited self-defense is in accord with our God-given nature. See Romans 2:14-15 d. Human Law: human attempts to formulate laws that reflect the natural law. * Two Interpretations of Human Nature There have been two major strains of interpretation of human nature: a) â€Å"nature as physical†Ã¢â‚¬â€humans must respect their biological â€Å"givenness† or the physical order (ex. artificial contraception interferes with the natural order of sexual intercourse whereas the rhythm method respects this order.) b) â€Å"nature as rational†Ã¢â‚¬â€humans must act in accord with reason; they must seek to discover and fulfill their fullest purpose. Biology does not trump other cues in discovering â€Å"nature.† Instead, we must look to all sources of human wisdom in order to discover how things are meant to be. The pope reasons that the purpose of property is for the good of all creation but a limited right to private property is consistent with human dignity and human wisdom about how well people take care of common property. 4. Experience. Our encounter with the world both past and present. Christian tradition privileges the experience of those at the margins of society—the poor and the oppressed. In Catholic social thought experience is enriched and expanded by a four step process of interpretation and reflection which I will call â€Å"the interpretive circle†. a. experience: insert yourself into a situation, see what is going on, and gather necessary information b. social analysis: â€Å"What are the structural or â€Å"root† causes of injustices?† â€Å"What are the patterns of action that reinforce these injustices?† c. theological reflection: â€Å"What light does faith, especially as expressed in Scripture and Catholic social teaching, shed upon our experience and social analysis?† â€Å"Where is God in this situation and how might we respond to God’s call to us?† d. practical planning: â€Å"What are the most faithful, creative, and effective ways of acting upon the first three steps?† * How does Catholic tradition use these four sources? 1. They serve as checks and balances to each other. Each should inform and complement the other in critical dialogue. 2. â€Å"Reason informed by faith.† Reason and faith penetrate each other and form a unified way of approaching problems. Scripture and Christian Tradition provide the overall story, worldview, and values that serve as the framework for moral reasoning.

Capital Punishment Essay: Hypocrisy of the Death Penalty

The Hypocrisy of the Death Penalty If there is a desire by the American people to maintain the death penalty, let us at least be spared the hypocrisy of a justification by example.   The death penalty is a penalty, to be sure, a frightful torture, both physical and moral, but it provides no sure example except a demoralizing one. It punishes, but it forestalls nothing; indeed, it may even arouse the impulse to murder. It hardly seems to exist, except for the man who suffers it-- in his soul for months and years, in his body during the desperate and violent hour when he is cut in two without suppressing his life. Let us call it by the name which, for lack of any other nobility, will at least give the nobility of truth, and let us recognize it for what it is essentially: a revenge. A punishment that penalizes without forestalling is indeed called revenge. It is a quasi-arithmetical reply made by society to whoever breaks its primordial law. That reply is as old as man; it is called the law of retaliation. Whoever has done me harm must suffer harm; whoever has put out my eye m...

Hardness of Water Essay

The hardness of water was determined using the methods of titration, conductivity, and pH analysis. The mean and uncertainty of CaCO3 is 134 ±36.0 ppm. An error that could have potentially happened could be that the equivalence point was not correctly established causing inaccurate data. BACKGROUND: 1In hard water there is a high amount of mineral content present in the water. Most of the mineral content that is present in water are Ca2+ and Mg2+ ions. Even though hard water does affect a person’s health, hard water can still have harmful effects in an industrial environment, appliances in a household setting, and certain cleaning task. 2For example, when hard water repeatedly goes through pipes, the water causes deposits that eventually build up and clog the pipes. When cleaning dishes the presence of hard water can be detected when a layer of film is present on the dishes. Soap becomes less effective when hard water is present because the soap will bond with the minerals in the water. PROCEDURE: Hirko, R. Chemistry 112L General Chemistry I Laboratory, Seventh Edition; bluedoor: Minnetonka, MN, 2013 RESULTS: Table 1. Ca2+/Mg2+ in tap water via EDTA titration. Table 1 results were determined by pH analysis and EDTA titration. The moles of EDTA was found by using the EDTA concentration of 0.025 mol/L. Table 2. Conductivity probe calibration Figure 1. Conductivity of standard NaCl using conductivity probes. 1†³H2OKits.com Water Blog.† Negative Effects of Hard Water. H20 Kits, 16 Sept. 2008. Web. 11 Oct. 2013. 2†Water Hardness.† Water Hardness. Freshwatersystems, n.d. Web. 12 Oct. 2013. DISCUSSION: The mean and uncertainty for CaCO3 for tap water was determined to be 134 ±36.0 ppm. For the EDTA titration trial 2 and trial 3 had the same results of 125 ppm compared to trial 1, which had a higher ppm of 150. The readings for the hardness of water for the 3 different trials are not similar and differ in values. The CaCO3 value for the volumetric data was 134 ppm, the value for NaCl was 180 ppm, and the value for 442 was 248 ppm. The hardness of water can never be definitive because the water in Brookings may be different than the water in Sioux Falls. If it was possible to always have the same amount of mineral concentration then it would be definitive. Errors that could that potentially happened is when titrating it was difficult to tell when the equivalence point actually occurred, causing more or less amount of EDTA to present. Not knowing the when the equivalence point actually occurred would cause inaccurate values because the volume would be incorrect. Another error could be that the magnetic stirrer was spinning fast enough to mix the solution properly. This would cause excess EDTA to be present causing inaccurate results. An improvement for this lab would be test different hard water sources rather than just one faucet.

Hybridity As The Cultural Effect Of Globalization-...

Hybridity as the cultural effect of globalization- Introduction According to Avtar Brah and Annie Coombes, the term hybridity originated as a biological term that was used to describe the outcome of a crossing of two or more plants or species. It is now a term that is used for a wide range of social and cultural phenomena involving mixing, and has become a key concept within cultural criticism and post-colonial theory (A. Brah and A.E. Coombes. 2000.). Marwan Kraidy defines the term as the cultural logic of globalization because hybridity confirms that there are traces of other cultures in every culture (Marwan M. Kraidy. 2005.). Hybridization is defined as â€Å"the ways in which forms become separated from existing practices and recombine with new forms in new practices† (Rowe and Schelling 1991: 231). In his book Globalization and Culture: Global Mà ©lange, Jan Nederveen Pieterse describes globalization as an objective, empirical process of increasing economic and political connectivity, a subjective process unfolding in conscious ness, as the collective awareness of growing global interconnectedness, and a host of specific globalizing projects that seek to shape global conditions (Nederveen Pieterse. 2009. 16-17). Based on these definitions, it is evident that globalization and hybridity have strong connections to each other. They also prove that globalization and hybridity affect every individual in some way, and this paper will focus on the cultural aspect ofShow MoreRelatedThe Black And Black British Diaspora2184 Words   |  9 Pagesthrough which the Black British diaspora has been imagined and represented by the theorisations of Paul Gilroy and others. Why does Gilroy (and others) suggest his notion of ‘The Black Atlantic’ as useful for re-imagining black identities? Introduction This essay will analyse the concept of ‘The Black Atlantic’ by sociologist Paul Gilroy. Written almost 20 years ago, it is an important concept which has been celebrated as instrumental in the re-imagining of black culture. Its framework willRead MoreGlobalization of Korean Popular Culture in Asia4150 Words   |  17 PagesGlobalization of Korean Popular Culture in Asia 1. Introduction Since 1990s, Korean Popular Culture has had a strong influence in Asian countries, including China, Hong Kong, Taiwan, Japan and Singapore. This new popular cultural phenomenon in Asia is called the â€Å"Korean Wave†, also known as hallyu in Korean pronunciation, which refers to the surge of popularity of Korean popular culture abroad, particularly in Asia(Kin 284). The â€Å"Korean Wave† is first coined in mid-1999 by journalists in BeijingRead MoreGlobal Chic : The Globalization Of Fashion3361 Words   |  14 PagesCapstone Draft November 5, 2014 Global Chic: The Globalization of Fashion Abstract: This paper aims to investigate the effects of globalization, examined through the framework of hybridity/glocalization, on the fashion industry by examining the shift in the nature of ethnic, cultural and national references in high-end designer collections, and the growth of fast-fashion houses’ global success. High-end designers have been using cultural references as their inspiration for decades. However,Read MoreEssay about Writers and Intellectuals in Exile2499 Words   |  10 Pagespositive, that which provides the intellectuals and writers a critical and reflective insight, and here I would refer to JanMohamed and Salman Rushdie with special reference to Said’s â€Å"contrapuntal† effect. I would then proceed to the ‘enabling’ aspect of exile which involves the agential process of hybridity where I will bring in Homi K. Bhabha’s take on it and his concept of â€Å"third space†. â€Å"Exile originated in the age old practice of banishment. Once banished, the exile lives an anomalous and miserableRead MoreEssay Case study of BMWs expansion into China2015 Words   |  9 Pagesï » ¿Why has BMW planned to build its second factory in Shenyang, China? Introduction This case study will investigate the car manufacturer BMW and its recent plans to increase production in the Chinese market. BMW is a Transnational Corporation which can be defined as ‘a firm that has the power to coordinate and control operations in more than one country’ (Dicken, 2011, p.110). The automotive industry for years has been very static, but the automotive power is now shifting. Over the past decadeRead MoreGlobalization: Making the World a Fatter Place One Country at a Time3446 Words   |  14 Pagesï » ¿Globalization: Making the World A Fatter Place One Country at A Time Abstract Current estimations indicate that about 500 million adults are obese with 120 million residing in the developing nations. This is the first in the history of man society that the world has more overweight individuals than underweight population. The World Health Organization (WHO) refers to this pattern as the concept of globesity. This is an indication that obesity is a global problem affecting poor and low-incomeRead MoreIdentity And The Search For The Self Among The Sub Continental Diaspora10173 Words   |  41 Pageswhich is â€Å"always in process† of its making. (Cultural Identity and Diaspora, Identity: community, culture and difference p.222) Prior to the deconstructionist way of interrogating the term identity, it had been read as a homogenous and a fixed concept. The early philosophers considered identity as fixed, contrastive and all inclusive leading to labelling of an individual and the group and their traits with a mark. According to Roy Baumeister (Identity, cu ltural change and the struggle for self, 1986)Read MoreAmerican Popular Culture and Its Impact in a Globalized World8501 Words   |  35 PagesBritish fish and chips. Before Disneyland, there was Copenhagens Tivoli Gardens (which Walt Disney used as a prototype for his first theme park, in Anaheim, a model later re-exported to Tokyo and Paris). Ââ€" Richard Pells 1. Introduction No matter what corner of the world, it is more than unlikely to walk up to an adoles-cent, mention the names Jennifer Lopez, Madonna, Eminem or Bruce Willis and be confronted with a questioning face of ignorance. Performers and actors such asRead More The Debate on How Urban Middle-Class Identities Have Changed3936 Words   |  16 Pagesaffluent consumers- participants in the IT boom in urban centres such as Hyderabad and those revelling in India’s status as a call centre â€Å"superpower†, particularly thought to symbolise a new urban middle-class. Varma’s quote encapsulates the astonishing effect mass culture is thought to have had upon Indian identity, especially those who occupy this middle ground of consumption. This spectrum ranges from the lower middle-class youth, such as the aforementioned call-centre workers whose parents often experienceRead MoreInfluence of Hollywood films on the moral Values of Nigerian youths5511 Words   |  23 PagesCHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION 1.1. BACKGROUND OF THE STUDY The mass media exert great persuasive effects on the thoughts and behaviors, by encouraging people into new lifestyle patterns, fashion, etc. Among all media, films play a major role in affecting the thinking pattern of the society (Evra, 1990). Films also referred to as motion pictures, involves projecting a series of images into the screen to create an illusion of motion. It is one of the most popular forms of entertainment, enabling people