Caritas In Veritate: Charity and Truth

Pope Benedict XVI released his third encyclical this summer “Caritas In Veritate.” This encyclical offers us a new chapter in the Catholic social tradition. And it comes at a time when we need it most. Pope Benedict is giving us, the Catholic community, the power of our Catholic faith to address the issues of the globalized economy and the social crisis that we currently face. During the month of July the Passion for Justice blog will address the global economic crisis from the perspective of this encyclical and Passionist spirituality.

The topic of Love has been the dominant theme of Pope Benedict’s three encyclicals. His first encyclical “Deus Caritas Est” lays the foundation for his pontifical message which is to remind us of God’s great love for us and all humanity. His second encyclical “Spe Salvi” offers us the image of hope through God’s love, especially in the midst of social and personal suffering. This recent encyclical now takes this theme of Love and applies it very practically to the economic crisis that affects us all and also within the context of globalization which is the social reality we face. In developing this theme he defines love within the cherished Christian value known as charity. The Encyclical is set to offer us a renewed definition of charity that he feels can give us a framework from which we can truly understand the forces of globalization and offer guidelines for how we can address the issues we face.

The definition that Pope Benedict offers is that charity is an expression of divine love. “Charity is love received and given.” (#5) That is to say that charity, true charity, has a deep relational quality. This relationship is divine in that we are reminded of God’s own charity to us through Christ and the ongoing dissemination of God’s grace to us. This divine relationship calls us to form this same relationship of self sacrificing love with the global human community. In the introduction he defines this charity within the perimeters of justice and the common good. True charity does not exist if we are neglecting the basic justice of the human family. Justice calls us to meet the basic needs of our brothers and sisters, charity then flows from justice to take us a step further in sharing what we have with the human community that is living in justice. If we share with our brothers and sisters who are facing desperate need then we cannot boast of being charitable. The common good is a catholic social value that reminds us of the social relationship we have with one another. The common good gives us the purpose for doing justice and charity. “To love someone is to desire that person’s good and to take effective steps to secure it… To desire the common good and strive towards it is a requirement of justice and charity.” (#7)

Passionist spirituality flows from the mystical spirituality of St. Paul of the Cross which identified the suffering Passion of Christ within the framework of God’s love for all humanity. His own witness and preaching was consistently based on the promotion of charity that was in the service of the poor. This charity was a value that his community was to adopt and which he exhorted to all who listened to his preaching. His definition of charity followed the consistent social tradition of the church where its application could only make sense after justice was applied. He made this exhortation very clear in a letter of spiritual direction to a lay business man called Thomas Fossi:

It is necessary to discharge obligations of justice before those of charity in accord with your ability in your proper state

This pursuit of justice and solidarity with the poor is an important value within Passionist spirituality. The evangelical counsel of poverty is one that reminds all members of religious communities that the orientation to the poor was a specific example of the life of Christ and that we are called to this solidarity through our own baptismal calling to be a witness to what Christ did on earth. While the Religious apply this in the consecrated vows all Christian are called to this solidarity by virtue of their baptism into the Christian faith.

In his first Chapter Pope Benedict highlights the value of solidarity within the topic of human development. In doing this Pope Benedicts dedicates that chapter to a contemporary exposition of Pope Paul VI encyclical Populorum Progressio which addresses the issue of human development and global solidarity within the lens of Catholic social teaching.  There are two items in this chapter that I would like to mention. Pope Benedict XVI is offering a synthesis of social ethics and personal/sexual ethics. He places Populorum Progression in relationship with Humanae Vitae and Evangelii Nuntiandi and suggests to us that the full meaning of social doctrine in general and human development in specific is one consistent morality. We cannot prioritize one against the other. True charity and true development will cause us to be in a true sense of relationship with each other. This relationship must be consistent within our personal and social dimensions. The other item he explores is the idea of development within the lens of our own human vocation. What does it ultimately mean to be human. Real development allows one to grow in the dignity of their own humanity. This growth requires people to have the political and social freedom to develop into their own vocation. But this vision for personal development also requires a global vision of solidarity, a solidarity that serves the pursuit of the common good.

In the next blog I will discuss the following chapter of the encyclical which discuss the current global economic reality. For the moment I leave the readers with these thoughts to consider and with this you tube video on Caritas in Veritate.   

 

One Response to “Caritas In Veritate: Charity and Truth”

1. hesparza says:

   July 29, 2009 at 2:50 pm

   This is just a short video on one of the most important points made on the encyclical, enjoy!
   http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=27CLe9etuFc