Participation in Social Life - Authority

St Clement of Rome, Pope, Theologian, Martyr

In discussing the issue of authority in social life let us begin with a prayer. This prayer was written by one of the very early successors of St Peter, and the first one we know anything about. He is called Pope St Clement I (called Clemens Romanus to distinguish him from the Alexandrian) and he is the first of the "Apostolic Fathers". His feast is celebrated on 23 November. He has left one genuine writing, a letter to the Church of Corinth, and many others have been attributed to him. He provides the Church’s most ancient prayer for political authorities:

Grant to them, Lord, health, peace, concord, and stability, so that they may exercise without offence the sovereignty that you have given them. Master, heavenly King of the ages, you give glory, honour, and power over the things of earth to the sons of men.   Direct, Lord, their counsel, following what is pleasing and acceptable in your sight, so that by exercising with devotion and in peace and gentleness the power that you have given to them, they may find favour with you.  St Clement of Rome, Letter to the Corinthians, 61.

Those who exercise authority in social life need our prayer so that they exercise their authority "without offence". It also reminds us that the authority exercised by human beings is an authority which is possessed by our sovereign Lord and is given to human beings to exercise according to their gifts and capacities. For all in authority this is worth constantly remembering, in order that they remain humble.

St Pope John XXIII said, in his encyclical Pacem in Terra,

Human society can be neither well-ordered nor prosperous unless it has some people invested with legitimate authority to preserve its institutions and to devote themselves as far as is necessary to work and care for the good of all. (Para 46)

It is the church's teaching that every human society needs an authority to govern it. This is founded on the nature of human beings. Such authority is necessary for unity of the state, and its role is to ensure as far as possible the common good of the society. Christians must therefore be subject to such authorities.

These quotations from Holy Scripture make it clear:

Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore he who resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgement.  Romans 13: 1-2

Be subject for the Lord's sake to every human institution, whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do wrong and to praise those who do right. For it is God's will that by doing right you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish men. Live as free men, yet without using your freedom as a pretext for evil; but live as servants of God. Honour all men. Love the brotherhood. Fear God. Honour the emperor.  1 Peter 2 : 13-17

The authority required by the moral order derives from God. The duty of obedience requires all to give due honour to authority. Those charged with exercising authority are to be given respect, and as far as it is deserved, gratitude and good-will.

Diversity in political regimes is morally acceptable, provided they serve the legitimate good of the communities that accept them. So regimes whose nature is contrary to natural law, to the public order, and to the fundamental rights of persons cannot achieve the common good of the nations on which they have been imposed.

Finally, here are examples of when authority goes wrong:

Despotism: This is a distortion of authority. Authority doesn’t derive its moral legitimacy from itself. It must act for the common good. Its moral legitimacy should be based on freedom and a sense of responsibility. A despot misuses authority for his own gain and for his own reasons. He forgets about the rights of subjects/citizens for whom in reality all authority is given.

Unjust law: It is a misuse of authority by a legislature to pass unjust laws. St Thomas Aquinas recognised the possibility of unjust human law to the extent it does not accord with right reason, and thus does not derive from divine law. This type of law is a kind of violence to social life.

Illegitimate authority: authority is legitimate only when it seeks the common good of the group concerned and if it uses morally licit means to attain it. Unjust laws or actions by authorities that promote that which is contrary to the moral order are not binding in conscience. This break down in authority results in abuse.

The next blog will be on "The Common Good".

Fr Ian

Conversion and society

Society is not just desirable but essential to the fulfilment of the human vocation. But in order for this human vocation to be fulfilled, respect must be accorded to what the church calls “the just hierarchy of values”. In this hierarchy of values physical/instinctive dimensions are subordinated to interior/spiritual ones. Or in other words we must not muddle the true goals and aims of human life with the things that are needed to achieve them. The most obvious example is when people are treated as objects to achieve another goal. This is what Bl Pope John XXIII said,

Human society must primarily be considered something pertaining to the spiritual. Through it, in the bright light of truth, men should share their knowledge, be able to exercise their rights and fulfil their obligations, be inspired to seek spiritual values; mutually derive genuine pleasure from the beautiful, of whatever order it be; always be readily disposed to pass on to others the best of their own cultural heritage; and eagerly strive to make their own the spiritual achievements of others. These benefits not only influence, but at the same time give aim and scope to all that has bearing on cultural expressions, economic, and social institutions, political movements and forms, laws, and all other structures by which society is outwardly established and constantly developed.     Pacem in Terris, 36 (Peace on Earth)

Problems arise when means and ends are inverted. Giving the value of ultimate end to what is only a means for attaining it results in unjust structures. For example, consider money and people in a society: in a just society money can be a means to achieve the good for people, whereas when money becomes the end and people become the means, unjust businesses will use people to achieve the goal of wealth creation. Even worse is when persons are viewed merely as means to an end. So for example when women's bodies are seen as means to gratifying one's desires, their bodies are objectified and not seen as the outward form of a person; the person has been reduced to a means from being an end. In a society with such inversions it becomes difficult and almost impossible for Christian conduct to keep with the Commandments of the divine Law-giver. We see this inversion in secular societies most clearly. In a secular society, human beings are not necessarily seen as being intrinsically good (because that is derived from divine revelation), it is more common to see human beings for the use they have (we can say that the secular society becomes utilitarian).

One of the most important things for a Christian to do, in such inverted societies, is not to separate inner conversion from finding the appropriate remedies to institutions and living conditions when they induce persons to sin. There is a permanent need for inner conversion but this should motivate one to obtain social change that will really serve. The conversion of the heart will lead one to desire social change for the betterment of all.

Without the help of grace men may lack the discernment to know the way between two opposite but disastrous paths: (1) the cowardice which gives in to evil, and on the other side, (2) the violence which under the illusion of fighting evil only makes it worse. The way between, which may often be narrow, is the way of charity, or we may say, love of God and love of neighbour. So Charity is the greatest social commandment for it respects the dignity of all and respects their rights. Charity requires the practice of justice, and it alone makes us capable of it. Charity inspires a life of self-giving.

Jesus said, “Whoever seeks to gain his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life will preserve it.” Lk 17:33

Fr Ian

Homily Easter 3B - God's mercy

Homily given at both the University Mass at Christ the King (this recording), and then given again at the Ordinariate's Mass at Buckfast Abbey.

The primary importance of Family and State

There are particular societies that correspond more directly to the nature of man principally the family and the state. Both these principal societies are essential to man’s well-being.

The promotion of voluntary associations and institutions are to be encouraged in order encourage the maximum amount of participation by all people. These can be on a national or international scale. The associations are instrumental in developing the qualities of the person, not least initiative, responsibility and the guarantee of rights.

However there are also dangers. Excessive interference and intervention by the state can threaten personal freedom and initiative. So the Church teaches the principle of subsidiarity:

…a community of a higher order should not interfere in the internal life of a community of a lower order, depriving the latter of its functions, but rather should support it in case of need and help to co-ordinate its activity with the activities of the rest of society, always with a view to the common good.  CA 48.4

Leaders of societies: the way God acts in governing the world should be the principle by which all governing by human authorities should be based: God does not reserve to Himself the exercise of all power. God entrusts to every creature its own powers that are proper to it. And so it is that human authorities should delegate power to those competent and gifted to exercise it. Thus human authorities and leaders should be ministers of divine providence.

This principle of subsidiarity is opposed to all forms of collectivism. There are to be limits to state intervention. It should aim at harmony between individuals and societies, and tend toward order and peace.

Fr Ian

The human person must be the principle, subject and end of all social institutions

Any human society is a group of persons bound together by a principle of unity that goes beyond any individual member. A society is at once both spiritual and visible. It endures through time: it has a history and traditions, and it prepares for the future. One rightly owes loyalty to the communities of which we are a part and respect those in authority who have charge over the common good.

Of course each community has its own purposes and thus its own rules, but the Church teaches that the human person ought to be the principle, the subject and the end of all social institutions. 

So, for example, money should not be the subject of society nor its end. If we hear a politician suggest that wealth creation is the goal of public policy then we should hesitate supporting them. Wealth creation isn’t bad per se, as long as it is a means only to the good of human persons. 

We should also be careful about supporting politicians whose policies seem to suggest that the state is more important than the human person (extreme socialism or communism is a form of this). And a further danger can be seen in promoting an ideology above the good of persons (e.g. some environmentalists promote population strategies which are at the expense of human persons).

So the principle of all human community is the human person, and its subject and its end.

Fr Ian

Does the Church’s Teaching have anything to say about politics and the policies of governments?

Yes it does!

Basic principles

We realise that the Church teaches about morals, about what is right and wrong etc. This is the Moral teaching of the Church which we call Life in Christ. It is one of the four pillars of the Church and therefore one of the four sections in the Catechism (Part 3 – Life in Christ). However what many Catholics either forget or do not realise is that this moral teaching is not just about personal conduct, but also about our life in human community.

The Church’s teaching about human community reflects the doctrine of the Holy Trinity. The Holy Trinity is the perfect communion of divine Persons. Without going into the technical theological details, suffice to say, no divine Person (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) of the Trinity lives in isolation from the other Persons. Between each Person there is a constant, everlasting flow of life. And as human beings are made in the image of God, who is Trinity, so we human persons are made for communion.

The fraternity, which all human beings are called to, resembles the relationship of the Three Holy Persons of the Trinity. This is expressed in, amongst other ways, the intimate connection between the commandment to love God and the commandment to love one’s neighbour. Both are necessary and interconnected.

The human person needs to live in society. Society is not an added extra which one can partake of if one cares to; it is a requirement of human nature. Participation in society develops our potential as human beings, through interaction with others, through mutual service and through dialogue. So it is in society the person responds to his vocation.

Next blog: The human person is the principle, subject and end of all social institutions.

Fr Ian

Looking for inspiration regarding voting?

This last week I attended the hustings at the Central Methodist Church of our parliamentary candidates for Sutton and Devonport Ward. Some people there had already decided for whom they would vote and came to support them. But many, like me, attended to in order to make a responsible decision about the person who should represent this part of the world in the decisions of the British Parliament.

Many questions were asked about various issues of policy. Sometimes it can be very confusing and overwhelming to make decisions based on all these diverse subjects. I think I could agree with at least one policy of all the parties represented at the hustings! So how are we to make sense of it?

Well I have no easy answers, but I do think Catholics ought to reflect on the Church’s teaching about human community (found in the Catechism of the Catholic Church). In the following blog posts I propose to outline in my own words what that teaching is, so that you can allow the teaching of the Church to illuminate your own thinking. It may also be of help to those who are politically active, as it can give a theological basis to some aspects of public policy, or give a faith based challenge to other policies.

May Christ the light illuminate the darkness of our minds so that we may have the wisdom to make the right decisions in the forthcoming elections.

Fr Ian