Catholic Social Teaching

Peter Fritz
Associate Professor, Department of Religious Studies
College of the Holy Cross
July 27, August 3, 10, 24, & 31- 6:30 pm - 8:00 pm St. Mary Parish Hall

Catholic Social Teaching (CST) is the church’s best-kept secret... Sure, we all know that God Loves us and asks us to love our neighbors. Fewer people know that the church gives us principles and guidelines to help us love God and neighbor not just in private, but also in public; not just in our homes and neighborhoods, but also in politics and society. CST is this body of principles and guidelines.

This five-week course will introduce participants to CST. We will survey modern CST, how it arose, how it has developed, where it stands today, and how it advocates Christ-centered living (week 1). We will discuss the biblical and traditional roots of CST (week 2). Then we will spend a week each on three main principles of CST: solidarity (week 3), subsidiarity (week 4), and the universal destination of goods (week 5). We will relate these principles to concrete issues of economic inequality, migration, and the environment.

By the end of the course, participants should be able to engage in informed conversation about the social teachings of popes and bishops’ conferences; to examine critically, with tools from CST, the world around them; and to live the Gospel of Jesus Christ with renewed commitment. The course assumes no prior knowledge of CST or theology. Students will complete brief weekly readings which will be provided.