Themes of Catholic
Social Teaching
Disconnection With Christianity
The standing of the issue today is still in disconnection with the mission of Christianity and violates the themes of Catholic Social Teaching. The mission of Christianity is to spread and include everyone in the Good News of Christ in order to reconcile the people’s relationship with God and with each other. Although efforts have been made to assist Asian Americans in their path to success in America through movements for inclusion and for voice, there is still a disconnection between Asian Americans and other Americans. A lack of true understanding of Asian cultures and for this injustice still persists, as a true understanding of the Asian American experience is difficult without experiencing it first hand. Thus, it is important to acknowledge the injustices occurring and to inquire about Asian Americans who are what types of support they need, and connect them with that particular support. A holistic change is a sign of the Kingdom of God because, through understanding supporting Asian Americans in their difficult paths to success in America, Americans are extending love, peace, and inclusion toward their Asian brothers and sisters. The Kingdom of God in essence is love, peace, and inclusion on earth.
1. Human Dignity
All human life is considered sacred. In the book of John, Jesus went against societal and religious customs to value the dignity of a Samaritan woman. Jesus spoke to the woman and offered the woman mercy despite the fact that she was considered an unworthy Samaritan. Through his actions, Jesus demonstrated that all people are worthy of human dignity and mercy regardless of societal norms. Accordingly, this issue violates the dignity of Asian-American immigrants because the system currently threatens the lives and success of Asian-American immigrants. Asian-Americans’ lives are not being valued because they face racial discrimination and anti-immigration bias. According to an article by Pew Research Center, approximately 31% of Asian-American adults have been faced with racial slurs since the COVID-19 pandemic began. 48% of Asian-American adults have said that the amount of racism that they have faced during the COVID-19 pandemic is the same as before. In other words, almost half of Asian-American adults have been faced with a racist comment. This racism and discrimination towards Asians hinders their success as many believe that Asian-Americans are unworthy of success, and is a violation of Human Dignity.
2. OPTION FOR THE POOR AND VULNERABLE
The needs of the poor and vulnerable should be placed first and addressed. In the book of Luke in the Bible, Jesus explained that God’s mission is to bring the Good News to all, including the poor and oppressed. The Good News means salvation and the coming of the Kingdom of God, where all is just and everyone is equal and happy. Yet, the Catholic Social Teaching of Option for the Poor and Vulnerable is violated with the existence of this issue. Asian-Americans face a lack of preferable options as a result of neglect for their needs due to stereotypes and racial discrimination. Many are not receiving public assistance or support and many are suffering in poverty. In 2015, only 2.64% of SNAP recipients in New York City were Asian-Americans even though 4.5% of those who are struggling in poverty were Asian-Americans. This data shows that although many Asian-Americans struggle in poverty, a small percentage of Asian-Americans actually received public assistance like SNAP and that there were about 2% of Asian Americans not receiving the help that they needed. The Asian-Americans in poverty face a lack of preferential options to help them thrive in America.
3. SOLIDARITY
As humans, we all should stand in solidarity with each other as we are all from the same human family. The first book of Corinthians wrote that if one part of Christ’s body, or one member of this large human family, suffers, then all suffer. If one part of Christ’s body rejoices, then all rejoice. However, many do not stand in solidarity with Asian-American immigrants as some people hold racial and anti-immigrant biases and others are unaware of this persisting issue. For example, CBS reported in an article that 2,120 hate-related incidents against Asian-Americans during the COVID-19 pandemic. In an unprecedented time like now, one would assume that all people stand in solidarity to support each other and to fight the virus. Yet, many hate crimes have been committed during this time, showing the racism and discrimination that is still prevalent in America today and how many are still in fact not standing in solidarity with Asian-Americans despite the struggles that they face to adjust and succeed in America. With little solidarity shown towards Asian-Americans, it is difficult for them to gain a great enough voice to push for resources to help them thrive in America.
Understanding of Catholic Social teaching
My understanding of Catholic Social Teaching shapes my vision for the change I am proposing, as these teachings focus on human dignity, option for the poor and vulnerable, and solidarity–all of which is violated by the issue described in this paper.
With this, the Catholic Social Teachings contribute to my vision, as my goal is to establish a platform to spread awareness and educate about the racism and anti-immigration bias toward Asian-Americans and centralize resources for the Asian-American community. My engagement with the Asian American community will be able to restore these Catholic Social Teachings of Human Dignity, Option for the Poor and Vulnerable, and Solidarity. I will be able to educate and spread awareness about the racist and anti-immigration actions done toward the Asian Community to uphold Human Dignity, share resources to assist those who require it and give options to the poor and vulnerable, and call on society to stand in Solidarity and take action to prevent such injustices.