CentAnn
Pope Saint John Paul 2, Centesimus Annus, from 1991.
Noted 10/2023, with paragraph numbers followed by short quotations, comments. Brackets [ ] indicate my summary wording.
4, 10 Oppose socialism.
6 Promotes private property.
8 Addresses issues of labor and just wages.
12 Socialism encourages envy.
13 'Socialism likewise maintains that the good of the individual can be realized without reference to his free choice, to the unique and exclusive responsibility which he exercises in the face of good or evil. Man is thus reduced to a series of social relationships, and the concept of the person as the autonomous subject of moral decision disappears, the very subject whose decisions build the social order.' Atheism implies a denial of man's true greatness.
15 Family, labor and savings are important in a good society.
16f Recent issues and errors in European history.
18 'It must be remembered that true peace is never simply the result of military victory, but rather implies both the removal of the causes of war and genuine reconciliation between peoples. For many years there has been in Europe and the world a situation of non-war rather than genuine peace.'
19f Temptations and [seductions] of Marxism and its opponents. Neither should cause us to lose sight of human dignity.
26f Considerations of history, especially in Europe, and the 'crisis of Marxism.'
30 Private property has always been defended by the Catholic Church. Private property brings profit not only to its owners but also to others.
31-32 Labor, land, technology and skill are interrelated profit generators.
34 Benefits of the free market are many. There should be due consideration for those who cannot compete or participate in it.
35 More benefits from profits, especially in business. Identity of a business or entity is greater than mere profits. Destructiveness of capitalism in its appearance as [social Darwinism]. More on this in 42.
36f Issues and ills of more affluent countries are addressed, including drugs, ecology and environment.
39 opposes abortion and the culture of death.
40 Collective goods exist, and the State must defend them, along with private property.
41 Marxism has a mistaken idea of alienation. Alienation is actually a reversal of means and ends.
43 Economic and policy models vary, are usually not [top down]. There is an 'expanding chain of solidarity.'
44f More opposition to totalitarianism, especially Marxism-Leninism.
47 'The Church respects the legitimate autonomy of the democratic order and is not entitled to express preferences for this or that institutional or constitutional solution. Her contribution to the political order is precisely her vision of the dignity of the person revealed in all its fullness in the mystery of the Incarnate Word.' More on this in 54.
49 Solidarity and charity need a continuing commitment.
57 'Today more than ever, the Church is aware that her social message will gain credibility more immediately from the witness of actions than as a result of its internal logic and consistency.' Poverty has many forms, and is not always simply material.
58f Addresses issues of globalization and dignity of the human person.
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