The Church is a conformist supporter of social justice in order to give rise to a just society where everybody is treated alike. Modern Catholic social teaching revolves around seven pillars in order to attain the highest level in providing justice to people living as a community. These seven pillars or themes are explained below.
Human Dignity
The Catholic Church believes that there is nothing more sacred on this earth than a human life. In order to improve the moral vision of a society, the dignity of each and every human being is to be recognized and preserved. Without this belief, there is no social teaching. Even concepts like death penalty need to be eradicated from the society in order to preach social justice.
Community and Participation
Society is made up of people and communities. According to the Catholic social teaching, there has to be a way to organize the society in different walks of life including politics, education, economics, law, and so on and so forth. Every individual has the right to contribute to the society through participation. These communities should be encouraged to work for the under-privileged to improve their quality of life thereby benefitting the society as a whole.
Care for God’s Creation
God has created each and every soul that walks on this earth. This belief gives rise to the concept of caring for God’s creation to show respect to the Creator. Our faith is not complete if we don’t believe in helping out others when they are in pain or trouble. If we work to protect people, we safeguard the planet thereby safeguarding our future generations.
Dignity in Work
People do not exist to serve the economy. It should be the other way around – the economy must exist to provide for people living in a society. The basic rights of employees have to be granted if dignity in work is to be realized. This includes offering fair wages based on number of hours worked and the nature of work itself. The Catholic social teaching includes special doctrine to protect the rights of those who contribute positively to the economy so that they don’t fall behind and get deprived of justice.
Peace and Reconciliation
Disputes are a reality of life. However, what matters is how we deal with these clashes and ultimately return to peace when living in the same society that provides for us. The teaching of peace and reconciliation is one of the foundations of the Catholic social teaching because without promoting peace there cannot be justice and vice versa. In countries where disputes become a norm, no system can flourish and no economy can thrive leaving the people to suffer and face the consequences.
Solidarity and Common Good
God has created races, ethnicities and ideologies to provide a means for differentiating among people. These attributes must not be used to create gaps between individuals and communities. It should be preached that we are all brothers and sisters and that we work for a common good. Without promoting justice, there cannot be peace. And without peace in a society, there cannot be life. So, solidarity is one of the pillars of the Catholic social teaching.
Charity
If the poor and vulnerable in a society are not treated well, the gap that separates rich from poor keeps on widening. Since it is not possible that wealthy people function without interacting with the poor or under-privileged, there should be a system that serves to bridge the gap between the two entities. Nothing could be more beneficial in this regard than the system of charity that puts the needs of the poor first.