Charity in Truth

I have been using this book as part of the background for my church's social justice committee. It covers all the present day issues as well as giving the encyclicals and other documents that contributed to the Catholic Church's social justice philosophy. I was truly amazed at the scope of Pope Benedict's knowledge and understanding of the complex economic conditions in the world's economies and his objectivity in his critique of them. I would recommend this book for anyone who needs an overview of the Church's teachings on social justice.

This was a gift for a friend and he was very happy to get it.

hi friends,peace and goodness,please buy this book you will be blessed.the word of the lord comes out of this book.dive in this book and be blessed.we are blessed with a good man to have as pope.may the lord give you his peace. jmj

These are my personal favorites, among the beautiful words proclaimed by our Holy Father in Caritas in Veritate: "The Church forcefully maintains this link between life ethics & social ethics....we are called by the prospect of a world in need of profound cultural renewal, a world that needs to rediscover fundamental values on which to build a better future.... "Openness to life is at the centre of true development....The acceptance of life strengthens moral fibre & makes people capable of mutual help.... "The Church, in her concern for man's authentic development, urges him to have full respect for human values in the exercise of his sexuality. It cannot be reduced merely to pleasure or entertainment, nor can sex education be reduced to technical instruction aimed solely at protecting the interested parties from possible disease or the 'risk' of procreation.... "there is a need to defend the primary competence of the family in the area of sexuality...and to ensure that parents are suitably prepared to undertake their responsibilities. Morally responsible openness to life represents a rich social and economic resource. "Populous nations have been able to emerge from poverty thanks not least to the size of their population and the talents of their people. "On the other hand, formerly prosperous nations are presently passing through a phase of uncertainty & in some cases decline, precisely because of their falling birth rates....The decline in births, falling at times beneath the so-called 'replace-ment level', also puts a strain on social welfare systems, increases their cost, eats into savings and hence the financial resources needed for investment, reduces the availability of qualified labourers, & narrows the 'brain pool' upon which nations can draw for their needs....smaller & at times miniscule families run the risk of impoverishing social relations, & failing to ensure effective forms of solidarity.... "It is...becoming a social and even economic necessity once more to hold up to future generations the beauty of marriage and the family, and the fact that these institutions correspond to the deepest needs and dignity of the person.... "It is contradictory to insist that future generations respect the natural environment when our educational systems & laws do not help them to respect themselves.... In vitro fertilization, embryo research, the possibility of manufacturing clones and human hybrids: all this is now emerging and being promoted in today's highly disillusioned culture, which believes it has mastered every mystery, because the origin of life is now within our grasp....How can we be surprised by...indifference shown towards situations of human degradation, when such indifference extends even to our attitude towards what is and is not human? "What is astonishing is the arbitrary & selective determination of what to put forward today as worthy of respect. Insignificant matters are considered shocking, ye

This is the first papal encyclical eighteen years that addresses social teaching of the Catholic Church, and the first such encyclical by the Pope Benedict XVI. The title is modeled on Ephesians 4:15, and in some way implies a continuation with the previous encyclical "God is Love" ("Deus caritas est"). The basic thesis of this encyclical is that love is not just an individual and personal attitude limited to one's circle of friends and relatives, but a universal guiding principle that ought to order the society at large. This is particularly evident when the synonym for love - charity - is used in the English translation. All the connotations of that word then become manifestly obvious. And yet, charity by itself, unless it is based and fortified by truth, can be little distinguished from emotionalism that is useless in promoting greater social and cultural development. It is precisely this truth that enables charity to have an impact and effect in social context. This encyclical draws on earlier encyclicals that deal with social teaching of the Catholic Church, but in particular it views itself as a continuation and building upon of ideas presented in Pope Paul VI's "Populorum Progressio." It is a response to an increasingly globalized world in general and to the current economic crisis in particular. It addresses two dangerous extremes of the current debates on progress of society: the overreliance on technology on one hand, and the denial and rejection of any progress on another. It reemphasis one of the cornerstones of Catholic social teaching: the fact that life ethics and social ethics are inexorably connected. Authentic development requires adherence to truth and charity. Devaluing human life is contrary to it on both accounts. Putting human life and human dignity at the very center of all economic and social development is seen as crucial for all development and social justice. The development and right ordering of all other human institutions is considered under the principle of subsidiarity: the appropriate level at which issues need to be addressed is the lowest lever at which they can be addressed effectively. This becomes especially relevant and urgent in the modern, increasingly interconnected, world. In this encyclical Pope Benedict has given us another clear expression of Catholic social teaching, appropriated and updated to address the most pertinent social issues of today. It is a valuable resource and a source of teaching and guidance on matters that affect us all.