Thelology Test 3/4

"A Call to Action"

Paul VI issued this encyclical. This letter offered a 3 step process for taking action to make a difference in the world. Created by

Praxis

not just living your belief's ,but in a way that affects the world; it is putting faith into action

Circle of faith in action

liberation theology's approach with Pope Paul VI's approach combined

3 Steps of Circle of Faith in Action

1. Awareness

2. analysis

3. Action

awareness

involves seeing, hearing, and knowing the world from God's point of view.

Analysis

examine why the world currently is the way it is and how can it be made the way God wants?

action

act in ways that would make life better for everyone.

Worldview

theory that our basic beliefs about the world guide the way we relate to the world.

2 places that worldviews come from:

1. experiences

2. culture

culture

all the shared values, beliefs, and ways of relating and living together that characterize a particular group of people.

As Catholics, our worldview should have these 3 characteristics present:

1. See, hear and know with RESPECT.

2. Have a vision of what "abundant life" means: what does it mean to live "full?"

3. Be moved with compassion.

"Respect"

word which means "to look again"

3 Questions of Social Analysis

1. What human choices cause injustice

(2.)- and what do people need to do to promote justice?

3. Who is responsible for why people are poor?

Social Analysis

the process of understanding how people's lives are affected by the relationships that shape the society in which they live

Questions

are the most important tool of social analysis; when we ask questions, we are acknowledging that we do not know enough about the problem to solve it which lets us dig deeper.

Personal Rosponsibility

an important building block of justice.

Interdependent

we depend on one another to exist; everything we do or can't do depends on relationships. Injustice results when there are no relationships.

Example: Where can people get food? How do people get money to buy food? What do people need in order to get Jobs? How do people get transportation, shelter, child care, etc.?

Example of Interdependence

Relationship map

illustrates the connections between people that shape our society. (social analysis)

Social Structures

patterns of relationships that shape society

ex. government, law, business, education.

-result in everyday made decisions

Structures of Sin

individual decisions that BLOCK justice from happening inside of social structures; barriers that prevent people from having jobs, education, homes, families, etc.

"On Social Concern"- 3 Observations

1. They can be traced back to the personal in of one individual

2. They result from interrelated actions of many different people, think domino effect

3. Their root causes are: a desire for Profit, power selfishness.

Power

a God given ability that everyone has to affect their own lives, the lives of others and the world.

1st view of power- Power OVER

the "right" to do whatever humans are the source of their power power seen as "earned or worked for" so you you want with it which included taking it away from others.

2nd view of power- Power WITH

God is the source of all power and power is "loaned" to us to be used with and for others.

What does the church acknowledge about power?

it is not necessarily bad for some people to have more power than others, but these people must know that power comes from God and the people must use it for the common good.

Ways people use power to seek justice

1. Boycotts

2. Strike

3. Action

Action

involves changing a situation so that all people involved get to experience a good life as God intends. 2 types of action

1st type of Action- Direct

occurs on the individual level and is aimed at meeting an immediate need.

ex. volunteering at a soup kitchen

2nd type of Action- Social

occurs on the level of social structures and attempts to change society's behavior as a whole.

ex. Federal policies on SNAP

two feet of Justice

an approach in which both direct and social action work together to get justice; we need both or efforts to change social problems fall short.

ex. catching fish every day for you versus buying you fishing equipment and teaching you how to fish.

Basic Ecclesial Communities

groups of Christians, about 15-20 poor people who gather together to discuss social problems and find solutions in the Gospel; these originated in Latin America

How did Basic Ecclesial Communities get their name?

Base= because they are the smallest unit of the church

ecclesial= because they are still participating in the llfe Of the universal church

Mohandas Gandhi

a Hindu spiritual leader who worked for justice by helping India win their freedom from the British after a 25 year struggle; he did this through an approach called: no1n-violent a method in which people do not fight unjust enemy but use strlkes, boycots, and civil disobedience cooperation

civil disobedience

intentionally breaking laws that are unjust.

Most Basic Human Right

Right to life- without life it is impossible for a person to have other rights

Roe vs Wade

In 1973, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that women had a right to abortion. Every year, 1.3 million abortions are performed.

Reasons why people feel abortion should be legal:

it is the mother's body, parenthood is an obstacle to living a full life, in the case of rape, ruined education, employer discrimination, trapped in poverty, and just not "ready.

Reasons why people feel the death penalty should be legal

these crimes are so violent that these people have forfeited their human rights and the only way to "bring back justice" and restore the harm that has been done is to kill the offender.

Retributive Justice

an approach to criminal justice in which the emphasis is on hurting the offender.

2 beliefs about human life for the church

1. Human Life is Sacred

2. All human beings are equal.

*Life begins at the moment of conception

Conception

when sperm and egg fuse creating a genetically unique individual that has all his or her genetic characteristics present and immediately begins to grow.

Why is the Church opposed to Death Penatly?

1. God never stops loving us even when we SIN

2. Punishment should be bout rehabilitation not revenge

3. Contains Racism

4. Makes misktakes; flawed system

1st approach to justice- "Either-or"

approach emphasizes that we must choose between helping one group or the other group but we cannot help both.

2nd approach to justice- "both-and"

approach emphasizes that we need to help both groups to the best extent possible.

"The Gospel of Life"

It was written by Pope John Paul II. It described 2 different worldviews that answer the question as to what it means to be fully alive

GOL Worldview #1- Culture of death

This worldview says we are fully alive when we have and do what we want. It sees having more as being more human, accepts having more than needed, views burdensome people as less worthy of life, judges life by its quality, and supports euthanasia.

Euthanasia

Intentionally killing someone who is deemed to be no longer worth living.

GOL Worldview #2- Culture of life

This worldview says we are fully alive when we reflect God's image, not by what we have. It values sharing, sees all life as a gift even when extra care is needed, and believes life is worth living despite suffering.

Catholic Church on Human Dignity

When society decides a person or group is less human, human dignity becomes dependent on others' judgment, making vulnerable groups easier to mistreat or violate.

consistent ethic of life

the belie that life is sacred from womb to tomb so we need to protect it at every stage

Joseph Cardinal Bernardin

created the "Seamless Garment" idea which says we cannot "tear apart" issues like abortion, war, poverty, racism, and capital punishment because they are all cheld together by the RIGHT TO LIFE.

Restorative Justice

focuses on restoring the good that gas been harmed by criminal activity not just for the victims but the community and the offender too.

victim offender meditation and dialouge

a voluntary program in which a meditator helps the victim and offender carefully work towards the goal of talking to one another as a way to restore the harm that has been done.

The Catholic Church suggests setting the following things up to make it "easier" for people to want to choose life:

1. Changing laws that fail to recognize the sacredness of life.

2. Changing Sexual behavior to emphasize abstaining.

3. Adressing poverty so women do no say they "have" to abort to not be poor.

4. Making workplaces and schools more parent friendly: on-site day care, flexible working schedules, etc.

5. Stopping violence against women.

encouraging involvement by men

crisis pregnancy centers

offer material and emotional assistance for women facing difficult pregnancies.

open adoption

allows ongoing contact between the birth mother and the child; the birth mother actually gets to select the family that she wants to raise her child.