6. 31. 199. 230. The attempt to find a solution to this problem has given birth to a number of theories. 146. 121. It is well-known that in recent years in the larger industrial concerns distinction has been growing between the ownership of productive goods and the responsibility of company managers. There were those who presumed to accuse the Church of taking no interest in social matters other than to preach resignation to the poor and generosity to the rich, but Leo XIII had no hesitation in proclaiming and defending the legitimate rights of the workers. 91. 129. 135. Although not officially published until July of the same year, it was dated May 15, to commemorate the 70th anniversary of rerum novarum. 211. It is a task which belongs particularly to Our sons, the laity, for it is their lot to live an active life in the world and organize themselves for the attainment of temporal ends. (27) From this it follows that the economic prosperity of a nation is not so much its total assets in terms of wealth and property, as the equitable division and distribution of this wealth. She is "the pillar and ground of the truth." For this reason, too, investors are more inclined to put their money in industry rather than agriculture. It is not, of course, possible to lay down hard and fast rules regarding the manner of such participation, for this must depend upon prevailing conditions, which vary from firm to firm and are frequently subject to rapid and substantial alteration. 242. Hence, though the Church's first care must be for souls, how she can sanctify them and make them share in the gifts of heaven, she concerns herself too with the exigencies of man's daily life, with his livelihood and education, and his general, temporal welfare and prosperity. 175. "In this we have known the charity of God," says St. John, "because he has laid down his life for us; and we ought to lay down our lives for the brethren. 237. Truth is sprung out of the earth: and justice hath looked down from heaven. Mater et Magistra (llatí per a «Mare i Mestra») és una encíclica escrita pel papa Joan XXIII sobre el tema del cristianisme i progrés social. 171. On the contrary, it must do all in its power to promote the production of a sufficient supply of material goods, "the use of which is necessary for the practice of virtue." Hence there are those who hold the opinion that, in order to prevent a serious crisis from developing, the conception and birth of children should be secretly avoided, or, in any event, curbed in some way. Here is a spectacle for all the world to see: thousands of Our sons and brothers, whom We love so dearly, suffering years of bitter persecution in many lands, even those of an ancient Christian culture. Its remuneration, therefore, cannot be made to depend on the state of the market. (35). The above principles are valid always and everywhere. The Church aims rather at securing that the institution of private property be such as it should be according to the plan of the divine Wisdom and the dispositions of Nature." (10). That is why, as We said before, she claims the co-operation of her laity. Pope Leo XIII also defended the worker's natural right to enter into association with his fellows. Let us be quite clear on this point. Every precaution was to be taken to prevent the civil authority from intervening in any way in economic matters. 197. Thus, religion and moral and physical well-being are one in demanding this periodic rest, and for many centuries now the Church has set aside Sunday as a special day of rest for the faithful, on which they participate in the Holy Sacrifice of the Mass, the memorial and application of Christ's redemptive work for souls. But we must realize that they are essentially instrumental in character. Scientific and technical progress, greater productive efficiency and a higher standard of living are among the many present-day factors which would seem to have contributed to this trend. MAY 15, 1961 . At the same time, however, this assessment of the increased efficiency of social and economic systems in a growing number of communities serves also to bring to light certain glaring discrepancies. We must solemnly proclaim that human life is transmitted by means of the family, and the family is based upon a marriage which is one and indissoluble and, with respect to Christians, raised to the dignity of a sacrament. 25. As a consequence, it narrows the sphere of a person's freedom of action. We would also like to see it added to the religious instruction programs of parishes and of Association of the Lay Apostolate. 185. 81. It is also partly the result, partly the expression of a natural, well-nigh irresistible urge in man to combine with his fellows for the attainment of aims and objectives which are beyond the means or the capabilities of single individuals. 252. 107. We must notice in this connection the system of self-financing adopted in many countries by large, or comparatively large firms. Mindful of Our position as the father of all peoples, We feel constrained to repeat here what We said on another occasion: "We are all equally responsible for the undernourished peoples. But today, more than ever, it is essential that this doctrine be known, assimilated, and put into effect in the form and manner that the different situations allow and demand. Pius XI was not unaware of the fact that in the forty years that had supervened since the publication of the Leonine encyclical the historical scene had altered considerably. In such circumstances, they must, of course, bear themselves as Catholics and do nothing to compromise religion and morality. In Our view, therefore, formal instruction, to be successful, must be supplemented by the students' active co-operation in their own training. Above all, all human activity reveals an innate human desire for truth. Animated, too, by the charity of Christ, he finds it impossible not to love his fellow men. Consequently, farmers find greater difficulty in obtaining the capital necessary to increase returns. Again, some countries use primitive methods of agriculture, with the result that, for all their abundance of natural resources, they are not able to produce enough food to feed their population; whereas other countries, using modern methods of agriculture, produce a surplus of food which has an adverse effect on the economy. In their social and economic teaching they have frequent recourse to the Leonine Encyclical, either to draw inspiration from it and clarify its application, or to find in it a stimulus to Catholic action. MATER ET MAGISTRA An encyclical letter dealing with Christian teaching on modern social questions, addressed by John XXIII on May 15, 1961, to all members of the hierarchy, clergy, and laity of the entire Catholic world. 180. All this serves to create an environment in which workers are encouraged to assume greater responsibility in their own sphere of employment. Not to mention other ways, it is especially desirable today that workers gradually come to share in the ownership of their company, by ways and in the manner that seem most suitable. In this connection, as Our Predecessor clearly points out, it is advisable in the present circumstances that the wage-contract be somewhat modified by applying to it elements taken from the contract of partnership, so that "wage-earners and other employees participate in the ownership or the management, or in some way share in the profits." These are very necessary if farm workers are to benefit from scientific and technical methods of production and protect the prices of their products. 166. On the contrary, it must be brought into the service of human life. The Participation of Workers in Specific Enterprises. Justice and fairness demand, therefore, that, within the limits of the common good, wages too shall increase. Mater et Magistra calls for a greater awareness of the need for all peoples to live as one community with a common good. On the one hand we are shown the fearful specter of want and misery which threatens to extinguish human life, and on the other hand we find scientific discoveries, technical inventions and economic resources being used to provide terrible instruments of ruin and death. A nation should balance economic development with social progress and not sacrifice the welfare of its people for monetary gain. (46), The Real Source of Justice, Truth and Love. Thus one learns Christian behavior in social and economic matters by actual Christian action in those fields. In the work on the farm the human personality finds every incentive for self-expression, self-development and spiritual growth. (1) IOANNES PP. Va ser promulgada el 15 de maig de 1961. Clearly, this sort of development in social relationships brings many advantages in its train. More and more men are beginning to realize that science has so far done little more than scratch the surface of nature and reality. They can help themselves only in so far as they succeed in helping one another. Men are losing their own identity in their works, which they admire to the point of idolatry: "The idols of the Gentiles are silver and gold, the works of the hands of men." And in this work of directing, stimulating, co-ordinating, supplying and integrating, its guiding principle must be the "principle of subsidiary function" formulated by Pius XI in Quadragesimo Anno. The Great Depression and World War II had ended, the cold war had begun, and technology allowed for increased productivity, but vast poverty remained across the globe. 96. Because these companies are financing replacement and plant expansion out of their own profits, they grow at a very rapid rate. 167. Moreover, in recent years, as we have seen, the productive efficiency of many national economies has been increasing rapidly. As for the State, its whole raison d'etre is the realization of the common good in the temporal order. 218. The demands of the common good on the international level include: the avoidance of all forms of unfair competition between the economies of different countries; the fostering of mutual collaboration and good will; and effective co-operation in the development of economically less advanced communities. 133. 161. 213. Unrestricted competition in the liberal sense, and the Marxist creed of class warfare; are clearly contrary to Christian teaching and the nature of man. Mother and Teacher of all nations—such is the Catholic Church in the mind of her Founder, Jesus Christ; to hold the world in an embrace of love, that men, in every age, should find in her their own completeness in a higher order of living, and their ultimate salvation. . The Church has always emphasized that this obligation of helping those who are in misery and want should be felt most strongly by Catholics, in view of the fact that they are members of the Mystical Body of Christ. But a contributory cause of this movement away from the country is doubtless the fact that farming has become a depressed occupation. Work, which is the immediate expression of a human personality, must always be rated higher than the possession of external goods which of their very nature are merely instrumental. (11), 33. 201. 234. This suggests, surely, that the exercise of freedom finds its guarantee and incentive in the right of ownership. On this subject it must not be forgotten that the price of agricultural produce represents, for the most part, the reward of the farmer's labor rather than a return on invested capital. The developing nations, obviously, have certain unmistakable characteristics of their own, resulting from the nature of the particular region and the natural dispositions of their citizens, with their time-honored traditions and customs. Those who are not familiar with the title, it is the name of an encyclical issued by Pope John XXIII. The continued development of this civilization, indeed its very survival, demand and insist that the Church do her part in the world. 136. Its definition of the global common good remains influential today. They will thus win those people who are opposed to it through ignorance of it. Rural workers should feel a sense of solidarity with one another, and should unite to form co-operatives and professional associations. Moreover, the time has come to promote in agricultural regions the establishment of those industries and services which are concerned with the preservation, processing and transportation of farm products. We, no less than Our predecessors, are convinced that employees are justified in wishing to participate in the activity of the industrial concern for which they work. It is discernible too in the subsequent legislation of a number of States. 253. These are the three stages that are usually expressed in the three terms: look, judge, act. [2] Every human should work to lead to the perfection of their own soul; society can only be transformed with the ferment of the Gospel. 229. Who knows, but a ray of its light may one day enter their minds. The State and other agencies of public law must not extend their ownership beyond what is clearly required by considerations of the common good properly understood, and even then there must be safeguards. 208. Men in labor unions are showing a more responsible awareness of the major social and economic problems. At the same time, however, this multiplication and daily extension of forms of association brings with it a multiplicity of restrictive laws and regulations in many departments of human life. He feels himself free in the very depth of his being, and freely raised up to God. Drawn together by their common needs nations are becoming daily more interdependent. (50). Indeed, they cannot as a rule make the trading profit necessary to furnish capital for the conduct and development of their own business. Again, every sector of the economy—agriculture, industry and the services—must progress evenly and simultaneously. 227. In the first place, considerable thought must be given, especially by public authorities, to the suitable development of essential facilities in country areas—such as roads; transportation; means of communication; drinking water; houseing; health services; elementary, technical and professional education; religious and recreational facilities; and the supply of modern installations and furnishings for the farm residence. 78. There is, moreover, an ever-extending network of societies and organizations which set their sights beyond the aims and interests of individual countries and concentrate on the economic, social, cultural and political welfare of all nations throughout the world. Hence a greater technical skill is required of the workers, and more exacting professional qualifications. What’s interesting is that this site is built to facilitate creation and sharing of e-books online for free, so there is no registration This is a question which constantly obtrudes itself today—a world problem, as well as one for the poverty-stricken nations. It is important for our young people to grasp this method and to practice it. (60), 259. We shall have more to say on this point later on. 260. In an economic world of this character, it was the might of the strongest which not only arrogated to itself the force of law, but also dominated the ordinary business relationships between individuals, and thereby undermined the whole economic structure. 28. We consider it Our duty to give further advice on this matter. They must beware of. 67. 98. Time and again He proved them by His actions, as when He miraculously multiplied bread to alleviate the hunger of the crowds. 116. (29). Where this situation obtains, justice and equity demand that public authority try to eliminate or reduce such imbalances. Farmers are unable to pay high rates of interest. There is no reason for such a doubt to persist. First, We must reaffirm most strongly that this Catholic social doctrine is an integral part of the Christian conception of life. One advantage which would result from the adoption of this plan would be that it would be easier to keep track of the movement of the working force set free by the progressive modernization of agriculture. 172. 112. On the supernatural level, the Gospels and the whole ascetic tradition of the Church require a sense of mortification and penance which assures the rule of the spirit over the flesh, and offers an efficacious means of expiating the punishment due to sin, from which no one, except Jesus Christ and His Immaculate Mother, is exempt. It also guarantees "the conservation and perfection of a social order which makes possible a secure, even if modest, property to all classes of people." This attitude is contagious, especially when it infects the work that is being done for the less developed countries, which have often preserved in their ancient traditions an acute and vital awareness of the more important human values, on which the moral order rests. 120. Accordingly, the standard of living in these poorer countries cannot possibly improve. (53) Let no man therefore imagine that a life of activity in the world is incompatible with spiritual perfection. There are vast hidden depths still to be explored and adequately explained. Mater et Magistra (Mother and Teacher) Pope John XXII, 1961. Where, on the other hand, the good offices of the State are lacking or deficient, incurable disorder ensues: in particular, the unscrupulous exploitation of the weak by the strong. Since, therefore, it proposes a form of social organization which aims solely at production, it places too severe a restraint on human liberty, at the same time flouting the true notion of social authority. 83. 6.4K likes. The title means “Mother and Teacher”. 264. In view of this it is strange that the innate character of a right which derives its force and validity from the fruitfulness of work should ever be called in question—a right which constitutes so efficacious a means of asserting one's personality and exercising responsibility in every field, and an element of solidity and security for family life and of greater peace and prosperity in the State. Get Free Mater Et Magistra with eBooks if you visit the Project Gutenberg website. This means that everything must be done to ensure that social progress keeps pace with economic progress. It will not be difficult for the body politic, by the adoption of various techniques of proved efficiency, to pursue an economic and social policy which facilitates the widest possible distribution of private property in terms of durable consumer goods, houses, land, tools and equipment (in the case of craftsmen and owners of family farms), and shares in medium and large business concerns. enc. 223. (32) Hence private ownership must be considered as a guarantee of the essential freedom of the individual, and at the same time an indispensable element in a true social order. They think more highly of an income which derives from capital and the rights of capital. By their combined efforts thousands of young people are being given facilities for attending the universities of the more advanced countries, and acquiring an up-to-date scientific, technical and professional training. We would give Our special approval to the increasing assistance they are giving, in all sorts of ways, to African and Asian students scattered throughout the universities of Europe and America; and to the care that is being devoted to the training of those persons who are prepared to go to the less wealthy areas in order to engage in work of technical and professional nature. What is Mater Et Magistra? To His Venerable Brethren the Patriarchs, Primates, Archbishops, Bishops, and all other Local Ordinaries that are at Peace and in Communion with the Apostolic See, and to the Clergy and Faithful of the entire Catholic World. This has been her course now for nigh on two thousand years, from the early ministrations of her deacons right down to the present time. This demands that the relations between management and employees reflect understanding, appreciation and good will on both sides. We realize that agricultural workers earn less per capita than workers in industry and the services, but that is no reason why it should be considered socially just and equitable to set up systems of social insurance in which the allowances granted to farm workers and their families are substantially lower than those payable to other classes of workers. Thus is man's work exalted and ennobled—so highly exalted that it leads to his own personal perfection of soul, and helps to extend to others the fruits of Redemption, all over the world. AAS 48 (1956) 799-800. Let's begin!we are all aware of what ishappening todayin our societySo?the CHURCH is here to guide usby introducing ENCYCLICALS! On this basic principle, which guarantees the sacred dignity of the individual, the Church constructs her social teaching. (35) Encyclical letter Quadragesimo anno; AAS 23 (1931) 214. 46. AAS 35 (1943) 17. As Pius XII remarked, "the economic and social function which every man aspires to fulfil, demands that the carrying on of the activity of each one is not completely subjected to the others." To turn to the political field, We observe many changes. Experience shows that these problems arise whether the capital which makes possible these vast undertakings belongs to private citizens or to public corporations. Moreover, man is not just a material organism. After all this scientific and technical progress, and even because of it, the problem remains: how to build up a new order of society based on a more balanced human relationship between political communities on a national and international level? He reiterated the principles of the Leonine encyclical and stressed those directives which were applicable to modern conditions. (56) The man who is "light in the Lord" (57) and who walks as a "child of the light" (58) has a sure grasp of the fundamental demands of justice in all life's difficulties and complexities, obscured though they may be by so much individual, national and racial selfishness. 22. (l7), 42. Separated from God a man is but a monster, in himself and toward others; for the right ordering of human society presupposes the right ordering of man's conscience with God, who is Himself the source of all justice, truth and love. Such associations may consist either of workers alone or of workers and employers, and should be structured in a way best calculated to safeguard the workers' legitimate professional interest. It must be determined by the laws of justice and equity. It "secures for the father of a family the healthy liberty he needs in order to fulfil the duties assigned him by the Creator regarding the physical, spiritual and religious welfare of the family." 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