Justice and Freedom

August 7^th, Justice and Freedom

This self-limiting concept of the common good and the role of government in protecting it shows that, for Pius XII as well as for the entire tradition, human rights cannot be understood apart from social interdependence, nor can social well-being be understood apart from personal rights (David Hollenbach, SJ, Claims in Conflict: Retrieving and Renewing the Catholic Human Rights Tradition (Paulist Press, 1979), p. 61.)

·       Justice is the virtue that enables us to assume our responsibilities and to give others their due. Thus, the Catechism of the Catholic Church teaches (#1807), “Justice is the moral virtue that consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor.  The Virtue of Justice, Part One.  Read more here

·       Catechism of the Catholic Church - #1807: Justice is the moral virtue that consists in the constant and firm will to give their due to God and neighbor. Justice toward God is called the "virtue of religion." Justice toward men disposes one to respect the rights of each and to establish in human relationships the harmony that promotes equity with regard to persons and to the common good. The just man, often mentioned in the Sacred Scriptures, is distinguished by habitual right thinking and the uprightness of his conduct toward his neighbor. "You shall not be partial to the poor or defer to the great, but in righteousness shall you judge your neighbor." (Lev 19:15.8) "Masters, treat your slaves justly and fairly, knowing that you also have a Master in heaven." (Col 4:1)

Under The dignity of workers and the respect for their rights in the Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church it also states:

·       302. Remuneration is the most important means for achieving justice in work relationships (John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Laborem Exercens, 19: AAS 73 (1981), 625-629). The “just wage is the legitimate fruit of work”.[660] - Catechism of the Catholic Church, 2434

o   They commit grave injustice who refuse to pay a just wage or who do not give it in due time and in proportion to the work done (cf. Lv 19:13; Dt 24:14-15; Jas 5:4). A salary is the instrument that permits the labourer to gain access to the goods of the earth. “Remuneration for labour is to be such that man may be furnished the means to cultivate worthily his own material, social, cultural, and spiritual life and that of his dependents, in view of the function and productiveness of each one, the conditions of the factory or workshop, and the common good”.[661] The simple agreement between employee and employer with regard to the amount of pay to be received is not sufficient for the agreed-upon salary to qualify as a “just wage”, because a just wage “must not be below the level of subsistence”[662] of the worker: natural justice precedes and is above the freedom of the contract.

I encourage you to watch the video on       https://youtu.be/x79cVDdrNuY

Millie Padilla

Admin