Religion and Theology

Karol Jzef WojtyBa was elected as pope in October 1978, taking the name John Paul II as described by the Holy See Press Office. He was born in Poland in 1920, the youngest of three children. In 1942 he enrolled in the clandestine seminary of Krakov. Long before he became pope he had wide influence both  within the Roman Catholic Church and beyond, through his teaching career, his writings and as a member of the Synod of Bishops. He was also concerned with drafting the 1965 encyclical Constitution Gaudium et Spes of Pope Paul VI, which also bears the title Pastoral Constitution on the Church in the Modern World.  The present document Centesimus Annus was one of 14 encyclicals that he sent worldwide.  Although the pontiff  was often criticized for such things as his opposition to contraception and the ordination of women, on a more positive note John Paul II was very influential in the fall of communism in his native Poland and so began a move which soon widened throughout the rest of Europe. He was also very concerned with reviving the spiritual life of the church and was in dialogue, and prayed, with those of other churches and faiths. So considered to be such a special, holy person was he that when he died in April 2005 it was very quickly decided to forego the usual period of several years before the beatification process could begin.

Centesimus Annus, 1st May 1991
Centesimus Annus was written to mark 100 years since the publication of Rerum Novarum (The Condition of Labor), an encyclical of his predecessor Pope Leo XIII in 1891, the earlier letter being in the main concerned with the position of the working classes and with rights to land, the latter being seen in more modern times as not as important as it once was. It is addressed not only to the church, but to all those of good will, which is an important point as the pope felt that all must work together for the common good.

 The newer encyclical commences with a description of the social situation which in which Pope Leo wrote in 1891. The present document is described as honoring that letter and the Churchs subsequent social teaching which flowed from it. He describes the world of the working man 100 years earlier. In Paragraph 4 he tells how society became split into the haves and have nots a split caused by the great gulf which separated capital and labor. The injustice this caused threatened a revolution, as happened in Russia a few years later. Society was reforming itself into one which brought the hope of new freedoms, but alongside these was also the threat of new types of injustice. The urge for reform had passed on from the purely political sphere to the economic one. In a document entitled The Promises of Centesimus Annus the author states In this new encyclical, the Holy Father provides us with reasons to hope in a modern society which would obey the Churchs social teachings. John Paul then outlines the constituent principles put forward by the earlier pontiff. These include the rights to ownership of private property, the rights of workers to form themselves in trade unions and those of their employers to also form organizations. Mention is made of the rights to such things as proper rest periods, time for recreation, and good working conditions including a fair wage which the state will guarantee. These include Sunday rest so that people  can  turn thoughts to heavenly things and to the worship which they owe to Almighty God. In Paragraph 8  the individuals free use of his own abilities and energy is described, something impossible if one is working hand to mouth for long hours and very poor pay. Mention is also made of religious freedom. Such rights the pontiff sees as unchallengeable, just as they were in the 19th century.

In particular, the letter  stresses the problems of injustice, especially with regard  to the uneven distribution of goods between industrialized and poorer countries ( The Third World)  as well as the way , even in an individual country, the same injustice occurs.The relationship between any state and its citizens is mentioned more than once.  Even in countries not actually at war  the present situation is seen as  non-war  rather than a trully peaceful situation. He speaks about the way in which the enormous wealth of some has led to moral decline. He speaks of exploitation with no regard either for environment or for poor workers. Reference is made to the task of governments whose ethical duty it is to manage all for the common good rather than for the benefit of a particular small elite, yet at the same time the danger of  governments becoming mere welfare distributers  becaseu when wage earners are no longer earning they have no resources of their own and so com e to rely upon the  state as their supplier.

John Paul quotes John 2115-17, the description of Jesus, in one of his last earthly acts, instructing Peter to care for the flock. This he says is the justification for both Leo and himself, as successors to that promise, to speak out about such injustice.

This is a complex document that covers many difficult issues, for instance
care for the environment is mentioned briefly in  Paragraphs 37 and 38, but the pontiff is concerned also, as he makes plain in Paragraph 38, that little is being done to  protect and promote good moral conditions  a good and positive environment in which man can thrive. He portrays man as Gods gift to man and says that mankind must therefore respect the natural and moral structure with which he has been endowed.

Things have changed and the world has moved on since Pope Leos day. This is now the post  Communism era. We are told that the most important source of economic affluence is not land, as it once was, not even capital, but a combination of skills and talents, many of which are brand new as technology advances. In what is described as a personalist view by the author of the article The Promises of Centesimus Annus  in April 1991, the pontiff proclaims that man fulfills himself by using his intelligence and freedom.

In the letter to the Galatians Paul lists the fruit of the Spirit - love, joy, peace and all the rest. Love is placed first because of its importance in the Christian life. After all it was the love of god for his creation that led to Christ coming to save mankind. In his encyclical the pope describes the kind of love required of Christian people Love for others, and in the first place love for the poor, in whom the Church sees Christ himself, is made concrete in the promotion of justice The italics are those of the letter, because this was a point to be stressed. The world is unfair and that is not in line with Christs teaching or the will of God. Christ came to save the whole world and in the kingdom of heaven everyone gets equal treatment and true justice. John Paul goes on to explain that justice will never be fully achieved unless helping the poor is perceived  as an opportunity for showing kindness, rather than poorer folk seen as merely being a nuisance and a burden upon the rest of society. It is pointed out that helping carries risks. The kind of help the pope is talking about is more than giving spare change or other surplus requirements, but a complete change of attitudes towards those marginalized or excluded from society. The kind of changes he perceives as necessary could almost be described as revolutionary, affecting as they do life-styles, patterns of consumption, changes in production methods and even changes to the ways in which power is distributed within society. This doesnt mean change for changes sake, but change where it is necessary to make the world a fairer place. It brings to mind the earlier song of revolution so favored by the Roman Catholic Church  the Magnificat  in which Mary speaks of God looking at  her of low status and doing great things for her. She speaks in Luke 1 verse 51 of God scattering the proud, pulling the mighty from their seats and exalting those of low degree. In v 53 it is the hungry who are fed and all this is to remind of his great mercy.

The pontiff goes on to speak about globalization, which he sees as an opportunity for international co-operation in order to produce what is best for the common good  not just for a few investors or those who already have to gain even more of an advantage. In Paragraph 59 however he speaks of a method of achieving this that might seem strange to many sociologists and economists- he speaks of the Grace of God working together with freedom as being a necessity. Freedom of course implies choice  freedom to choose where to live, what to wear, what food to eat, what education to give your children. These are the kind of freedoms denied to many, too many people, because of their poverty and the greed or inaction of others.  There must be a balance between giving power to governments and mans individual freedom, otherwise there is a danger of destroying the worth of the individual he says.

The rest of this section is concerned with evangelism  telling people the good news about life with Christ  this is part of the way in which society can be changed. This is seen as a practical solution both because it enables people to cope with their difficulties, but also because it opens to them new opportunities. The Church, he feels has something valuable to say about particular situations, both those of individuals and communal ones, whether local, national or international. She is able to correctly analyze social situations, to make sound judgments in regard to their solution and so is capable of indicating ways   in which just resolutions can be reached in problematical situations.
The final section of the letter, Section VI of Centesimus Annus, is entitled Man is the way of the church. In paragraph 60 he harks back to Pope Leos earlier document which called for greater co-operation, something which that pontiff found was rejected. He refers to  his own earlier writing Sollicitudo rei socialis, a letter addressed not just to the church , but also to all people of good will,  in which he expressed the hope that even those of no religion at all would help to lay the ethical foundation required.

Conclusion
This is a document concerned with history, both that of the 19th century and more recently with post-war Europe and, what was at the time of writing, the very recent  fall of Communism. Some points that were valid a hundred years ago are still so, but there have naturally been changes too.  It is also sociological, being concerned as it is with the state of society with its multiple problems such as immense world debt and a rapidly changing world.  Society and history are mentioned many times, but most of all this is a document about faith. The state of the economy is not as important as mans spiritual needs. In Paragraph 61, almost in his concluding words, the pontiff, as the successor to Peter, as the representative of Christs body on earth, the Church, John Paul II declares his responsibility to care for the people, but also stresses that this is the moral and ethical duty of all.  He reminds his readers that in Rerum Novarum Pope Leo XIII was speaking out in defense of man. The Church, he says, has continued with that task, insisting that society should to be free from oppression and be based upon a spirit of mutual cooperation for the common good. In Paragraph 7 he quotes from Leo XIII It is neither just nor human so to grind men down with excessive labor as to stupefy their minds and wear out their bodies In Paragraph 11 he had reminded his many readers that the Church, if it is following the example of Christ, has a special responsibility towards the poor and oppressed.

Poverty then is perceived rightly as being little better than slavery and  he feels compelled to speak out,  as his predecessor did so boldly, despite knowing that such a message will not necessarily be appreciated. He reminds his readers that true freedom is not only about economics, but also about spiritual values.