Mark 3, 13-21 + CSDC and CV

Mark 3, 13-21 + CSDC and CV

CV 68a. The development of peoples is intimately linked to the development of individuals. The human person by nature is actively involved in his own development. The development in question is not simply the result of natural mechanisms, since as everybody knows, we are all capable of making free and responsible choices. Nor is it merely at the mercy of our caprice, since we all know that we are a gift, not something self-generated. Our freedom is profoundly shaped by our being, and by its limits. No one shapes his own conscience arbitrarily, but we all build our own “I” on the basis of a “self” which is given to us. Not only are other persons outside our control, but each one of us is outside his or her own control. A person's development is compromised, if he claims to be solely responsible for producing what he becomes.

The Church offers a long tradition of wisdom: divine Revelation and human reflection

CSDC 560. In the promotion of an authentic culture, the laity will place great importance on mass media, examining above all the contents of the countless choices that people make. These choices, while varying from group to group and from individual to individual, all have a moral weight and should be evaluated in this light. In order to choose correctly, one must know the norms of the moral order and apply them faithfully.[1172] The Church offers a long tradition of wisdom, rooted in divine Revelation and human reflection,[1173] the theological orientation of which provides an important corrective function to both “the ‘atheistic' solution which deprives man of one of his basic dimensions, namely the spiritual one, and to permissive and consumerist solutions, which under various pretexts seek to convince man that he is free from every law and from God himself”[1174]. Rather than judging the means of social communication, this tradition is placed at their service: “The Church's culture of wisdom can save the media culture of information from becoming a meaningless accumulation of facts”[1175].

Notes: [1172] Cf. Second Vatican Ecumenical Council, Decree Inter Mirifica, 4: AAS 56 (1964), 146. [1173] Cf. John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Fides et Ratio, 36-48: AAS 91 (1999), 33-34. [1174] John Paul II, Encyclical Letter Centesimus Annus, 55: AAS 83 (1991), 861. [1175] John Paul II, Message for the 1999 World Day of Social Communications, 3: L'Osservatore Romano, English edition, 3 February 1999, pp. 1-2.

(Mk 3, 13-21) To make known the social teaching of the Church   

[13] He went up the mountain and summoned those whom he wanted and they came to him. [14] He appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) that they might be with him and he might send them forth to preach [15] and to have authority to drive out demons: [16] (he appointed the twelve:) Simon, whom he named Peter; [17] James, son of Zebedee, and John the brother of James, whom he named Boanerges, that is, sons of thunder; [18] Andrew, Philip, Bartholomew, Matthew, Thomas, James the son of Alphaeus; Thaddeus, Simon the Cananean, [19] and Judas Iscariot who betrayed him. [20] He came home. Again (the) crowd gathered, making it impossible for them even to eat. [21] When his relatives heard of this they set out to seize him, for they said, "He is out of his mind."

CSDC 539. In the particular Church, the primary responsibility for the pastoral commitment to evangelize social realities falls to the Bishop, assisted by priests, religious men and women, and the laity. With special reference to local realities, the Bishop is responsible for promoting the teaching and diffusion of the Church's social doctrine, which he should do through appropriate institutions. The pastoral action of the Bishop is realized through the ministry of priests, who participate in the Bishop's mission of teaching, sanctifying and governing the Christian community. Through suitable formation programmes, the priest should make known the social teaching of the Church and foster in the members of his community an awareness of their right and duty to be active subjects of this doctrine. Through the celebration of the sacraments, especially Eucharist and Reconciliation, the priest helps the faithful to live their social commitment as a fruit of the mystery of salvation. He should animate pastoral action in the social field, giving particular attention to the formation and spiritual accompaniment of lay Christians engaged in social and political life. The priest who carries out pastoral service in various ecclesial associations, especially those dedicated to the social apostolate, has the duty to promote the growth of such groups through the proper teaching of social doctrine.

[Initials and Abbreviations.- CSDC: Pontifical Council for Justice And Peace, Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church; -  SDC: Social Doctrine of the Church; - CV: Benedict XVI, Caritas in Veritate (Charity in truth)].