In his speech at the Pontificia Universitas Antonianum in Rome (18 January 2011) Cardinal Peter Turkson, president of the Pontifical Council for Justice and Peace, used this paragraph to explore the five ways which the Holy Father recommends, or even urges, for building-up the city of men with qualities closer to the City of God. These five ways, five profound competences, are:
- Begin with a realistic attitude, approaching the difficulties of the present time with discernment, in order to uncover the injustices at every level of society and to shape the needed remedies. Reading the signs of the times, as Pope Paul VI stressed in Populorum Progressio.
- The next competence is to ground the work in fundamental values, a new vision for the future, which can only begin with oneself. To know and to accept oneself is the beginning of wisdom. And this attitude must be accompanied by a willingness to change, to work on oneself.
- The third one: with confidence rather than resignation, let us take up the new responsibilities which go with a new vocation and mission. Vision or mission is the third competence necessary for building a more just and peaceful society: it’s clarity about our human calling. Our vision is entirely shaped by God’s salvific plan for the world, and at its centre is the human person. This is the foundation of our life and work.
- The fourth competence is to be open to profound cultural renewal and to show confidence and hope. Today it is fashionable to be negative, nihilistic, pessimist. Quite counter-culturally, we Christians firmly believe that a more just and peaceful society is possible. People can make the world a better place!
- The fifth step is to commit ourselves to new rules, new forms of commitment, with coherence and consistency. In his 2011 Message for the World Day of Peace, Pope Benedict said that: “Today too, in an increasingly globalised world, Christians are called, not only through their responsible involvement in civic, economic and political life but also through the witness of their charity and faith, to offer a valuable contribution to the laborious and stimulating pursuit of justice, integral human development and the right ordering of human affairs”. The fifth competence therefore is cooperation, collaboration, networking and solidarity, all that binds people together in the multiple efforts required.
Underlying all five aspect of the building-up of more just and peaceful societies, that we just examined, there is the human person as the centre of our concern.
Pope Paul VI made us aware that members of catholic communities must read and understand the signs of the times, analyze with objectivity the situation which is proper to their own country, and then reflect upon how the Gospel and Catholic Social Teaching may be brought to bear upon it. Catholic Social Teaching provides principles for reflection, criteria for judgement and norms for action.
Christians who are faithful to the Gospel will be engaged in an ongoing process which involves three separate moments:
- To see: evaluation and analysis of their contemporary situation;
- To judge: prayer, discernment and reflection, bringing the light of the Gospel and the teachings of the Church to bear on the situation;
- To act: pastoral action which fights injustices and works for the transformation of society, thus labouring to make the “Kingdom of God” a reality.
