Catholic Commission for Social Justice
“Among the many and grave duties of rulers who would do their best for their people, the first and chief is to act with justice – with that justice which is called in the schools distributive – towards each and every class” (Leo XIII’s Rerum Novarum no. 27)
Since many Catholics may not be aware of the content of the 1960 Concordat, which governs the relationship between the Church and the State where Education is concerned, I wish to share with readers the content of this Concordat.
“There can be no keener revelation of a society’s soul than the way in which it treats its children” – Nelson Mandela.
On Tuesday, November 20, the world will commemorate Universal Children’s Day. It also marks the 22nd anniversary of the adoption of United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child. This day is celebrated each year “to put public initiatives and campaigns in place to raise awareness of children’s rights worldwide, awareness of their situation in life, problems, wishes, needs and longings as well as to enable exchanges and meetings between them” (UNRIC).
During the Year of Faith, it is imperative that we remind ourselves of the teachings of our Church with regard to key elements of a just society. “The Church’s social Magisterium constantly calls for the most classical forms of justice to be respected: commutative, distributive and legal justice. Ever greater importance has been given to social justice…” (Compendium of the Social Doctrine of the Church #201).
“Somebody got murdered on New Year’s Eve. Somebody said dignity was the first to leave.
I went into the city, went into the town; Went into the land of the midnight sun.
Searchin’ high, searchin’ low, Searchin’ everywhere I know
Askin’ the cops wherever I go, Have you seen dignity?” (Dignity by Bob Dylan, 1991)
I thought of this song as I watched a video from a CCTV camera shown on Crime Watch recently. I watched with deep sadness as two young men – one with a cutlass and the other with a sawn-off shotgun, “held up” the owner of a small parlour.
We can learn a lot from today’s Gospel reading (Mark10: 46-52) about Bartimaeus, the blind beggar whose sight Jesus restores as he is leaving Jericho to enter into Jerusalem – shortly before Palm Sunday and Jesus’ passion.
There are many levels on which this reading can be understood. How many times do we see “beggars” on our street and wish that they would be quiet and not cry out to us, who are Jesus’ instruments, to have pity on them. The reading also speaks to us about being persistent in prayer. Even when many of those present “scolded him and told him to keep quiet…Bartimaeus only shouted all the louder.” When Jesus says: “Call him here” it reminds us that Jesus is listening to our petitions – do not despair.