Running Head: Christian Anthropology and Catholic Social Teaching 1

Christian Anthropology and Catholic Social Teaching

Louise Walsh

Murdoch University
 Christian Anthropology and Catholic Social Teaching 2

CORE1030 essay: Christian Anthropology and Catholic Social Teaching

In her reflection on the Christian season of Advent, Maria Boulding describes the

human person as being created to receive and respond to God’s gift of Godself. This

description gives an insight into the Christian understanding of the nature of the human

person, of the human person being made in the image and likeness of God as male or

female (Genesis 1:27). Christian anthropology studies the mystery of the human person in

relation to God and bases its core principles from Genesis. In this essay, I will expand on the

Christian anthropology view of what it means to be human, which goes beyond the scientific

study of anthropology (behaviour, customs, lifestyles) and looks at the nature of the human

person. I will also discuss how Catholic Social Teaching (CST) embodies this view and how

this relates to the contemporary social issue of inequality.

Christian Anthropology - what it means to be human

There are three key precepts which Christian anthropology attributes to human

persons: covenantal, transcendent and ethically orientated. Being created in the image of

God, we can see what God is like, and through the incarnation Jesus projects what the

Father is like. The Bible depicts a close, ongoing, dynamic and developing relationship

between God and his people. McArdle (2005, p. 220) notes that God created humanity as a

community, where the interactions of man and woman give us much more information on

what it means to be human, than just man alone. In Genesis 2:18, on looking at the

goodness of his Creation, God says “it is not good that man should be alone”. God

recognised that on his own man was incomplete. Christian anthropology honours the

foundation of our existence, primarily through the relationships with God, ourselves, others
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and the environment (Groody, 2008, p. 252). In today’s world, it is understood that the

universe is comprised of a series of relational interactions, which humanity mirrors in

interpersonal interactions (McArdle, 2005, p. 221). In the Bible, through His covenant with

the Israelites God displays this relationality when He says, “I will betroth you to me for ever;

I will betroth you in righteousness and justice, in love and compassion” (Hosea 2:19). This

illustrates the covenantal relationships that persons enter into, in which they relate to and

with others and in doing so are transformed in and by those relationships (McArdle, 2005, p.

223).

The human person is a transcendent being, not confined to the material and physical

limits of the universe, having an innate desire to be fully free, to become more spiritual. Just

as God was joined to humanity through his Son Jesus Christ, there is something intrinsic to

what it means to be human, whereby the nature of the human person and the nature of

divinity can be joined (McArdle, 2005, p. 220). The human person has the capacity to be

joined to God fundamentally and absolutely. Being created in the image and likeness of God

(Genesis 1:27), the human person has a transcendent reality which imparts to him or her a

dignity unique among all creation, and an ethical orientation. When the human experience

is lived contrary to the Word of God, the human person falls into arbitrariness and ends up

submitting itself to self-indulgence, self-interest, and a self-love (Novello, 2014, p. 23). To

realise the full potential of human kind and be reunited with God requires knowing the truth

and living according to that truth through the example lived by Jesus Christ who proclaimed,

“I am the way, and the truth, and the life” (John 14:6). Christian anthropology challenges

humankind, who is made in the likeness of God, to live with the dignity that likeness

bestows upon us and to transcend the material reality of the physical world.
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Catholic Social Teaching – expressing Christian anthropology views

CST is distinguished from secular teachings by its foundational principles which are drawn

from Christian anthropology. It is not based purely on human reason, but reason illuminated by the

revelation of Christ the redeemer (Novello, 2014, p. 23) and honors the intrinsic dignity and value of

the human person. In its teachings it seeks to inform and guide people to a way of life which is in

accordance with God’s will, living according to the truth. CST calls for commutative justice – fairness

in all agreements and exchanges between individuals and groups. CST calls for distributive justice –

fairness in the distribution of all goods according to the needs of people. CST calls for social justice –

people have a responsibility to participate and contribute to society. Key principles of CST are:

• Dignity of the human person: Each and every one of us is precious and deserving of respect,

to live a dignified life.

• Call to family: The family unit is regarded as the primary cell of society, the sanctuary of life,

to be protected and respected and subject to subsidiarity.

• Basic human rights: Every person is deserving of basic human rights, the right to a dignified

life and freedom from slavery, oppression and exploitation.

• Preference for the poor: Christ himself became poor (2 Corinthians 8:9) and hears the cry of

the poor. Charity, as understood by CST is not just giving “surplus” to the poor, it is

considering the impact current life-styles, materialism and consumption have on the poor

(Novello, 2014, p .25).

• The rights of workers: The right of the worker to a fair wage to provide for family. To

dignified work, humane working conditions, welfare and belonging to unions.

• Solidarity: To be considered as one global family, an inclusive society. Through solidarity and

service to others we can bring about the union of minds and hearts (Novello, 2014, p. 25).
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• Care for God’s creation: The respect for all beings, which are part of God’s creation. The

sustainable use of natural resources. Preventing the senseless destruction of our natural

environment.

SOCIAL ISSUE OF INEQUALITY

In today’s world, which has seen numerous technological advances and produced a high

standard of living for many and immeasurable wealth for some, we are still in a world where there is

poverty and hunger, with ever widening gaps between the rich and poor. In a world of 6.5 billion

inhabitants, the three richest individuals have more assets than the combined gross national product

of the poorest 48 nations (Groody, 2008, p. 258). A key cause of this problem is a world in which

there is “a market system that gives primacy to the economic and consumer agendas of globalization

often at the expense of human values” (Groody, 2008, p. 252). People are valued only for their

capacity to serve or to produce, there is no consideration to the humane values of a person.

Everything reduces to materialism, to the economy as a gauge of a “healthy” nation.

Contrary to this approach Christian anthology and CST has at its core the belief that we were

created in the image of God (Genesis 1:26,27), we all belong to the Kingdom of God, we are all one

family and are created to help others, to reach out to others. Being in the likeness of God, we all

have an inalienable worth and dignity. Therefore, if the other is in need, as Christians, we have this

innate desire to help our brothers and sisters. As Jesus said (Matthew 25:35-36), “For I was hungry

and you gave me something to eat, I was thirsty and you gave me something to drink”. And when

asked, “Lord, when did we see you hungry and feed you, or thirsty and give you something to

drink?” (Matthew 25:37) the Lord replies “I tell you the truth, whatever you did for one of the least

of these brothers of mine, you did for me” (Matthew 25:40).

It is important understand that though we are created in the image of God, in His likeness,

our deeds are not necessarily of God. Selfishness, greed and other sins and evil within the world

derive not from God, nor from any tendency inherent in the creation put there by God, but from the

choice to do evil (McArdle, 2005 p. 232). We are created with free will and are responsible and

accountable for our actions. The inequality which exists within the world is borne by our actions,

individually and collectively as a community and a nation. In Christian theology human beings find

their realisation as persons only in relation to God (Groody, 2008 p.2 66). As one in the image of

God, we should help others in need and share. “Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit.

Rather, in humility value others above yourselves, not looking to your own interests but each of you

to the interest of the others” (Philippians 2:3-4). Christians are called to go beyond the principles of

human rights and exercise charity (Novello, 2014, p. 25), sharing material possessions and providing

service to those in need without hesitation.

CONCLUSION

The central theme of Christian anthropology is one of human persons being covenantal – of

having a radical relationship with God, with other people, and with the world they live in. Our

existence as human beings is so radically related to our relationships with others that we cannot

become human without them (Tuohy, 2004, p. 95). Human beings are transcendent, with the desire

and capacity to go beyond the material reality of human life and seek the divine. Human beings are

ethically orientated, concerned of their actions on others and on the world. CST is drawn from

Christian anthropology and seeks to guide intellectual thought and moral behaviour in pathways that

advance the truth about the human person and its high vocation (Novello, 2014, p. 23). Christians,

through following in the ways of God, reflecting the nature of God in their actions, can model how to

address the inequality in society today in their love, respect and compassion to others and in putting

others before themselves.

References

Groody, D. G. (2008). Globalizing solidarity: Christian anthropology and the challenge of human

liberation. Theological Studies, 69(2), 250-268. doi:10.1177/004056390806900201

McArdle, P. (2005). Called by name: Contemporary Christian anthropology. Scottish Journal of

Theology, 58(2), 219-236. doi:10.1017/S0036930605001018

Novello, H. L. (2014). Foundations of CST. Compass, 48(2), 22-27.

Tuohy, A. (2004). Christian Anthropology. Foundations of Christian faith: An introduction for

All Bible references take from NIV