This document outlines three foundational pillars of Catholic social teaching: dignity, community, and preferential option for the poor. It provides quotes and explanations for each pillar. Dignity refers to the inherent worth of every human being as created in God's image. Community emphasizes that human dignity can only be realized in relationship with others. Preferential option for the poor means assessing policies based on their impact on vulnerable populations and strengthening the whole community by assisting those most in need. The document stresses that these pillars should guide economic and political decisions.

1. I. Charity vs. Justice
II. Organizing the Principles
III. Three Foundational Pillars of C.S.T.
A. Dignity
B. Community
C. Pref. Concern/Option for the Poor
Dignity Community Pref. Option

2. Office for Social Justice, St. Paul, MN

3. The Good Samaritan
(Lk. 10:29-37)

4. “When I give food to the
poor, they call me a saint.
When I ask why they are
poor [in the first place], they
call me a communist.”
Bishop Dom Hélder Camara

5. “The arc of the moral
universe is long, but it
bends towards justice.”
Rev. Martin Luther King, Jr.

6. “Every economic decision and institution must be judged
in light of whether it protects or undermines the dignity of
the human person. . . . We believe the person is sacred—
the clearest reflection of God among us. Human dignity
comes from God, not from nationality, race, sex, economic
Economic Justice for All (1986), §§13, 79
status, or any human accomplishment. . . .
The Bible vigorously affirms the sacredness
of every person as a creature formed in the
image and likeness of God.”

7. “God loves each of us
as if there were only
one of us.”
Saint Augustine

8. “Human dignity can be realized and protected only in
community. In our teaching, the human person is not
only sacred but social. How we organize our society —
in economics and politics, in law and policy—directly
affects human dignity and the capacity of individuals to
grow in community.”
Economic Justice for All (1986), §14

9. “Human life is life in community….
Christians look forward in hope to a
true communion among all persons
with each other and with God….
Indeed Christian theological
reflection on the very reality of God
as a trinitarian unity of persons—
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—shows
that being a person means being
united to other persons in mutual
love.”
Economic Justice for All (1986), §§63-64

10. “As followers of Christ, we are challenged to make a
fundamental ‘option for the poor’— to speak for the
voiceless, to defend the defenseless, to assess life
styles, policies, and social institutions in terms of
their impact on the poor. This ‘option for the poor’
does not mean pitting one group against another, but
rather, strengthening the whole community by
assisting those who are the most vulnerable. As
Christians, we are called to respond to the needs of all
our brothers and sisters, but those with the greatest
needs require the greatest response.”
Economic Justice for All (1986), §16

11. “The poor show us who we are,
and the prophets tell us who
we could be, so we hide the
poor and kill the prophets.”
Fr. Dan Berrigan, S.J.

12. “Our students will mature in a world wracked by
the insecurity of terrorism, economic dislocation,
environmental change, corporate misdeeds, political
corruption and even religious scandals. Despite
these challenges to their own individual moral
development, they need to realize that saving
themselves is insufficient Christian witness.
“They must also engage to heal the broken world
and the damaged lives of their neighbors.”
Professor Jerry McElroy