Class 18 of Catholic Social Thought

1. What we’ll do today:
 Debrief about our visit to the Center for the Homeless & define homelessness (20 minutes)
 Apply Catholic social teaching to CFH visit, “Being Poor,” video (35 minutes)
 Justice and preference. Does Justice = Equality? (15 minutes)
In-class Learning Outcomes
 Apply the video and the third reading for today as examples to illustrate the foundational principles of
Catholic social teaching
 Analyze the relationship between justice and equality in light of the Church’s preference for the poor
 Self-Assessment (5 minutes)
 What did you contribute to class discussion today?
 From our visit to the Center and our discussion today of Catholic Social Teaching, what’s the most
important conclusion or question you take away about what justice demands for the poor and
homeless?

2. Charity vs. Justice
“On the one hand we are called to play the
good Samaritan on life's roadside; but that will
be only an initial act. One day we must come
to see that the whole Jericho road must be
transformed so that men and women will not
be constantly beaten and robbed as they
make their journey on life's highway. True
compassion is more than flinging a coin to a
beggar; it is not haphazard and superficial. It
comes to see that an edifice which produces
beggars needs restructuring.

3. Justice & Preference

4. Center for the Homeless Mission
1.Break the cycle of homelessness.
2.Bring together disparate groups so that each can
discover the worth, dignity and potential of the
other.
3.Pioneer a service model worthy of replication.

5. Anti-Homeless Measures