This document discusses the foundations of Christian charity and social doctrine in the Catholic Church. It explains that early Christians were known for their love and unity, as described by the lawyer Tertullian, and that Christ commanded Christians to love one another. The Holy Trinity is presented as the model of perfect love and social life. The Church exists to teach this doctrine of love and unity, and to empower Christians to live as the Body of Christ through sacraments like Baptism and the Eucharist.

1. CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church

2. CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
CHRISTIAN CHARITY
BEGINS IN GOD HIMSELF
• In 190 AD, Christianity was still
fairly new in Africa and some
other countries
• Christianity was so unusual
and confusing to some that a
prominent lawyer named
Tertullian explained it in his
book Apologeticum, which
means “The Explanation” or
“The Defense”

3. CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
CHRISTIAN CHARITY
BEGINS IN GOD HIMSELF (continued)
• What non-Christians found so
different about Christianity was
not the rituals, or its books, but
rather the charity, unity, love, and
kindness of its followers
• Citizens of Carthage who
worshipped Roman gods knew
nothing about the Church’s
Sacraments or doctrines, or
about a Christian’s inner life

4. CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
CHRISTIAN CHARITY BEGINS IN GOD HIMSELF
• They knew the city’s Christians by their
distinctive way of loving one another
• This was not unique to the Church in
Africa; other writers in other places
described it the same way
• The world and social interaction at that
time was full of strife and discontent, but
Christians accomplished peace without
force
• Tertullian emphasized that Christians
accomplished peace and mutual support
voluntarily and freely

5. CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
THE PRINCIPLE OF LOVE
• Christ’s commandment to us is: Love one another
• This principle appears many times in the New Testament and
in the writings of various authors
• Christ’s disciples understood this principle to be an essential
part of the Gospel
– St. John the Apostle wrote of the “New Commandment” as Christ’s
most original teaching
– St. Peter told Christians to “love one another earnestly from the heart”
– St. Paul said, “love one another; for he who loves his neighbor has
fulfilled the law”

6. CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
THE PRINCIPLE OF LOVE (continued)
• This principle is based on Christ’s
all-giving love and is more than
just politeness: we must give of
ourselves
• Since people are weakened in
their relationship to each other
as a result of Original Sin, this
Christlike love does not always
come naturally

7. CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
THE PRINCIPLE OF LOVE (continued)
• Christ and the Apostles spoke often
of this love when preaching the
Gospel
• Through the Church they also
provided supernatural means to
achieve this love; through
communion with Jesus Christ, the
Church empowers Christians to love
as Christ loves

8. CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
THE BLESSED TRINITY:
OUR ORIGIN AND GOAL
• To be happy and live in peace, we must live the true purpose of our
lives
• God has revealed to us the purpose, nature, and destiny of humans,
and has shown us the way to happiness in Heaven through our life
on Earth
• God made us for a love that only he can satisfy, for human beings
are made in His image
• The triune God—the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit—are equal and
love each other equally and perfectly
• God shared His perfect love with us through the passion, death,
resurrection, and ascension of Jesus

9. CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
THE BLESSED TRINITY:
OUR ORIGIN AND GOAL (continued)
• Through the Paschal Mystery—the saving
power of the Cross—Christ shared that
divine life with the human race
• Christ established the Church so we could
live in Him through the Sacraments
• Because we are all created in God’s
image, we cannot have true happiness
apart from Him
• The mystery of the Trinity and its perfect
love is the central mystery of our faith and
Catechism

10. CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
THE HOLY SPIRIT:
OUR BOND OF LOVE
• God created us as individuals, and desires that we live in union
with each other through our Faith in Christ
• At the first Pentecost, Jesus gave us the Holy Spirit as a bond of
love between Christians, just as the Spirit is a bond of love in
the Trinity
• Through the Sacraments, especially Baptism and Confirmation,
we receive the Holy Spirit and come to live as children of God

11. CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
THE HOLY SPIRIT:
OUR BOND OF LOVE (continued)
• Knowing God as “Our Father” is a privilege for Christians, that
comes to us from the Holy Spirit working through the Church
• God made it simple for humans to know Him
– In Baptism and Confirmation, we receive he Holy Spirit
– In the Holy Eucharist, we share in the Paschal Mystery of Christ and are
made one with other believers

12. CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
THE CHURCH: THE BODY OF CHRIST
• The Church is the Mystical Body of Christ: “I am the vine, and
you are the branches” (Jn 15:5)
• Christians are united so closely to each other in Christ, that the
New Testament refers to the Church as “Body of Christ”
• In Acts of the Apostles, we learn that Christ identifies himself
with the persecuted Church, when he asks Saul, “Why do you
persecute me?” (Acts 9:4)
• After his conversion, St. Paul later developed clearly the
doctrine of the Church as the “Body of Christ” and our unity in
the Holy Spirit
– Christians are “one body” as they share the one bread of the Eucharist

13. CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
THE CHURCH: THE BODY OF CHRIST (continued)
• As Christians, we depend on
each other, like parts of the
human body
• St. Paul returns to this theme
many times in his writings:
– Christ is the Head of the Church
– Believers are the parts of the Body
that is the Church

14. CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
THE CHURCH: THE BODY OF CHRIST (continued)
• Since the Church is Christ’s Body,
we must play our role as part of it
by caring for one another
• The actions we take affect not only
us, but others, so we must choose
the good for the sake of all

15. CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
THE BLESSED TRINITY:
THE PATTERN OF SOCIAL LIFE
• Everyone is created to live and
love, but we cannot achieve this
alone with our fallen nature
• God does not command the
impossible; because he is all-loving
and just, he makes communion
possible for us through his grace
• Christ summarized all of the Law
and messages of the prophets in
two main commandments: love
God and love your neighbor

16. CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
THE BLESSED TRINITY:
THE PATTERN OF SOCIAL LIFE (continued)
• By following these Commandments, we can become true
children of God
• St. Augustine said, “If you see charity, you see the Trinity”
• This is the love the pagan citizens of Carthage saw when they
said: See those Christians, how they love another
• The Church gives us both a model and a doctrine for
proclaiming unity
• Christ gave the Church the authority, competence, and grace
to teach his doctrine to all people and bring his Salvation to all

17. CHAPTER 1 – The Social Doctrine of the Catholic Church
CONCLUSION
• The Church has always been
distinguished by her life of charity
• It is evident in her corporate works
and also in the lives of the saints
• To love with charity is to love as God
loves, by giving sacrificially of one’s
self and one’s substance
• By responding to Christ’s New
Commandment, we show God’s love
to the world