F O R H U M A N D I G N I T Y

FOR HUMAN DIGNITY
EXTRACTS FROM INTERVENTIONS
OF BENEDICT XVI AND THE HOLY SEE

ABOUT INTERNATIONAL QUESTIONS

« For human dignity » gathers extracts from speeches of the Pope and Holy See Delegates before International
Organizations. This publication could be a good guideline and a constant reference for those working in the
international arena.
The publication has been made possible thanks to the offer of the Librería Editrice Vaticana which owns the
copyright.
Furthermore, FPSC would like to thank Johan Ketelers, Secretary General of the International Catholic
Migration Commission for the idea of setting up this project and giving us the opportunity to publish and diffuse
it among the participants of the 2010 Forum.

February 2010
EDITED BY:
EDITADO POR:

Fundación Promoción Social de la Cultura
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e-mail: fpsc@fundacionfpsc.org
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© Copyright 2010 Libreria Editrice Vaticana, concession has been offered

INDEX

INTRODUCTION................................................................................................................ 1

DEVELOPMENT AND COOPERATION....................................................................... 3

Development Aid .............................................................................................................. 3
Trade ................................................................................................................................... 5
Globalization...................................................................................................................... 7
Business .............................................................................................................................. 9
Finance ................................................................................................................................10
Companies..........................................................................................................................12
Work....................................................................................................................................13
Human person ...................................................................................................................15
Population ..........................................................................................................................17
Food security......................................................................................................................18
Food Safety.........................................................................................................................20
Solidarity and Cooperation..............................................................................................22
Subsidiarity ........................................................................................................................24
Human Development .......................................................................................................25
Rural Development ...........................................................................................................28

ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES ............................................................................................31

Environment ......................................................................................................................31
Human Ecology .................................................................................................................32

EDUCATION ........................................................................................................................35

Integral Education.............................................................................................................35
Inclusive Education...........................................................................................................36
Cultural Integration ..........................................................................................................37

RELIGIOUS ISSUES ...........................................................................................................39

Religious Freedom ............................................................................................................39
Interreligious Dialogue.....................................................................................................42

HUMAN RIGHTS................................................................................................................45

Dignity and Human Nature ............................................................................................45
Rights and Responsibilities..............................................................................................47
Right to Food......................................................................................................................49

Right to education, training and instruction .................................................................52
Promotion of women ........................................................................................................53
Childhood...........................................................................................................................55
Trade-unionism .................................................................................................................57

PEACE AND SECURITY ....................................................................................................59

International Humanitarian Rights ................................................................................60
Disarmament......................................................................................................................61
Peace, Right of the responsibility to protect..................................................................64

HUMAN MOBILITY, MIGRATION AND REFUGEES ..............................................67

Migration ............................................................................................................................67
Refugees..............................................................................................................................70
Trafficking in human beings............................................................................................73
International Tourism.......................................................................................................74

LIFE AND HEALTH ............................................................................................................75

Health care .........................................................................................................................75
Life.......................................................................................................................................76
Drugs...................................................................................................................................79
HIV/AIDS ..........................................................................................................................79

SOCIAL ISSUES...................................................................................................................83

Family .................................................................................................................................83
Social Integration...............................................................................................................84
Means of Social Communication ....................................................................................87
Technology .........................................................................................................................89

INTRODUCTION

It is my pleasure to introduce this collection of highlights related to the positioning and
policy work of the Holy See. The collection of excerpts primarily intends to serve as a
reminder of some of the more recent statements of the Church on various subjects of
interest and aims to be of good use, both in better preparing for the upcoming 2010
Forum meeting, and in building the future political commitments of Catholic-inspired
NGOs.

In searching for those elements that would prove to be most useful, we came across
many more documents and the initiative gradually became a major effort in selecting
those that seemed most relevant to recent positioning. We wanted these highlights to
be organized in accordance with the themes already identified during the previous
mapping exercise of the policy work of Catholic-inspired NGOs, but rapidly came to
the conclusion that, for reading purposes and to avoid a repetition of excerpts resorting
under various chapters, a more detailed subdivision would be necessary. Additional
subdivisions that were not part of the initial approach have therefore been introduced,
yet still within the framework of the eight major themes identified.

Today the collection includes more than 230 extracts of various documents from the
past three years. The collection is not built on scientific criteria, nor was there much
attention paid to the relationship between the various excerpts. Instead, focus was given
to the positioning value, and to the aim to make this a useful tool in preparing for the
Forum meeting, as well as in the further daily work of Catholic-inspired organisations.
It can, therefore, not be read as a compendium or as a unique reference guideline, nor
is it an exhaustive collection. It serves much more as a reminder and as an appetizer to
read more and think further. Hopefully, it also serves as an eye opener on those subjects
with which we are less familiar, and as an invitation to go in more depth in those lines
that are repeatedly heard, à charge et à décharge, of our Church’s positioning.

We hope to see this effort continued, and have therefore included CDs that offer the
very practical potential to use and increase the collection with those excerpts that may
prove to be of use for us. In regularly updating the extracts, the tool may gradually
become a more exhaustive collection that integrates the work of previous years, as well
as interesting statements made in the future. We would recommend that all of the
various future thematic groups give this idea some further consideration. Furthermore,
compiling, in a similar way, positions taken and statements issued by the various
organisations could prove to be an extremely valuable complement to show both the
way in which Catholic-inspired organisations largely contribute pursuing shared goals,
and how much is being targeted and worked at today.

This volume owes a lot to the patient research work done by Marco Rotunno, Marco
Battelli, Maria Letizia Perugini and Laura Vaticano. Their extensive reading and

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selections have no doubt contributed significantly to the quality of this collection. We
also want to express great gratitude to Mrs. Pilar Lara, President of the Foundation for
the Social Promotion of Culture (Fundación de la Promoción Social de la Cultura-FPSC)
who offered to edit the collection to be handed to all participants of the Forum. Our
gratitude also includes the relentless coordination efforts of Mrs. Fermina Alvarez,
whose great determination and conviction have greatly contributed to achieving this
first collection in very limited time.

We sincerely hope to see this effort continued and integrated as a goal in the continued
Forum process. We are convinced that such an initiative will make an important
contribution to enhancing our collective Catholic-inspired identity, and increase
visibility of the work and commitment carried by so many organisations.

Johan Ketelers
Chair of the Working Group

2

DEVELOPMENT AND COOPERATION

Development Aid

The international development aid, whatever the donors’ intentions, can sometimes lock
people into a state of dependence and even foster situations of localized oppression
and exploitation in the receiving country. Economic aid, in order to be true to its
purpose, must not pursue secondary objectives. It must be distributed with the
involvement not only of the governments of receiving countries, but also local economic
agents and the bearers of culture within civil society, including local Churches. Aid
programmes must increasingly acquire the characteristics of participation and
completion from the grass roots. Indeed, the most valuable resources in countries
receiving development aid are human resources: herein lies the real capital that needs
to accumulate in order to guarantee a truly autonomous future for the poorest
countries. It should also be remembered that, in the economic sphere, the principal
form of assistance needed by developing countries is that of allowing and encouraging
the gradual penetration of their products into international markets, thus making it
possible for these countries to participate fully in international economic life.

Benedict XVI, Caritas in Veritate, n. 58
*
International cooperation requires people who can be part of the process of economic and
human development through the solidarity of their presence, supervision, training and
respect. From this standpoint, international organizations might question the actual
effectiveness of their bureaucratic and administrative machinery, which is often
excessively costly. […] Within this context of responsibility you place the right of each
country to define its own economic model by providing ways of ensuring their freedom
of choice and goals. In this perspective, cooperation is to became effective, free from
constraints and interests that can absorb a significant proportion of resources devoted
to development. It’ s also important to stress that the path of solidarity for the
development of the poor countries can also become a way of resolving the global crisis.
Arguing, in fact, with plans to finance solidarity inspired by these Nations to arrange
for themselves to meet their consumers demand and development not only promotes
economic growth in them, but you can have a positive impact on overall human
development other countries.

Benedict XVI, Visit to the Palace of the FAO on the occasion of the 36th Session
of the General Conference of the United Nation Food and Agriculture Organization,
Rome, November 16, 2009
*
Therefore with the same force as that with which John Paul II asked for the cancellation
of the foreign debt I too would like to appeal to the member countries of the G8, to the
other States represented and to the Governments of the whole world to maintain and

3

reinforce aid for development, especially aid destined to “make the most” of “human
resources”, not only in spite of the crisis, but precisely because it is one of the principal
paths to its solution. Is it not in fact through investment in the human being in all the
men and women of the earth that it will be possible to succeed in effectively dispelling
the disturbing prospective of global recession? Is not this truly the way to obtain, to
the extent possible, a trend in the world economy that benefits the inhabitants of every
country, rich and poor, large and small?

Benedict XVI, Letter to Hon. Mr Silvio Berlusconi, Prime Minister of Italy,
on the occasion of the G8 Summit (L’Aquila, 8-10 July 2009),
July 1, 2009
*
The aid given to poor countries must be guided by sound economic principles, avoiding
form of waste associated principally with the maintenance of expensive bureaucratise.

Benedict XVI, Message for the celebration of the XLI World Day of Peace,
January 1, 2008
*
The current crisis has raised the spectre of the cancellation or drastic reduction of
external assistance programmes, especially for Africa and for less developed countries
elsewhere. Development aid, including the commercial and financial conditions
favourable to less developed countries and the cancellation of the external debt of the
poorest and most indebted countries, has not been the cause of the crisis and, out of
fundamental justice, must not be its victim.

Benedict XVI, Letter to the Right Hon. Gordon Brown Prime Minister of Great Britain
at the Vigil of the G20 Summit in London,
March 30, 2009
*
Long-term financing programs are needed to overcome the external debt of the highly
indebted poor countries (HIPC), consolidate the economic and constitutional systems
and create a social safety network. Likewise, international trading conditions have to
conform to its proper needs and economic challenges.

Intervention by the Delegation of the Holy See
at the 64 Session of the Un Assembly before the Plenary:
th

“Progress in implementation and International Support”,
New York, October 21, 2009
*
Sustainable development meets the needs of the present without compromising the
ability of future generations to meet their needs. Likewise, sustainable financing should
meet the present capital needs for development, while ensuring the long-term
preservation and increase of resources. It is time for developed and developing

4

countries alike to reaffirm the principle of sustainable financial development apply it
to financial markets and thus create truly sustainable capital management. Such is the
great challenge of this Conference: nothing less than to ensure, in a sustainable way, the
financing for development.

at the Doha Conference on Financing for Development,
Doha, December 1, 2008
*
Although international aid is important, even more crucial is a fair international trade
environment, where correct practices that are biased to the detriment of the weaker economies.

Intervention by The Holy See at the 62nd UN General Assembly on
“Recognizing achievements, addressing the challenges and getting back on track
to achieve the Millennium Development Goals by 2015”,
New York, April 4, 2008

Trade

In a climate of mutual trust, the market is the economic institution that permits
encounter between persons, inasmuch as they are economic subjects who make use of
contracts to regulate their relations as they exchange goods and services of equivalent
value between them, in order to satisfy their needs and desires. The market is subject
to the principles of so-called commutative justice, which regulates the relations of giving
and receiving between parties to a transaction. But the social doctrine of the Church has
unceasingly highlighted the importance of distributive justice and social justice for the
market economy, not only because it belongs within a broader social and political
context, but also because of the wider network of relations within which it operates. In
fact, if the market is governed solely by the principle of the equivalence in value of
exchanged goods, it cannot produce the social cohesion that it requires in order to
function well. Without internal forms of solidarity and mutual trust, the market cannot
completely fulfil its proper economic function.

*
Economic activity cannot solve all social problems through the simple application of
commercial logic. This needs to be directed towards the pursuit of the common good, for which
the political community in particular must also take responsibility. Therefore, it must
be borne in mind that grave imbalances are produced when economic action, conceived
merely as an engine for wealth creation, is detached from political action, conceived as
a means for pursuing justice through redistribution […] The great challenge before us,
accentuated by the problems of development in this global era and made even more
urgent by the economic and financial crisis, is to demonstrate, in thinking and

5

behaviour, not only that traditional principles of social ethics like transparency, honesty
and responsibility cannot be ignored or attenuated, but also that in commercial
relationships the principle of gratuitousness and the logic of gift as an expression of
fraternity can and must find their place within normal economic activity.

*
The increasing globalization of markets does not always promote the availability of
food and production systems are often constrained by structural limitations, as well as
protectionist policies and speculative phenomena that relegate entire populations to
the margins of development processes. In light of this situation, we must reaffirm
strongly that hunger and malnutrition are unacceptable in a world that, in fact, level of
production, resources and knowledge sufficient to put an end to this tragedies and their
consequences. The great challenge today is to “globalize not only economic and
commercial interests, but also the expectations of solidarity, respecting and promoting
the contribution of each component of man.

Benedict XVI, Message to the High Level Conference on World Food Security
sponsored by FAO,
Rome, June 2, 2008
*
Global interconnectedness has led to the emergence of a new political power, that of
consumers and their associations. This is a phenomenon that needs to be further explored, as
it contains positive elements to be encouraged as well as excesses to be avoided. It is good
for people to realize that purchasing is always a moral —and not simply economic—
act. Hence the consumer has a specific social responsibility, which goes hand-in- hand with
the social responsibility of the enterprise. Consumers should be continually educated
regarding their daily role, which can be exercised with respect for moral principles
without diminishing the intrinsic economic rationality of the act of purchasing. In the
retail industry, particularly at times like the present when purchasing power has
diminished and people must live more frugally, it is necessary to explore other paths:
for example, forms of cooperative purchasing like the consumer cooperatives that have
been in operation since the nineteenth century, partly through the initiative of Catholics.
In addition, it can be helpful to promote new ways of marketing products from deprived
areas of the world, so as to guarantee their producers a decent return. However, certain
conditions need to be met: the market should be genuinely transparent; the producers,
as well as increasing their profit margins, should also receive improved formation in
professional skills and technology; and finally, trade of this kind must not become
hostage to partisan ideologies. A more incisive role for consumers, as long as they
themselves are not manipulated by associations that do not truly represent them, is a
desirable element for building economic democracy.


6

Charity in truth places man before the astonishing experience of gift. Gratuitousness is
present in our lives in many different forms, which often go unrecognized because of
a purely consumerist and utilitarian view of life. The human being is made for gift,
which expresses and makes present his transcendent dimension […] Economic, social
and political development, if it is to be authentically human, needs to make room for
the principle of gratuitousness as an expression of fraternity.

*
In the global era, economic activity cannot rescind from gratuitousness, which fosters
and disseminates solidarity and responsibility for justice and the common good among
the different economic players. It is clearly a specific and profound form of economic
democracy […] While in the past it was possible to argue that justice had to come first
and gratuitousness could follow afterwards, as a complement, today it is clear that
without gratuitousness, there can be no justice in the first place.

*
The dignity of the individual and the demands of justice require, particularly today,
that economic choices do not cause disparities in wealth to increase in an excessive and
morally unacceptable manner, and that we continue to prioritize the goal of access to steady
employment for everyone […] Lowering the level of protection accorded to the rights of
workers, or abandoning mechanisms of wealth redistribution in order to increase the
country’s international competitiveness, hinder the achievement of lasting
development. Moreover, the human consequences of current tendencies towards a
short-term economy —sometimes very short-term— need to be carefully evaluated.

*
In addressing food insecurity, due consideration must be given to the structural
systems, such as subsidies in developed countries and commodity dumping which
drives down the ability of African farmers to make a living wage.

at the 64 Session of the General Assembly before the Plenary, on item 63:
th

“New economic partnership for Africa’s Development: progress in implementation and
international support”,

Globalization

Globalization has been the principal driving force behind the emergence from
underdevelopment of whole regions, and in itself it represents a great opportunity.

7

Nevertheless, without the guidance of charity in truth, this global force could cause
unprecedented damage and create new divisions within the human family. Hence
charity and truth confront us with an altogether new and creative challenge, one that
is certainly vast and complex. It is about broadening the scope of reason and making it
capable of knowing and directing these powerful new forces, animating them within the
perspective of that “civilization of love” whose seed God has planted in every people,
in every culture.

*
Globalization eliminates certain barriers, but is still able to build new ones; it brings
peoples together, but spatial and temporal proximity does not of itself create the
conditions for true communion and authentic peace. Effective means to redress the
marginalization of the world’s poor through globalization will only be found if people
everywhere feel personally outraged by the injustices in the world and by the
concomitant violations of human rights. The Church […] will continue to offer her
contribution so that injustices and misunderstandings may be resolved, leading to a
world of greater peace and solidarity.

Benedict XVI, Message for the celebration of the XLII World Day of Peace, n. 8,
January 1, 2009
*
Globalization by itself is incapable of making peace and, in many cases, it actually
creates divisions and conflicts. It points to a need: to be oriented to a goals of
profound solidarity which seeks the good of each and everyone. In this sense,
globalization is seen as a good opportunity to achieve something important in the
fight against poverty and for providing justice and peace resources previously
unthinkable.

January 1, 2009
*
Fighting poverty requires a careful consideration of the complex phenomenon of
globalization. This consideration is important form the point of view of method,
because it suggests using the result of research conducted by economists and social
scientists on many aspects of poverty. The appeal of globalization should, however,
also carry a spiritual meaning and moral calling to look in order to be aware all share
a single divine plan, that of the vocation to be a single family in which everyone
–individuals, populations and nations- regulate their behaviour based on principles of
brotherhood and responsibility.

January 1, 2009

8

Sometimes globalization is viewed in fatalistic terms, as if the dynamics involved were
the product of anonymous impersonal forces or structures independent of the human
will. In this regard it is useful to remember that while globalization should certainly be
understood as a socio-economic process, this is not its only dimension. Underneath the
more visible process, humanity itself is becoming increasingly interconnected; it is
made up of individuals and peoples to whom this process should offer benefits and
development, as they assume their respective responsibilities, singly and collectively.
The breaking-down of borders is not simply a material fact: it is also a cultural event
both in its causes and its effects […] Hence a sustained commitment is needed so as to
promote a person-based and community-oriented cultural process of world-wide integration
that is open to transcendence. Despite some of its structural elements, which should
neither be denied nor exaggerated, “globalization, a priori, is neither good nor bad. It
will be what people make of it”. We should not be its victims, but rather its
protagonists, acting in the light of reason, guided by charity and truth.


Business

A “common code of ethics” is also needed, consisting of norms based not upon mere
consensus, but rooted in the natural law inscribed by the Creator on the conscience of
every human being (cf. Rom 2, 14-15). Does not every one of us sense deep within his
or her conscience a call to make a personal contribution to the common good and to
peace in society?

January 1, 2009
*
Striving to meet the deepest moral needs of the person also has important and beneficial
repercussions at the level of economics. The economy needs ethics in order to function
correctly — not any ethics whatsoever, but an ethics which is people-centred […] Efforts
are needed —and it is essential to say this— not only to create “ethical” sectors or
segments of the economy or the world of finance, but to ensure that the whole economy
—the whole of finance— is ethical, not merely by virtue of an external label, but by its
respect for requirements intrinsic to its very nature.

*
The economy Healthy, you have to build a new confidence. This can only be achieved
through the implementation of an ethic based on the innate dignity of the human person.

Benedict XVI, Address to the members of the Diplomatic Corps,
Rome, January 8, 2009

9

Financial crises are triggered when –partially due to the decline of correct ethical
conduct– those working in the economic sector lose trust in its modes of operating
and in its financial systems. Nevertheless, finance, commerce and production
systems are contingent human creations which, if they become objects of blind faith,
bear within themselves the roots of their own downfall. Their true and solid
foundation is faith in the human person. For this reason all the measures proposed
to rein in this crisis must seek, ultimately, to offer security to families and stability
to workers and, through appropriate regulations and controls, to restore ethics to
the financial world.

Benedict XVI, Letter to the Right Hon. Gordon Brown Prime Minister of Great Britain
at the vigil of the G20 Summit in London,
March 30, 2009
*
There are economic, juridical and cultural dimensions of the present crisis. To engage
in financial activity cannot be reduced to making easy profits, but also must include the
promotion of the common good among those who lend, those who borrow, and those
who work. The lack of an ethical base has brought the crisis to low, middle and high
income countries alike. The Delegation of the Holy See, Mr. President, calls for renewed
“attention to the need for an ethical approach to the creation of positive partnerships
between markets, civil society and States”.

at the Special Session of the Human Rights Council on the world financial crisis,
Geneva, February 20, 2009

Finance

Finance, therefore -through the renewed structures and operating methods that have
to be designed after its misuse, which wreaked such havoc on the real economy- now
needs to go back to being an instrument directed towards improved wealth creation and
development. Insofar as they are instruments, the entire economy and finance, not just
certain sectors, must be used in an ethical way so as to create suitable conditions for
human development and for the development of peoples. It is certainly useful, and in
some circumstances imperative, to launch financial initiatives in which the
humanitarian dimension predominates. However, this must not obscure the fact that
the entire financial system has to be aimed at sustaining true development. Above all,
the intention to do good must not be considered incompatible with the effective
capacity to produce goods. Financiers must rediscover the genuinely ethical
foundation of their activity, so as not to abuse the sophisticated instruments which
can serve to betray the interests of savers. Right intention, transparency, and the search
for positive results are mutually compatible and must never be detached from one
another. If love is wise, it can find ways of working in accordance with provident and

10

just expediency, as is illustrated in a significant way by much of the experience of
credit unions. Both the regulation of the financial sector, so as to safeguard weaker
parties and discourage scandalous speculation, and experimentation with new forms
of finance, designed to support development projects, are positive experiences that
should be further explored and encouraged, highlighting the responsibility of the
investor. Furthermore, the experience of micro-finance, which has its roots in the thinking
and activity of the civil humanists —I am thinking especially of the birth of pawn
broking— should be strengthened and fine-tuned. This is all the more necessary in
these days when financial difficulties can become severe for many of the more
vulnerable sectors of the population, who should be protected from the risk of usury
and from despair. The weakest members of society should be helped to defend
themselves against usury, just as poor peoples should be helped to derive real benefit
from micro-credit, in order to discourage the exploitation that is possible in these two
areas. Since rich countries are also experiencing new forms of poverty, micro-finance
can give practical assistance by launching new initiatives and opening up new sectors
for the benefit of the weaker elements in society, even at a time of general economic
downturn.

*
Lending is a necessary social activity. Nonetheless, financial institutions and agents are
responsible for ensuring that lending fulfils its proper function in society, connecting
savings to production […] Financial activity needs to be sufficiently transparent so
that individual savers, especially the poor and those least protected, understand what
will become of their savings. This calls not only for effective measures of oversight by
governments, but also for a high standard of ethical conduct on the part of financial
leaders themselves.

at the 63 Session of the UN General Assembly on the global financial crisis,
rd

*
The most important function of finance is to sustain the possibility of long-term
investment and hence of development. Today this appears extremely fragile: it is
experiencing the negative repercussions of a system of financial dealings –both
national and global– based upon very short-term thinking, which aims at increasing
the value of financial operations and concentrates on the technical management of
various forms of risk. The recent crisis demonstrates how financial activity can at
times be completely turned in on itself, lacking any long-term consideration of the
common good. This lowering of the objectives of global finance to the very short
term reduces its capacity to function as a bridge between the present and the future,
and as a stimulus to the creation of new opportunities for production and for work
in the long term. Finance limited in this way to the short and very short term

11

becomes dangerous for everyone, even for those who benefit when the markets
perform well.

January 1, 2009
*
It cannot be denied that policies which place too much emphasis on assistance underlie
many of the failures in providing aid to poor countries. Investing in the formation of
people and developing a specific and well-integrated culture of enterprise would seem
at present to be the right approach in the medium and long term. If economic activities
require a favourable context in order to develop, this must not distract attention from
the need to generate revenue. While it has been rightly emphasized that increasing per
capita income cannot be the ultimate goal of political and economic activity, it is still an
important means of attaining the objective of the fight against hunger and absolute
poverty. Hence, the illusion that a policy of mere redistribution of existing wealth can
definitively resolve the problem must be set aside. In a modern economy, the value of
assets is utterly dependent on the capacity to generate revenue in the present and the
future. Wealth creation therefore becomes an inescapable duty, which must be kept in
mind if the fight against material poverty is to be effective in the long term.

January 1, 2009,

Companies

When we consider the issues involved in the relationship between business and ethics, as
well as the evolution currently taking place in methods of production, it would appear
that the traditionally valid distinction between profit-based companies and non-profit
organizations can no longer do full justice to reality, or offer practical direction for the
future. In recent decades a broad intermediate area has emerged between the two types
of enterprise. It is made up of traditional companies which nonetheless subscribe to
social aid agreements in support of underdeveloped countries […] This is not merely
a matter of a “third sector”, but of a broad new composite reality embracing the private
and public spheres, one which does not exclude profit, but instead considers it a means
for achieving human and social ends. […] It is to be hoped that these new kinds of
enterprise will succeed in finding a suitable juridical and fiscal structure in every
country. Without prejudice to the importance and the economic and social benefits of
the more traditional forms of business, they steer the system towards a clearer and
more complete assumption of duties on the part of economic subjects. And not only
that. The very plurality of institutional forms of business gives rise to a market which is not only
more civilized but also more competitive.


12

In order to promote development at the macroeconomic level it seems necessary to
reinforce the productive capacity of the poorer countries by means of investment in
technical formation; this allows for competition in today’s knowledge-based economy
and gives support to enterprises that create new jobs and decent work. In this regard,
trans-national corporations carry a particular responsibility to facilitate the transfer of
technology, sponsor capacity building in management, and enable local partners to
provide more employment opportunities.

at the Ministerial Segment of the ECOSOC Session of 2007 Fund,
Geneva, July 4, 2007

Work

No consideration of the problems associated with development could fail to highlight
the direct link between poverty and unemployment. In many cases, poverty results from
a violation of the dignity of human work, either because work opportunities are limited
(through unemployment or underemployment), or “because a low value is put on
work and the rights that flow from it, especially the right to a just wage and to the
personal security of the worker and his or her family”. For this reason, on 1 May
2000 on the occasion of the Jubilee of Workers, my venerable predecessor Pope John
Paul II issued an appeal for “a global coalition in favour of ‘decent work‘”,
supporting the strategy of the International Labour Organization. In this way, he
gave a strong moral impetus to this objective, seeing it as an aspiration of families in
every country of the world. What is meant by the word “decent” in regard to work?
It means work that expresses the essential dignity of every man and woman in the
context of their particular society: work that is freely chosen, effectively associating
workers, both men and women, with the development of their community; work
that enables the worker to be respected and free from any form of discrimination;
work that makes it possible for families to meet their needs and provide schooling
for their children, without the children themselves being forced into labour; work
that permits the workers to organize themselves freely, and to make their voices
heard; work that leaves enough room for rediscovering one’s roots at a personal,
familial and spiritual level; work that guarantees those who have retired a decent
standard of living.

*
I am therefore keen to remind the distinguished participants of the G8 that the
measure of technical efficacy of the provisions to adopt in order to emerge from the
crisis coincides with the measure of its ethical value. In other words, it is necessary to
bear in mind practical human and family needs. I refer, for example, to the effective
creation of positions for all, that enable workers to provide fittingly for their family’s

13

needs and to fulfil their primary responsibility as educators of their children and
protagonists in the community to which they belong. “A society in which this right is
systematically denied”, John Paul II wrote, “in which economic policies do not allow
workers to reach satisfactory levels of employment, cannot be justified from an ethical
point of view, nor can that society attain social peace” (Centesimus Annus, n. 43; cf.,
Laborem Excercens, n. 18).

Benedict XVI, Letter to Hon. Mr Silvio Berlusconi, Prime Minister of Italy,
on the occasion of the G8 Summit (L’Aquila, 8-10 July 2009),
July 1, 2009
*
The Holy See, while praising all efforts to improve working conditions, particularly
as regards the poor, and the introduction of new parameters, such as the proposed
instrument for the protection of national workers, emphasizes the need to recognize
that a strategy focused on the job must put the person, not the task, the centre of the
production process. If you do this, then the decor takes on a new importance and a
deeper meaning because it is tied directly to the person and his dignity. Fact, is the
dignity of the person providing the basis for establishing the parameters that make
decent job. [...] So a decent job is the main road to overcome the current crisis, a
strategy that may well create the conditions for stable economic development and
lasting. We have to bet on the creative work of the person and his talent. […] The
second element in the strategy for the overcoming should be to outlines policy
initiatives that pay particular attention to supporting small and medium enterprises.

at the 98 Session of the International Labour Conference,
th

Geneva, June 10, 2009
*
Working parents, both women and men, should be assisted, if necessary by law, to
bring their own unique and irreplaceable contribution to the upbringing of their
children, to the evident benefit of the whole of society […] The Holy See understands
decent work as that which is both properly remunerated and worthy of the human
person. Work is a right but it is also the duty of all people to contribute to the good of
their society and the whole human family. Work is dignified by the people who do it;
but it must also be dignified in itself. Full employment and decent work cannot include
work that is not as safe as possible, justly remunerated or worthy of the human person.
If work is an essential part of our human vocation, only decent work in this sense can
ever be suitable for the promotion of human dignity and the achievement of social
development.

at the 45 Session of the ECOSOC Commission for Social Development,
th


14

The work plays a crucial role in the life of every person who, as a protagonist, shows
that the dignity of labour is linked to the dignity of the human person. Through work
people engage in their own development and production and exchange of goods and
services and, therefore, the life of their societies as a key architect of development. The
achievement of high levels of quality and dignity of work can not be separated from the
issue of health and education.

at the XII Session of the Conference of UNCTAD,
Accra, 20-25 April 2008
*
In the current debate on international labour market, all suggestions should take into
account two fundamental facts. First, the importance of “subjective dimension” of
work. What gives value to work is not his product, but whoever does it. This allows us
to speak of the dignity of work. Without this subjective dimension with any concern for
the dignity of work because the only important dimension that becomes linked to
economic productivity.

at the 97 Session of the International Labour Conference,
th

Geneva, June 10, 2008
*
The trust between the parties, rather than captured data, is essential in employment. The
persistence of poverty, unemployment and social disintegration is the result of the
mistrust and lack of correct relations between the various components of economic and
social mechanisms. The lack of mutual trust between the parties also means a lack of
confidence in the future and this, in turn, means no job security. People, especially young
people seeking their first job, they discover the meaning of the future and trust in it when
they find a long term employment with the opportunity of a well-deserved promotion.

at the 46 Session of the ECOSOC Commission for Social Development,
th


Human Person

In development programmes, the principle of the centrality of the human person, as the
subject primarily responsible for development, must be preserved. The principal
concern must be to improve the actual living conditions of the people in a given region,
thus enabling them to carry out those duties which their poverty does not presently
allow them to fulfil.


15

I would like to remind everyone, especially to governments involved to write a profile
for renewed economic and social arrangements in the world, the first capital
preservation and promotion of the man, the person, in its entirety: ‘The man is the
author, the centre and goal of all socio-economic life‘.

*
Guiding principles of assistance both in natural and human-made disasters need to be
implemented but before all, we must put at the centre of all our interventions the person
and her material, psychological and spiritual needs.

at the Humanitarian Affairs Segment of the UN Economic and Social Council,
*
Only the protection of person, therefore, can combat the root cause of hunger, namely
the closure of human being against their own kind that dissolves solidarity, justifies
the ways of life and consumer disrupts the social fabric, preserving, if not even
deepening the wake of unjust balances and neglecting the deeper needs of the
property […] The defence of human dignity in international action, including
emergency help, also to measure the superfluous in view of the need of others and to
administer according to justice the fruits of creation, placing them available to all
generations.

Benedict XVI, Message to the High-Level Conference on World Food Security
sponsored by FAO,
Rome, 3-5 June 2008
*
In this age of increased economic interconnection must make efforts to ensure
considerable attention to a development approach that focuses on man. In the world,
millions of children have no access to ways or means to help them forge a better future
for themselves and for their community.

at the 63 Session of UN General Assembly on the Protection and Promotion of Human Rights,
rd

*
All the nations of the world and its specialized agencies must commit to “the integral
development of the human, economic progress and social development of all peoples.”
All nations are called to recognize that “the human person is the central subject of the
development process and therefore the policies for the development of the human
being must do the main participant and beneficiary of development.” This type of
approach “human” and “integral” should inform themselves of the policies and

16

projects to achieve the second Millennium Development Goals: universal primary
education.

at the 48 International Conference on Education of UNESCO,
th

Paris, October 26, 2008
*
An effective campaign against hunger thus demands far more than a mere scientific
study to confront climate change or give priority to the agricultural production of food.
It is necessary first of all to rediscover the meaning of the human person, in his
individual and community dimensions, from the founding of family life, a source of
love and affection from which the sense of solidarity and sharing develop. This setting
satisfies the need to build relations between peoples, based on constant and authentic
availability, to enable each country to satisfy the requirements of needy people but also
to transmit the idea of relations based on a reciprocal exchange of knowledge, values,
rapid assistance and respect.

Benedict XVI, Message on the occasion of World Food Day,
October 13, 2008

Population

The notion of rights and duties in development must also take account of the problems
associated with population growth. This is a very important aspect of authentic
development, since it concerns the inalienable values of life and the family. To consider
population increase as the primary cause of underdevelopment is mistaken, even from
an economic point of view. Suffice it to consider, on the one hand, the significant
reduction in infant mortality and the rise in average life expectancy found in
economically developed countries, and on the other hand, the signs of crisis observable
in societies that are registering an alarming decline in their birth rate. Due attention
must obviously be given to responsible procreation, which among other things has a
positive contribution to make to integral human development. The Church, in her
concern for man’s authentic development, urges him to have full respect for human
values in the exercise of his sexuality. It cannot be reduced merely to pleasure or
entertainment, nor can sex education be reduced to technical instruction aimed solely
at protecting the interested parties from possible disease or the “risk” of procreation.
This would be to impoverish and disregard the deeper meaning of sexuality, a meaning
which needs to be acknowledged and responsibly appropriated not only by individuals
but also by the community. It is irresponsible to view sexuality merely as a source of
pleasure, and likewise to regulate it through strategies of mandatory birth control. In
either case materialistic ideas and policies are at work, and individuals are ultimately
subjected to various forms of violence. Against such policies, there is a need to defend
the primary competence of the family in the area of sexuality, as opposed to the State

17

and its restrictive policies, and to ensure that parents are suitably prepared to undertake
their responsibilities.


Food Security

The goods of nature are meant for everyone in the world community and economic life
should be oriented towards the sharing of these assets towards their sustainable use
and equitable sharing of benefits arising from.

*
Resources to solve the problem of poverty do exist, even in the face of an increasing
population. Nor must it be forgotten that, since the end of the Second World War, the
world’s population has grown by four billion, largely because of certain countries that
have recently emerged on the international scene as new economic powers, and have
experienced rapid development specifically because of the large number of their
inhabitants. Moreover, among the most developed nations, those with higher
birth-rates enjoy better opportunities for development. In other words, population is
proving to be an asset, not a factor that contributes to poverty.

January 1, 2009
*
The objective of eradicating hunger and at the same time of being able to provide
healthy and sufficient food also demands specific methods and actions that mean a
wise use of resources that respect Creation’s patrimony. The result of working in this
direction will benefit not only science, research and technology, but also take into
account the cycles and rhythm of nature known to the inhabitants of rural areas, thus
protecting the traditional customs of the indigenous communities, leaving aside
egotistical and exclusively economic motivations.

October 4, 2007
*
Questions linked to the care and preservation of the environment today need to give due
consideration to the energy problem […] The international community has an urgent duty
to find institutional means of regulating the exploitation of non-renewable resources,
involving poor countries in the process, in order to plan together for the future. On this
front too, there is a pressing moral need for renewed solidarity, especially in relationships
between developing countries and those that are highly industrialized. The
technologically advanced societies can and must lower their domestic energy

18

consumption, either through an evolution in manufacturing methods or through greater
ecological sensitivity among their citizens. It should be added that at present it is possible
to achieve improved energy efficiency while at the same time encouraging research into
alternative forms of energy. What is also needed, though, is a worldwide redistribution
of energy resources, so that countries lacking those resources can have access to them.

*
One area where there is a particular need to intensify dialogue between nations is that
of the stewardship of the earth’s energy resources. The technologically advanced countries
are facing two pressing needs in this regard: on the one hand, to reassess the high levels
of consumption due to the present model of development, and on the other hand to
invest sufficient resources in the search for alternative sources of energy and for greater
energy efficiency. The emerging counties are hungry for energy, but at times this
hunger is met in a way harmful to poor countries which, due to their insufficient
infrastructures, including their technological infrastructures, are forced to undersell
the energy resources they do possess. At times, their very political freedom is
compromised by forms of protectorate or, in any case, by forms of conditioning which
appear clearly humiliating.

Benedict XVI, Message for the celebration of the World Day of Peace, n. 8,
January 1, 2008
*
Availability of and access to energy has a profound positive impact on health,
education, nutrition and income opportunities. Improving access to energy requires
better infrastructure, ensured by appropriate legal and institutional “frameworks”. This
inevitably needs the involvement of local institutions, which can more easily identify
the type of energy, including the forms of financing and marketing most appropriate
for the complex realities of the zone. Where this access is denied to the poor or delayed
due to various reasons, more efficient and sustainable use of traditional energy
resources should be promoted, existing energy efficiency improved and conservation
by relying on a mix of available technologies encouraged. […] The field of renewable
energy presents a challenge and an opportunity for Governments and all other relevant
stakeholders, including the private sector, civil society and international organizations,
to work together to address this pressing challenge. The common initiatives of
renewable energy should also be based on “intergenerational justice” since the energy
consumption pattern of today impacts future generations. We should not burden future
generations with our overstated energy consumption. Therefore a change of lifestyle is
imperative in this regard. In this way, renewable energy programs will ensure an
“intergenerational solidarity” beyond national and economic boundaries.

Finally, for successful renewable energy programs, proper energy consciousness
education and ongoing energy learning are vital. In this regard, civil society and

19

faith-based organizations can contribute a great deal to raising awareness about and
advocating for the use of renewable energy sources at the grass-roots level.

at the 64 Session of the UN General Assembly on item 53:
th

Promotion of New and Renewable Sources of Energy,
New York, November 3, 2009

Food Safety

Access to food, rather than a primary need, is a fundamental right of individuals and
peoples. It can become a reality and a security if it is guaranteed a satisfactory
development in all regions. In particular, the tragedy of hunger can be overcome only
“by eliminating the structural causes that provoke and promote agricultural
development in poorer countries through investment in rural investment in rural
infrastructure in irrigation system in transport, organization of market training and
dissemination of appropriate agricultural techniques, that is able to harness the human,
natural and socio-economic more accessible locally.

*
The considerations of a purely technical or economic should not override the duties of
justice toward those who suffer from hunger. The right to “respond mainly to ethical
justification: ‘give food to the hungry’ (cf. Mt 25, 35), which leads to share the tangible
sign of what we all need [...] This law Primary Food is intrinsically linked to the
protection and defence of human life, rock solid and inviolable which rests the whole
edifice of human rights.

sponsored by FAO,
Rome, 3-5 June 2008
*
Ensure individuals and peoples an opportunity to defeat the scourge of hunger means
ensuring their access to adequate and practical healthy eating. This is, in fact, a concrete
manifestation of the right to life, which, while solemnly proclaimed, is too often far
from full implementation.

Benedict XVI, Message for the World Food Day,
October 16, 2009
*
The call to solidarity operates, in fact, can mean to the world, gives meaning and
primary importance to the work of farmers as an essential economic activity. This places
the goal of food security in a climate of respect and mutual love of authentic sharing,

20

recognizing and reinforcing the truth of the fundamental dignity and equality of every
person.

at the 29 FAO Regional Conference for Asia and the Pacific,
th

Bangkok, March 28, 2009
*
Food security is the outcome of a special commitment in finding the most adequate
engagement to carry out, with effectiveness and coherence, programs that grant or
improve the fundamental right of each individual and community to be free from hunger.

at the 29 Session of the FAO Regional Conference for the Near East,
th

Cairo, 1–5 March, 2008
*
An ordered research aimed at improving agricultural production so as to meet the
growing food demand, must not forget the reasons of food security which is the
consumers’ health, nor crop sustainability, i.e. the environmental protection.

at the 35th Special Session of the FAO Conference,
*
The responsibility to protect the climate requires us to further deepen the interactions
between food security and climate change, focusing on the centrality of the human person,
in particular on the most vulnerable populations, often located in rural areas of developing
countries. The strategies to confront the challenges of food security and climate change,
through synergic actions of adaptation and mitigation, must take into account the
centrality of these populations, respecting their culture and traditional customs.

at the Second Committee of the 63 Session of the UN General Assembly on sustainable development,
rd

*
The problem of food insecurity needs to be addressed within a long-term perspective,
eliminating the structural causes that give rise to it and promoting the agricultural
development of poorer countries. This can be done by investing in rural infrastructures,
irrigation systems, transport, organization of markets, and in the development and
dissemination of agricultural technology that can make the best use of the human,
natural and socio-economic resources that are more readily available at the local level,
while guaranteeing their sustainability over the long term as well.


21

If the aim is the elimination of hunger, international action is called not only to
encourage the sustainable and balanced economic growth and political stability, but
also to seek new standards -and then necessarily ethical legal and economic- that can
inspire the ‘cooperative activities to build an equal relationship between countries that
are in a different stage of development. [...] To fight hunger by promoting integral
human development, we must also understand the needs of rural as well as prevent the
trend towards decreasing the contribution of donors creates uncertainty in the funding
of cooperative activities; go averted the danger that the rural world be considered, as
a short-sighted, as secondary. At the same time, it should facilitate access to the
international market for products from the poorest areas, now often relegated to limited
space. To achieve these objectives is necessary to strip the rules of international trade
to profit-making end in itself, directing them to the economic development of the
countries most in need, who, it provides more revenue, may proceed to sufficiently
that is a prelude to food safety. [...] By the Catholic Church there will always focus on
efforts to eradicate hunger and we will be committed to support, by word and deed, the
consolidated action -planned, responsible and regulated- that all components of the
international community will be called upon to undertake. The Church does not
presume to interfere in political decisions, it is respectful of knowledge and results of
science as well as the choices are determined by a responsible right when illuminated
by authentic human values, joins the effort to eliminate hunger. This is the most
immediate and concrete sign of solidarity inspired by love, a sign that leaves no room
for delays and compromises. Such solidarity is relying on technology, laws and
institutions to meet the aspirations of people, communities and entire peoples, but
should not exclude the religious dimension, with its powerful spiritual force and the
promotion of the human person. Recognizing the transcendent value of every man and
every woman is the first step to encourage that change of heart that can sustain the
commitment to eradicate poverty, hunger and poverty in all its forms.

Benedict XVI, Visit to the Palace of the FAO for the 36th Session of the General Conference
of the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization,

Solidarity and Cooperation

True solidarity, though it begins with the recognition of the equal worth of the takes
place only when I willingly place my life in the service of them (cf. Eph 6, 21). This is
the vertical dimension of solidarity: I am moved to make me less of the other to meet
their needs (cf. Jn 13, 14-15), just as Jesus “humbled himself” to allow men and women
to in his divine life with the Father and the Spirit (cf. Phil 2, 8, Mt 23, 12).

Benedict XVI, Address to participants in the Plenary Assembly
of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences,
May 3, 2008

22

It should be a spirit of solidarity conducive to promoting as those ethical principles do
not “negotiable” for their nature and their role as the foundation of social life. Solidarity
imbued with strong sense of fraternal love leads to appreciate the initiatives of others
to facilitate and cooperate with them.

Benedict XVI, Address to participants in the NGO Forum of Catholic inspiration,
December 1, 2007
*
Peace is a commitment and a way of life which demands that you meet the legitimate
expectations of all, such as access to food, water and energy, medicine and technology,
and the monitoring of climate change. Only then can we build the future of humanity,
the only way to foster the integral development for today and tomorrow. Forging a
particularly happy, Pope Paul VI pointed out 40 years ago, in the encyclical Populorum
Progressio, that “development is the new name of peace.” For that reason, consolidating
peace requires that the macroeconomic results, obtained by several developing
countries in 2007, is supported by effective social policies, and the laying of assistance
commitments by rich countries.

Benedict XVI, Address to the Diplomatic Corps,
January 7, 2008
*
In those countries whose population is majority Christian, the call to share is even more
urgent, since their responsibility toward the many who suffer poverty and
abandonment is even greater. To come to their aid is a duty of justice even prior to
being an act of charity […] If, in accomplishing a good deed, we do not have as our
goal God’s glory and the real well being of our brothers and sisters, looking rather for
a return of personal interest or simply of applause, we place ourselves outside of the
Gospel vision. In today’s world of images, attentive vigilance is required, since this
temptation is great. Almsgiving, according to the Gospel, is not mere philanthropy:
rather it is a concrete expression of charity, a theological virtue that demands interior
conversion to love of God and neighbour.

Benedict XVI, Message for the Lent,
2008
*
The principle of subsidiarity must remain closely linked to the principle of solidarity and vice
versa, since the former without the latter gives way to social privatism, while the latter
without the former gives way to paternalist social assistance that is demeaning to those
in need. This general rule must also be taken broadly into consideration when addressing
issues concerning international development aid […] Aid programmes must increasingly
acquire the characteristics of participation and completion from the grass roots.


23

Perhaps it is necessary to direct aid to more targeted and less generic projects that can
bring about tangible, measurable and empowering change in the daily life-experience
of individuals and families and in the social fabric of the community. Directing aid to
the creation of jobs would fall within this approach. Such effective aid requires multiple
channels of distribution and should reach the basic infrastructure of communities that
is assured not only by governments but also by community-based organizations and
institutions, including those sponsored by faith-groups, such as schools, hospitals and
clinics, community centres, and youth training and recreation programs.

at the Ministerial Segment of the ECOSOC Session of 2007 Fund,

Subsidiarity

Solidarity and subsidiarity can be viewed as complementary. While the former relates
to the mobilization of financial and human resources for development, the latter helps
to identify the most appropriate level of decision-making and intervention. The
principle of subsidiarity can therefore be seen as a cross-cutting criterion for the creation
of the enabling environment to the right to development. It allows the participation of
the beneficiaries of aid in the process of development through the responsible use of
their freedom and talents.

at the 12 Ordinary Session of the United Nations Human Rights Council on the right to development,
th

Geneva, September 22, 2009
*
Subsidiarity is first and foremost a form of assistance to the human person via the
autonomy of intermediate bodies. Such assistance is offered when individuals or
groups are unable to accomplish something on their own, and it is always designed to
achieve their emancipation, because it fosters freedom and participation through
assumption of responsibility. Subsidiarity respects personal dignity by recognizing in
the person a subject who is always capable of giving something to others. By
considering reciprocity as the heart of what it is to be a human being, subsidiarity is the
most effective antidote against any form of all-encompassing welfare state. It is able to
take account both of the manifold articulation of plans —and therefore of the plurality
of subjects— as well as the coordination of those plans. Hence the principle of
subsidiarity is particularly well-suited to managing globalization and directing it
towards authentic human development. In order not to produce a dangerous universal
power of a tyrannical nature, the governance of globalization must be marked by subsidiarity,
articulated into several layers and involving different levels that can work together.
Globalization certainly requires authority, insofar as it poses the problem of a global
common good that needs to be pursued. This authority, however, must be organized

24

in a subsidiary and stratified way, if it is not to infringe upon freedom and if it is to yield
effective results in practice.

*
The principle of subsidiarity must remain closely linked to the principle of solidarity and vice
versa, since the former without the latter gives way to social privatism, while the latter
without the former gives way to paternalist social assistance that is demeaning to those
in need.

*
A society that honours the principle of subsidiarity liberates people from a sense of
despondency and hopelessness, granting them the freedom to engage with one another
in the spheres of commerce, politics and culture (cf. Quadragesimo Anno, 80). When
those responsible for the public good attune themselves to the natural human desire
for self-governance based on subsidiarity, they leave space for individual responsibility
and initiative, but most importantly, they leave space for love (cf. Rom 13:8; Deus Caritas
est, 28).

Benedict XVI, Address to the participants in the 14th Session
of the Pontifical Academy of Social Sciences,
May 3, 2008
*
The principle of subsidiarity requires that governments and large international agencies
ensure solidarity on the national and global levels and between generations.

at the 63 Session of the UN General Assembly on the global financial crisis,
rd


Human Development

In the present social and cultural context, where there is a widespread tendency to
relativize truth, practising charity in truth helps people to understand that adhering to
the values of Christianity is not merely useful but essential for building a good society
and for true integral human development.

*
Truth, and the love which it reveals, cannot be produced: they can only be received as
a gift. Their ultimate source is not, and cannot be, mankind, but only God, who is
himself Truth and Love. This principle is extremely important for society and for

25

development, since neither can be a purely human product; the vocation to
development on the part of individuals and peoples is not based simply on human
choice, but is an intrinsic part of a plan that is prior to us and constitutes for all of us a
duty to be freely accepted. That which is prior to us and constitutes us —subsistent
Love and Truth— shows us what goodness is, and in what our true happiness consists.
It shows us the road to true development.

*
Yet it should be stressed that progress of a merely economic and technological kind is
insufficient. Development needs above all to be true and integral. The mere fact of
emerging from economic backwardness, though positive in itself, does not resolve the
complex issues of human advancement.

*
The imbalance lies both in the cultural and political order and in the spiritual and
moral order. In fact we often consider only the superficial and instrumental causes of
poverty without attending to those harboured within the human heart, like greed and
narrow vision. The problems of development, aid and international cooperation are
sometimes addressed without any real attention to the human element, but as merely
technical questions – limited, that is, to establishing structures, setting up trade
agreements, and allocating funding impersonally. What the fight against poverty
really needs are men and women who live in a profoundly fraternal way and are able
to accompany individuals, families and communities on journeys of authentic human
development.

Benedict XVI, Message for the Celebration of the XLII World Day of Peace,
January 1, 2009
*
The nuclear policy should be considered in the perspective of overall development of
the human being “(Declaration on the Right to Development, 1986, p. 5), which implies
not only material development but, more importantly, the cultural and moral duty to
any person and all peoples. We are all involved in this ambitious and vital, outside and
inside the nuclear industry, as well as in the public and private, both inside and outside
government. Thus, a common commitment to peace and security can lead not only to
equitable distribution of resources of the earth, but above all, building a “social and
international order in which rights and freedoms” of all persons human can fully realize
(Universal Declaration of Human Rights, art. 28).

at the 53 General Conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency,
rd

Vienna, 14-18 September 2009

26

Integral human development presupposes the responsible freedom of the individual and of
peoples: no structure can guarantee this development over and above human
responsibility.

*
Development will never be fully guaranteed through automatic or impersonal forces,
whether they derive from the market or from international politics. Development is
impossible without upright men and women, without financiers and politicians whose
consciences are finely attuned to the requirements of the common good. Both professional
competence and moral consistency are necessary.

*
Projects for integral human development cannot ignore coming generations, but need
to be marked by solidarity and inter-generational justice, while taking into account a variety
of contexts: ecological, juridical, economic, political and cultural.

*
In this last decade, a broad consensus on the commitment to promote the development
was expressed in combating poverty and promoting inclusion and participation of all
people and all social groups. This consensus is also formalized in the Millennium
Declaration of 2000. Development objectives enshrined therein are defined by
reference to specific indicators and goals. Constant monitoring of results is important
to make more humane living conditions for all. Moreover, the interest in obtaining
quantitative or measurable results should not distract our attention and our policies by
obtaining a comprehensive development. Monitoring the Millennium Development
Goals is discovered that it is relatively easy to achieve the goals pursued through
technical measures that require, above all, material resources and organization.
However, the pursuit of objectives and, ultimately, development and social cohesion
requires not only financial, but also the effective involvement of people. The ultimate
purpose and content of development programs should be to give people real
opportunities to shape their lives and be actors for development. What seems missing
in the fight against poverty, inequality and discrimination, is not so much financial
assistance, or economic cooperation and legal assistance, essential as relational
networks and people can share their lives with those who are in situations of poverty
and exclusion, individuals capable of action and presence, whose work is recognized
by local, national and global. [...] The Holy See and the various institutions of the
Church remains committed to this task. Through programs, agencies and
organizations on every continent, who have been forgotten by many in society are
identified and incorporated into the social stream. With this common effort, the lessons
learned from those who are marginalized validate the truth that poverty eradication,

27

full employment and social integration is achieved when the clarity of purpose will
complement efforts of the spirit.

at the 47 Session of the Commission for Social Development
th

of the UN Economic and Social Council,
New York, February 5, 2009
*
Each state is required to pursue the development and the common good of the people
and not the national power, whether economic or military purposes, the essential point
of reference is, in fact, the human person, his dignity and his fundamental rights. This
approach must be stamped on the development and implementation of a new
paradigm of collective security in which each country recognizes the clear limitations
of relying on nuclear weapons for its security. [...] Need to reject the temptation to face
new situations with old systems. We must redefine the priorities and hierarchies of
values by which mobilize resources towards objectives of moral, cultural and economic,
on the basis that development, solidarity and justice are not merely the real name of
peace, lasting peace in time and space.

at the 53 General Conference of the International Atomic Energy Agency,
rd

Vienna, 14-18 September 2009

Rural Development

We must increase the availability of food valuing the industriousness of small farmers
and ensuring market access. The overall increase in agricultural production may,
however, be effective only if it is accompanied by effective distribution of that
production and whether it will be devoted primarily to the satisfaction of basic needs
[...] to rediscover the value of the rural family: it does not only preserve the
transmission from parents to children, systems of cultivation, conservation and
distribution of food, but primarily a way of life, education, culture and religion. Also,
economically, ensure effective and loving attention to the weakest and, under the
principle of subsidiarity, can play a direct role in the chain of distribution and
marketing of agricultural products for use in reducing the costs of intermediation and
promoting small-scale production.

sponsored by FAO,
Rome, 3-5 June 2008
*
We are facing a process of redefining the global cycle of production and marketing of
agricultural products, which urges us to serious reflection on its consequences and

28

what might be new balanced solutions. It is at these levels that we must work to create
a new economy, more attention not only to profit, but, above all, needs and human
relations.

at the 64 Session of the General Assembly, Second Committee on Item 60:
th

“Agricultural Development and Food Security”,
*
One essential condition for increasing production levels, for guaranteeing the identity
of indigenous communities as well as peace and security in the world, is to guarantee
access to land, thereby favouring farm workers and upholding their rights.

October 13, 2008
*
Farming must have access to adequate investments and resources. This topic calls into
question and makes clear that by their nature the goods of creation are limited: they
therefore require responsible attitudes capable of encouraging the sought-after security,
thinking likewise of that of future generations. Thus profound solidarity and farsighted
brotherhood are essential [...] such an intervention may encourage cooperation with a
view to protecting the methods of cultivating the land proper to each region and to
avoiding a heedless use of natural resources. I also hope that this cooperation will
preserve the values proper to the rural world and the fundamental rights of those who
work the land. By setting aside privileges, profit and convenience, it will then be
possible to achieve these objectives for the benefit of the men, women, children, families
and communities that live in the poorest regions of the planet and are the most
vulnerable. Experience shows that even advanced technical solutions lack efficiency if
they do not put the person first and foremost, who comes first and who, in his or her
spiritual and physical dimensions, is the alpha and the omega of all activity.

October 16, 2009

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ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES

Environment

Today the subject of development is also closely related to the duties arising from our
relationship to the natural environment. The environment is God’s gift to everyone, and
in our use of it we have a responsibility towards the poor, towards future generations
and towards humanity as a whole. When nature, including the human being, is viewed
as the result of mere chance or evolutionary determinism, our sense of responsibility
wanes. In nature, the believer recognizes the wonderful result of God’s creative
activity, which we may use responsibly to satisfy our legitimate needs, material or
otherwise, while respecting the intrinsic balance of creation. If this vision is lost, we end
up either considering nature an untouchable taboo or, on the contrary, abusing it.
Neither attitude is consonant with the Christian vision of nature as the fruit of God’s
creation.

Nature expresses a design of love and truth. It is prior to us, and it has been given to us by
God as the setting for our life. Nature speaks to us of the Creator (cf. Rom 1:20) and his
love for humanity. It is destined to be “recapitulated” in Christ at the end of time (cf.
Eph 1:9-10; Col 1:19-20). Thus it too is a “vocation”. Nature is at our disposal not as “a
heap of scattered refuse, but as a gift of the Creator who has given it an inbuilt order,
enabling man to draw from it the principles needed in order “to till it and keep it” (Gen
2:15). But it should also be stressed that it is contrary to authentic development to view
nature as something more important than the human person. This position leads to
attitudes of neo-paganism or a new pantheism —human salvation cannot come from
nature alone, understood in a purely naturalistic sense. This having been said, it is also
necessary to reject the opposite position, which aims at total technical dominion over
nature, because the natural environment is more than raw material to be manipulated
at our pleasure; it is a wondrous work of the Creator containing a “grammar” which
sets forth ends and criteria for its wise use, not its reckless exploitation. Today much
harm is done to development precisely as a result of these distorted notions. Reducing
nature merely to a collection of contingent data ends up doing violence to the
environment and even encouraging activity that fails to respect human nature itself.
Our nature, constituted not only by matter but also by spirit, and as such, endowed
with transcendent meaning and aspirations, is also normative for culture. Human
beings interpret and shape the natural environment through culture, which in turn is
given direction by the responsible use of freedom, in accordance with the dictates of the
moral law. Consequently, projects for integral human development cannot ignore
coming generations, but need to be marked by solidarity and inter-generational justice,
while taking into account a variety of contexts: ecological, juridical, economic, political
and cultural.


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