This presentation explores the intersection of Catholic Social Teaching and Media Literacy Education in Faith Formation. Includes suggestions for film trailers or clips to reinforce themes, references to Pope Francis teachings. Updated 2021

1. CATHOLIC SOCIAL TEACHING
AND MEDIA MINDFULNESS,
MEDIA AWARENESS, MEDIA
LITERACY EDUCATION
Sr. Rose Pacatte, F.S.P., D.Min.
Pauline Center for Media Studies
BeMediaMindful.org
SisterRoseMovies.net

2. T O
C O N T E M P L A T E

3. “POWER IDEAS”
• Humanity is like a river flowing to
eternity. Where is it going?
• To have a dynamic vision of humanity
and history
• St Paul integrated holiness and the
apostolate: Christ lives in me.
• You don’t have to go about worriedly
trying to get rid of the darkness. Just
turn on some light.

4. OBJECTIVES
• To become familiar with Catholic
Social Teaching (CST)
• Sources
• History
• To share information that sheds
light on Church/Papal teaching
• How CST and MLE call for one
another

5. WHAT THIS
PRESENTATION IS
NOT
• Political (or partisan) or aimed at
the politicization of religion for
political purposes.
•
• But it is political in the way Pope
Francis refers to the Greek “polis”
meaning city and “politikos” meaning
citizen. We are citizens of our country
and the world with rights and
responsibilities.

6. OUTLINE
• What is Catholic Social Teaching?
• Historical Context
• Principles
• What did Alberione have to say about
Catholic Social Teaching?
• What does CST mean for the Pauline
Apostolate?

7. CATHOLIC SOCIAL TEACHING IN FILM
The Letters
Entertaining
Angels
Romero Just Mercy
The Florida
Project
The Heart of
Nuba
Blood
Diamond
Bending the
Arc

8. THE LETTERS TRAILER

9. • Bending the Arc trailer

10. BLOOD DIAMOND TRAILER

11. EXERCISE
What is charity?
• Charity is doing good to the person in front of
you
• Meeting the physical needs of the poor and
the vulnerable
• Examples: Mother Teresa, St. Vincent de Paul,
What is social justice?
• Social justice works to change the social
systems that keep people poor and vulnerable.
• Examples: Archbishop Romero, Toniolo,
Gandhi, Sr. Helen Prejean, Dorothy Day, St.
John Bosco

12. •

13. “FOOT” # 1: SOCIAL JUSTICE
• To address the root causes of problems
facing our communities by advocating for
just public policies and helping to change
the social structures that contribute to
suffering and injustice at home and
around the world.
• When we work to foster peace and justice
and work for long- term change in local
and global communities. We also step
with this foot when we support the efforts
of low-income persons to transform their
communities.

14. “FOOT” # 2: CHARITABLE
WORKS
• Action to “attend constantly to man's
sufferings and his needs, including
material needs” (Deus Caritas Est, no.
19).
• And “the simple response to immediate
needs and specific situations: feeding
the hungry, clothing the naked, caring
for and healing the sick, visiting those in
prison, etc.” (no. 31)

15. • We step first with the Social Justice foot
and second with the Charitable Works
foot. Social Justice, or addressing the
root causes of issues that face poor and
vulnerable people, should come first
because,

16. EARLY FATHER OF THE CHURCH
347-407 AD
• “If we love others with charity, then first of
all we are just towards them” (no. 6 Deus
Caritas Est).
• St. John Chrysostom: “The demands of
justice must be satisfied first of all; that
which is already due in justice is not to be
offered as a gift of charity” (CCC, no. 2446).

17. WHAT IS CATHOLIC
SOCIAL TEACHING (CST)?
• CST is the body of doctrine developed
by the Catholic Church on matters of
social justice, involving issues of poverty
and wealth, economics, social
organization and the role of the state.

18. CATHOLIC SOCIAL
TEACHING IS
• A central and essential element of our
faith. Its roots are in the Hebrew
prophets who announced a special love
for the poor and called people to a
covenant of love and justice.

19. CATHOLIC SOCIAL
TEACHING
• Emerges from the truth God has
revealed to us about himself. We
believe in the the triune God whose
nature is communal ….

20. CATHOLIC SOCIAL
TEACHING
• Is based on and inseparable from our
understanding of human life and
dignity…. Every person, from the
moment of conception to natural death
has inherent dignity and a right to life

21. HUMAN DIGNITY
• Human dignity comes from God and
not from any human quality or
accomplishment.

22. PRINCIPLES OF CATHOLIC
SOCIAL TEACHING
• Inherent dignity of the human
person (and work)
• The common good
• Subsidiarity
• Solidarity
• Preferential option for the poor and
vulnerable
• The universal destination
(distribution) of goods
• Care for God’s creation

23. SOURCES FOR CST
• The Natural Law: (rooted in nature not cultural convention)
Paul: When Gentiles observe by nature the prescriptions of the
Law, they show that “the demands of the Law are written in their hearts.”
(Rm 2:14-15)
• Scriptures: Beginning with the Creation account:
“it was good.” Creation of man and woman. The Prophets: justice, the
poor, prophetic critique of wealth; 10 Commandments: God & others;
community

24. SOURCES FOR CST
• Fathers of the Church
• Clement of Alexandria, Augustine, John Chrysostom, Gregory of Nyssa, etc.
E.g., Rather than ownership, stewardship; only if wealth is used for the
benefit of all is private ownership legitimate.
• Papal encyclicals (teaching) from 1740 on

25. HISTORY OF CST
1740 - TODAY
• Pre-Leonine Period: 1740- 1877
• Leonine Period: 1878 – 1958
• Post-Leonine Period: 1959 - Today
Pope Leo XIII 1891

26. AREAS OF CONCERN
& TEACHING
• Religion
• Politics
• Family
• Economics
• Culture (Education, communications,
leisure)

27. THEOLOGY OF GOD
METAPHORS
• Pre-Leonine “Christ the Good Shepherd” (pasture;
Shepherd’s ingathering)
• Leonine “The Father-Creator” (cosmos; unity of creation)
• Post – Leonine “Dialogical Spirit; unmarked path;
dialogic invitation)
All periods:
• The world is God’s and all that is in it; God is everywhere;
everything is from God

28. THEOLOGY OF THE CHURCH
METAPHORS
• Pre-Leonine – The Flock of Christ
• Leonine – The Mystical Body of Christ
• Post –Leonine – The Pilgrim People of God

29. THEOLOGY OF THE HUMAN
PERSON:
CHARACTERIZED BY …
• Pre-Leonine – the person’s shared
territorial community & traditions and
defined by one’s activity and purpose in
the community (Euro-centric)
• Leonine – (more) by common possession
of an optimistic, rational nature
• Post-Leonine –the affective (sense of
solidarity, sense of significance and
empathy) experience and community and
dependent on the reality of human beings
on a dialogic journey and participation in
society

30. AREAS OF CONCERN & TEACHING
• Religion
• Politics
• Family
• Economics
• Culture (Education, communications, leisure)
• YOUTUBE: The Popes and technological communication

31. PRINCIPLES OF CATHOLIC SOCIAL
TEACHING

32. 1) THE INHERENT DIGNITY
OF THE HUMAN
PERSON
• Human persons are of infinite “worth”
• Created in the divine image
• (Gn 1:27).

33. • The human person is “central” to all teachings about justice; the
reason for justice
• The human person is the “center” of all forms and processes of true
communication
Ps. 8, Ps. 103, 24; Cf. Gen. 1, 26; Ps. 8, 6-8; Rom. 2, 15; Cf. Ps. 18,
8-11.

34. AND THE DIGNITY OF
WORK
• The obligation to earn one's bread presumes the right to do
so.
• A society that denies this right cannot be justified, nor can it
attain social peace.
• Work remains a good thing, not only because it is useful
and enjoyable, but also because it expresses and increases
the worker's dignity.
• Through work we not only transform the world, we are
transformed ourselves, becoming "more a human being."

35. 2) THE COMMON
GOOD
• Is the determinant of all economic social organization
• For the benefit of each and every one and of the
community
• Urbanization and work can give rise to "structures of
sin“ that need to be taken down & replaced by
authentic forms of community life.
• The common good embraces the sum total of all those
conditions of social life which enable individuals,
families, and organizations to achieve complete and
effective fulfillment.

36. PARTICIPATION
• …it is the government's role to
guarantee the minimum conditions that
make this social activity possible,
namely, human rights and justice.
• This obligation also falls on individual
citizens as they choose their
representatives and participate in
shaping public opinion.
• (Economic Justice for All)

37. HEALTH CARE IS A RIGHT
NOT A PRIVILEGE
• [The Corona-19 virus is not a political
issue but a public health crisis with the
potential to effect every person on
earth. Political officials are called to use
their offices to safeguard people.]

38. 3) SUBSIDIARITY
(ROLE OF
GOVERNMENT)
• The "principle of subsidiarity" must be
respected:
• "A community of a higher order should not
interfere with the life of a community of a lower
order, taking over its functions."
• In case of need it should, rather, support the
smaller community and help to coordinate its
activity with activities in the rest of society for
the sake of the common good.

39. THE FLINT WATER CRISIS

40. GLOBALIZATION
• Interconnected market place dominated
by multinational corporations (Guided,
collaborative governance brings
development; Pope Joh Paul II)
• Markets (globality) for the good of all
• Consumer goods
• Communication
• Ideas
• Culture

41. 4) SOLIDARITY
• The alternative to globalization based on empathy for others
• (Solidarity) is not a feeling of vague compassion or shallow distress at the
misfortunes of so many people, both near and far.
• On the contrary, it is a firm and persevering determination to commit oneself
to the common good; that is to say, to the good of all and of each individual,
because we are all really responsible for all.
• On Social Concern #38 (Rom 8:21-23).

42. • ENTERTAINING ANGELS CLIP
DOROTHY DAY SAYS: IF WE FEED THE POOR WE
ARE CALLED SAINTS, IF WE ASK WHY THEY ARE
POOR WE ARE CALLED COMMUNISTS

43. 5) UNIVERSAL DESTINATION (OR
DISTRIBUTION)
OF GOODS
• Our responsibilities to each other cross national, racial,
economic and ideological differences.
• Authentic development must be full human development
& respect and promote personal, social, economic, and
political rights, including the rights of nations and of
peoples… It must avoid the extremists of
underdevelopment on the one hand, &
"superdevelopment" on the other.
• Accumulating material goods, and technical resources will
be unsatisfactory and debasing if there is no respect for
the moral, cultural, and spiritual dimensions of the
person.

44. 6) PREFERENTIAL
OPTION FOR THE
POOR
• From the social, economic and cultural vantage point of the
least among us:
"If someone who has the riches of this world sees his brother
in need and closes his heart to him, how does the love of God
abide in him?" (1 Jn 3:17).
• Saint Ambrose: "You are not making a gift of your
possessions to the poor person. You are handing over to him
what is his. For what has been given in common for the use
of all, you have arrogated to yourself. The world is given to
all, and not only to the rich."

45. 7) THE INTEGRITY OF CREATION OUR
COMMON HOME
• Balance between human rights and land
rights (war)
• Respect for creation
• The earth’s welfare is human welfare
• The earth is the womb of humanity

46. QUEEN OF THE SUN: WHAT ARE HONEYBEES
TELLING US
TRAILER

47. DEVELOPMENT OF
PEOPLES
• The Bible, from the first page on, teaches us that the
whole of creation is for humanity, that it is men and
women's responsibility to develop it by intelligent effort
and by means of their labor to perfect it, so to speak, for
their use.
• If the world is made to furnish each individual with the
means of livelihood and the instruments for growth and
progress, all people have therefore the right to find in the
world what is necessary for them. (Development of
Peoples, Paul VI 1967)

48. GIUSPPE TONIOLO: PATRON SAINT FOR
CATHOLIC SOCIAL TEACHING?
YOUTUBE

49. BLESSED JAMES
ALBERIONE, SSP:
• “Today, more than any in time past,
there is the need to study sociology
sufficiently because our lives take place
in a notable way in society; and it is in
society that we must exercise the
apostolate and sanctify relationships.”
(CISP 1062)”

50. “WHAT, THEN, ARE WE TO DO?”
LUKE 3:10
• The history of magisterial/papal teaching
• The development of the doctrine of CST based on Scripture, the early
Church Fathers, Papal teaching
• Catholic Social Teaching
• Integrate CST across all of the Catholic curriculum of life including
entertainment and information media

51. POPE FRANCIS
• We live in a time of human crisis
• The human person is in crisis
• We must go to the outskirts of existence
• Go out to all the world! Go! Preach! And
bear witness to the Gospel!

52. THE CULTURE OF
WASTE & ENCOUNTER
• Culture of conflict
• Culture of waste
• Culture of fragmentation
• A throw-away culture
• The elderly! The children!

53. WHAT WE
HAVE IN
COMMON
Our humanity
“The same God who made you
made me. No one is better than
anyone else.”

54. THE POOR
• We encounter poverty everywhere
• The tramp who dies in the cold is no
longer news
• Children who do not have food is no
longer news
• We cannot become starched Christians,
those over-educated Christians who speak
of theological matters as we calmly sip our
tea!
• We must go in search of the poor

55. BECAUSE THE POOR
ARE THE VERY
FLESH OF CHRIST.

56. WHAT, THEN,
ARE WE TO
DO?

57. MEDIA AWARENESS-MINDFULNESS-
EDUCATION FOR SOCIAL CHANGE
FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE
CALL FOR ONE ANOTHER
• What’s going on? What’s the story?
• What’s really going on? In whose interest has this been made?
• What gains and who pains? Who’s in and who’s out? Who is missing?
• Does it make a difference?
• How can I make a difference?

58. M E D I A
A W A R E N E S S
F O R S O C I A L
C H A N G E
• JUST MERCY TRAILER

59. M E D I A
A W A R E N E S S
F O R S O C I A L
C H A N G E
• BECHTEL TEST FOR WOMEN IN FILM -
YOUTUBE

60. MLE FOR
SOCIAL
CHANGE
• THE HEART OF NUBA - TRAILER

61. FRATELLI TUTTI, 2020
I invite everyone to renewed hope, for hope “speaks to
us of something deeply rooted in every human heart,
independently of our circumstances and historical
conditioning. Hope speaks to us of a thirst, an
aspiration, a longing for a life of fulfillment, a desire to
achieve great things, things that fill our heart and lift
our spirit to lofty realities like truth, goodness and
beauty, justice and love… Hope is bold; it can look
beyond personal convenience, the petty securities and
compensations which limit our horizon, and it can open
us up to grand ideals that make life more beautiful and
worthwhile”. Let us continue, then, to advance along
the paths of hope. – POPE FRANCIS
•

62. WHAT,
THEN, ARE
WE TO
DO?

63. RESOURCES
This Economy Kills: Pope Francis on
Capitalism and Social Justice,
Andrea Tornielli and Giacomo
Galeazzi, Liturgical Press, 2016
That They May Be One: The Social
Teaching of the Papal Encyclicals
1740-1989, Michael J. Schuck,
Georgetown University Press, 1991
Compendium of the Social
Doctrine of the Church, Vatican
Press, USCCB, 2002
Modern Catholic Social Teaching:
Commentaries and Interpretations,
Ed. K. B. Himes, OFM, Georgetown
U. Press, 2004
Pope Francis Gaudium et Spes, Vatican II
Social Analysis for the 21st Century,
Maria Cimperman

64. HOW CAN WE HELP
RELIEVE SUFFERING IN
THE WORLD TODAY?